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Ghost Rider

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Following the western comics character who originally used the name, the first superhero Ghost Rider,  Johnny Blaze , debuted in Marvel Spotlight #5 (August 1972), created by Marvel editor-in-chief Roy Thomas, [1]  writer Gary Friedrich and artist Mike Ploog. He received his own series in 1973, with penciller Jim Mooney handling most of the first nine issues. Several different creative teams mixed-and-matched until penciller Don Perlin began a considerably long stint with issue #26, eventually joined by writer Michael Fleisher through issue #58. The series ran through issue #81 (June 1983). Blaze returned as Ghost Rider in a 2001 six-issue miniseries written by Devin Grayson; a second miniseries written by Garth Ennis in 2005, and an ongoing monthly series that began publication in July 2006. Johnny Blaze was the son of Naomi Blaze and Barton Blaze, Naomi being the previous Ghost Rider.

The next Ghost Rider, a young man named  Daniel "Danny" Ketch  (Johnny Blaze's long lost little brother), debuted in Ghost Rider vol. 3, #1 (May 1990). This Ghost Rider was nearly identical to the previous, although his costume was now a black leather biker jacket with spiked shoulder-pads, grey leather pants, and a mystic chain he wore across his chest, which responded to his mental commands and served as his primary melee weapon. His new motorcycle resembled a futuristic machine and the front of it could lower to serve as a battering ram. Like the original Ghost Rider's bike, the wheels were composed of mystic hellfire. Unlike the relationship between the previous Ghost Rider and the demon with which he was bonded, Ketch and his demon—who in vol. 2, #91 (December 1997) is revealed to be Marvel's incarnation of the Angel of Death/Judgment—are cooperative with each other. At the close of the series with vol. 2, #93 (Feb. 1998), Ketch apparently died. The following year, however, Peter Parker: Spider-Man #93 (July 1999) revealed Ketch was still alive. Nearly a decade later, Marvel published the long-completed final issue as Ghost Rider Finale (Jan. 2007), which reprints the last issue and the previously unpublished #94.

During the 2011 storyline "Fear Itself", a Nicaraguan woman named  Alejandra Jones  becomes Ghost Rider through a ritual performed by a man named Adam. Though she demonstrates many previously unknown powers of the Ghost Rider entity, she is deprived of its full power when Johnny Blaze takes back most of this power.

In 2013, a new character took on the Ghost Rider mantle: a Mexican-American resident of East Los Angeles named  Roberto "Robbie" Reyes , who drives a black classic muscle car reminiscent of a modified 1969 Dodge Chargerrather than a motorcycle. Robbie Reyes was created by writer/artist Felipe Smith and designed by Smith and artist Tradd Moore.

Due to the Celestial Progenitor presence influencing human evolution, in 1,000,000 B.C., certain humans were much more intelligent than others and became able to speak a language but had to hide that gift from their brethren for fear of being ostracized. One day a boy that was gifted with the ability to speak is approached by a mysterious stranger that also possess that gift, only to witness the stranger transforming into a beast and devour his entire tribe. The stranger allowed the boy to live and names him "Ghost" and told him to challenge him when he is worthy. After getting exhausted in the harsh environment, he is approached by Mephisto in the form of a snake who tells him to say its name. Ghost does that and is bonded with a Spirit of Vengeance where he imbued his hellfire onto a woolly mastodon he befriended. Other humans had never seen someone ride an animal before and began referring to Ghost as "The Rider". The Rider continued his search and five years later, eventually caught up with the man who devoured Ghost’s tribe. The man transformed, revealing himself to be the first Wendigo. During the fight, the Rider took the bones of the dead that Wendigo had killed and used them to form a weapon, the earliest version of Ghost Rider’s signature chain. The Rider fought Wendigo until finally Wendigo and the Rider’s mastodon tumbled over a cliff. Afterwards, Ghost was approached by Odin and Lady Phoenix to join the prehistoric version of the Avengers.

Upon imbued his hellfire onto another woolly mastodon, Ghost Rider assisted the prehistoric Avengers in fighting an out of control Celestial called the Fallen which resulted in his woolly mastodon getting killed in action. Ghost Rider swore revenge and assisted his teammates in defeating the Fallen and sealing it away underground in what would become South Africa. Ghost Rider later assisted the prehistoric Avengers in fighting the First Host.

The Ghost Rider is a human who can transform into a skeletal superhuman wreathed in ethereal flame and given supernatural powers. The motorcycle he rides can travel faster than any conventional vehicle and can perform such seemingly impossible feats as riding up a vertical surface, across water surfaces and leaping across great distances that normal motorcycles cannot. The Ghost Riders are virtually indestructible and notoriously hard to injure by any conventional means, as bullets and knives usually pass through them without causing pain (knives are seen to melt while in their body). It is possible that they are genuinely immortal, as it is said that God created them and only God can destroy them.Despite being composed of bone and hellfire, the Ghost Riders possess formidable superhuman strength, enough to easily pick up a truck and hurl it across a road. It has been stated that Johnny Blaze as Ghost Rider can press around 25 tons (50,000  lbs) (or more as seen in World War Hulk).

Each Ghost Rider entity also had abilities specific to him or her.

• 3 Kinji Hakari

Is Ghost Rider a Hero, Villain, or an Anti-Hero? Explained

Ghost Rider is among the most popular superheroes ever created . His iconic look and incredible powers launched him into stardom as soon as the character was created back in 1972 by Roy Thomas, Gary Friedrich, and Mike Ploog. We’ve analyzed so many aspects and versions of Ghost Rider so far, but one aspect of his character remains relatively unexplored: his moral alignment. This is why we decided to analyze this in more depth. Now let’s find out whether Ghost Rider is a superhero, anti-hero, or a villain.

Ghost Rider is classified as an anti-hero mostly because he doesn’t stray away from killing people and is obsessed with vengeance rather than doing the right things. Ghost Rider never exactly fits in the “Superman” archetype of a superhero. His moral standings, as well as his looks, balance more toward a “morally grey” character. Even though he kills, Ghost Rider is not a villain because Spirits of Vengeance are benevolent entities in themselves.

Now that we’ve covered the main issues, it’s time to analyze them in more detail. If you’re interested in all the reasons why Ghost Rider is considered an anti-hero rather than a villain, stay with us and keep reading!

Spirits of Vegenace are mostly benevolent entities created for a good reason

The key aspect of any Ghost Rider’s personality is the Spirit of Vengeance that possesses him and actually makes him the Ghost Rider. Some Ghost Riders have more control over the entities (like Danny Ketch ), and some are totally unable to control them (like Johny Blaze in the beginning).

But Spirits of Vengeance were never evil or created evil. Their origin story is rather confusing, with some accounts claiming that they are demons and some accounts claiming that they are of divine nature. Most people associated Spirits of Vengeance with Mephisto and hell, but Caretaker offered a different account of what went down at the moment that the first Spirits were created.

Following the great flood, God made a deal with humans that he would never try to exterminate them again, but he was disappointed that humans hadn’t changed their evil and malignant ways, quite on the contrary, they were becoming exponentially worse and constantly thinking of the ways to “up their evil game.” (Probably because of the promise, they have fallen into a false sense of security).

Who Is the 19th Century Ghost Rider? The Frontier Era Explained

Still, even though God promised not to strike them with another mass extinction, that doesn’t necessarily mean that his hands are tied. He created the Spirits of Vegenace, who were supposed to get rid of the worst members of society. The Spirits of Vengeance were like C.I.A. of Heaven, doing God’s dirty work.

Since Spirits had a pretty violent approach to punishing sinners and giving out vengeance, God didn’t want to be exactly connected to them, which is why he put Archangel Zadkiel in charge to manipulate them from shadows and keep their true origin hidden. Zadkiel will eventually rebel against Heaven, but this is a story for another time.

Anyway, as you can see, Spirits of Vengeance aren’t necessarily evil. Quite on the contrary, they are messengers of God’s justice, and sometimes this can be brutal. The important thing to remember is that, in theory, they are supposed to punish the wicked and the sinful and protect the innocent, taking their methods into account. This, at worst, makes them morally grey.

Ghost Rider is far too violent to be a superhero

Now that we’ve given you a quick summary and eliminated the “villain” from the equation, it’s time to explain why Ghost Rider can never be a superhero.

First, his judgment is far too narrow. We know that Ghost Rider’s Penance Stare works on the principle “If you’re feeling guilty about it, you will suffer.” This isn’t such a great rule because an objectively good person can feel subjective guilt because of something that he had far less control over than the person realizes. This can result in innocents getting hurt.

Ghost Rider also doesn’t shy away from killing villains, his abilities are lethal, and when he sets his sights on an evildoer, he will never wait for the law to settle it. He will enact his punishment, no matter the reason behind it. Technically you can argue that Ghost Rider doesn’t kill, that the person committing sins is responsible for the evil things they’ve done and hence passed the judgment on themselves, and Ghost Rider is simply here to deliver it. But still, the act of killing immediately disqualifies Ghost Rider from wearing the superhero title.

Does Ghost Rider’s Penance Stare Work on the Punisher?

Ghost Rider is also not here to save the innocents. He is here mostly to punish the wicked, his motives are, for the most part, one-sided, and he is doing what he is compelled to do. You will rarely see Superman being motivated by pure burning vengeance and getting satisfaction out of it.

Ghost Rider’s personality and overall visual style are far too edgy for him to be a superhero, something from which Batman had also suffered over the years . Ghost Rider has a burning skull and a flaming chain. He rides a bike (most of the versions) and wears leather. He is violent, sometimes uses foul language, and you’re never sure whether he will turn on you or not.

The most popular Ghost Rider of all time, Johnny Blaze, also sold his soul to the devil practically for selfish reasons, and this is how he got stuck with the Spirit of Vengeance in the first place.

To summarize

Ghost Rider is far too violent to be a superhero. He is mostly an anti-hero due to the fact that he kills, he is motivated by vengeance instead of saving people, and his looks are far too aggressive when compared to other superheroes that are presented in benevolent or patriotic visual styles with light colors and motives.

Have something to add? Let us know in the comments!

Valentina Kraljik is a writer and editor at Comic Basics with a passion for all things related to comics and their respective cinematic universes. Armed with a degree in Information Sciences, she brings a unique and informed perspective to her work. Valentina is renowned for her writing on a wide range of comic book heroes and their respective universes. She has a talent for uncovering obscure information related to even the most elusive superheroes. Her love for the genre was first sparked by "X-Men" and "Blade," the latter of which remains her all-time favorite superhero. While her expertise primarily lies within the realm of Marvel, she occasionally ventures into DC territory as well. Valentina's commitment to objectivity and insightful analysis shines through in her writing. She strives to bring fresh perspectives to even the most familiar subjects, and her blend of academic rigor and creative flair sets her apart in the world of media writing.

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Ghost Rider (Marvel)

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Ghost Rider is the name of the fictional character, superhero and anti-hero from Marvel comics and its universe, appearing as the titular protagonist of the Ghost Rider comics. The Ghost Rider is Zarathos , the spirit of vengeance who goes into host and battles against his archenemy Mephisto and punishes evil when around it.

There are multiple incarnations of the character, the first being Johnny Blaze , a stunt motorcyclist who made a deal with the devil to save his adoptive father. The second incarnation was Danny Ketch , who was later revealed to the younger brother of Johnny Blaze, who gained the power of the Ghost when coming into contact with a motorcycle that had the essence of the Spirit of Vengeance. The third Ghost Rider is Robbie Reyes , a young mechanic and street racer who gained the power from a car he used in a street race.

Johnny Blaze was created by Roy Thomas, the late Gary Friedrich and Mike Ploog, and first appeared in Marvel Spotlight # 5 in August of 1972. Danny Ketch was created by Howard Mackie and Javier Saltares, and first appeared in Ghost Rider Vol. 3 # 1 in May of 1990. Robbie Reyes was created by Felipe Smith and Tradd Moore, and first appeared in All-New Ghost Rider # 1 in March of 2014.

• 1.1 Zarathos
• 2.1 Johnny Blaze
• 2.2 Danny Ketch
• 2.3 Robbie Reyes
• 3.2 Television
• 3.3 Video Games
• 6 Navigation

Biography [ ]

Zarathos [ ].

Zarathos was a demon who fought the ancient Spirits of Vengeance, and corrupted a number of their overseers which were called his "Fallen". Although Zarathos promised to increase their power, but he was actually using their powers to further augment himself. After gaining enough power and worshippers, Zarathos challenged Mephisto for ownership of his realm, but he was tricked by the demon by having Centurious. Due to the Centurious lacking souls, Zarathos' powers were useless, and his followers abandoned him when they realized they couldn't beat Mephisto.

After defeating Zarathos, Mephisto would forcibly bond him to mortals a mockery of the Spirits of Vengeance. He was contained inside a mystic relic known as the Soul Chamber, but he was once released by the Beyonder in an attempt to tempt Spider-Ma into allowing the death of the Kingpin. On one occasion, Mephisto made a deal with a mortal named Johnny Blaze, and had Zarathos bond to Johnny when Roxanne Simpson attempted to stop him. It was later revealed that the angel Zadkiel was called by Roxanne, and decided to place the spirit of vengeance into Johnny. Zarathos hid inside Centurious until he was freed by Lilith, and joined her in trying to take over Earth. The two were opposed by the Midnight Sons, and was destroyed by the team and the destruction of the Fallen.

Incarnations [ ]

Johnny blaze [ ].

Johnathon "Johnny" Blaze is the son of Barton Blaze and Naomi Kale, and is the older brother to Barbara and Daniel. Johnny and his family spent their early years in the Quentin Carnival, but when his father died in a stunt accident, his mother took his siblings and left. He was then adopted by the Simpson family, and became close to Craig "Crash" Simpson's daughter, Roxanne. Johnny became close to Crash, who taught him to ride a motorcycle and made him a member of his stunt show. When he was fifteen, Crash's wife Mona was mortally wounded when Johnny was nearly killed when practicing a dangerous stunt. On her deathbed, Mona asked Johnny to quit riding, and he swore to her that he would.

Over the next five years, Crash became frustrated with Johnny since he refused to take part in the show or do any stunts. Despite this, Johnny continued to practice at night, and honed his skills as he started a relationship with Roxanne. When Crash revealed that he was dying of cancer, Johnny turned to the occult and summoned Satan himself to make a deal. Unbeknownst to Johnny, he actually summoned Mephisto, who had cheated Naomi Kale of their deal for Johnny not to become the Ghost Rider. Johnny made a deal with Mephisto to cure Crash's cancer in return that Blaze served him when he called, but Crash died immediately afterward in a stunt accident.

Mourning the lost of his adoptive father, Johnny honored Crash by making the jump, but had to accept that the devil was coming to collect his soul. Mephisto would have succeeded if Roxanne hadn't intervene and drove Mephisto away, and if Zadkiel hadn't came to put the spirit of vengeance into Blaze. Despite Mephisto being driven away, Johnny later turned into a skeletal being with his skull on fire, which would be known as the Ghost Rider. Johnny didn't understand what happened, but came to understand that an entity had bonded with him and he would transform when around evil.

Johnny was eventually killed and sent to Hell, where he managed to escape but brought Lucifer along the way. Though Johnny returned to Earth's plane intact, Lucifer did not, and exploded into shards that would possess 606 bodies. Once Johnny learned about Lucifer's plan to have him kill every possessed body so he could form on Earth, he and the Ghost Rider agreed to work together to stop him. When confronting the last bodies of Lucifer, he learned that Zadkiel was called by Roxanne unknowingly, and that he the angel had played a part of Blaze receiving Zarathos.

Danny Ketch [ ]

Daniel "Danny" Ketch is the son of Barton Blaze and Naomi Kale, and the younger brother to Johnny Blaze and Barbara Ketch. Danny and Barbara were given to a widowed woman named Francis Ketch when they were young, as Naomi wanted to rid them of the family curse. Years later on Halloween night, Danny and Barbara went to a graveyard where they stumbled upon a confrontation between two gangs. One gang was led by Deathwatch and the other was made up of people that belonged to the Kingpin, and the two gangs began to fight each other. Deathwatch became aware of Barbara when she cried out, and she was shot in the chest with an arrow by a henchman.

Danny grabbed his sister's body and ran away to a nearby junkyard, and hid there until he noticed a motorbike with a glowing gas cap. Danny touched the gas cap with his blood-strained hand and transformed into the Ghost Rider, due to him having his sister's blood on him. The Ghost Rider proceeded to torture and fight Deathwatch's henchman, and later turned back into Danny. Barbara was taken to the hospital, but was killed by Blackout, who had learned of Danny's secret identity. Danny and his friend, Jack D'Auria worked together to fight Deathwatch to avenge Barbara.

Robbie Reyes [ ]

Roberto "Robbie" Reyes is the son of Alberto and Juliana Reyes, and is the brother to Gabe, who lived in California. Both their parents died, and the two lived in a corrupt neighborhood called Hillrock Heights, where gangs would fight. Robbie started to work as a mechanic in East Los Angeles, and Gabe looked to him as a hero. Eager to move him and his brother to a safer neighborhood, Robbie entered a street race to earn fifty thousand dollars so he could move out of Hillrock Heights. Unbeknownst to him, the car he used for the street race was inhabited by a ghost, and the ghost possessed Robbie when he was nearly engulfed in fire that was started by his pursuers. Robbie transformed into the Ghost Rider, and gave chase and managed to take out a handful of his attackers, but some got away.

Portrayals [ ]

• In Ghost Rider and its sequel, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance , he was portrayed by Nicolas Cage, who also played Ben Gates in the National Treasure films, Balthazar Blake in The Sorcerer's Apprentice , Big Daddy in Kick-Ass , and voiced Noir Spider-Man in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse .
• In Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance , the Danny Ketch version was played by Fergus Riordan.

Television [ ]

• Grieco also voiced the character in The Incredible Hulk and voiced a Johnny Blaze version in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 .
• In Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. , the Robbie Reyes version was portrayed by Gabriel Luna.
• Tatasciore also voiced the character in Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite and Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order .

Video Games [ ]

• North also voiced a Johnny Blaze version in Marvel: Avengers Alliance .
• Kishino also voiced the character in Marvel Heroes .
• Ranked 90th on IGN's "Top 100 Comic Book Heroes" list.
• Blaze was ranked 5th on a listing of Marvel Comics' monster characters in 2015.
• Zarathos is often depicted differently in comics and media, as shown in the marvel films.
• Johnny dislikes Matt Murdock/Daredevil due to thinking his hero name is more suitable for himself.
• Ghost Rider fought Lobo from DC in DEATH BATTLE and won

Navigation [ ]

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• 2 Monkey D. Dragon

Deadpool & 9 Other Marvel Anti-Heroes Who Were Better As Villains

While their stints as anti-heroes increased their popularity, Marvel characters like Deadpool and Venom are better suited to a life of villainy.

Marvel is known for setting many trends in superhero comics, but they are just as good as following them. In the mid-70s, anti-heroes were all the rage and Marvel followed suit. The publisher created iconic anti-heroes like Wolverine and Punisher, which were the first of many who debuted in the '80s, '90s, and beyond.

Many times, these anti-heroes were former villains who had reached a level of popularity that Marvel wanted to capitalize on. Other times, they were created to be anti-heroes, but their edge made them almost villains. Plenty of Marvel characters from both categories would make much better villains than anti-heroes. When comparing their various comics, characters like Venom and Deadpool were far more interesting when they were villains.

RELATED: Marvel's 25 Most Powerful Celestials, Ranked

10 Damian Hellstrom

Damian Hellstrom is a terrifying magic user. This makes perfect sense for the Son of Satan, but it hasn't made him a great hero. Hellstrom's heyday was the '70s, when he starred in his own comics, but since then he's completely fallen off the radar. A Marvel deep cut, Damian typically shows up during magical events, acting all creepy and superior.

Hellstrom never really felt right as a hero of any kind, so making him a straight-up villain would be much better for the character. Hellstrom's attitude towards things often feel more villainous. Adding an interesting layer to his story, Marvel could turn Hellstrom into a villain, while letting him believe that he's doing the right thing.

Johnny Walker took over as Captain America after Steve Rogers had one of his many crises of confidence in the USA. He proved to be a much more violent version of the Star-Spangled Avenger, eventually battling Rogers for the mantle. Walker lost and would become USAgent, a mostly boring reskin of Captain America who joined B-list teams like the West Coast Avengers.

USAgent isn't an interesting character. He's simply a jingoistic patriot who has no qualms about violence. Making him a villainous enforcer of the status quo, one who is an enemy of the heroic community working for the US government, is much more compelling. It's also closer to USAgent's original conception.

8 Ghost Rider

There have been several Ghost Riders over the years, with the most well-known being the Spirits of Vengeance. Johnny Blaze was the first, and in the '90s Danny Ketch was introduced as the new Ghost Rider. Ghost Rider is part of the first class of Marvel anti-heroes, usually battling supernatural forces. However, looking at the character closely, he would be way better as a villain.

To begin with, the Spirit of Vengeance was created by Zarathros, a powerful demon, to do evil. Vengeance isn't a noble goal, but one that often goes awry and brings about terrible results. Ghost Rider would work better as a monster himself, chasing after vengeance for even the slightest of offenses and committing horrible acts in his drive to make things "right."

RELATED: 10 Marvel Heroes Who Actually Kill Their Villains

7 Cosmic Ghost Rider

Cosmic Ghost Rider is a powerhouse and a bit of a ridiculous mash-up. He's an overpowered, future version of Frank Castle, empowered with the Spirit of Vengeance and the Power Cosmic. Cosmic Ghost Rider set out at first to take revenge against Thanos and then joined the Mad Titan, helping him extinguish life throughout the universe.

Cosmic Ghost Rider was originally a villain, but was obscenely popular from the beginning. His crimes were glossed over and he became more like Deadpool. Frank Castle with this kind of power would do monstrous things, so making him a villain again makes way more sense.

Loki gained popularity as a villain , but then the MCU happened. Fans loved Tom Hiddleston's Loki, who was a charming trickster villain, so the comics changed to match this. For years now, Loki has been more of an anti-hero. However, as far as great Loki stories go, there really haven't been many since he turned over a new leaf.

Loki as an anti-hero is frankly boring. The character's stories all go the same way. While it can be argued that his villainous stories did as well, at least they are legendary. His stories since becoming an anti-hero can't say the same. It's time to stop chasing the MCU and make Loki into the villain he was created to be.

Punisher is an OG Marvel anti-hero . His first appearance was as a villain, paid by the Jackal to go after Spider-Man. Since then, Punisher has been an anti-hero, but most of the heroic community considers him a villain. It's impossible to argue with their logic. Punisher is a mass murderer who only targets bad guys. That shouldn't make his crimes any more palatable.

The recent Punisher series did a tremendous job by portraying Frank Castle as a more villainous character. Punisher is perfect as a villain. He's a stone-cold killer who will fight anyone to make sure that he's allowed to keep killing. Killing is his entire purpose, making it easy to turn Punisher into a lethal villain.

4 The Winter Soldier

The Winter Soldier is an overrated hero . Bucky Barnes has an important place in Marvel history as a sidekick, and he was even a pretty good Captain America. As the Winter Soldier, he was only good as a villain. Every time Marvel tried to push Bucky as a hero outside his Cap tenure, it failed.

Winter Soldier worked best when he was laser-focused on hunting down his targets, with Cap constantly trying to bring him back to the heroic side. As an anti-hero, Bucky Barnes is just a slightly more violent Black Widow. Marvel has plenty of former assassins trying to turn good. The Winter Soldier would stand out more if he returned to his villainous roots.

3 Moonstone

Moonstone first appeared as a villain, fighting Captain America, before joining the Masters of Evil. She was part of the team that defeated the Avengers and took over Avengers Mansion. Later, she joined Zemo during his Thunderbolts scheme. She was part of the group who wanted to stay heroes and helped defeat Zemo's plans to take over the world alongside the Avengers.

Moonstone's served on multiple versions of the Thunderbolts and was a Dark Avenger for a time, but she basically became a cliché femme fatale anti-hero. At times, it even felt like the creators had forgotten that she wanted to be a hero. Moonstone was never an A-list villain to begin with, but as an anti-hero, she somehow became even worse. Given she tends to indulge her villainous side, letting her cut loose would make her more interesting again.

RELATED: 10 Coolest Clones In Marvel Comics, Ranked

Venom has had an interesting career in the Marvel Universe. He started out as the perfect anti-Spider-Man villain and became a superstar pretty much from the word go. Marvel kept him as a villain for a couple of years before embracing the "Lethal Protector" schtick. While Venom starred in multiple miniseries that sold well, he didn't reach the heights he did as a villain and Marvel soon changed him back.

For a long time post- Thunderbolts/Dark Avengers when Mac Gargan was Venom, Eddie Brock's version of Venom was basically nowhere to be found. He only came back to prominence recently and his popularity has already dropped. A tenure as a villain again could arrest readers' excitement again. There's basically no reason for Venom to be an anti-hero. Making him a villain would bring back the edge he's been sorely lacking for a long time.

Deadpool has spent decades as an anti-hero. While it's impossible to argue with how popular the character has become, there's something stale about him. Deadpool reached his apex as an anti-hero, and it just might be time to have him go back to his villainous ways for a while. Deadpool's stories haven't been bad, but they've been far from memorable.

Stories like Deadpool Kills The Marvel Universe highlighted how an evil Deadpool would be both a compelling villain and a serious threat. Letting Wade Wilson turn evil would create lots of tension in the comics, especially since Deadpool has so many relationships on the heroic side of the universe. It adds a personal dimension that his original villainy lacked and would make Deadpool's inevitable return to heroics that much sweeter for readers.