Ghost Rider & Wolverine Hitch A Fiery Ride In Weapons Of Vengeance Alpha - Exclusive

Contains spoilers for Marvel Comics' "Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance Alpha" #1.

Strap in! Wolverine and Ghost Rider are taking the wheel together in a brand-new crossover series, "Weapons of Vengeance." The four-issue event will unite two of Marvel's most fiery heroes, Logan and Johnny Blaze. Looper.com's Liam McGuire is here with an exclusive first look at the issue's first four pages with colors by Rain Beredo, lettering by VC's Travis Lanham, its variant cover by Mahmud Asrar, and a deeper insight into what's upcoming from Percy. "Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance Alpha" #1 begins a story that continues in "Ghost Rider" #17 and "Wolverine" #36. The four-issue crossover concludes in "Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance Omega" #1. Below is Asrar's cover for the event's first issue, featuring Logan and Johnny Blaze navigating through the hellfire to come.

Marvel Comics

Writer Benjamin Percy ("Wolverine") and artist Geoff Shaw ("Guardians of the Galaxy") are the creative forces behind the new Wolverine and Ghost Rider tale. Hitting comic stands in August, "Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance Alpha" #1 will feature Wolverine learning about a new wing of the Weapon Plus program — the same organization that brutally ran the Weapon X program that transformed Wolverine into an adamantium-filled weapon. Wolverine and Ghost Rider will take on the new program that is now trying to create living weapons using Hell as its primary power source. Blaze and Logan's relationship will take a combative turn when Wolverine's investigations lead him to become a weapon of vengeance — forcing Ghost Rider to face him. For those wanting fireworks between two of Marvel's most badass heroes, the "Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance" crossover is revving up to deliver them.

"Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance Alpha" #1 will be a stand-alone event, where prior knowledge of the current "Ghost Rider" and "Wolverine" series won't be required to understand its happenings. Writer Benjamin Percy told Looper.com that while readers would have a "better grip" of the events if they'd read each hero's previous runs, his hope was "somebody can pick it up in ten years and not need a continuity primer." However, Percy added that devout readers of both characters will be rewarded with a few easter eggs. He's been building the possibility of a Weapon Plus program relying on the weaponization of Hell, which will come to fruition within this crossover. 

Marvel Comics

When he landed the "Ghost Rider" title alongside artist Cory Smith, Percy intended to bring the characters together for something "big and nasty and sulfurous." He pointed to cover art featuring Wolverine being inhabited by the Spirit of Vengeance, calling the crossover "as heavy metal as it gets." Readers can expect plenty of motorcycles and violence too, with Percy calling it an "AC/DC soundtrack blasting all the way through." Additionally, Percy said that the book will have a bloody, shadowy tone and amp up the adrenaline in a noir mystery with David Fincher-like qualities.

While Wolverine and Ghost Rider have a shared history of appearing in comics together, the creative team is about to explore their relationship in a brand-new way. He teased that the "Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance" comic will showcase the duo's debut meeting, which has never appeared on the page. Percy said it was "so much fun and such an honor" to devise a story that brought Wolverine and Ghost Rider together for the first time.

Marvel Comics

Percy discussed how the four issues introduce a new villain by teasing one of the darker sides of the Weapon Plus program. "I do introduce a character named Father Pike in Ghost Rider who will play a role in the crossover, and I have been building up the possibility of a Weapons Plus program that relies on the study and weaponization of Hell," he said.

With the crossover comic putting the peddle to the middle in terms of action and brutality, Percy explained why Geoff Shaw is the perfect artist for the series. He called Shaw's work on the crossover "so, so, so damn good," while adding the cinematic art style in the book has a "gritty, scratchy, shadow-soaked quality to the art that perfectly suits the story."

Marvel Comics

Readers can see Wolverine — who has had his fair share of dangerous and gruesome fights — get into a fiery battle on the last page of the preview for "Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance Alpha" #1, which also teases the first meeting between Wolverine and Ghost Rider.

Marvel Comics

Below is Marvel Comics' official solicitation text for the upcoming issue:

"LOGAN & BLAZE – THE WEAPONS OF VENGEANCE!

LOGAN's the best there is at what he does – and what he does as the deadly WOLVERINE isn't very nice. When innocent blood is spilled, JOHNNY BLAZE becomes the GHOST RIDER, equipped to deal punishment with the power of hellfire! A demonic serial killer is murdering innocent mutants. But what is it about this deadly new villain that forces our two heroes to team up? And what buried secret does he share with Wolverine and Ghost Rider's never-before-seen very first meeting in the past?

Get ready for claws, chains, and violence as only Benjamin Percy (WOLVERINE, GHOST RIDER) and Geoff Shaw (THANOS, GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY) can bring in this four-part epic!"

The two character's crossover begins in "Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance Alpha" #1 from Marvel Comics, which arrives in comic book stores and online retailers on August 9, 2023. The subsequent three issues will come out through the month, concluding with "Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance Omega" in September.