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Spider-Man: Shadow of The Green Goblin (Spider-Man: Shadow Of The Green Goblin
Collects Shadow Of The Green Goblin #1-4 And Spider-Man (1990) #-1. Return to the classic era of the Amazing Spider-Man - and discover the first Goblin! Norman Osborn is the Green Goblin you know. But he is not the original Goblin! Learn the shocking secrets of the Proto-Goblin and its dramatic connection to the Osborn family! What role does a young Peter Parker, who is only just coming to understand his great power and responsibility, play in this unfolding of events? If Spidey can survive a run-in with his fearsome foe the Sandman, he has a terrifying encounter with the Proto-Goblin in store! J.M. DeMatteis ("Kraven's Last Hunt") delves into the mythos of classic Spider-Lore! Also includes the classic Flashback tale that introduced the Proto-Goblin!
Kindle Edition
Published January 1, 2025
5 people are currently reading
About the author
J.M. DeMatteis
1,956 books238 followersAlso Credited As:
DeMatteis, John Marc
Ellis, Michael
Lombego, Wally
Bio:
J.M. DeMatteis was a professional musician/singer and rock music journalist before entering comics in the late 70's.
Credits include Spider-Man, Moonshadow, Brooklyn Dreams, Justice League, Abadazad, Hero Squared, the Life and Times of Savior 28.
Created I, Vampire , Creature Commandos, Moonshadow, Hero Squared (co-creator), Abadazad, Stardust Kid, Savior 28 and more.
DeMatteis, John Marc
Ellis, Michael
Lombego, Wally
Bio:
J.M. DeMatteis was a professional musician/singer and rock music journalist before entering comics in the late 70's.
Credits include Spider-Man, Moonshadow, Brooklyn Dreams, Justice League, Abadazad, Hero Squared, the Life and Times of Savior 28.
Created I, Vampire , Creature Commandos, Moonshadow, Hero Squared (co-creator), Abadazad, Stardust Kid, Savior 28 and more.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
January 31, 2026
DeMatteis at his A-game
This is a beautiful story that uses the superhero stuff as a dressing for the true core of its drama; it’s less a story about Spider-Man stopping the bad guy and saving the day and more about how people really suck at communicating their feelings and emotions with each other, especially with the people they love.
It’s just an amazing (pardon the pun) analysis of Peter Parker's and Norman Osborn's characters, showing off so much of Peter's faith in people as well as Norman's twisted, manipulative side. Proto-Goblin is really just another allegory for all the destruction Norman left in his wake, even before turning into the Green Goblin, and you feel for the poor red guy.
It also places an emphasis on death, as it is at the core of the conflict every character faces: Peter's guilt and May's grief over Uncle Ben, Harry's whole situation with his mom (no spoilers) and Gwen dealing with her mom dying of cancer, it’s a book that says: yeah, "death sucks, it stings and it's one of the worst things we as human beings can experience, but we can also stand to gain a lot from it. Learn from it and become better (or in Norman's case, to show off a cautionary tale, worse) people.
My favorite issue has to be #2, because it features Sandman but not in a way you’d expect, but it’s such a good moment that unfolds with him that helps carry out this idea that we as people always need someone to communicate with but at the same time we kinda suck at it because of our own complex thoughts and situations, it’s utterly brilliant.
The art is superb, no objections there, I’ve never heard of or seen this artist's work before but they do an excellent job conveying characters' emotions and action in the moments that need it.
The one and only thing that I didn’t like about this book, in fact I would say that I kinda hated and made me mad, is that it’s told in a flashback by Peter seemingly BEFORE carrying out his deal with Mephisto in One More Day. And my god, it made me hate Joe Quesada, Nick Lowe and every single editorial staff member that have had Peter's character in arrested development since 2008 (yes, I know Lowe had nothing to do with OMD, that was mostly Quesada and his stupid, outdated ideas, but Lowe is still perpetuating the crappy modern status quo for the characters, so he’s still part of the problem). Here we have a Peter who is dealing with the fallout from Civil War and revealing his identity to the world (or possibly Amazing Spider-Man #400, it isn’t specified which instance) and he’s not being whiny about it, he is written with maturity and as a character who has learned and grown from everything he’s been through and reflects on it with this almost poetic beauty that reflects on the important aspects of life and seeing this glimpse at such an awesome version of Peter's character infuriates me. Because I love it so much and Quesada and Marvel Editorial have denied Peter's character of this kind of writing for almost 20 (!) years. (Nick Spencer tried but unfortunately got shot down towards the end and then crapped all over with Wells' run)
Fanboy frustrations aside though: DeMatteis is easily one of the best Spidey writers, he just gets Peter's character in a way I feel very few other writers do; and he pushes and evolves his character in such cool and emotional ways, pretty much everything this man touches that has Spidey's face on it is gold and this is no exception, highly recommended to any Spider-Man fan of any age or even just someone looking for a comic book with tons of depth and emotion.
This is a beautiful story that uses the superhero stuff as a dressing for the true core of its drama; it’s less a story about Spider-Man stopping the bad guy and saving the day and more about how people really suck at communicating their feelings and emotions with each other, especially with the people they love.
It’s just an amazing (pardon the pun) analysis of Peter Parker's and Norman Osborn's characters, showing off so much of Peter's faith in people as well as Norman's twisted, manipulative side. Proto-Goblin is really just another allegory for all the destruction Norman left in his wake, even before turning into the Green Goblin, and you feel for the poor red guy.
It also places an emphasis on death, as it is at the core of the conflict every character faces: Peter's guilt and May's grief over Uncle Ben, Harry's whole situation with his mom (no spoilers) and Gwen dealing with her mom dying of cancer, it’s a book that says: yeah, "death sucks, it stings and it's one of the worst things we as human beings can experience, but we can also stand to gain a lot from it. Learn from it and become better (or in Norman's case, to show off a cautionary tale, worse) people.
My favorite issue has to be #2, because it features Sandman but not in a way you’d expect, but it’s such a good moment that unfolds with him that helps carry out this idea that we as people always need someone to communicate with but at the same time we kinda suck at it because of our own complex thoughts and situations, it’s utterly brilliant.
The art is superb, no objections there, I’ve never heard of or seen this artist's work before but they do an excellent job conveying characters' emotions and action in the moments that need it.
The one and only thing that I didn’t like about this book, in fact I would say that I kinda hated and made me mad, is that it’s told in a flashback by Peter seemingly BEFORE carrying out his deal with Mephisto in One More Day. And my god, it made me hate Joe Quesada, Nick Lowe and every single editorial staff member that have had Peter's character in arrested development since 2008 (yes, I know Lowe had nothing to do with OMD, that was mostly Quesada and his stupid, outdated ideas, but Lowe is still perpetuating the crappy modern status quo for the characters, so he’s still part of the problem). Here we have a Peter who is dealing with the fallout from Civil War and revealing his identity to the world (or possibly Amazing Spider-Man #400, it isn’t specified which instance) and he’s not being whiny about it, he is written with maturity and as a character who has learned and grown from everything he’s been through and reflects on it with this almost poetic beauty that reflects on the important aspects of life and seeing this glimpse at such an awesome version of Peter's character infuriates me. Because I love it so much and Quesada and Marvel Editorial have denied Peter's character of this kind of writing for almost 20 (!) years. (Nick Spencer tried but unfortunately got shot down towards the end and then crapped all over with Wells' run)
Fanboy frustrations aside though: DeMatteis is easily one of the best Spidey writers, he just gets Peter's character in a way I feel very few other writers do; and he pushes and evolves his character in such cool and emotional ways, pretty much everything this man touches that has Spidey's face on it is gold and this is no exception, highly recommended to any Spider-Man fan of any age or even just someone looking for a comic book with tons of depth and emotion.
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