A self-published lucha libre tale put J. Gonzo on Marvel’s radar. He almost refused the offer.

Jason Gonzalez, who goes by his artist moniker J. Gonzo, recalls feeling hesitant about accepting a dream gig with Marvel Comics. “If I do the money grab thing and it doesn’t work, then it’s just an excuse for these companies to never want to do it again.” Comic book artist J. Gonzo looks at the cover of the Marvel Comics “Ghost Rider” story at his studio in Phoenix on Aug. 14. “Amongst my things was this lucha libre Spawn and I’m like, ‘I should really lean into my culture with this.’” It led to the creation of his passion project: the 2011 lucha libre tale “La Mano del Destino,” or “The Hand of Destiny.” His renderings shine with bright hues of yellow, green and pink reminiscent of papel picado — the polar opposite of the classic saturated dark colors used to illustrate famous superheroes. Gonzo is one of three cover artists for the recently released Marvel Comics story “Ghost Rider: Robbie Reyes Special #1” highlighting Latino storytellers during Hispanic Heritage Month. J. Gonzo holds up a black-and-white version of his cover for “Ghost Rider,” part of Marvel Comics’ Hispanic Heritage Month campaign.