The Four Color Media Monitor

ComicBook gushed over a new Marvel book called Hellhunters, which is supposed to be set around the 2nd world war, and even features a variation on Ghost Rider in the cast:

World War 2 is always a fun time for Marvel’s super heroes, which makes sense considering characters like Captain America, Bucky, and Nick Fury were born as a result of the conflict. With teams like the Invaders and the Howling Commandos normally being the “go to” examples of super heroes fighting against Adolf Hitler’s forces, Marvel Comics is looking to branch out with a new World War 2 fighting force unlike anything seen before. In the premiere issue, we see the early formation of these Hellhunters, but do we also get a worthy opening salvo for this new Marvel band of heroes?

Since Hellhunters is a series that focuses on Marvel’s old and new heroes uniting under a supernatural banner, it makes sense that the series would have a definitive horror theme. Our issue begins with a band of German forces wandering into a bewitched wood that holds secrets and madness unique to this cursed locale, setting the stage for a threat that will unite this ragtag band of oddballs. The series works as both an origin story for the Hellhunters themselves and for “Ghost Rider ’44”, a new take on the Spirit of Vengeance who recently made his eruptive debut in the pages of The Incredible Hulk. Luckily, Hellhunters delivers on its unique blend of horror and action for its preliminary adventure.

I think this beggars the query whether war itself is "fun", when looked upon in the context of a real war like the 2nd in the 20th century. And the answer to that would be an absolute "no". No matter how justified it was to battle Germany's National Socialists, it's not fun, it's grueling and terrible when one considers the innocent victims, Jewish, Roma or otherwise during the period, and the same can be said about the war Israel's now been forced to go into after October 7, 2023. On which note, it goes without saying that for a long time, much of the comics medium vehmently refuses to tackle the subject of Islamic jihadism, even long after September 11, 2001. So what's the point of a comic set during WW2, when refusal to write about a serious modern day issue in any way only diminishes the impact of the subject from the past century? One more reason why this is not a "worthy" opening salvo for such a story.

Phillip Kennedy Johnson is the perfect choice to helm the writing responsibilities for this series, being the creative mind responsible for WW 2’s Spirit of Vengeance. Having honed a fantastic level of horror to his recent take on Bruce Banner, Johnson brings that same spirit here in creating creepy creatures that add a new level of danger to the worldwide conflict. [...]

Oh, and that's just what the Hulk needs too. Sure, there were past stories where the Hulk had themes of darkness, but it was anything but horror-themed, and decidedly better that way. Even Dr. Strange was never that far into horror themes when it originally ran from the early 60s to the late 90s. This new Hellhunters series is just another tired example of Marvel milking its properties dry. When will they be closing their publishing shop already?

Labels: Doctor Strange, dreadful writers, Ghost Rider, history, Hulk, marvel comics, msm propaganda, violence