BLACK RIDER

Real Name: Jefferson Cole

Identity/Class: Human

Occupation: Biker, mercenary

Group Membership: The Black Riders Motorcycle Club (Crawley, Delilah, others)

Affiliations: Tex Dawson, Matt Slade, Tarantula (Maria Vasquez), Two-Gun Kid (Reyes)

Enemies: Blackguard (Colonel Keller), del Fuego, Kane-Meyer, Robert Madigan, Roxxon (Mr. Vance)

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Mobile in Texas, USA

First Appearance: Six Guns I#1 (January, 2012)

Powers/Abilities: The Black Rider was an expert motorcycle rider who drove a Harley-Davidson. He carried a pump-action shotgun that could be loaded with non-lethal rounds in order to take prisoners alive. Under other circumstances, the shotgun carried normal shells.

    In one situation, the Black Rider carried caltrips on his motorcycle to spike his enemies' tires.

Height: Unrevealed (approximately 6'2")
Weight: Unrevealed (approximately 190 lbs.)
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Black

History:
(Six Guns I#1) - The Black Riders Motorcycle Club were hired by Mr. Vance of Roxxon to liberate the vigilante Tarantula, who had been arrested by Tex Dawson and Robert Madigan of the Texas Rangers. The Black Rider led his gang in an assault on Dawson and Madigan's vehicle, dropping caltrips ahead of the car in order to spike its tires. The car flipped and the Black Riders surrounded the wreck, ordering Dawson and Madigan to surrender Tarantula to them. Tarantula fought back against the gang but the Black Rider drew his shotgun on her. She confidently claimed that if he "were any kind of man," he would have already pulled the trigger, taunting him to fire at her. However, as the shotgun contained non-lethal rounds, the Black Rider happily complied, firing a blast that knocked her unconscious.

    While Tarantula had them distracted, Madigan and Dawson drew their sidearms; the other Black Riders shot Madigan while Dawson killed one of the Riders. Crawley ambushed Dawson and put a gun to his head but the Black Rider told Crawley not to shoot him because if they killed a Texas Ranger, they'd be marked men. Dawson observed that it was too late for that, since they'd already killed Madigan. The Black Rider apologized and observed that each of them had lost a man in the gunfight but Dawson insisted he'd see the Black Rider again. The Black Riders left Dawson at the scene of the car wreck with Madigan's body while they departed with Tarantula.

    The Black Riders brought Tarantula to El Paso, Texas where the Black Rider delivered Tarantula to Mr. Vance, although the Black Riders did not actually know the identity of their employer. Vance gave a briefcase to them claiming it was their payment. While Delilah and the others examined the case, the Black Rider questioned Vance about why they wanted Tarantula, as she hadn't been grateful for being liberated from the Texas Rangers. Vance refused to answer and departed in a limo. Unfortunately, the briefcase contained a bomb instead of the gang's money and the case exploded, killing all of the gang except for the Black Rider himself.

(Six Guns I#2) - In search of Vance, the Black Rider drove to the nation of San Diablo, where he had traced del Fuego, who had built the bomb that killed the Black Riders Gang. At el Gato Negro Roadhouse, the Black Rider questioned del Fuego but del Fuego refused to discuss his employers. As del Fuego had four armed subordinates with him, the Black Rider seemed to be outgunned but he was suddenly aided by the Two-Gun Kid, who was also looking for Vance's people to obtain revenge for his brother. The Two-Gun Kid assisted the Black Rider but the Black Rider quickly realized the Kid intended to kill del Fuego and he needed information from him. After del Fuego's subordinates were killed, the three remaining men were left in a standoff. The Two-Gun Kid fired a gun from each hand, using one to knock the shotgun from the Black Rider's hand and the other to kill del Fuego. When the Black Rider complained that he'd lost his lead on del Fuego's employers, the Two-Gun Kid revealed that he knew who del Fuego was working for. The Black Rider welcomed the Two-Gun Kid aboard his motorcycle as he continued his pursuit.

(Six Guns I#3) - The Black Rider and the Two-Gun Kid stopped at a hotel to share information with each other. The Kid identified Vance's name and informed the Black Rider that Vance worked for Roxxon and their private military company Blackguard, who at that moment had been hired by one of the factions fighting a civil war in San Diablo. The Kid explained how he and his brother had hired Tarantula to defend them from Blackguard but Blackguard killed the Kid's brother and when Tarantula killed some of Vance's men, she was extradited for murder. The Black Rider and the Two-Gun Kid drove south toward Sierra del Diablo, where Tarantula was being held in a Blackguard compound. The Black Rider and the Two-Gun Kid found Tex Dawson was also there trying to recapture Tarantula. The Black Rider, Two-Gun Kid and Tex Dawson fought together against Blackguard, during which the Black Rider used a grenade to destroy an APC. Although Dawson conceded they had a common cause, he promised to deal with the Black Rider later.

(Six Guns I#4) - When the Two-Gun Kid emerged from the Blackguard prison after a fruitless encounter with Vance, the Black Rider came to the Kid's rescue but his motorcycle was shot by Blackguard soldiers, taking it out of commission. Dawson commandeered an APC and drove the three of them out of the Blackguard site. Dawson accidentally drove the APC over a cliff but the three of them survived the fall into a river and swam to safety. Dawson dropped his gun during the escape but the Black Rider retrieved it for him then asked if they were square. Dawson replied that he had no idea what was going on but once he found out, he'd know whether he should shoot the Black Rider or deputize him.

(Six Guns I#5) - The Black Rider, Two-Gun Kid and Tex Dawson journeyed through a jungle where they were ambushed by Tarantula and the bounty hunter Matt Slade. Soon realizing they were on the same side, they journeyed to the nearby Roxxon mine, where Roxxon had supposedly unearthed a Vibranium deposit that they were trying to keep quiet. Dawson apologized to the Black Rider for the deaths of his gang and gave him the cross his girlfriend Delilah had worn. The two men finally shook hands. The Two-Gun Kid correctly surmised there was no Vibranium in the mine, as it had been left unguarded.

    When Blackguard's soldiers caught up to them at the mine, Tarantula set off explosives that decimated the enemy soldiers, leaving only Colonel Keller alive. Keller offered up information on how to find Mr. Vance at the First National Santa Maria Bank in San Diablo. Just then, the mine was attacked by forces of Kane-Meyer, another private military company that had been hired by the other side of the civil war but, like Blackguard, were actually owned by Roxxon. Evading the Kane-Meyer army by going deeper into the mine, Dawson theorized the International Monetary Fund had loaned billions of dollars to San Diablo thinking there was Vibranium in San Diablo; Roxxon wasn't trying to protect a supposed Vibranium strike, but rather, they were trying to prevent the I.M.F. from learning there was no Vibranium. The Black Rider conceived of an escape plan by planting explosives in the mine to wipe out the Kane-Meyer soldiers when they pursued them then commandeered a Kane-Meyer helicopter for their own flight out of the mine.

    Heading to Santa Maria, the Black Rider, Two-Gun Kid, Tarantula, Matt Slade and Tex Dawson confronted Mr. Vance in his hotel room and drew their guns on him, as the Two-Gun Kid fulfilled his promise to make Vance say his brother's name before he died.

Comments: Created by Andy Diggle and Davide Gianfelice.

    All the lead characters in Six Guns were given the aliases of old Marvel western characters but didn't necessarily have any connection to them beyond the names.

    This profile was completed 08/19/2025 but its publication was delayed, as it was intended for the Appendix's 25th anniversary celebratory event.

Profile by Prime Eternal.

CLARIFICATIONS:
The Black Rider should not be confused with:

The Black Riders Motorcycle Club

The Black Riders Motorcycle Club were a team of motorcycle riders led by the Black Rider. Aside from the Black Rider, there were twelve members of the gang, although only Crawley and Delilah were named. Delilah was romantically involved with the Black Rider. One of their number was killed by Tex Dawson in retaliation for the death of Robert Madigan. The other eleven, including Crawley and Delilah, were killed by explosives used by the men from Blackguard, who had hired them to liberate Tarantula.




--Six Guns I#1

images: (without ads)
Six Guns I#5, page 20 (Black Rider, main)
Six Guns I#2, page 12, panel 3 (Black Rider, face)
Six Guns I#3, page 9, panel 2 (on motorcycle)
Six Guns I#1, page 3, panel 2 (Riders)

Appearances:
Six Guns I#1-5 (January-April, 2012) - Andy Diggle (writer), Davide Gianfelice (artist), Alejandro Arbona (editor)

First posted: 09/13/2026
Last updated: 05/27/2026

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

Non-Marvel Copyright info
All other characters mentioned or pictured are ™ and © 1941-2099 Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved. If you like this stuff, you should check out the real thing!
Please visit The Marvel Official Site at: http://www.marvel.com

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