Back in 1972, Marvel introduced Johnny Blaze, a gifted daredevil who became the antihero known as Ghost Rider after selling his soul to a demon. The character was a fresh and exciting take on the classic superhero concept and readers quickly embraced him. Ever since his debut, the character has gone on to appear in multiple television series (both animated and live action), video games and has even been the focus of two feature films.
An interesting thing about the antihero is the fact that, while Johnny Blaze could be considered the most popular carrier of the fiery mantle, he isn't the only individual to have wielded the Spirit of Vengeance. Due to the ever-evolving nature of comic books, various writers and artists have explored different incarnations of Ghost Rider. While not all of those versions have achieved mainstream popularity, each one's played an important part in building up the Ghost Rider mythology. Due to the sheer number of Ghost Riders that have popped up throughout the decades, it may be hard to decide who's a better representation of the Spirit of Vengeance. With that in mind, we at CBR thought it'd be appropriate to rank the 16 most prominent versions of the rider:
16 MICHAEL BADILINO
In 1992, Howard Mackie and Ron Wagner introduced a new player into the Ghost Rider mythos: Michael Badilino. As a boy, Michael suffered a terrible tragedy. One day, Michael's father was attacked by Johnny Blaze's Ghost Rider (who was controlled by an evil entity at the time). Badilino Sr. went mad after the attack and he killed his wife, daughter and himself, leaving little Michael alone. Following that tragedy, Michael grew up obsessed with getting revenge on the Ghost Rider for what he did to his family. As an adult, Badilino struck a deal with Mephisto to become a Ghost Rider-like creature known as Vengeance.
Having finally attained the power to achieve his life-long revenge dream, Vengeance went on the hunt for the Ghost Rider.
Following a few run-ins with Danny Ketch, Michael discovered his family's connection to the Spirit of Vengeance lineage, and he decided to drop his vendetta against Ghost Rider to become a hero. Sadly, Michael's tenure as a do-gooder didn't last long. At one point, Badilino was kidnapped by Anton Hellgate, a villain obsessed with obtaining the power of the Ghost Rider. Michael was freed, but the ordeal left him mentally unstable. He eventually lost his mind and killed several of his coworkers as Vengeance. Having realized what he had done, Vengeance took his own life. Aside from his small role in the Ghost Rider universe, Badilino is at the bottom of our list because of all the damage he caused as the Spirit of Vengeance.
15 DEPUTY KOWALSKI
Heroes aren't the only people to have wielded the Ghost Rider power. In 2008, a character named Deputy Kowalski made his debut in the Ghost Rider universe. In his first storyline, Kowalski looked into Highway 18, a road known for its numerous car crashes. His investigation eventually led him to the mysterious Wojciehowicz Funeral Home. To the Deputy's misfortune, the owner of the funeral home, Clayton Wojciehowicz, turned out to be a cannibal who cut off Kowalski's right hand in hopes of making him his next meal. Kowalski ultimately saved himself, but he got embroiled in a confrontation with Ghost Rider after the Spirit of Vengeance tried to kill Wojciehowicz instead of bringing him to justice.
Kowalski ultimately lost the fight, and all he was left with was an unbridled hatred for the Ghost Rider. Some time after that confrontation, Kowalski was approached by the servant of a disgraced angel, who led him to a special shotgun capable of killing Ghost Rider. Kowalski went after Johnny Blaze and he managed to shoot the hero in the chest. This caused a portion of Ghost Rider's power to be transferred into Kowalski, turning the former Deputy into the villain known as Vengeance. While his career as an evil-doer was short, Vengeance proved to be one of Ghost Rider's most powerful and intimidating baddies. Still, despite his remarkable powers and intriguing backstory, it's tough to place him higher on this list given his villainous nature.
14 GHOST RIDER 2099
During the '90s, readers got the chance to explore future versions of their favorite heroes through Marvel's 2099 comic book line. One of the characters to get the futuristic treatment was Ghost Rider, with a series appropriately titled Ghost Rider 2099. Unlike past versions of the character, this Ghost Rider wasn't powered by an ancient demonic force. The story centered around Kenshiro Cochrane, a young and talented hacker with a chip on his shoulder. Aided by his outlaw teammates, Cochrane went on a hacking mission to steal an important piece of information. To their misfortune, their mission was interrupted by a vicious gang who attacked and ultimately murdered them. Kenshiro escaped but he was eventually killed as well.
Right before dying, Cochrane plugged his mind into the internet.
Because of this, he was transferred into a strange virtual world where he was greeted by a group of digital beings. The entities convinced Kenshiro to return to the land of the living to become their champion. Cochrane accepted and his mind was downloaded into a robotic body. Given the body's resemblance to the original Ghost Rider, Kenshiro decided to become the new Spirit of Vengeance. Even though the concept of a future, tech-based Ghost Rider is intriguing, Kenshiro's backstory was quite convoluted and he wasn't as relatable as other hosts of the Spirit of Vengeance, hence, his lower place on our list.
13 SPIRIT OF VENGEANCE
Ghost Rider may be primarily based on Earth, but he isn't above going on the occasional cosmic adventure. In fact, one of the incarnations of the character even became part of the Guardians of the Galaxy for a time. Back in the '90s, Jim Valentino decided to put a fun spin on the Guardians of the Galaxy by exploring a version of the team that existed in the 31st century. One of the characters he chose to put in the superhero group was Ghost Rider. Being from the future, however, this rider was completely different from his past counterparts. This time around, the man behind the fiery skull was Wileaydus Autolycus, a former priest who became disillusioned by his church (the Universal Church of Truth).
Desperate to make a change in the world, Autolycus took the powers of the Ghost Rider and started going by the name "Spirit of Vengeance." Sometime after taking on the Spirit of Vengeance mantle, the hero came across the Guardians of the Galaxy. Initially, Autolycus believed them to be enemies, but he ended up joining the eclectic super team when he discovered they were actually on his side. Having a future Ghost Rider join a new version of the Guardians of the Galaxy is a promising concept. Unfortunately, aside from a few standouts moments spread throughout the Guardians' comics, the Spirit of Vengeance didn't really get much of a chance to shine during his tenure in the space-based team.
12 PHIL COULSON
Phil Coulson made his Marvel Cinematic Universe debut in 2008's Iron Man and he quickly became a fan-favorite. His popularity was such that, following his death in Avengers, Marvel brought him back to life for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. In season four, the show introduced Robbie Reyes' version of the Ghost Rider. The antihero brought an exciting mystical vibe into the series, and he also opened the door for one of the most awesome mashups presented in superhero media yet. Near the end of season four, Coulson and his team ran out of options to defeat their latest big bad, a vicious Life Model Decoy known as Aida.
Desperate to take down the baddie, Coulson made a deal with Ghost Rider to wield the Spirit of Vengeance.
Everyone's favorite agent became the new Ghost Rider and easily defeated Aida with the help of his trusty chain. Following Aida's death, everything seemed to be going well for the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Unfortunately for Coulson, however, pairing himself with a demonic power source cost him dearly. As it turned out, the Spirit of Vengeance burned away the Kree procedure that was used to bring Coulson back to life. While Coulson's tenure as Ghost Rider was brief, watching him as the fiery avenger defeating a villain was exhilarating. Who would have thought we'd ever see that in the MCU?
11 RED HULK
As far as mind-blowing superhero mashups go, there are few that compare to the time the Hulk bonded with the Venom symbiote and the Spirit of Vengeance at the same time. In the 2012 "Circle of Four" storyline, a demon known as Blackheart concocted a plan to make Hell come to life on Earth through a mystical portal. To his dismay, Red Hulk, Agent Venom, X-23 and Alejandra Jones' Ghost Rider got together to take him down. Unfortunately for the heroes, Blackheart proved to be a powerful adversary both physically and mentally. He not only smashed them around as he pleased, he also created a group of super villains with the ability to make the ragtag team of crime-fighters live out their harshest traumas and insecurities.
Having realized that they couldn't beat him alone, Red Hulk bonded with the Venom symbiote and the Spirit of Vengeance. This resulted in a strange (yet awesome) Venom/Ghost Rider/Red Hulk hybrid that managed to go toe-to-toe with Blackheart and eventually defeat him. The unlikely Ghost Rider/Venom/Hulk combination didn't last long, but it left a big impression on readers. Yes, the concept behind the hybrid was outlandish, but it was one of those things that made even the most skeptical fans excited. The hybrid hasn't popped up in the Marvel universe ever since the "Circle of Four" storyline, but let's hope that we get to see it again at some point in the future.
10 ORIGINAL GHOST RIDER
Not many fans know this, but Johnny Blaze wasn't the first individual to carry the Ghost Rider mantle. That honor actually goes to Carter Slade, a character created by Roy Thomas, Dick Ayers and Gary Friedrich back in the '60s, who made his comic book debut in the pages of Ghost Rider #1. In the story (which took place during the 19th century) Slade was an idealistic young man traveling from Ohio to Montana to be a teacher. During his trip, he noticed a band of white men dressed as Native Americans attacking a group of people. Carter went to confront them but he was shot.
Fortunately for him, he was rescued by a real group of Native Americans, who took him to their doctor, Flaming Star.
Shortly after bringing Carter back to life, Flaming Star informed the young man that he was a hero sent by the Great Spirit to combat injustice and protect the weak. Being the righteous man he was, Slade easily embraced his role as a superhero. After outfitting himself with a white costume and finding a proper horse to ride on, he became the Ghost Rider. Carter's origin tale is, without a doubt, one of the most out-there backstories in classic superhero media. However, even with his outlandish nature, it's difficult to not be entertained by the adventures of a cowboy-like superhero riding around the desert protecting innocent people from danger.
9 GHOST SPIDER
Here's an interesting fact about Spider-Man: there are numerous alternate versions of him in the multiverse. As unlikely as it may sound, one of those versions ended up becoming a Ghost Rider. Back in 2011, Marvel published a special, three-part annual centered around Spider-Man, Deadpool and Hulk. The story kicked off with an alternate version of Peter Parker, one who had attained fame and fortune as the greatest superhero in the universe: the Amazing Spider. This Peter travelled across the multiverse with the help of his still-alive Uncle Ben, absorbing the power of other Spider-Men to be able to defend his planet from any potential threat. Eventually, the Amazing Spider transported Marvel's mainstream Peter Parker into his world.
Uncle Ben and Amazing Spider befriended Peter, but they eventually knocked him out and took him to their layer to drain his power. Fortunately, Peter made the Amazing Spider realize that what he was doing was wrong. Uncle Ben tried to kill Peter, but Amazing Spider protected his counterpart and died. After ending up in Hell, the Doctor Strange of that reality brought Amazing Spider back to life and turned him into the Ghost Spider, an arachnid version of the Ghost Rider. Alternate Pete's tenure as the Ghost Spider wasn't explored further, but let's face it, there are few things as awesome as Peter Parker wielding the Spirit of Vengeance.
8 NOBLE KALE
Long before Johnny Blaze carried the Spirit of Vengeance, a man named Noble Kale became one of the first Ghost Riders. Back in the 18th century, Noble was a normal guy living peacefully in his village alongside his family. His life changed when he fell in love with a woman named Magdalena. As their relationship developed, the couple married and eventually welcomed a child. Shortly after the birth of their baby, Magdalena uncovered an unsettling truth: Pastor Kale, Noble Kale's father, was a worshipper of the demon Mephisto. Desperate to keep his secret, Pastor Kale burned Magdalena as a witch. Before dying, the young woman sent a group of spirits to kill the Pastor.
In an effort stay alive, Kale sold his son's soul to Mephisto on the condition that he'd be safe from the human-eating spirits summoned by Magdalena.
Now in possession of Noble Kale's soul, Mephisto turned the young man into Ghost Rider. Before Noble could be taken to hell, though, an angel arrived to save him. Ultimately, an agreement was reached to leave Noble in a limbo-like state, with his spirit cursed to return to life through each generation of his family. Noble has mostly been relegated to being the Spirit of Vengeance powering other human Ghost Riders (most notably Danny Ketch), but his backstory remains one of the most gripping and compelling tales of the Ghost Rider universe.
7 CALEB
Back in 2007, Marvel Comics released Garth Ennis' Trail of Tears, a series centered around Caleb, the Ghost Rider of the 19th Century. The story (which was set shortly after the end of the American Civil War) opened with a Confederate soldier named Travis Parham lying on the battle field, badly injured. As he was dying, Travis was rescued by a former slave named Caleb. Caleb nursed Parham back to health and the two became close friends. Parham eventually healed and set on a new path, but promised Caleb he'd return to visit. Shortly after Travis left, Caleb and his family were attacked by a group of racist criminals. The vicious individuals forced Caleb to watch as they tortured and killed his wife and children.
With his family dead, the men proceeded to kill Caleb. Surprisingly, Caleb returned from the underworld as the new Ghost Rider and alongside his friend, Travis, started to punish all the people that had been involved in the murder of his family. Caleb's version of the Ghost Rider was a man of few words, but his quiet demeanor made him all the more terrifying. This Ghost Rider felt like a powerful force of nature, one who stopped at nothing to accomplish his goals. Caleb's Ghost Rider hasn't played a major role in the Marvel universe since his debut, but the character remains one of the scariest incarnations of the Spirit of Vengeance.
6 ALEJANDRA JONES
Marvel's 2011 "Fear Itself" event marked a turning point for several beloved characters, one of which happened to be Johnny Blaze. In the storyline, Blaze was tricked by a man named Adam to give up the Ghost Rider curse. Feeling desperate to free himself of the Spirit of Vengeance and finally live a normal life, Johnny accepted the deal. The Spirit of Vengeance was then transferred into Alejandra Jones, a young woman who had been trained since childhood to become the next Ghost Rider. Thanks to her training, Alejandra became an incredibly powerful Ghost Rider.
So much so that she was even able to harness abilities that had never been used by previous riders.
Despite her great potential, Jones didn't share the heroic personality of her predecessors and she ultimately lost part of her powers to Johnny Blaze, who realized the mistake he had made in giving up the Ghost Rider curse. While she retained the ability to turn into Ghost Rider, Jones decided to go into hiding, bowing to get revenge on Blaze for taking away her power. Alejandra brought an intriguing psychological dynamic to the Ghost Rider mythology. She wasn't an outright villain, but it was often hard to tell where her allegiances lied. The character hasn't had a big presence in the comics lately, but given her potential, it's probably only a matter of time before we see her pop up once again.
5 ROBBIE REYES
As part of its All-New All-Different line of comics, Marvel gave new spins to some of its most popular characters. For this new era in the prolific superhero universe, writer Felipe Smith and artist Tradd Moore were tasked with coming up with a fresh take on the Ghost Rider. Out of this came Robbie Reyes, a down-on-his-luck young man responsible for taking care of his little brother, Gabe. Having no money to support Gabe, Robbie turned to illegal street-racing. One fateful night, Reyes was killed by a gang looking to steal something from his car. Right at that moment, the spirit of a sadistic criminal named Eli Morrow (who also happened to be Robbie's uncle) took over the young man's body and revived him, turning him into the new Ghost Rider.
Using Eli's powers, Robbie vowed to make his city safer for his little brother. A unique thing about this Ghost Rider is the dynamic between Reyes and Eli. Throughout their adventures, Robbie found himself in a constant psychological struggle as he fought to keep Morrow at bay so as to retain control of his body. Another fascinating aspect about Robbie's Ghost Rider is his relationship with his brother. Robbie may be an agent of evil looking for people to punish every night, but he still has to be a responsible role model for a little boy who idolizes him. That's a dynamic that's seldom seen in comics, but one that Felipe Smith perfectly captured.
4 DANNY KETCH
Nearly 20 years after Johnny Blaze first jumped into the scene as the Ghost Rider, Marvel introduced a new host for the Spirit of Vengeance in the form of Danny Ketch, a character created by Howard Mackie and Javier Saltares. Ketch made his comic book debut in the pages of Ghost Rider Vol. 3 #1. In the story, Ketch and his sister, Barbara, went to a graveyard to see Harry Houdini's grave. While there, the siblings found themselves caught in the middle of a gang fight, and Barbara was wounded with an arrow. Danny hid his sister away from danger, and while he waited for the gang conflict to end, he saw a motorcycle in pristine condition.
While admiring it, Danny accidentally touched the bike's gas cap, which turned out to be a mystical amulet.
The amulet awakened and Danny was turned into the new Ghost Rider as a result. Despite making his comic book debut years after Johnny Blaze came into the scene, Ketch proved to be a worthy successor of the Ghost Rider mantle thanks to his inherent heroic nature and bravery. Danny became quite popular over the years, and he went on to become a staple in the Ghost Rider mythology. While Ketch isn't the best Ghost Rider out there, he's certainly one of the greats, and one that's earned his place as one of the most beloved hosts of the Spirit of Vengeance.
3 FRANK CASTLE
You may think that Frank Castle as Ghost Rider would be one of the darkest superhero mashups out there. Surprisingly, though, that's not the case. Issue #12 of Thanos introduced a new Ghost Rider into the Marvel universe. Unlike his previous counterparts, this version of the character loved to have fun, crack jokes and throw out snarky comments at every turn. The rider's identity was initially kept a secret, but the man behind the fiery skull was eventually revealed to be Frank Castle. As it turned out, this Frank Castle had been murdered centuries ago during Thanos' invasion of Earth. Given his murderous tendencies and overall sadistic behavior, Punisher ended up in Hell.
There, Frank made a deal with Mephisto to return him to life as Ghost Rider so he could kill Thanos. Once back on the land of the living, Castle realized that during his absence, Thanos had destroyed Earth and had gone one to conquer other planets. Ghost Rider travelled the universe alone for years until he completely lost his mind. This turned him into a Deadpool-like individual, one who was laid back, care-free and incredibly sarcastic. Following a defeat at the hands of Thanos, Castle opted to join the Mad Titan and became his servant. While Castle's Ghost Rider was ultimately a side character in Thanos' storyline, the character proved to be quite popular thanks to his peculiar personality, and he ended up getting his own comic book series.
2 GOOSE RIDER
It may be hard to believe, but Marvel has a whole universe where all of its characters are cartoon animals. It's dubbed Earth-8311 and one of the superheroes (err, antiheroes) who lives in it is Ghost Rider -- or rather, Goose Rider. That's right. The character debuted in Marvel Tails Starring Peter Porker and the Spectacular Spider-Ham #1. As his name implies, this version of the Spirit of Vengeance is a fiery goose sporting a flashy daredevil outfit. Now, some fans may be puzzled by the fact that a parody version of Ghost Rider is one of the highest entries on our list.
Worry not, however, because good ol' Goose earned this spot thanks to his brilliant comedic twist on the classic Ghost Rider mythology.
While most of the Ghost Riders from the prime Marvel Universe are burdened with the fervent desire to punish the unjust, Goose Rider's main struggles are being unable to find proper entertainment for himself and having kids mock him by heating up marshmallows using the fire from his motorcycle. As for his powers, Goose can summon the "Demons of heck" to attack his enemies in various ways, most notably by dropping anvils on them. The character hasn't popped up in the comics since the late '80s (his final appearance was in issue #17 of Peter Porker, The Spectacular Spider-Man), but here's hoping he gets to make a triumphant return to the Marvel universe sooner rather than later.
1 JOHNNY BLAZE
Johnny Blaze made his debut in the Marvel universe back in 1972. The character was remarkably different from anything the House of Ideas had tackled before but nonetheless, Blaze captivated readers with his edgy style. Unlike most other superheroes, Johnny didn't have a clean origin story. He was a man cursed by a demon to roam the world, looking for evil to punish. One of the most attractive things about Blaze as a character (you know, aside from his flaming skull and flaming motorcycle) is the fact that, at the end of the day, he isn't technically a superhero. He's just an individual fighting against impossible odds to retain what little is left of his humanity.
Yes, he wears a cool costume, fights bad guys and saves innocents whenever he can, but he's in a perpetual state of misery. In fact, a big part of his character is the constant pursuit to get rid of his curse to be able to live a normal life. That's a very compelling dynamic, and it's one that's been masterfully explored throughout Blaze's lengthy comic book history. Aside from a brief cameo appearance in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Blaze hasn't had much of a presence in Marvel's live-action universe, but let's hope we see him pop up in the MCU once again soon.