Goblin in the Middle

There’s a bit character in here named Murray Futterman. This also ended up being the name of a dude in Gremlins, six years later.

While Pete is off looking for the Goblin, Aunt May suffers another heart attack!

I was surprised to see Silvermane’s return — I was pretty sure he was dead. I guess it didn’t stick.

Another cliffhanger ending, with the Goblin about to reveal Spidey’s secret identity to all of New York’s underworld.

Rating:

The Hitman’s Back in Town!

I read this a couple weeks ago and am only now getting around to reviewing it. I can’t really remember it too well, but after quickly reskimming it, here are my thoughts:

• Those Hostess things can’t go where I read them — this issue starts with Peter coming home immediately after his battle with Molten Man.
• I’m excited about what’s going on with Harry and his shrink.
• I don’t really dig stupid Marla Madison, she’s all kinds of boring. They really need to give her some sort of personality.

The issue ends with JJJ having been kidnapped by the Hitman, flying away from Spidey and the Punisher.

Rating:

What If Gwen Stacy Had Lived?

So this is a What If? story and is obviously non-canon. However, it contains a canon framing sequence of Pete visiting the site of Gwen’s death, one year after it happened.

I read this in totally the wrong spot, based on a hasty misreading of an old post on the MCP forums. Around now in my order is actually, apparently, the third anniversary of Gwen’s death, not the first. I should have read this book between Giant-Size Super-Heroes 1 and Marvel Team-Up 22. Oh well.

Both the framing sequence and the “what if” part were both pretty cool. I definitely am looking forward to reading more of these books.

Rating:

The Green Goblin Lives Again!

Well, Pete and MJ are full-on dating, and I gotta say they make a good couple.

This was an exciting, fantastic issue. Harry Osborn has finally taken on the mantle of the Green Goblin and gone after his former friend. I felt pretty bad for Pete when a bomb in his apartment hurt MJ, and he flashed back to Gwen’s death. Pete’s just got a shitty life, man.

I can’t wait to see how this turns out.

Review:

…Just a Man Called Cage!

Chemistro!
Words: Steve Englehart
Pictures: George Tuska, Billy Graham
Lettering: Charlotte Jetter
Coloring: Petra Goldberg
Originally published: August 1973

…continued from where the last issue left off. the mysterious person from the last issue has removed goblin’s costume, so that spider-man is now being blamed for osborn‘s death, rather than the goblin’s. jameson has vowed that spider-man will die for this and decides to hire luke cage to take spidey out.

gwen’s funeral gives a good chance for conway to over-narrate. once that’s over, the funeral scene is pretty good i guess. pete and flash bury the hatchet, everyone’s sad, and pete admits to mj that he feels lost without gwen. jjj doesn’t show up, which surprised me. i know he can be a self-centered jerk, but he often has a caring side that comes through. robbie defends jameson, saying that sometimes jj can just be tactless, but it still seems a bit out of character. i guess maybe it can be explained if we assume jj’s just distraught by his friend norman osborn’s death. the reason jj missed the funeral was to go hire luke cage to capture spider-man, dead or alive.

later, pete’s swinging around to try and clear is head, but it’s not working. unlike with uncle ben and george stacy’s deaths, this time pete doesn’t feel any guilt. he does feel intense sadness and loneliness. once again, peter considers retiring from the whole super-hero game, but this is right when luke cage takes the opportunity to tackle him. spidey gets pissed and temporarily kicks cage’s ass. all thoughts of quitting are gone, at least for the moment.

when pete gets home harry is there, and he gives old petey the coldest shoulder i have ever seen. it’s a pretty bitchin scene.

pete leaves, goes out with mj to the uni. cage shows up, they fight. spidey comes to his senses, and they end up talking it out. cage returns jameson’s money. the talk apparently also made peter realize he isn’t alone…because he’s friends with luke cage? that’s just weird and dumb. maybe if they showed the talk it would make more sense, but it comes off as trite.

the issue is not terrible, but the luke cage stuff falls a little flat. pretty weak cross-over in my opinion. it would have been nice to have an issue dealing with pete’s grief that wasn’t just a shameless promotion of another book. oh well. the personal stuff – funeral, mj, harry – was all really good, and i’m excited to see who the mystery man is that messed with osborn’s body.

spider-man appears in the splash page of luke cage’s book, as a flashback to their fight from asm. the story then goes completely elsewhere. this is spider-man’s only appearance in hero for hire, by the way. the issue is not half-bad, and it’s really interesting how different in tone it is from the spider-man books. i liked it, but this ain’t a luke cage blog.

Rating:

The Day She Died

I already wrote a review of this and it got deleted. I don’t feel like rewriting it, so here’s the summary: no good. I had high expectations after reading the other Marvels issues and after reading the Amazing Spider-Man stories this was based on. Unfortunately, this issue didn’t live up to either.

(Update: According the Chronology Project, Clark Kent is in this issue. I think I see who they’re talking about, so I’ve given this review a Superman tag.)

Rating:

The Goblin’s Last Stand!

Spider-Man is furious after the Green Goblin has killed Gwen Stacy. Before attacking Osborn, though, Pete takes the time to bring Gwen’s body down to a nearby pier. He then launches into a very fast and, unfortunately, very sloppy attack. The Goblin is able to escape.

Returning to the pier and Gwen’s body, Pete finally has a chance to say goodbye to her. In fact, he says much more than goodbye and has a quite lengthy conversation to her, which is really quite sad and slightly disturbing. Again, Conway does a fantastic job of capturing Peter’s anguish. The police have also arrived, though, and when they demand a little attention, Spider-Man loses it and ends up getting into a bit of a brouhaha. Blaming himself for Gwen’s death, Spider-Man takes off to try and quash his guilt the only way he knows how – by seeking revenge on the Green Goblin.

Peter’s first stop is the Osborn mansion, to see if he can get any information out of Harry. The poor sod is in the midst of a major freakout and, disgusted and angry, Pete turns to leave. When his friend begs him to stay and help, to not abandon him like everyone else has, Pete just turns his back and literally slams the door in Harry’s face.

This scene is another example of Conway’s surprisingly great writing in this issue. Rather than have Peter be a hero and help his friend, Conway instead makes him much more human. Pete is overcome with grief and revenge is all he can think about. Yes he acts like a complete dick to Harry, but it’s understandable and makes for a much more powerful issue.

Next, Pete – as Spider-Man – heads over to the Daily Bugle in hopes of rounding up some info about Norman Osborn. With the help of Robbie Robertson, he’s able to track the villain down to a warehouse. The Goblin, meanwhile, is expecting Spider-Man and lays a trap. When Pete finally arrives though, he outsmarts Osborn and is able to take him by surprise.

While they fight, the Goblin makes the very unwise move of calling Gwen useless, and saying that “she never did more than occupy space”. This, naturally, riles Peter up like nobody’s business and he just starts wailing on the Goblin. He’s just seriously beating the living crap out of Osborn and, I must admit, it’s very satisfying to see. After awhile, though, Peter begins to come to his senses and realizes that if he continues, if he kills the Goblin, he’ll be no less of a murderer than Osborn is.

Taking advantage of this break, the Goblin uses a remote control to activate his flyer, behind Peter. As Peter struggles with his demons, Osborn sends the glider hurtling towards Spider-Man. What he hasn’t taken into account, though, is Pete’s spider sense. Just at the last instant, Spider-Man ducks out of the way and slams into the Green Goblin instead. The razor sharp tips of the glider, propelled by its jet engine, pin Osborn’s body to the brick wall. Only after the jet dies down does Osborn’s lifeless body slump to the ground.

Realizing that his foe is dead brings no satisfaction to Peter. He realizes that the death is meaningless, and that he now feels even more empty and alone. As Pete sulks away, we see that he is being watched by a mysterious man in the shadows.

In an epilogue, Pete finally arrives back at his apartment and finds Mary Jane. With grief and anger still washing over him, Pete snaps at MJ. He basically calls her shallow, and uncaring, and he orders her to leave. But, unlike Peter only a few hours earlier, she stays behind to help her friend.

This issue is no worse than the last. Conway finishes up his story with great skill, and creates a very powerful turning point for our hero. Basically every praise I gave for issue 121 still holds true here. I was very pleasantly surprised with the quality of this book.

Rating:

The Night Gwen Stacy Died

I had written a glowing review of this issue, as well as reviews of the next three things on the list. Then I accidentally deleted them. So this is my second go-around at it. Normally I wouldn’t be thrilled at the prospect but, frankly, this issue was so good that I don’t mind re-reading and re-reviewing it.

Amazing 120 ended with Peter wrapping things up in Montreal. At the start of this issue he’s back in New York, ready to go visit a very sick and drug-addled Harry Osborn. Harry has been taking LSD and is quite sick. Harry’s diagnosis says that the drugs, combined with Harry’s existing state of depression has led to schizophrenia. When Peter actually tries to go see Harry, he is confronted by a very angry and very unhinged Norman Osborn. Osborn accuses Peter, along with Gwen and MJ, for Harry’s situation and orders them out of his house. Freaked out by the episode, Peter can’t help but wonder if Osborn is starting to lose control and slip into the grip of the Green Goblin again. After they leave, Norman Osborn, consumed with legitimate worry for his son and concern over his dwindling fortune, is beginning to crack up. Outside, Pete and Gwen wonder aloud about Harry’s motivations for taking the drugs, Mary Jane casts her eyes downward in shame and mumbles a half-hearted “I don’t know.” I suspect that MJ might know more about Harry’s troubles than she’s letting on.

Later, Spider-Man is heading to the Bugle and finds himself winded and dizzy. This is the part of the issue I have the biggest problem with, for three reasons. This “Peter has an illness” sub-plot has been used before, I believe even used the last time Pete fought the Goblin. It’s sole purpose is to provide an excuse for Peter fighting at a level below his norm. Having been done before, the sheer mention of his illness comes across as being tired and unoriginal. Furthermore, the reason for this illness is extremely flimsy – Pete speculates that because he’s not used to the “zero-degree weather” up in Canada, he must have picked up a virus. Here’s the problem:

1. Montreal’s weather isn’t that different from NYC’s
2. Viruses have nothing to do with temperature

Anyway, I know this is a small problem to focus on. Frankly, it’s really the only weakness in the issue, so it’s easy to blow it up out of proportion. Onwards…

Back at the Osborn home, Harry’s doctor has just left and Norman is feeling guilty about everything. As his sanity starts to slip away he has a hallucination of Spider-Man attacking him and, as he vows to kill Spidey, all of Norman’s memories flood back to him. He remembers that he is the Goblin, and he remembers that Peter is Spider-Man. Taking off into the night, Osborn heads straight to one of the Goblin’s old hideouts and makes his transformation complete.

As Pete heads back to his apartment, he’s looking forward to a long overdue talk with Gwen. Little does he know that the Green Goblin, aware of Peter Parker’s secret identity, is heading to the same apartment where Gwen is waiting. When Peter arrives he finds the apartment a mess. A small, unmistakeable pumpkin sits atop Gwen’s handbag on the floor.

Desperate to find the Goblin and Gwen, Spider-Man heads out into the city, trusting his spider sense to lead him in the right direction. He is finally drawn to the top of the George Washington Bridge, where he finds his prey. As Spidey approaches, the Goblin calls out his conditions – either Spider-Man dies, or Gwen Stacy does.

Not satisfied with this offer, Spider-Man attacks and, after a fairly brief fight, delivers a massive blow to the Goblin’s ugly mug. As Spider-Man races towards an unconscious Gwen, he doesn’t realize that the Goblin has recovered quicker than anticipated. Just as Spidey reaches her, the Goblin swoops by on his glider and sends Gwen toppling towards the icy water hundreds of feet below. Thinking quick, Spidey shoots out a web to catch Gwen and he does!

Giddy with relief, Spider-Man pulls Gwen back up… only to find that she is dead! There is some controversy over the cause of Gwen’s death. The Goblin tells Spider-Man that the shock of the fall killed Gwen, that nobody could live through a fright like that, and Spider-Man accepts this explanation. Some people believe that Gwen was dead before the Goblin even sent her over the edge, that she was dead before Peter arrived.

I believe most people – myself included – think that the cause of Gwen’s death was Spider-Man’s own web. There is an unmistakeable “snap!” as the web stops her descent, indicating that the sudden stop caused a massive whiplash and broke her neck. Unknowingly and quite unintentionally, Peter has killed his own true love. Of course, that’s only in the most direct sense. Has Pete done nothing, Gwen surely would have died anyway. The Goblin had condemned her and there was really nothing Peter could have done, but the details really do make it a much sadder situation.

The panels when Peter realizes that Gwen is dead are incredibly moving and convey very realistic emotion. It’s impressive that Conway and Gil Kane manage to make Spider-Man so expressive behind his mask. In a way, it reminds me of Hugo Weaving’s performance in V for Vendetta – there is a surprising depth of emotion coming through, even though all the features and details of the face are hidden.

The issue ends with Spider-Man, clinging to Gwen’s body, shaking his fist in the air and vowing that the Goblin will die for what he’s done.

I’ve made no secret of the fact that I usually hate Gerry Conway’s writing. The drastic shift in quality from his usual output to this issue is startling. Conway manages to tell a very human, very touching story here. I don’t know if maybe he’d been putting in so much time and effort on this issue that his other work suffered, or if he really just finally hit his stride here. All I know is that this issue was great and lived up to my very high expectations.

Besides Conway’s writing, the art by Gil Kane (along with Romita, Mortellaro and Hunt) and even the lettering by Artie Simek were fantastic. Other than the annoying bit about Pete’s virus, this issue was damn near perfect.

Having reached this point in the project is weird. Gwen Stacy’s death has always been a milestone in front of me, and now that I’ve passed it I’m not sure what I have to look forward to. Part of me is eager for the Secret Wars, for Venom and Carnage, for the Clone saga. But none of these are as iconic and important to Spider-Man’s history – and the history of comic books – as Gwen Stacy’s death. This issue was a very important marker in the project, and I’m very glad it was as good as I had hoped.

Rating:

The Gentleman’s Name is…Hulk!

Spidey’s last adventure (though not last issue) before the whole Gwen Stacy thing goes down. Shit. The suspense is killing me.

Pete reads a telegram for Aunt May that came from a mysterious man in Quebec. Once he gets there, he has to fight the Hulk in an extremely long, boring sequence. The issue ends with both of them falling over a dam into some icy cold water.

Note: Harry and Norman Osborn act super weird at the beginning of this issue. Foreshadowing!

This issue was a stinker, but hopefully the story will pick up with the next issue.

Rating:

Suddenly…The Smasher!

The Deadly Designs of the Disruptor!
Script: Stan Lee, Gerry Conway
Art: John Romita, Jim Mooney, T. Mortellaro
Lettering: Sam Rosen, Artie Simek
Coloring: Stan G.
Originally published: February 1973

Countdown to Chaos!
Script: Stan Lee, Gerry Conway
Art: John Romita, Jim Mooney, Tony Mortellaro
Lettering: Sam Rosen, Duffy
Coloring: Stan G.
Originally published: March 1973

Ok, these three issues are weird, because they’re basically a reprinting of the story “Lo, This Monster” from Spectacular Spider-Man Magazing #1, only updated to fit into the current story line. I’m reading them, but basically ignoring anything that deals with the recycled plot (which I will consider non-canon and non-existent). Instead, I’ll be focusing on all the subplots that get resolved and forwarded over the course of this retread.

So here’s what happens:

• Spider-Man gets his real mask back from the Bugle
• Gwen feels guilty about the Aunt May situation
• Peter confronts Gwen about Flash, finds out he’s an idiot
• Peter still has an ulcer
• Aunt May likes working for Dr. Octopus, and his “business associates” are being nice to her while Ock is in jail

Rating:

Spidey Smashes Thru!

Alright, let’s finish this shit up. I’m getting pretty tired of this fucking Spider Slayer story.

The issue opens with Spider-Man entangled in the Spider Slayer’s webbing. Smythe has also sapped away Spider-Man’s powers using some ethyl chloride gas. Smythe takes Spidey to the gang leaders, and together they begin to orchestrate a bank robbery plan.

Meanwhile, Flash apologizes to Gwen for acting like a dick and sorta admits that he loves her and also that something else is going on with him.

Back with Spidey, Smythe is occupied with his bank robbery, and Spider-Man manages to break free. He disables the robot, contacts the police to have the video spy cameras taken out of commission (since Smythe is using them in the robbery getaway), and heads out to stop the bad guys. When he’s done with them, he goes back for Smythe and finds that the scientist as re-enabled his robot and is guiding/driving it again. Unfortunately for Smythe, Spidey had previously fucked up the controls, and the whole thing goes haywire and dies. Spidey wins.

The issue ends on a really weird note as a car with a military officer (or a cop?) pulls up to Gwen and Flash, and they force Flash back in. According to the teaser, the next issue has him (or someone) going back to Viet Nam. Weird.

Uh, this issue was alright I guess. I dunno. I hate Smythe and the Spider Slayers. It’s a surprisingly boring dynamic. Even Romita’s art couldn’t cheer me up.

Rating:

The Spider Slayer!

• Boring B-plot about Randy and some others protesting the Bugle for their treatment of minorities and the common man. I like when the comics have a somewhat political bent, but it would also be nice if there was actually an interesting plot about it, not just a handful of boring throw-away panels.
• Mrs. Watson moved to the coast, leaving Aunt May alone.
• Party for Harry’s return from the hospital includes Flash Thompson, who is back for good, and a flirtatious MJ.
• Jameson gets angry with Spider-Man, contacts Professor Smythe again, hires him and his Spider Slayer robot.
• Smythe overrides Jameson’s controls, uses the robot to both defeat Spidey and steal some computer part (and frame Spider-Man for it). Why even involve Jameson? Why not just do that himself?
• The computer part controls crime-prevention video cameras that have been placed around the city, which Smythe wants to use to spy on shit and cause crime. Really dumb.
• Smythe uses them to learn Spider-Man’s identity.

Absolutely terrible, terrible issue. I didn’t think Amazing could get worse with Stan returning, but it did. Ugh.

Rating:

The Goblin’s Last Gasp!

Right at the worst possible moment, the Green Goblin smashes through the window, into Harry and Peter’s apartment. Peter’s only hope is to try to distract the Goblin, convince him to relent, by showing him his sick son Harry. Though he barely recognizes Harry, the Goblin is overcome with emotion and takes off, vowing to come back and get Parker.

Pete gets Harry to the hospital, and starts thinking about how Harry turned to drugs because of the way Mary Jane treated him. His thoughts then turn to Gwen who, we learn, is also thinking of Peter. In London, Gwen realizes she needs Peter in her life and resolves to try to win him back.

Back in New York, Peter runs into the moustachioed drug dealer that sold Harry his pills. Pete flips his lid and beats the snot out of the dealer and his gang of goons. Woot.

Once night falls, Spidey has another run-in with the Goblin, and this time he’s playing for keeps. Spider-Man doesn’t know how to fight the Green Goblin without harming him – he knows the only way to stop and silence the Goblin is death, but that’s not really on the table. The Goblin is fighting hard and busts out a couple new weapons: a lousy glue bomb, and some sort of mist that soaks into Spidey and causes him to lose his sticking / wallcrawling ability! To make matters worse, Spider-Man runs out of web fluid.

In a tight spot, Spidey manages to jump onto the Goblin and wrap his legs around Osborn’s neck. In this position he’s able to control the Goblin’s glider, steering him towards the hospital where Harry is recovering. Upon seeing his sick son, some humanity begins to return to the Goblin. He’s concerned, and with his concern his Goblinness begins to ebb away. In a state of shock, Osborn faints.

Assuming that, while “normal”, Osborn won’t remember anything of his Goblin identity, Spidey takes Osborn home and burns the Goblin costume. I can’t help but wonder if this will work out as well as Peter thinks.

The business with the Goblin over, Peter again turns his mind to Gwen — only to find that she’s there, behind him, back in New York! The happy couple are reunited and for once it looks like everything is working out wonderfully for Pete! But, can it last? NO!

This issue was a little bit slower and a little bit looser than the last two, but still pretty good overall. Frankly I think Pete’s a moron for how he left things with Osborn, but I’m sure he’ll learn his lesson soon enough.

Rating:

In the Grip of the Goblin!

The Green Goblin remembers everything, including Peter’s identity. When he sees Spider-Man, he vows not to let him leave alive. We open on Spidey getting knocked over by the Goblin on his glider. Just as he recovers, the Goblin hits Spidey with some hallucinogenic gas and then hits him with his fist. Spider-Man tries to come after him and gain some ground, but the Goblin keeps ahead. As they make their way outside, Spidey tries reasoning and tries fighting, but there’s just no keeping the Goblin down. The battle only ends when Peter’s able to rest under a ledge, and Osborn thinks that Spidey has fallen to his death.

The Green Goblin is a problem for Peter, because he knows Spidey’s real identity. What can he do to stop him? Sure, convenient amnesia has helped him twice in the past, but what’s he going to do now? Kill his best friend’s dad? Lost in anxious depression, Pete’s thoughts turn to Gwen. He resolves to stop being a negative nelly, to buck up, and to fight back. With this new-found gumption, he goes home and brushes his teeth. Good plan there, Parker.

When Harry Osborn gets back to the apartment, he’s pissed at Peter about the whole business with MJ in the last issue. Pete proclaims his innocence, but Harry isn’t buying it. A nervous wreck, Harry starts downing some pills for a headache and to help him sleep. Pete calls him on this, but Harry just snaps at him. Interesting…will Harry start to get on the drugs?

The next morning, Peter is wearing some insane gold chains.

This makes MJ horny, which makes Harry mad. Pete confronts MJ about it, and she spills the beans off-panel. What’s the deal? Only time will tell. Harry skulks off and runs into a moustachioed man offering him relief from his girl troubles – relief in the form of DRUGZ0RZ!!1!

Pete goes on a mission to find the Green Goblin, MJ breaks up with Harry, the world is in a crazy turmoil. Furious about the break-up and blaming Peter, Harry kicks Parker out of the apartment and onto his ass. When Pete acquiesces, Harry does a complete 180 and tells him to stay. It’s the drugs, they’re making him nuts! Pete leaves, and when he returns he finds Harry collapsed. As he’s about to call the doctor, the Green Goblin shows up and it’s obvious that shit is about to blow up.

Another awesome issue. I’m so happy Marvel decided to forgo the comics code and do this drug story. It’s really fantastic, and a great background to everything that’s going on with the Goblin. I’m super excited about the next few issues.

Rating:

–And Now, The Goblin!

Back in New York, Pete is broke. Harry calls him a jerk and forces him to take Norman Osborn up on his job offer.

Later, Pete is going to see MJ in her new off-broadway show. He runs into Aunt May and Anna Watson on their way to see Hair (ha!). When a cop car screams by, Pete quickly changes into Spidey to follow it and finds some dude on a roof “stoned right out of his mind”! Man this issue’s awesome! The kid, thinking he can fly, leaps off the roof. Spidey is forced to save him and reveal himself in front of a boatload of cops. With the kid safe, the cops look the other way as Spidey takes off.

Returning to the theatre, Pete finds the gang. Much to Harry’s chagrin, MJ starts flirting with Peter right in front of everyone! She keeps this up all night. What a ho. Then Randy shows up and starts flipping out at Norman Osborn about the drug scene and how Osborn has a responsibility because of his money and influence. Awkward! Norman gets all riled up, which is exactly what he’s not supposed to do according to his doctor.

With the show going splendidly, the gang reconvenes at intermission. Suddenly, Norman Osborn breaks into a cold sweat and Peter’s spider sense starts acting up. The whole incident remains a mystery for awhile, but Peter and Osborn’s attention are both focused on a particular door in the theatre. Now, we learned earlier that Osborn used to own the theatre, so we can only suspect that it was perhaps one of his Goblin hideouts.

With everyone cleared out, both Peter and Norman Osborn head back to the theatre to check out the mysterious door of mystery. Osborn beats Spider-Man inside, and by the time Spidey gets there — he has indeed returned to his role as the Green Goblin!

Absolutely fantastic issue. The way Spider-Man caught the falling stoner was great foreshadowing for Gwen’s upcoming death, and MJ’s interest in Peter was a nice hint at the future (even if it was a bit strong). Norman Osborn is always a great character to have around, too. I also love the whole drug thing, which I believe the Comics Code actually didn’t allow – those Marvel guys were getting pretty ballsy I guess, but it was obviously for a good cause. The whole thing was really well written and had some pretty nice art to boot.

Rating:

The Goblin Lives!

The cover is a fucking sweet painting by Romita. Nice!

This starts off with a lecture by Captain Stacy about the Goblin. Norman Osborn is there and he doesn’t yet remember that he’s the Goblin. That means that at least the first part of this issue has to take place during or before Amazing Spider-Man #66. In fact, since Peter and Harry are hanging out with Norman, this must be before he disappeared, which happened sometime in Amazing Spider-Man #63.

It actually all fits together pretty well, because that’s also right around when Captain Stacy regained his memory and realized Peter wasn’t a bad guy – meaning there’s no reason he couldn’t be hanging out with Pete at the start of this issue. Cool. I love when stuff fits together.

Anyway, at that lecture, Norman Osborn has a bit of a freakout and needs to be taken to the hospital. A few pages later, Osborn finally does remember that he’s the Goblin in one really great, beautiful-looking page. Once he realizes this, he bolts out of his hospital room and takes off. This, you see, is the beginning of his disappearance that happens in issue #63. Osborn heads off to one of his old hideouts, gets in an old costume and vows almighty revenge on Spider-Man!

At this point we have to assume there’s a jump forward to my present point in the timeline. The Goblin has now remembered Spider-Man’s true identity as well and, though Peter wants a confrontation as soon as possible, the Goblin is biding his time. Osborn invites Harry, Peter, MJ and Gwen to a party. Without any plausible excuse Peter is forced to attend, even though he knows that he’s jeopardizing his secret identity and the lives of his friends.

Once at the party, Osborn toys with Peter. They both know each other’s identities, but Peter can’t reveal anything until the Goblin makes a move. When it becomes obvious that Osborn’s about to lose control of himself, Peter creates a smoke bomb to get his friends out and to safety. Furious, Osborn takes off to go attack Aunt May, knowing that Peter will follow.

When they converge again at May’s house, not only does the Goblin give Spidey a bit of a thrashing initially, he also decides to tell Aunt May about Peter’s secret identity. What’s Spider-Man to do? He can’t kill Osborn, but he can’t let Osborn live with his secret, either. He opts to just try to lure the Goblin away for the time being. The plan works, but then Osborn hits him with a “psychedelic pumpkin” and Spider-Man starts tripping like a motherfucker. After having a seriously bad trip for a couple pages, Spider-Man’s powers allow him to come out of the haze just in time!

Spider-Man comes back and beats the snot out of the Goblin. Unmasking his foe, Spider-Man goes with the only crazy-ass long-shot plan he has to keep the Goblin quiet about his secret: he exposes Osborn to one of his own psychedelic pumpkins. Aided by the hallucinogens, Peter basically hypnotizes Osborn into despising the very thought of the Green Goblin, and of Spider-Man. Somehow this works and Osborn disassociates himself from his evil alter-ego, ripping his costume from his body in disgust. It also somehow erases Osborn’s memory of Spider-Man’s true identity.

The question Spider-Man and I both have is: will it be permanent? (I know the answer though: no.)

This was a great Goblin story. I really liked this Spectacular Spider-Man Magazine but, unfortunately, this issue was it’s last! It’s kind of a shame, because I think the slightly different format gave Romita the chance to do some really awesome art and Stan Lee the ability to do longer, more interesting stories.

Rating:

The Madness of Mysterio!

To Squash a Spider!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Johnny Romita
Embellisher: Jim Mooney
Lettered by: Artie Simek
Originally published: December 1968

Pete’s got problems as usual and even has to sell his bitchin motorcycle. Shitsville.

Plot:

• Mysterio shows up.
• Gwen and Peter finally get together.
• Norman Osborn has remembered that he’s the Green Goblin, but he still doesn’t remember that Peter is Spider-Man.

While fighting Mysterio, Spider-Man gets blown the hell up by some crazy-ass shrinking ray in a super-tight panel:

The issue ends after that, with Spider-Man apparently only six inches tall and trapped in a model amusement park.

The vast majority of the next issue just involves tiny Spider-Man fighting traps in Mysterio’s amusement park. Of course, the whole thing is an illusion and once Spider-Man figures it out he’s able to beat up Mysterio pretty handily. The resolution was actually far too quick and fairly unsatisfying unfortunately. There were no real explanations about how Mysterio pulled any of it off, except that he used “post-hypnotic suggestion”, which is a bit of a cop-out.

Also in the second issue, we’re introduced to Robbie Robertson’s son, Randy.

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The Vulture’s Prey
Writer: Stan Lee
Art: John Romita
Augmented by: Don Heck
Embellisment: Mickey Demeo
Lettering: Artie Simek
Originally published: September 1968

The Impossible Escape!
Writer: Stan Lee
Art: John Romita, Jim Mooney
Lettering by: Artie Simek
Originally published: October 1968

Peter mentioned in the annual I just read that it was summer vacation, but there’s no real indication of that here. Also, I think Flash may have been in the background of one scene, but in this issue he’s still in the army, about to head into the shit. I suspect the annual was misplaced in my list…

Note: no exclamation mark on the title of Amazing Spider-Man #64!

We open with a bombshell: the original Vulture, Adrian Toomes, is not dead! (I actually kinda figured this was the case, since we never saw him die before, and also because I’m a super genius.)

After that short introduction we’re treated to Spider-Man getting horribly defeated by the rain. Yes, apparently Spider-Man’s biggest enemies are wet walls and moist webbing. Pete’s hurts his shoulder, but that’s not the only pain he feels. There’s still the whole deal with Gwen hating his ass after he clocked Captain Stacy.

Norman Osborn shows up and is acting crazier and getting closer to remembering the whole Goblin/Spider-Man thing (including Spidey’s true identity).

The old Vulture busts the new Vulture, Blackie Drago, out of jail to beat the crap out of him, to show that the original Vulture is the best. The issue ends with Drago defeated, Spider-Man injured, and Toomes coming in for an attack.

In issue number 64 the Vulture and Spider-Man are fighting. Robbie Robertson gets hurt. It’s exciting, until we get to page 12 and stop caring about any of that bullshit because MARY JANE GOT A NEW HAIRCUT!!!1! OMGZ!!

It’s so awful! Holy crap! Talk about a terrible decision! No wonder Pete’s more interested in Gwen.

Uh anyway, Spider-Man eventually scares off the Vulture, but passes out in the middle of the street. The crowd considers unmasking him, and then it’s over. When we pick up the story in the next issue, Captain Stacy and some random cops are protecting Spidey from the crowd. Thank goodness. The bad news is that Spider-Man is out cold and taken into police custody. When he finally wakes up in a prison infirmary, the debate about whether or not to unmask him is still going on.

While Spider-Man is resting up, though, there’s a damn prison break. Captain Stacy gets taken hostage. Spider-Man figures his only shot at stopping the break-out, saving Captain Stacy, and rescuing himself is to pretend to help the crooks escape. He does, then smashes their faces in and saves the day. Captain Stacy tries to convince Spidey to stay in custody and go on trial, but Spider-Man’s having none of that. He busts out of there.

I wanna take this opportunity to re-iterate how much I like John Romita’s (and I guess Don Heck’s) art. Except for MJ’s new stupid-ass haircut. Damn.

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Spider-Man runs into Medusa, of the Inhumans. Here’s how it goes down: Medusa shows up in New York to see if humans can handle the Inhumans. Then she becomes a spokesperson for hairspray. God, where the hell did this crap come from?

The only good parts were with Norman Osborn continuing to recover his memories and going a little bit nutty over it.

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There’s another (or the same?) bad guy named Blackie here. After all this I’m kind of curious if the Blackies are all supposed to be the same guy. I need to look into this and compare them…

Anyway, a great issue. With the help of Norman Osborn, Spider-Man is able to save Captain Stacy and Gwen from the Kingpin, and the weirdo scientist that was actually doing the brainwashing got killed. In other news, it looks like their building up to Osborn regaining his memories and becoming the Goblin again. That should be exciting.

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We learn in a flashback that when Kraven the Hunter previously fought Spider-Man, he was doing so with the promise of $20k if he could kill Spidey – courtesy of the Green Goblin! It turns out that way back when, when I said I liked that Kraven’s motivation wasn’t greed, I was dead wrong. Nice retcon, Stan.

In the present, Kraven finds out that the Goblin is dead and blames Spider-Man for keeping the 20 grand from him. He vows revenge. Kraven knows that Norman Osborn was working for the Goblin (but not that Osborn was the Goblin) and decides to go find him to demand some money. When he finds that Osborn is out of town, we’re treated to a view of his new weapon – nipple lasers that will magnetize Spider-Man’s elecrolytes.

There’s some Peter/Harry/Gwen action, then Pete invites Betty and Ned to Flash’s going-to-war party. On part night, Gwen definitely has MJ beat fashion-wise…although their dresses are both awesome. That Romita sure has an eye for fashion.

Unfortunately for the gang, KRAVEN SMASHES INTO THE PARTY! Since Norman Osborn was out of town, he’s going after Harry. When Flash tries to come to the rescue, Kraven bitch slaps him onto the floor and kidnaps Harry. Luckily, Spider-Man is on the scene and they have a big fight. After awhile, Kraven hits him with the nipple lasers and really turns the table on ol’ Spidey. Just then, Norman Osborn shows up and takes Kraven’s attention away from Spider-Man. Osborn, who has no memory of ever encountering Kraven (or of being the Green Goblin) gets grabbed by Kraven but is saved by his own amnesia – since Kraven has some sort of lie-detecting “jungle instinct”, he knows Osborn is telling the truth about not knowing Kraven or the Goblin. Kraven assumes that he has the wrong man and starts to leave. Spider-Man would probably stop him, except that Norman Osborn was klutzy and fell off a high building, so Spidey had to go save him.

When it’s all over, Peter says goodbye to Flash and finally, for once, starts to question whether the poor guy will survive the war.

This issue was really good!

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“Spidey Saves the Day!” Featuring: The End of the Green Goblin!
Writer: Stan Lee
Penciler: John Romita
Inker: Mickey Demeo
Letterer: Sam Rosen
Originally published: September 1966

So this is the first Ditko-less Amazing. I felt weird about it before I started, but in all honesty, Romita does a great job. I may like his stuff better than Ditko… :O On with the show!

How awesome is that fucking cover?! Spider-Man unmasked and being dragged around by the Green Goblin. You know you’re in for excitement when you see that!

Spider-Man breaks up a robbery, but it’s all a setup by the Green Goblin to lure him in. The thugs hit him with some gas that, unbeknownst to Peter, dulls his senses — including his spider-sense. Without it, he doesn’t realize that the Goblin is tailing and watching him, and Peter takes off his costume in full view of him! Ahhh! Bad move! The Goblin follows Peter to the Bugle, where he overhears the kid’s name, and then home, where he attacks. After soundly beating an unprepared Spider-Man, the Goblin takes him back to his lair and reveals his own true identity – Norman Osborn!

Next issue!

Peter and Osborn are having a nice conversation about stuff, and it’s pretty obvious that Osborn is completely nuts. The dialogue is actually surprisingly interesting and competently written; I didn’t think Stan had it in him. The Goblin dishes out his whole origin story, then we cut to some super frivolous scenes of Aunt May worrying and JJJ yelling. After that, though, we finally learn the whereabouts of Betty Brant: Chicago! The reason? Well, there wasn’t one really, she was just overwhelmed by stuff and took off I think.

When we cut back to the Goblin, he uses a “retro-scope helmet” to “project mental pictures” of their previous battles to Spider-Man. WTF, now there’s damn virtual reality in the 60s comic too?! Jesus. It’s a super lame way to recap their previous encounters. Whatever, then they fight and Spider-Man wins. But the Goblin knows his secret identity, so what’s he going to do about that? Well, luckily Norman Osborn is injured and gets amnesia, so that all works out just fine. Norman has no memory of ever being the Green Goblin, or of Spider-Man.

It’s over!

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Boooorrrrring.

Unfortunately, this is Ditko’s last issue. What a way to go out… I wonder if he did a shitty issue on purpose because he knew he was quitting, or if Stan sabotaged it, or what. :(

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Decent issue about Norman Osborn and his ex-partner, Mendel Stromm. Looks like we’re finally leading up to the big Green Goblin reveal (in Amazing; the Goblin’s identity was already revealed in Untold Tales). It should be cool to have Spider-Man figure it out.

I don’t have much to say about this, other than that I enjoyed it. It was surprising to have Mendel Stromm die (of a heart attack, no less) in the issue. I’m pretty sure he comes back later, so I’m curious about how that’ll work.

Peter acting like a jerk (more sexism / “female”-”bitch” euphamisms!):

Spider-Man wearing an awesome hat for no reason whatsoever:

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Yeah, more Kurt Busiek! And Alex Ross’s art again! Woo!

Seriously, I love Marvels. It’s super good. In this issue Busiek deals with the emerging mutant “menace”. It turns out everybody — everybody — hates the mutants. A lot. Like, I thought Spider-Man was hated by the public, but Busiek puts people’s fear and distrust of mutants in a whole other category. Even our protagonist, photojournalist (and now budding author) Phil Sheldon, hates the “muties” and ends up clocking Iceman in the head with a brick.

That all changes, though, when Sheldon’s daughters find and rescue a lonely little mutant girl. Sheldon agrees to take her in, and his views begin to change. The mutant story comes to a head when the Sentinel robots are released, sparking mass riots and general chaos. Sheldon sees his friends and neighbours turn into far worse monsters than the mutants they’re raging against.

The chaos and anti-mutant fire is contrasted with the whole city’s celebration of Reed Richard and Sue Storm’s engagement and subsequent wedding. The city adores the Fantastic Four, and the wedding is a blow-out extravaganza that catches the interest of the whole town. The fact that the wedding and the release of the Sentinels occurs on the same day just helps further sharpen the contrast between these two groups – the so-called Marvels and the mutants – and the public perception of them.

This is a great issue in what’s turning out to be a great series. Busiek’s writing and Ross’s beautiful, stunning paintings, make it a sheer joy to read.

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