Ghost Rider Creators Tease Future of Series

Now a year into the latest Ghost Rider series, Benjamin Percy and Cory Smith are revving up their bikes for the long haul. In a new long-ranging interview on the Marvel website, the creators behind the hit series teased some of what readers can expect to see in the coming months on the title. Namely, those keeping up with the comic will see the return of an iconic antagonist of the Spirit of Vengeance.

“Everything in Ghost Rider is always Mephisto, Mephisto, Mephisto. Readers get numb to it. I felt the same way about Sabretooth in Wolverine: he’s the big bad and creators always rush the clash between the two. So in that title, we took Sabretooth off the table completely by tossing him in the pit of Krakoa,” Percy told the House of Ideas. “The idea was, to build up his off-stage mythology, so that when Wolverine and he finally duked it out, it would be especially meaningful. What have I done in the meantime? Built up other baddies who don’t see the spotlight as much, like Omega Red and Mikhail Rasputin.”

He added, “We’re doing something similar in Ghost Rider. Of course Johnny will eventually battle Mephisto, but let’s give some other nasties a turn! When I read Brisson’s run, I felt like Blackheart naturally would have been deeply covetous of Johnny’s time as the king of Hell, so he’d be aiming to take Blaze off his throne and toss him in the dungeon, so to speak.Where’s Ghost Rider heading in his latest story?”

When exactly Mephisto returns has yet to be seen, though Johnny Blaze already will have his hands full dealing with the return of a classic Ghost Rider character next month.

“We’re building the mythology back up bit by bit,” Percy added. “If you’ve checked out the solicits, you already know that Danny Ketch is speeding toward Johnny Blaze in the side mirror. There’s a lot of mayhem waiting at the next exit ramp.”

Ghost Rider #11 is set for release on February 8th.

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