Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Hellhunters #1 and Thunderbolts: Doomstrike #2! Ghost Rider is probably Marvel Comics' most legacy character, as many people hold the title of Spirit of Vengeance, and they all offer something new and interesting to the character's broader lore. Johnny Blaze, Danny Ketch and Robbie Reyes are the most popular incarnations of Ghost Rider, but they are far from the only ones. And now, a new Ghost Rider has just arrived on the scene, and his story has been revealed ahead of his release. Rays debut.
In Hell Hunters #1, by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and Adam Gorham, readers are thrown into Russia in December 1943, where a troop of seriously wounded Nazi soldiers fights for survival. The Russian soldiers don't even bother chasing them deep into the forest, as the Nazis are dead men anyway. That is, until they stumble upon a horrible demon chained to a post, desperately clinging to the mutilated animal it possessed to remain on Earth. This demon makes a deal with the Nazis, offering them immortality if they agree to be his collective host - and they accept.
Six months later, demon-possessed Nazis shoot down an American plane, where Sergeant Sal Romero is sitting with his fellow soldiers, preparing for battle. The aircraft crashes and everyone on the plane dies except Romero. The demon notices him and decides to kill Romero himself, but it doesn't stick. Romero's lifeless corpse is awakened by the Spirit of Vengeance, who offers Sal another chance at life as Ghost Rider, with his first mission being to kill the demon-possessed Nazis. Romero accepts and with that Ghost Rider '44 is born.
Ghost Rider '44 has a more challenging mission ahead in the present day
Ghost Rider '44 will try to take down Doctor Doom in Lightning: Doomstrike
Sal Romero, aka Ghost Rider, is working to kill demon-possessed Nazis in Hellhunters (alongside Wolverine, Bucky Barnes, and the Howling Commandos), but he has another, much more challenging mission ahead of him in an entirely new comic series. different. Lightning: Doomstrike will feature an entirely new Thunderbolts team, and their only mission is to take down Doctor Doom now that Victor has conquered the world as the new Sorcerer Supreme. And in Lightning: Doomstrike #2, Ghost Rider '44 will be part of the Thunderbolts lineup.
What's interesting is that Lightning: Doomstrike will be a sequel of sorts to Hellhunters, as the person putting together the new Thunderbolts team is the Winter Soldier, aka Bucky Barnes, who has known Ghost Rider since the time they fought together during World War II in Hell Hunters. Although fans haven't seen them interact yet Hell HuntersIt will be fascinating to see the dynamic between Ghost Rider and Bucky as the series progresses, answering the questions of how and why Bucky recruits Ghost Rider '44 into the Thunderbolts before the first issue of Thunderbots: Doomstrike reaches the shelves.
Hellhunters and Thunderbolts have a chance to answer one of Marvel's most pressing questions
Ghost Rider '44's first appearance presented a mystery that Marvel has yet to elaborate on
Sal Romero's Ghost Rider premiered in The Incredible Hulk Vol. 4, where he fought and ended up teaming up with the Hulk for one reason: to protect a little boy named Leo. Ghost Rider admits to the Hulk that Leo is the most important person in the universe, and that if something happens to him, all of reality will fall apart. After that, fans never saw Ghost Rider '44 or Leo again. But, now that Ghost Rider '44 is appearing in two separate series (one of which is set in the present day), Marvel can finally elaborate on this massive drop in lore.
This new Ghost Rider's origin story is as interesting as it is brutal, but the most fascinating aspect of the character is what his origin story establishes. Ghost Rider '44 will have to kill a cruel demon before joining the Rays and challenging arguably the most powerful person on Earth, Doctor Doom, while remaining true to his mission in The Incredible Hulk: protecting Lion. In other words, fans are in for an epic journey as Marvel Comics continues the story of this new Ghost Rider.
Marvel Comics' Lightning: Doomstrike #2 is available on March 26, 2025, Hellhunters #1 is available now.