Cosmic Ghost Rider is back and Dennis “Hopeless” Hallum and Scott Hepburn are bringing the hurt along with him. A character called Cosmic King wants to bring it to Cosmic Ghost Rider (how fitting since they share similar names) but before he can Frank Castle needs to kill a lot of his underlings. Like, a lot a lot. It’s another issue of space killing done right.
While Cosmic Ghost Rider kills he also must stop Cammi Benally from killing anyone since her soul is pure good. It’s an interesting dynamic since Cammi is pretty strong-willed and wants to help. She was a pirate, after all. Hallum figures out a couple of creative ways to get Cosmic Ghost Rider to stop Cammi, which gives the book a circular plot structure that you’ll try to anticipate as the story bounces forward.
It’s not all-out war with Cosmic Ghost Rider and Cammi taking a pit stop at a cosmic diner, which is one of a few scenes that allow the characters to bond. Getting to know Cammi, it’s quite clear it’s going to be very hard to prevent her from killing. Especially with the cliffhanger.
Underwater action.
Credit: Marvel Comics
Hepburn does a great job with all the action in this issue aided by color artist Antonio Fabela. The colors are bright and suit this character (it must be a blast to color), allowing it to come alive as characters are split in half and cosmic rays blast faces off. It’s a face-melting sort of read. The Cosmic King design is quite cool making him appear like he could face off against any threat in the Marvel universe. The size of things is well rendered too. There’s a giant chunk of metal that nearly kills a mother and child at one point that is given the space to really show how close the impact was.
My only gripe is why Cosmic Ghost Rider doesn’t ditch Cammi. It’s explained she’s making his life easier punishing sinners, but if he’s so worried about her soul he should dump her off on a planet of puppies, right? There isn’t quite enough there for their bond to sustain all the times he’s put her in danger. On the flip side, why does she want to stick with Cosmic Ghost Rider? He chains her up for half the book. It’s a convenient relationship.
This is a fun second issue that really leans into the action. Hepburn is showing why crazy action, with many fighters in a single panel, is within his wheelhouse. The colors are vibrant, the action intense, and the flame just as bright in this great Cosmic Ghost Rider series.
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