A Low-Powered MCU Hero Just Proved They’re Immune to Ghost Rider’s Powers

Summary

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• Black Widow proves her immunity to Ghost Rider’s Penance Stare, surviving an equivalent attack without any pain or impact.
• This showcases Black Widow’s growth and forgiveness of her past sins, making her a strong and worthy member of the Avengers.
• Black Widow’s mental strength is god-tier, as she not only survives but also counters an attack as powerful as the Penance Stare, solidifying her as a formidable Avenger.

Warning! This article contains spoilers for Uncanny Avengers #4 There are a number of incredibly powerful heroes within the MCU, including and especially the Avengers, but not every member of the Earth’s Mightiest Heroes needs to have god-tier strength in order to face-off against a cosmically-powerful being like Ghost Rider. In fact, during her latest Marvel Comics adventure, one low-powered MCU Avenger just proved they’re immune to Ghost Rider’s deadliest ability: the Penance Stare.

Ghost Rider’s Penance Stare is insanely powerful and absolutely terrifying. Just by looking into the eyes of someone who’s committed sin, Ghost Rider is able to burn their souls, making them feel every bit of pain they’ve ever inflicted on others, until there’s nothing left of them but a seemingly vacant shell that’s actually filled with unparalleled agony.

There is one caveat to this seemingly overpowered ability, however: someone has to feel somewhat guilty in order for it to work. For example, when Ghost Rider tried using this ability on Thanos, the Mad Titan wasn’t impacted by it at all, and even thanked the Spirit of Vengeance for helping him recount such ‘happy memories’. This was also true with the Red Skull (or a variant of him from the Avengers: Forever storyline, anyway), as Red Skull proved unaffected by the Penance Stare. And now, another person has effectively added herself to this exclusive list of those immune to Ghost Rider’s deadliest power: Black Widow.

Black Widow Proves She’s Immune To Ghost Rider’s Penance Stare

In Uncanny Avengers #4 by Gerry Duggan and Javier Garrón, some of the last remaining allies of mutantkind have formed a new Avengers Unity Squad consisting of Captain America, Deadpool, Quicksilver, Psylocke, Monet, and Black Widow. Their mission: take down the Mutant Liberation Front led by Captain Krakoa, as it’s secretly an Orchis-backed team whose only purpose is to make mutants look bad through acts of terrorism.

One of the misguided mutants on the Mutant Liberation Front is Wildside, whose mutation allows him to infiltrate someone’s mind and pull out the worst things they’ve ever done, effectively forcing them to relive their worst memories in a flash of shame and anguish. However, when he does this to Black Widow, she just laughs and shoots him, obviously unaffected by the pain of her past sins.

Black Widow’s Ghost Rider Immunity Makes Her A Powerful Avenger

Black Widow survived Wildside’s equivalent of Ghost Rider’s Penance Stare like it was nothing, indicating the same would be true if Ghost Rider did it himself based on the rules established by Thanos and Red Skull. Given the amount of shame Black Widow used to feel about all the ‘red in her ledger’ – especially in the MCU – this proves that she’s come a long way in forgiving herself for the things she did before becoming a heroic super-spy. And that’s not all this proves. By enduring the pain of her past and proving to be stronger than Ghost Rider’s strongest ability, Black Widow confirms why she is and has always been a worthy member of the Avengers.

Some fans argue that having a human with pistols fighting side-by-side with super-soldiers and gods is a bit of a stretch, and while there are grounds for such an argument, this new revelation gives fans new context. Black Widow’s mental strength is literally god-tier, and her ability to survive and counter even an attack as cosmically powerful as Ghost Rider’s Penance Stare is absolutely incredible, making her more than just a low-powered MCU hero, but a worthy Avenger seemingly strong enough to look Ghost Rider in the eye, and literally laugh.

Uncanny Avengers #4 by Marvel Comics is available now.