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Update: Writer Benjamin Percy and artist Cory Smith's Ghost Rider relaunch starring Johnny Blaze celebrating the character's 50th anniversary has a trailer (see above).
Check out the trailer above and look for more information below.
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Following promises of "a year of Vengeance" in 2022, Marvel Comics has unveiled new details of the publisher's previously announced revival of a new Ghost Rider ongoing title in 2022. We now know that the new Ghost Rider title will be written by Wolverine and X-Force writer Benjamin Percy, with art from Cory Smith.
In terms of the new Ghost Rider title's plot, Percy promises "the ultimate in road horror," leaning into Ghost Rider's creepy roots while also embracing the idea of adding to the character's storied mythos with new ideas and concepts.
Focusing on the classic Ghost Rider, Johnny Blaze, the new title apparently sets him up with a new civilian identity, and some horrific twists on his usual Ghost Rider alter ego. In the new title, Johnny is a mechanic living in a small town with a wife and kids with a dark secret hiding inside him - the Spirit of Vengeance.
It's not clear exactly how Johnny will wind up in his new status quo, as last we saw him he was active as Ghost Rider after relinquishing the throne of Hell back to Mephisto. However, Percy states that fans will get everything they love about Marvel's "most heavy metal" hero.
"I'm a horror head. I grew up reading Stephen King, watching John Carpenter, and listening to Black Sabbath, and when it came to comics, I always reached first for the dark and weird which means I read a hell of a lot of Ghost Rider," Percy states in the Ghost Rider announcement.
"That flaming skull. That spiked leather jacket. That monstrous bike coughing out clouds of sulfurous exhaust. To this day, the sight of the character blazing along a midnight highway makes my heart rev like a four-stroke engine."
And for Percy, the joy of digging into his own horror-fueled comic book past is a major part of the fun of taking on Ghost Rider, especially as the character celebrates 50 years in the Marvel Universe in 2022.
"Ghost Rider is arguably the best designed, but inarguably, the most heavy metal character in all of comics. It would be badass to write this series at any point in my life, but launching on the 50th anniversary feels especially (un)holy," Percy explains. "Cory Smith is killing it on art, and we're going to honor the past while burning rubber into a terrifying future packed with mystery, action, and shadow-soaked emotion. Prepare yourself for the ultimate in road horror."
Ghost Rider #1 goes on sale sometime in February 2022, though Marvel has not yet given a specific date for the release. Stay tuned to Newsarama for Marvel's full February 2022 solicitations, arriving in November.
Ghost Rider is one of the best supernatural superheroes of all time.
