SPIRITS OF VENGEANCE: RISE OF THE MIDNIGHT SONS

Arrived quickly and undamaged. Can't wait to reread one of my favorite storylines of the 90s.

This trade collects the Rise of the Midnight Sons crossover, the purpose of which was to create not only a spin-off of the Ghost Rider comic that was extremely popular in the early '90s, but also to re-establish the horror comics corner of the Marvel universe that had existed in '70s titles such as Tomb of Dracula, Werewolf by Night, and the original Ghost Rider series. Is it worth a buy? The answer is yes if you're nostalgic for this era of Ghost Rider, and this volume picks up not far from where the Ghost Rider - Danny Ketch Classic volumes left off (with a gap of several issues). Is it any good? Well, it's largely unsuccessful at achieving its goals. The crossover was between the existing Ghost Rider book, a new Spirits of Vengeance book that was a team-up featuring both the then-current Ghost Rider and John Blaze, the original incarnation of the character, and new supernatural-themed titles: Morbius, the Living Vampire; Nightstalkers (which features Blade and Hannibal King); and Darkhold. The problem with the Midnight Sons crossover is that it never feels like a connected, complete story. The plans of the villain, Lilith, Mother of Demons, are vaguely defined, and her army of demon offspring are given just enough character development to make them potentially interesting - but never enough to provide the reader with a satisfying story. The first issues of the three new titles have to do a balancing act between being chapters of a crossover and establishing a new setup and status quo for their own characters, and no middle road between the two ever really appears. The collection also includes a follow-up crossover with Web of Spiderman called Spirits of Venom which is overlong and not essential to the Midnight Sons storyline. The best story in the collection (due to its relative simplicity and excellent Klaus Janson art) is a Ghost Rider/Blaze tale from Midnight Sons Unlimited.

This classic story attempts to incorporate all the 1990’s Marvel horror titles into one cohesive whole, but fails utterly. Major enemies are dispatched with a single shot of hellfire, every battle is described as “the first encounter with the Lillin,” and Lilith herself is a joke. Still, this collection has that 90’s nostalgia that reminds me how Marvel used to be a great company.Despite its many faults, this book is amazing. Blaze has never looked (or been depicted) better. He’s the chain-smoking badass that will do anything to protect his family. The Nightstalkers intro is one of the best ever, but the Morbius and Darkhold Redeemers are simply awful. The story itself isn’t much, but the characterization and feel of the book are spot on. I’d read a page from the Darkhold to find more comics like this.As a bonus, this collection also contains the “Spirits of Venom” storyline which is an absolute blast. Hobgoblin, Demogoblin, Venom, Hag, Troll, and the Spidey Doppleganger together? Yes please.Check out the original covers of Nightstalkers 1 and the Spirits of Venom art with Venom hanging from the ceiling, holding Ghost Rider’s skull. Outstanding. Add the infamous Johnny Blaze “Bang, yer dead” cover and you’ll never buy a 21st century Marvel comic again.

Great story, great art, great writing. Kubert Brothers, amongst others. Anything with a Kubert, I’m in. Love that it features 6 issue story arc with bonus art content, and the now classic story featuring Spider-Man, Venom and Ghost Rider. Anybody giving this book less than 5 stars must be a little bit too picky. It’s really good stuff. My one question would be why Ghost Rider issues 29 and 30 are left out, when other “non Midnight Sons crossover issues” are included. GR 29 & 30 feature great Kubert art along with Wolverine, Beast, and Nightmare. Really random they didn’t include these two issues in the trade, as they do reference Lilith. Still 5 stars, but just kind of random to leave those two issues out.

To read

Great nostalgia. All the midnight son's books plus Spirits of Venom aftermath books.

It's OK but my nostalgia clouded how bad most comics from the 90s were. Still a fun read but cheesy.

It arrived covered with petroleum jelly (somehow inside the envelope) even though I’ve never ordered petroleum jelly. It was bizarre and uneasy.

Okay, let's be honest, this is a product of its time. The writing is pretty hollow even by Marvel standards of the day with a wafer-thin plot, and artwork which is occasionally clunky, unclear, and doesn't help the story flow. BUT...Those criticisms aside, it's still an entertaining blast of nostalgia seeing the Midnight Sons - many of Marvel's more horror-centric characters, including Ghost Rider, Johnny Blaze, Blade, the Darkhold Redeemers - unite to face their demonic foe Lilith. The concept is stronger than the execution, but there's some classic fun to be had from this story and it's a good-looking, sizable volume which is great value for money. It may not be the best Ghost Rider collection ever, but it's still nearly essential if you're a fan.

Always loved the 90's Ghost riders/Midnight Sons story line.Its great to find them all here, just wish they would release the other two Midnight Son's story lines that followed this.Danny Ketch as Ghost Rider is what got me on to two wheels (although no jumping cars and beating up bad guys!)

A real classic, fantastic stuff!

Grundlegend ein Versuch von Marvel seine Vorstellungen von gut und böse zu variieren. Leider ist es bei Marvel immer der Fall, dass die Helden ihren moralischen Prinzipien unterliegen und deren Knechte sind. Das ist am Ende leider auch beim Rider der Fall.Die Struktur der einzelnen Kapitel hat ein gleiches Schema und wird mit mittelmäßigen Füllerstorys abgedeckt, bis man sich dem eigentlichen Entgegner zuwenden kann. Kurzweilige Unterhaltung.Die Zeichnungen und das Comic an sich sind gut umgesetzt.

Por fin tengo el prime arco de los hijos de media noche, en México es difícil de conseguir y su precio es elevado. Este copilatorio me agradó ya que traer más cómics y tiene un inicio y cierre a las historias. Solo me falta conseguir mis faltantes de los otros arcos de los hijos de media noche. Lo recomiendo para las personas que le guste lo sobrenatural.