Ghost Rider has generated more origin stories than your neighbor’s cat has pumped out kittens. GHOST RIDER: THE ROAD TO DAMNATION is among the latest, and since it’s written by PREACHER’s Garth Ennis, it’s worth a look. The art by Clayton Crain will knock you back on your heels as well, with its Bruegel-esque visions of hell splashed across the pages in fiery oranges and reds.

Ennis’ version of Ghost Rider’s birth and fate doesn’t add anything startling to what we’ve already been told: Johnny Blaze, a stunt motorcycle rider, trades his soul in exchange for the extended life of a dying pal. The deal remains the same even if the identity of the one to be saved differs from telling to telling. Blaze then becomes the Ghost Rider.

In this version, he tries to escape hell every night, only to be stopped at the gates and torn to pieces. He then spends the next day reassembling himself, only to begin anew his Promethean struggle at night. But here he’s promised by an angel – and if you know Ennis’ earlier work, you know that angels can never be trusted – that he will be released from this curse if he forces the return to hell of a demon who has managed to escape.

That’s really all there is to the narrative. The book’s interest lies in the potshots Ennis takes at religion, the world and the afterlife. He has never been a respecter of sensibilities, although he seems to have mellowed a little since his journeys with Jesse Custer.

Most dazzling is Crain’s digital artwork. So brilliant is it, you can see the flames of hell moving. Or you think you can. My only complaint is that many of the panels are so dark, I couldn’t tell who’s doing what to whom. You know how annoyed you get when you watch a CG movie and the action is darkened so you won’t notice flaws in the graphics? That’s the feeling you get in part from this book.

I bought the book mainly because Ennis’ name was on it, and I’m not exactly disappointed in it, but I was expecting more. I get the impression that Ennis was hired for this job more because of what he’d done in the past and less for what it was believed his unique contribution could be to the present. –Doug Bentin

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OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS SERIES:
• ESSENTIAL GHOST RIDER: VOL. 1