An Underrated Marvel Icon Is Behind Ghost Rider’s New Nightmare

One of Marvel's most tragic characters is back as the newest demon to torment the Spirits of Vengeance.

Spirits of Vengeance #6 marks the culmination of the search for answers regarding the true identity of the Spirit of Violence that has been terrorizing the families and loved ones of the various Ghost Riders who walk the Earth. While everyone from Michael Badalino to Robbie Reyes and Fantasma are busy dealing with a rogue Trickster God in the form of Loki, Johnny Blaze and Danny Ketch are finally taking the opportunity to catch up with one another after months of near non-stop fighting. Unfortunately, this family reunion isn't a pleasant one, as Johnny has come bearing the news that he and Danny's very own sister, Barbara, is back from the dead, and she is the one who took up the mantle of the Spirit of Violence.

Spirits of Vengeance #6

• Written by SABIR PIRZADA
• Art by PAUL DAVIDSON, SEAN DAMIEN HILL & JOSÉ LUIS SOARES
• Inks by PAUL DAVIDSON, JONAS TRINDADE, JAY LEISTEN, SCOTT HANNA & JOHN LIVESAY
• Colors by ANDREW DALHOUSE & MATTHEW MILLA
• Letters by VC's TRAVIS LANHAM
• Design by CARLOS LAO
• Main cover art by ROD REIS
• Variant cover art by E.M. GIST

The mantle of Ghost Rider has been a part of the overarching Marvel mythos since Johnny Blaze was first introduced under that moniker in the pages of 1972's Marvel Spotlight #5 by Gary Friedrich and Mike Ploog. The son of the late motorcycle stuntman Barton Blaze, Johnny followed in his father's footsteps alongside longtime family friend turned surrogate father, Crash Simpson. When Simpson was diagnosed with a terminal illness, Johnny bartered his humanity away to Mephisto, becoming bonded to the demon Zarathos, itself a Spirit of Vengeance, and embarked upon a career as the world's foremost infernal antihero.

Although Johnny spent decades believing himself to be an only child, he in fact had two siblings who were put up for adoption by his parents without his knowledge. These secret siblings, Danny and Barbara Ketch, made their debut in 1990's Ghost Rider #1 by Howard Mackie and Javier Saltares. During a late night Halloween stroll in their teenage years, the pair stumbled into the middle of a confrontation between the forces of the Kingpin of Crime, Wilson Fisk, and an opposing gang led by the demonic Deathwatch. Shortly after Barbara was shot by an errant arrow, Danny encountered the mysterious motorcycle that would give him the chance to fight back as the then latest Ghost Rider.

While Barbara Ketch survived her encounter with the likes of the Kingpin and Deathwatch, she ended up being hospitalized due to the severity of her injuries. Between this and the comatose state she fell into shortly after being shot, Barbara had no idea that her brother had become an infernal antihero unto himself. This only made it that much more tragic when Barbara was murdered by the villainous Blackout only six issues after she was introduced, all before she even got to set foot outside her hospital room. To make matters worse, the Spirit of Violence chose Barbara to resurrect as its host shortly after the events of Marvel Comics' Blood Hunt, setting her up for an even more heartbreaking return than what she experienced in death.

Spirits of Vengeance #6 is on sale now from Marvel Comics.

Source: Marvel Comics