Cosmic Ghost Rider #3 Review

Written by: Stephanie Phillips
Art by: Guiu Vilanova
Colors by: Espen Grundetjern
Letters by: VC’s Travis Lanham
Cover art by: Valerio Giangiordano
Cover price: $3.99
Release date: May 10, 2023

Cosmic Ghost Rider #3 pits Valkyrie against (the evil) Cosmic Ghost Rider to stop a killing spree spreading across nearly every sector of the Galaxy.

Is It Good?

Cosmic Ghost Rider #3 is fine. Honestly, that’s all you can really say about it. Filled with excellent art, decent pacing and dialog, and mildly engaging action, Cosmic Ghost Rider #3 is a very middle-of-the-road issue.

When last we left Frank Castle, he flamed on (heh) for the first time in a long while to defend himself against a Shi’ar-hired bounty hunter. Meanwhile, Valkyrie followed the trail of bodies to confront the “other” Cosmic Ghost Rider.

Now, Frank fights and escapes the bounty hunter, but just barely because his powers are failing. Meanwhile, the “other” Cosmic Ghost Rider fights Valkyrie to a stalemate as his/her/its powers are also failing. Eventually, the heroes cross paths and figure out that something’s amiss.

Do I make it sound like a mediocre mystery? That’s because it is a mediocre mystery. Phillips puts all the right pieces and players in place, but there’s no dramatic tension. The only part of the mystery that’s truly a mystery surrounds how and where the second Cosmic Ghost Rider came from. To be blunt, the mystery, which is supposed to be the central hook of this series, isn’t that interesting because Phillips has yet to supply a reason for readers to care or connect with the story emotionally. Perhaps that reason will come in future issues.

For now, this series is turning into nothing more than a novelty that’s already lost its luster. If the next issue delivers a reason to care or a memorable wow moment, there’s time to turn it around.

About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.

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Bits and Pieces

Cosmic Ghost Rider #3 contains solid sci-fi art and memorable characters, but the central mystery isn’t compelling, so it’s becoming a struggle to care about what happens in this comic.