Halloween '16: MAoS Ghost Rider's Origin and Life Imitates Art

All Souls' Day marks my final official Halloween '16 blog post. As its All Souls' Day and the end of Mexican celebration of the Day of the Dead what better topics than origin Marvel's Agents of SHIELD's Ghost Rider and how a James Bond movie influenced the custom of the Day of the Dead?


Note: I had wanted to squeeze in some more comic book reviews of the comics I picked up Monday as well as Disney's Giant Halloween Hex #1. Alas, that wasn't meant to be as I wasn't quite in the right frame of mind for comic book reading and Giant Halloween Hex is a massive comic! Just flipping through the pages I can definitely tell that I will get my money's worth when I finally read it. So next Halloween?


While I am familiar with the Mexican celebration of the Day of the Dead, which spans from October 31st to November 2nd, I didn't know there is no Mardi Gras-like parade. Those who've seen the most recent James Bond movie, heck if you've seen the trailers, then you've seen the gigantic parade that 007 navigates through during the opening segment of Spectre. So yeah, cultural literacy fail on my part believing that such a spectacle was a normal practice. However, turns out the tourism authorities felt that they were missing out and such a parade was something they should have. So this very year, 2016, marks the very first, Spectre-like, Day of the Dead parade. Talk about life imitating art! As longtime James Bond fan that's simply amazing. You can check out some photos and read more about this amazing, if controversial, development on a Mexican Halloween-ish tradition HERE.




Now for the highlights from the episode that provides the origin for Marvel's Agents of SHIELD Robbie Reyes Ghost Rider:






Spoilers




S5-6 The Good Samaritan

• Show opens with a flashback during which the reactor (really a quantum matter device) creates a piece of carbon out of nothing! During celebrations a tipsy Lucy accidentally mentions a book to Eli. Modern day: Eli says the experiment was a failure as there wasn't enough power. Lucy responds that plenty of power is available at the new site. Eli voices concern that many lives could be at stake.
• Director sends Simmons, blind-folded, on a mission. No one can reach her throughout the episode.
• Gabe is led to believe Robbie is a secret agent...
• Director tell Coulson to prepare to be boarded as he plans to take Quake and Ghost Rider into custody.
• Fitz figures out that the device requires a massive amount of power.
• Han Solo and Admiral Ackbar references!
• Gabe is no slouch. He quickly realizes that the secret agent part is nonsense.
• Origin story time: Robbie was car racing with Uncle Eli's car when he allows Gabe to come along. The car is the same as the Ghost Rider car. They both discuss Uncle Eli not acting like himself, when all of a sudden a Molotov cocktail is thrown onto the hood! A car chase ensues when another car forces Robbie to do a rollover. Gabe's version of events was that while he was paralyzed he knew Robbie was okay when a good Samaritan came along and pulled him out and tended to Robbie. Robbie corrects him. Says that he blamed himself for the mess and that as he was thrown from the car he called out to anyone that he would do anything for his brother to be safe. Then he died. Yep, died. Yeah, pretty sure we can tell a Faustian bargain is coming...
• Origin continued: A classic deal with unsavory forces commences when a voice ask Robbie if he'll do anything to exact to vengeance. Robbie says yes. Then he sees classic Ghost Rider ride up to him on a motorcycle! Er, don't know if this is the demon or Johnny Blaze... Power is granted to him and Robbie becomes the Spirit of Vengeance!
• Director Mace figures out the containment unit is hidden.
• Ghost Rider busts out of the containment unit!
• At first there's a tussle, but Ghost Rider overcomes Director Mace beating him senselessly until Gabe stops him. I admit I marked out.
• Fitz deduces that the only place that could provide enough power was an old Isodyne facility. References to Peggy Carter, SSR, and the Darkforce from season two of Agent Carter!
• 'Must of predated the internet. How'd you ever get things done before then?'
• Flashback: Lucy talks about the book making them like gods while Eli mentions that he knew that attack was meant for him hired by Lucy's husband.
• Lucy - Robbie confrontation which ends rather badly for Ghost Lucy.
• However, before dying we learn that it was Eli that trapped the ghosts inside the chests! That he wanted the Darkhold for the power it could grant him. He actually beat Joseph in order to attain the book.
• May retrieves the Darkhold.
• Meanwhile, the power can't be turned. So while Mac is retrieving one of the perpetual EMP devices that the Watch Dogs used, Phil starts pulling tubing as Eli uses the Quantum Matter Device.
• There's a big wave. Eli emerges able to create a piece of carbon out of nothing!

Have to say the Ghost Rider origin didn't disappoint and for an episode that aired during the Halloween-All Saints' Day-All Souls' Day trifecta it didn't disappoint in terms of supernatural thrills and deals with the devil.  Plus in true Whedon-esque fashion, the Big Bad of the Ghost Rider arc is revealed after a classic betrayal! All in all, a fantastic episode!


With that is my All Souls' Day post and my last Halloween entry until next year. Although I may review Disney's Giant Halloween Hex #1 before next Halloween it'll be just a normal review.


Till next time.