The Spirit of Vengeance & Bronze Age Horror
January 14, 2024 5:25 AM Subscribe
From his flaming skull to the hellfire motorcycle, Ghost Rider, aka the Spirit of Vengeance, became a unique symbol of the Bronze Age, embodying the era’s shift towards complex, flawed characters and more mature themes.
Ghost Rider will always be Nic Cage for many who did not read the comics, but Ghost Rider/Johnny Blaze was part of a rogue's gallery of characters that made up Bronze Age Horror at Marvel Comics. Ghost Rider continues to evolve, with a new holder of the mantle just announced. The character's roots lead from the page to the screen, and also from the page to the page.
Marvel's Bronze Age monsters, some adapted from earlier works, some original, have appeared in various media beyond comics, from movies to action figures to appearances on the Power Records label. Blade and Brother Voodoo both appeared in this era, though for many, Blade will always be Wesley Snipes, even if another vampire hunter will rise to claim the stake. This era also saw appearances from a certain immortal blonde woman. These comics were appearing contemporaneously with the magazine-sized monster mags from Warren Publishing. Marvel has been publishing horror comics for some time, before and after the Bronze Age.
Ghost Rider will always be Nic Cage for many who did not read the comics, but Ghost Rider/Johnny Blaze was part of a rogue's gallery of characters that made up Bronze Age Horror at Marvel Comics. Ghost Rider continues to evolve, with a new holder of the mantle just announced. The character's roots lead from the page to the screen, and also from the page to the page.
Marvel's Bronze Age monsters, some adapted from earlier works, some original, have appeared in various media beyond comics, from movies to action figures to appearances on the Power Records label. Blade and Brother Voodoo both appeared in this era, though for many, Blade will always be Wesley Snipes, even if another vampire hunter will rise to claim the stake. This era also saw appearances from a certain immortal blonde woman. These comics were appearing contemporaneously with the magazine-sized monster mags from Warren Publishing. Marvel has been publishing horror comics for some time, before and after the Bronze Age.
Let's not forget Rollins Band's addition to The Crow soundtrack!
posted by knile at 5:55 AM on January 14 [5 favorites]
posted by knile at 5:55 AM on January 14 [5 favorites]
^The amount of times I sing that aloud in my life at random is pretty startling^
posted by Kitteh at 6:04 AM on January 14 [1 favorite]
posted by Kitteh at 6:04 AM on January 14 [1 favorite]
Thank you, thank you, thank you for the Ghost Rider stuff, for the Longbox, and for Wuh-Whack!
It's just horrible goodness all the way down.
posted by chavenet at 6:14 AM on January 14 [1 favorite]
It's just horrible goodness all the way down.
posted by chavenet at 6:14 AM on January 14 [1 favorite]
Aw. He cuts off right when GR is at its most interesting, in the Fleisher/Perlin era. Michael Fleisher was a real original, a uniquely weird voice whose nihilistic horror bent produced comics unlike anything else in the mainstream. Perlin is not to all tastes, but at his best, he produced moody, atmospheric work that you can soak in. (His work on The Defenders, inked by Marvel legend Joe Sinnott, looks more polished; his GR work, by design or editorial indifference, tends to be rougher and dirtier, a fine fit for the scripts.)
posted by kittens for breakfast at 6:21 AM on January 14 [1 favorite]
posted by kittens for breakfast at 6:21 AM on January 14 [1 favorite]
And let's not forget that Tony Isabella had a canonical Jesus Christ for Ghost Rider to be friends and crime-fighting companions with, until Marvel EiC Jim Shooter got cold feet and made "A Friend" an illusion created by Mephisto.
posted by Shepherd at 6:34 AM on January 14 [9 favorites]
posted by Shepherd at 6:34 AM on January 14 [9 favorites]
Sidebar about GR, or at least about one writer for the series:
Len Kaminski was a Marvel writer in the early-mid 1990s, and in particular he wrote the Ghost Rider "2099" series. I briefly knew him then (through friends) and have even written about a tale or two in here (if you do a search in my comments for the phrase "Plumbers for Criswell" you'll find one).
...Len is NOT doing well these days. He has mental health issues, and suffered an accident in 2022; his being on a fixed income and having botched physical therapy has him confined to a wheelchair, and those issues compounded have him trapped in a state-run "care home" in Staten Island, one that is doing little more than taking all his money.
There's a GoFundMe for him, but what he really needs is an advocate who can work with him to navigate the system that would get him out of where he is and into a safer place. I did actually connect him with one such resource and he has a case open with them, but they're so backed up that it could be a full year before they find him a safe new home.
He's been getting money, and that's good, but what he needs is a Ghost Rider type of guy himself, if anyone out there in NYC knows someone.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 6:38 AM on January 14 [12 favorites]
Len Kaminski was a Marvel writer in the early-mid 1990s, and in particular he wrote the Ghost Rider "2099" series. I briefly knew him then (through friends) and have even written about a tale or two in here (if you do a search in my comments for the phrase "Plumbers for Criswell" you'll find one).
...Len is NOT doing well these days. He has mental health issues, and suffered an accident in 2022; his being on a fixed income and having botched physical therapy has him confined to a wheelchair, and those issues compounded have him trapped in a state-run "care home" in Staten Island, one that is doing little more than taking all his money.
There's a GoFundMe for him, but what he really needs is an advocate who can work with him to navigate the system that would get him out of where he is and into a safer place. I did actually connect him with one such resource and he has a case open with them, but they're so backed up that it could be a full year before they find him a safe new home.
He's been getting money, and that's good, but what he needs is a Ghost Rider type of guy himself, if anyone out there in NYC knows someone.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 6:38 AM on January 14 [12 favorites]
From his flaming skull to the hellfire motorcycle, Ghost Rider, aka the Spirit of Vengeance, became a unique symbol of the Bronze Age
His motorcycle is more impressive given it predates the invention of iron smelting
posted by leotrotsky at 9:03 AM on January 14 [14 favorites]
His motorcycle is more impressive given it predates the invention of iron smelting
posted by leotrotsky at 9:03 AM on January 14 [14 favorites]
It would really be something if these companies that have made a fortune from the work of artists and writers felt even remotely compelled to provide them with retirement funds, to say nothing of even a sliver of what they've actually earned.
posted by kittens for breakfast at 9:09 AM on January 14 [5 favorites]
posted by kittens for breakfast at 9:09 AM on January 14 [5 favorites]
>> Let's not forget Rollins Band's addition to The Crow soundtrack!
Worth noting that this is a cover of the (much better IMHO) 1977 original Ghost Rider by Suicide.
posted by jeremias at 9:13 AM on January 14 [5 favorites]
Worth noting that this is a cover of the (much better IMHO) 1977 original Ghost Rider by Suicide.
posted by jeremias at 9:13 AM on January 14 [5 favorites]
His motorcycle is more impressive given it predates the invention of iron smelting
"How do we know he didn't invent the thing?" -- Montgomery Scott
posted by Naberius at 11:00 AM on January 14 [1 favorite]
"How do we know he didn't invent the thing?" -- Montgomery Scott
posted by Naberius at 11:00 AM on January 14 [1 favorite]
Ghost Rider will always be Nic Cage for many who did not read the comics,
Gabriel Luna was amazing as Roberto Reyes in Agents of SHIELD's 4th season.
See Also: Ghost Rider (Robbie Reyes) First Appearance // Intro Scene | Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (4x1) [HD]
posted by mikelieman at 12:48 PM on January 14 [3 favorites]
Gabriel Luna was amazing as Roberto Reyes in Agents of SHIELD's 4th season.
See Also: Ghost Rider (Robbie Reyes) First Appearance // Intro Scene | Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (4x1) [HD]
posted by mikelieman at 12:48 PM on January 14 [3 favorites]
I know chances are good that the Residents came up with their Eyeball masks on their own, but I never could help but notice how Ghost Rider's similarly-Eyeballed villain The Orb (seen in the original link) predated the Residents' Eyeball masks by a good six years or so.
posted by gtrwolf at 2:51 PM on January 14
posted by gtrwolf at 2:51 PM on January 14
Cool post! Thanks for posting! :-)
I was born in the late 70s and so came of age with 90s Ghost Rider, who is “mid,” as the kids say. Been meaning to pick up some early Ghost Riders—sweet cover art throughout that run.
posted by Don.Kinsayder at 7:42 PM on January 14 [1 favorite]
I was born in the late 70s and so came of age with 90s Ghost Rider, who is “mid,” as the kids say. Been meaning to pick up some early Ghost Riders—sweet cover art throughout that run.
posted by Don.Kinsayder at 7:42 PM on January 14 [1 favorite]
In the late 80s and early 90s, it was still possible to pick up bunches of old, worn out comics for cheap. The less popular 70s Marvel titles like Ghost Rider and the Defenders really filled out my collection. So Johnny Blaze will always be my Ghost Rider.
I always had a soft spot for Daimon Hellstrom, the Son of Satan. Minus the mini-trident years. He keeps ping-ponging between hero and villain these last few decades.
Oh, and of course Giant-Size Man-Thing.
posted by LostInUbe at 4:34 AM on January 15 [1 favorite]
I always had a soft spot for Daimon Hellstrom, the Son of Satan. Minus the mini-trident years. He keeps ping-ponging between hero and villain these last few decades.
Oh, and of course Giant-Size Man-Thing.
posted by LostInUbe at 4:34 AM on January 15 [1 favorite]
LostInUbe, I did the same with bunches of like titles into the '00s via eBay. Not pennies per issue, but cheap. Gone are those days, though. Last time I took a look, individual issues were selling for what I once paid for lots of 10-20.
I will always love Man-Thing. And in fact, I have a print of a Bob Eggleton drawing of "Ted" staring at me from one corner of my office.
posted by cupcakeninja at 5:02 AM on January 15 [1 favorite]
I will always love Man-Thing. And in fact, I have a print of a Bob Eggleton drawing of "Ted" staring at me from one corner of my office.
posted by cupcakeninja at 5:02 AM on January 15 [1 favorite]
Ghost Rider commands my personal favorite superpower, the Penance Stare,
Which makes the object of it experience all the pain they’ve inflicted upon others.
After I am granted this power I will start attending political rallies and shareholder meetings.
posted by bq at 6:06 PM on January 15 [2 favorites]
Which makes the object of it experience all the pain they’ve inflicted upon others.
After I am granted this power I will start attending political rallies and shareholder meetings.
posted by bq at 6:06 PM on January 15 [2 favorites]
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posted by cupcakeninja at 5:32 AM on January 14 [2 favorites]