kagato's All-New Ghost Rider #4 - Engines of Vengeance, Part 4 review

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    Things being to heat up for Robbie

    Good

    All New Ghost Rider has been hurtling along at break neck speed since the very first issue and it shows no signs of slowing down here. Following directly on from the previous issue (so not a good jumping on point), Robbie takes the fight directly to Grumpy and things take a turn for the worse when his foe pops a handful of Dr Zabo's pills and transforms into a massive behemoth.

    Tradd Moore's art is extremely stylised, it fits the book well and gives everything a surreal over exaggerated look that almost looks like a fusion of the Japanese Manga style and the classic Western way of pencilling. Val Staple's colours further add to the warped world and almost at odds with the subject matter, gives off an incredibly vibrant colourful world, the pages featuring the Rider himself has fire so bright the reader can almost feel the heat.

    This issue does have a lot of action and I was surprised at the outcome of the battle, writer Felipe Smith has proven over the last four issues that he is going to keep readers guessing with every page turn. We finally get to see a lot of interaction between Robbie and Eli Morrow, the spirit now co-habiting his body. Unlike the previous Ghost Rider there seems to be more of symbiotic relationship between the two although Robbie doe appear to have control the majority of the time. Eli does know how to push Robbie's buttons to coerce him into punishing those committing crimes but on at least one occasion we can see his restraint in action. Despite having the ability to turn into a flaming demon Robbie is definitely shown to be a very caring and warm person, his interactions with his brother Gabe are truly heart warming and like everyone else I'm dreading the day he becomes the target of some ill advised revenge attack.

    Bad

    There are a lot of plot points floating around the book right now and it doesn’t feel that we are really getting any further on any of them, that’s not to say the writer is doing a bad job, just that we are four issues in now and still haven't really seen Eli and Robbie develop very much as a team. That said, I'm sure this will read much better in trade and once the story arc is complete these minor quibbles won't mean much.

    Conclusion

    Considering how much of an old school Ghost Rider fan I am, I am completely taken aback about just how consistently good the series is and continues to be. The new Rider and his spirit show great promise together and the story is definitely heating up. The art and colours make this book a visual treat and its still early enough for new readers to get the previous 3 issues and come along for the ride.

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