Cosmic Ghost Rider By Donny Cates

by Donny Cates, Ron Lim (Cover Art), Marvel Various (Illustrator)

Thanos' newest enforcer is Marvel's most outrageous breakout character! Millennia ago he was Frank Castle, the Punisher. A deal with the devil made him the Ghost Rider. An alliance with Galactus made him cosmic. And a bargain with Thanos made him…dead?! Don't worry, Cosmic Ghost Rider has a time-travel plan for revenge - but can even Frank kill baby Thanos?! As cosmic war rages and a new hunt for Thanos begins, will Cosmic Ghost Rider answer the call and join the Guardians of the Galaxy?! Presenting all of Donny Cates' flaming-hot tales of the far-out future Frank Castle! Collecting THANOS (2016) #13-18; COSMIC GHOST RIDER (2018) #1-5; GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY (2019) #1-6; and material from REVENGE OF THE COSMIC GHOST RIDER #1, THANOS ANNUAL (2018) #1, THANOS LEGACY and BLACK, WHITE & BLOOD #3.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Science Fiction

504 pages, Paperback

Published April 25, 2023

Reviews

[J. Bittleton · Rating 5 out of 5]

An unreal modern epic and a welcome addition to the pantheon of Cosmic Marvel tales. There’s no holding back here. Just pure, unbridled, in-your-face-power-trip-heavy-metal comic storytelling.

Said in simpler terms; Cosmic Ghost Rider is Donny Cates at his best and should be a read for anyone that likes the coolest of cool shit.

[Matt Sautman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Note: Cosmic Ghost Rider has 6 issues that overlap with Guardians of the Galaxy by Donny Cates. Cosmic Ghost Rider takes a What If? premise that feels like emerged from the mind of a child but effectively delivers on a time travel narrative that explores the power of choice and constraints that limit our actions.

[Christopher Honthy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cosmic Ghost Rider by Donny Cates was an absolute must-read for me after finishing Thanos Wins—though I wish I had realized earlier that the latter was essentially the full beginning of Cosmic Ghost Rider’s story. Either way, reading these comics back-to-back cemented Donny Cates as one of my favorite writers. His ability to seamlessly blend comic storylines and characters is nothing short of incredible. It never feels bloated, and even when there’s backstory from other comics I haven’t read, I still feel like I can follow along without missing a beat. It reminds me of how much I loved Mark Millar’s work—Cates is now a writer whose other projects I can’t wait to dive into.

Story-wise, Thanos Wins is a near-perfect, standalone tale. It’s badass, tightly written, and delivers on every level. Cosmic Ghost Rider had a slightly different vibe. While I loved the beginning and the focus on the titular character, the latter half leans into Guardians of the Galaxy territory, which I enjoyed, but it made me wish we got a fully dedicated Cosmic Ghost Rider series. He’s such an endlessly fascinating character that I think he deserves even more spotlight.

Frank Castle’s evolution into Cosmic Ghost Rider is arguably one of the coolest arcs in comic history. From being the Punisher to dying and selling his soul to Mephisto to become a Ghost Rider, to meeting Galactus and becoming his Herald? Insane. And that’s just the start. They go on galaxy-spanning adventures, which could’ve been its own series. Then, he becomes Black Hand to Thanos, watches Thanos battle his future self, and gets killed by Silver Surfer wielding the hammer of Thor. Next thing you know, he’s in Valhalla with Odin, only for Odin to send him back into his Cosmic Ghost Rider body, where he travels back in time, becomes baby Thanos’s dad (!!), and ultimately backtracks that plan to continue being his chaotic self. He later joins the Guardians of the Galaxy, dies again, fights his younger self in a poetic full-circle moment, and somewhere in between has a wild team-up with Wolverine to fight Juggernaut. If that’s not one of the coolest characters ever conceived, I don’t know what is.

The story itself might not be the most groundbreaking narrative, but it builds up one of the most inventive and over-the-top characters in comics. It’s a ridiculously fun read with jaw-dropping artwork to match, and honestly, Cosmic Ghost Rider is now firmly one of my favorite characters.

[Drew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just fantastic. Cosmic GR is one of the best recent Marvel characters. Cates’ writing is gold. The art is mostly great, a wide variety in this collection. The art in the lone Wolverine story includes was almost indecipherable. But I’d read anything with this version of Frank.

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was fun. A lot of stuff, but it was a readable Punisher story if you generously define a Punisher story. It feels like a bunch of jokes being made "Ok, but then the Punisher dies and becomes Ghost Rider! And he becomes a herald of Galactus! And then he..." but it works. Good job!

[Joseph Huerell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story and comedy. Almost Deadpool's attitude bit little.