Warning: SPOILERS for Revenge of the Cosmic Ghost Rider #1
The Cosmic Ghost Rider masterfully reinvented Frank Castle as a time-traveling Spirit of Vengeance who, unlike his stoic counterpart, is a wise-cracking cosmic being. While he evolved from The Punisher, the Ghost Rider still carries the same .emories and grief. So when Frank Castle finally meets with the future version of himself… he’s got one big question on the mind.
The Cosmic Ghost Rider first burst onto the scene in Donny Cates, Geoff Shaw, and Dylan Burnett’s superb Thanos series. Since debuting, the future version of Frank Castle has been Galactus’ Herald, Thanos’ right-hand man, a Guardian of the Galaxy and now, he’s out for revenge.
In Revenge of the Cosmic Ghost Rider #1, the Cosmic Ghost Rider gets his revenge against a group of aliens that tried to imprison him. However, the book also features a short story from Cates, Shaw and Matt Milla showing the Cosmic Ghost Rider returning to his wife’s grave, to say goodbye one last time. As he sits by her grave, he’s confronted by the current version of Frank Castle.
After initially appearing calm, the Punisher tells the Cosmic Ghost Rider he’s heard about him running with The Avengers and starts opening fire. The bullets actually hurt the Spirit of Vengeance, as Frank came prepared with confiscated Hellfire rounds. Future Frank knocks current Frank to the ground with a cosmic blast, but the Punisher stabs his counterpart with a vibranium and adamantium infused knife. The Punisher continues to lunge at him, as the Cosmic Ghost Rider asks what provoked the attack.
Castle heartbreakingly responds by asking how this time-hopping maniac could travel back in time… and not save his family? The Cosmic Ghost Rider drops Frank and walks away, as his former self continues to ask him why he wouldn’t change the most obvious thing about their shared origin story. Future Frank drops the biggest truth bomb in years, telling Punisher, “… because we deserve to be punished too.”
It’s a fair question for Frank Castle to ask. He went back in time to try to destroy Thanos, but he didn’t save his family? Well, Frank isn’t exactly filled in with the Cosmic Ghost Rider’s escapades. In Cosmic Ghost Rider Destroys the Marvel Universe, he tries to rewrite Marvel’s history to save his family. Unfortunately, Uatu the Watcher ensures their death happens and the Cosmic Ghost Rider’s attempt to save his family doesn’t work.
The Cosmic Ghost Rider did try to save his family from getting murdered, but he was unable to save them. Clearly, he wasn’t ready to tell The Punisher he failed. Despite Frank’s reservations, the Cosmic Ghost Rider did try to keep his family alive - unfortunately, he couldn’t do it. Telling Frank that even time travel couldn’t bring his family back might pack a punch that even The Punisher can’t take.
Revenge of the Cosmic Ghost Rider #1 is available now at your local comic book shop.
