"Hell On Wheels"- Robbie Reyes (The Ghost Rider) Appreciation

[J. D. Guy]

I wonder how Robbie's killing urge is going to work out with his interaction with other Marvel Universe characters? Most won't know or be told why he has that problem, and it's likely gonna be a super sore spot once it gets to an egregious degree.

[darewithpeace]

good for him for the exposure

[darewithpeace]

i want his jacket so bad

[J. D. Guy]

So, Marvel Infinite Comics has a currently digital-only Ghost Rider comic mini-series (like how Daredevil/Punisher - Seventh Circle was released early this year). Has anyone had the chance to read it?

[darewithpeace]

i havent but i want too

[J. D. Guy]

I managed to read it, and it was a cute little one-shot story.

[darewithpeace]

how is the comic going

[J. D. Guy]

how is the comic going

Pretty good so far.

Gonna put this in spoilers just in case, though the first 2 issues are out already.

spoilers:

The main story in the first issue is one part re-acquaintance, and basic introduction for any newcomers, to Robbie and his life and one part set-up for Robbie and Amadeus's, and also Laura's, meeting. On Robbie's side, we basically pick-up where the last issue left off, albeit that Gabe doesn't seem to really recall what happened to him under Eli's influence. Of note, Gabe's been spending a lot of time with his bro at the car repair shop he works at, and is already becoming a mini-savant learning what Robbie teaches him about car and engine parts while doing so. It's done in a fun way, and Gabe and Robbie's interaction is beyond sweet and adorable, as per usual. Robbie also asks if Gabe might be interested in really working on cars, and though that might be a tad more serious than what Gabe is ready for, Gabe seemed receptive to the idea. Of course, the neighborhood doesn't allow sweetness to last forever, also per usual, and one Gabe-convinced ice-cream stop later, the brothers are stopped from approaching their driveway by a moving truck and a thug blocking the middle of the street. The thug is a thug and forces Robbie to go around the block. Eli wants to run him over, also as per usual. Later that evening, Robbie leaves Gabe in charge of himself ('nother sweet bro moment) while he "runs back to the garage". He, of course, takes off after the goony thug, making unfortunately empty threats at Eli's derogatories towards Gabe. In a 2-page spread, Robbie Ghost Rider's himself and his car up, approaches the thugs truck, and with nary a word, takes a hail of gunfire before melting through his truck (which is never not visually awesome) and subdues the driver and thug. Of note, it doesn't appear he killed either, but he does free the cargo in the back, who were a kidnapped family. One, the father presumably, even calls him him "La Leyenda", "The Legend of Hillrock Heights." Nice to know that Robbie's feats of heroism have become a local legend. Meanwhile, Amadeus is at an archaeological find in Santa Monica. It's a weird purple "sorta-symbiote but with different mechanics" that voraciously envelops a test mouse and makes it look derpy (don't know how else to describe it, honest!). Cho deals with monsters, and so he volunteers to take care of it, but only manages to "play" with it as it touches/scratches and seemingly takes on the DNA of a beetle and later Cho-Hulk himself, after biting his vulnerable tongue (long story in and of itself). The derpy Hulk-Rat give Amadeus a bit of a run for his money, before escaping being subdued by molting into a beetle/lizard looking shape (but still derpy) and burrowing under ground. Later, Robbie and Gabe (and some flirty teenage girls) hang at a famous taco truck, blissfully unaware of the news from Santa Monica. Speaking of hidden plot points, and I missed this at first, but Laura Kinney and Gabby (not familiar with the latter, as I don't follow Laura's Wolverine solo) show up as the bros leave, and Laura notices the derpy mouse stinking up the place from a nearby sewer grate before deciding to do something about it.

end of spoilers

The back-up story follows a different plot. A bit of fun one-and-done.

spoilers:

A muscular fitness trainer lady named Rhonda Rubens somewhat randomly shows up at Robbie's place of work (getting her car repaired, but still), complimenting him but saying he needs to work out more 'cause he's too skinny. Yeah. Is that what they call "meta" or self-referential or something? (N.ever mind that this back-up alone more than once shows just how cut a physique Robbie really has.) Robbie is skeptical and clueless at the goings-on. By the way, since when did that rinky-dink auto body shop have other people working there? But it does, apparently, and all the better to gawk at the apparently famous fitness guru. Speaking of gawking, she double takes at Robbie's car. In fact, she kinda fangasms over the thing. Oh, and she's a thief, too. She comes for the car at night, only to "activate" the Ghost Rider and be made to flee. Robbie and Eli try to get her, but she's seemingly too fast. Specifically, she can slow down time around her, so Pyston Nitro and her skateboard is the fastest thing around. Even going through a portal straight to her isn't enough, and she eventually gets away. We end with a dumbfounded but amused Robbie back in bed, staring at Rhonda's business card, while Rhonda likes a posted picture of Robbie and his car taken at the shop. Just a fun little sojourn all around. Likely not the last we see of her, I'd wager. Also, there's a cute easter egg that shows that Felipe and Tradd like the pic that Rhonda does.

end of spoilers

That's the first issue. I'll come back with another post for the second.

[Digifiend]

spoilers:

Gabby (not familiar with the latter, as I don't follow Laura's Wolverine solo)

end of spoilers

spoilers:

Gabby is Laura's clone, a younger sister who she's now raising. She has one claw in each hand and a healing factor, the healing being jump started when Old Man Logan killed her during Civil War II. Gabby is actually the youngest of 10 clones, but eight of the others are dead (they were failures that didn't have Wolverine's powers) and the ninth has been brainwashed and is working for the bad guys.

end of spoilers

[J. D. Guy]

spoilers:

Gabby is Laura's clone, a younger sister who she's now raising. She has one claw in each hand and a healing factor, the healing being jump started when Old Man Logan killed her during Civil War II. Gabby is actually the youngest of 10 clones, but eight of the others are dead (they were failures that didn't have Wolverine's powers) and the ninth has been brainwashed and is working for the bad guys.

end of spoilers

spoilers:

Thanks. That explains why they are together, then. Makes me wonder if Felipe intends to have her bond with Gabe at some point.

end of spoilers

[darewithpeace]

thanks for that

[El_Gato]

A collage I did of Robbie Reyes aka Ghost Rider! I think it came out pretty cool! I would love it if Gabriel's Robbie Reyes made the jump to the big screen; )

[Shinglepants]

I really enjoyed the back up in the first issue, was great to have Tradd Moore back. Then in issue #2 there was no back up feature, I thought there was supposed to be one in every issue, am I mistaken?

[J. D. Guy]

I really enjoyed the back up in the first issue, was great to have Tradd Moore back. Then in issue #2 there was no back up feature, I thought there was supposed to be one in every issue, am I mistaken?

I originally thought so as well, but I can't remember from where. I'm now thinking it was just a misinterpretation.

[Danileriver23]

Am I the only person super frustrated with this new book?

It's not that I have a problem with Robbie Reyes - quite the opposite actually. I absolutely love reyes and he became my favorite ghost rider immediately. His original 12 issue solo was such a great introduction to the character with a couple of missteps but still a solid entry point.

fast forward to his new book, and now we get one page or spread of ghost rider per book, a couple of pages of him and his brother at the shop...and the rest is Hulk and Wolverine? Wtf? Why are these other 2 characters getting more screen time than the guy on the cover? I mean I get its supposed to be an homage to that time the original spiderman hulk wolverine and ghost rider got together as the fantastic four, but that's something you do in a second or third story.

Imagine a reader who saw Robbie Reyes on the show and wanted to read about him and then they pick up his book only to find douche hulk spitting out one liner fighting a giant hulk monster. I get that Marvel wants to integrate him in the larger MU but you think they could've done it with more grace than forcing 3 other heroes into LA to fight a monster.

I'm sticking with the series because Robbie's my boy, but I'm worried marvel may have cut this book off at the knees before I got a proper chance to start.