Ghost Rider #7 sees the return of Johnny Blaze who, while no longer sporting a flaming skull for a head, may still be more connected to the Ghost Rider than he thinks. He is, however, still the target of those he faced the as the Ghost Rider, namely the sisters Steel Wind and Steel Vengeance. They've teamed up with Adam, who is also back, searching for Alejandra after she left him for dead in South America. Adam has resurrected Steel Vengeance in exchange for the help of her and her sister, Steel Wind.
In the meantime, the Avenger, Hawkeye, has also set out looking for the Ghost Rider, wanting to avenge the people who lost their souls in South America. Hawkeye, believing Johnny Blaze to still be the Ghost Rider, has gone after him instead of Alejandra, vowing to bring him to justice for the Ghost Rider's crimes. Alejandra, unaware of any of this, has herself sought out the Seeker, hoping that he'll be able to tell her what she needs to do to return the souls to those same people in South America.
While this issue is still a rather enjoyable read, it was lacking a bit from the earlier issues in Rob Williams's Ghost Rider run. It feels more like an exposition chapter, setting up all the pieces for the end of this series. However, at times it felt like too much at once, with all of the subplots mixing up in what was somewhat hard to follow in points. There's a lot of players by the end of this issue, with Steel Wind and Steel Vengeance making their appearance from the Ghost Rider villains archives, plus the return of Adam, and the added complication of the Avengers coming after Alejandra. With so many plot threads and threats to both Ghost Riders, past and present, it muddled the action and made it difficult to give much concentration to any one part.
Overall, however, this has been a strong series with an interesting take on the Ghost Rider, and there's enough potential in this issue to hope that it can move forward from here into a solid ending to the run. Alejandra and her fate continues to be an intriguing storyline, and is left with a compelling cliffhanger in this issue that makes you want to read more. It should be interesting to see how Rob Williams wraps up all of these plot threads and where the series will end from here.
Sara McDonald started reading comics in the third grade, and now puts her English degree to good use talking about them on the Internet. She currently resides in Western Massachusetts with a roommate, three cats, and an action figure collection and spends the time she isn’t reading comics working for a non-profit. You can visit her blog at Ms. Snarky’s Awesometastic Comics Blog.