WARNING! Spoilers ahead for Hellhunters #4Ghost Rider. The entity Zarathos provides the “Hellhunters” with new supernatural powers, giving them an edge as they fight Nazis possessed by demons from Hell.
Bucky gets his upgraded arm in Hellhunters #4 – written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson, with art by Adam Gorham – and while readers don’t get a precise sense of what Bucky can do with it, his fiery arm does foreshadow the later bionic one he’ll get as the Winter Soldier.
The Hellhunters team of Bucky, Wolverine, Nick Fury, Peggy Carter, Soldier Supreme and Ghost Rider all get their upgrades thanks to Zarathos, as the Nazi soldier Bruckner threatens to take over the entire world with his possessed troops.
The “Hellhunters” Get Supernatural Powers, Including A Pre-Winter Soldier Upgrade For Bucky Barnes
Hellhunters #4 – Written By Phillip Kennedy Johnson; Art By Adam Gorham; Color By Frank Martin; Lettering By Travis Lanham
Bucky’s fiery arm is just one aspect of his power upgrade, as it looks like he can also shoot some manner of hellfire from his machine gun; Nick Fury also gets some spiky armor and an upgraded gun, and Peggy gets a pair of demonic wings and a fiery shield that looks an awful lot like Captain America’s. Perhaps the most drastic reinvention is Wolverine, whose claws look to be infused with hellfire with several spiky protrusions from his body, including horns. Ghost Rider has also extended his powers to the entire 101st Airborne Division, the “Screaming Eagles.”
Ghost Rider Lore Changes Forever, As HELLHUNTERS Reveals His WWII History with Wolverine
Fans have seen him on his Hellbike and riding from Hell and back - but in Hellhunters, Ghost Rider '44 makes his fiery Nazi-fighting debut.
Of course, it’s only a few years before Bucky will get his arm stuck while he and Captain America try to disarm an experimental drone plane with an explosive planted by Baron Zemo. Cap would be thrown into the arctic where he was frozen for decades, while Bucky was believed to have died in the blast when the drone exploded. However, it was later revealed that his body was found by Russian scientists, who brainwash him and give him a bionic arm, turning him into the assassin known as the Winter Soldier.
Bucky’s Fiery Arm In Marvel's "Hellhunters" Foreshadows His Later Bionic Arm
A Fun Easter Egg For Winter Solider Fans
As the Winter Soldier, Bucky’s bionic arm gave him a degree of enhanced strength that helped him hold his own against opponents with superpowers. His arm is also capable of discharging electric blasts and EMPs, with later upgrades adding in a retractable blade. If his arm ever gets detached for whatever reason, Bucky can also control it remotely even when it’s away from his body. It will be exciting to see what abilities Ghost Rider’s Zarathos gave Bucky Barnes during WWII, but for now, his fiery arm is a nice foreshadowing of things to come later as the Winter Soldier.
Hellhunters #4 is available now from Marvel Comics.
Ghost Rider
- Created by
- Roy Thomas, Gary Friedrich, Mike Ploog
- First Film
- Ghost Rider
- Latest Film
- Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance
- Cast
- Gabriel Luna, Peter Fonda, Violante Placido
Summary
The Ghost Rider franchise revolves around the Marvel Comics character Ghost Rider, a supernatural anti-hero who gains the ability to transform into a flaming skeletal figure and ride a hellfire-fueled motorcycle. The most famous Ghost Rider, Johnny Blaze, is a stunt motorcyclist who makes a deal with the demon Mephistopheles, transforming him into the Ghost Rider to battle evil spirits. The franchise includes two films starring Nicolas Cage as Johnny Blaze, exploring his fight against demonic forces and his internal struggle with the curse.
