Editor's Note: Ghost Rider #28 arrives in stores tomorrow, October 15.

"Last Stand of the Spirits of Vengeance"

I can't believe I'm saying this, but Ghost Rider has slowed down a little this month. Sure, we are introduced to the Tibetan Ghost Rider, The Guru Dragpo, The Wrath of the Four Heavens, The Blood Drinker. Sure, The Guru Dragpo is confronted and battles Danny Ketch (mostly off-panel, though). Sure, we get some creepy sexual tension between Johnny Blaze and the new Caretaker (Sister Sara, the Kung Fu Nun). Sure, we get the long-awaited reunion between cursed brothers, Johnny and Danny.

And yet, it all seems muted when compared to what has come before.

This is not a bad thing, though. This is the calm before the storm. The final page of this issue is almost pouring smoke and bursting into flames in my hands (well, my computer screen - but it'll happen on Wednesday).

Tan Eng Huat is doing the best work of his career on this comic. I was under the impression that he and Roland Boschi were trading off arcs, but I haven't heard anything about Boschi's return. That's too bad, and I hope he comes back. His interpretation of Ghost Rider was hulking and brutal. Huat's is very different, but just as vivid and exciting.

Huat and Villarrubia work together to make the art shimmer. The subtleties in shading and the energetic exaggerations work together to make this a beautiful and distinctive book. And when you combine this one-of-a-kind look with Aaron's take-no-prisoners writing gusto, there's just no reason not to be reading this.

I don't care if you don't like the character, Ghost Rider. I didn't either. Yes, the movie was horrible. Doesn't matter. In fact, I've heard rumors of another Ghost Rider movie possibly on the horizon. Let me just say this. NO. Don't waste my time with that crap.

Unless they are going to bring Aaron on board at least as a consultant (like the Iron Man crew just did with Matt Fraction), just don't bother. Hell, adapt Aaron's first storyline with the gun-toting, devil worshiping nurses, the haunted highway, the cannibal, and the boy who'd seen that the angels were preparing for was in Heaven, and make me an extremely happy fan.

Anyway, back to this issue. This is the deep breath before a volley of punches, explosions, and bursts of blue and yellow flames take center stage next month. Plus, as an added bonus, also included in this issue is the history of Danny Ketch in prose, accompanied by art from Ghost Rider in the 90s. Prepare for ponytails, heavy inks, and some really impressive, dramatic shots of Ghost Rider doing Ghost Ridery things.

It makes a solidly 3.5 bullet comic into a 4 bullet comic, for me. You see, I avoided all things Ghost Rider through the nineties. Before that, really. The only thing that made me pick this up was Jason Aaron's name, and he has yet to disappoint. There's been some shuffling lately, and Ghost Rider has moved up and become one of the most interesting and exciting things Marvel is publishing. If you're tired of invasions and dreary negativity, check this out.

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