Make Mine Marvel: Looking Back at “Amazing Spider-Man: Red Goblin”

Marvel Unlimited, Marvel’s digital comics subscription service, is currently offering all fans free access to some of Marvel’s most iconic stories from recent years, including now-classic Marvel Comics events and critically acclaimed runs featuring the Avengers, Spider-Man, Black Widow, Captain America, Captain Marvel, and more.

With that in mind, I’ve decided to take a look back at these classic stories and maybe help you decide whether or not you would like to check them out. Our next series pits Spider-Man against one of his most dangerous enemies of all-time. Well, really it pits him against two of his most dangerous enemies who have come together as one in…

“Amazing Spider-Man: Red Goblin”

Just to avoid confusion, there is no actual story arc titled “Red Goblin.” Instead, this story really consists of two arcs titled “Threat Level: Red” and “Go Down Swinging.” The former leads to the creation of the incredibly dangerous Red Goblin while the latter is Spidey’s fight against his new foe.

Norman Osborn, Spider-Man’s longtime rival under the villainous pseudonym Green Goblin, has been looking for a way to regain his power as the original Goblin. To this point, nothing has worked. That is, until he gets two operatives to retrieve a very dangerous object from a supermax storage facility.

Meanwhile, Spider-Man is dealing with his other greatest enemy: the good ol’ Parker luck. After losing his company, his job, his money and his girlfriend, the familiar broke, down-on-his-luck Peter Parker we know and love is back. And just like old times, he has no idea what’s coming for him next.

If you’re a fan of Spider-Man comics, you’re going to love this one. This is essentially a “Spidey’s greatest hits” series. Not only does it combine two of the greatest members of the Spider-Man rogues gallery into one, ultra-dangerous villain, but it also brings in all kinds of spider-surprises along the way. I won’t list them and spoil the surprise, but trust me, they’re good.

It’s also a quintessential Spider-Man story in terms of the look into the character himself. You really see ever aspect of Peter Parker’s personality in this series. His amazing sense of responsibility, his spectacular knack for carrying the weight of the world on his shoulder and of course his sensational sense of humor. It all comes through in a big way in this series.

With these two combined stories, you should know that the action doesn’t really get going until you get into the the fourth issue, which is the start of “Go Down Swinging.” Don’t get me wrong, there’s plenty going on in “Threat Level: Red,” it’s just that the fight between Spidey and Gobby doesn’t start until much later. So you may find yourself getting a bit anxious with the first few issues.

It’s all worth it in the end though. As I mentioned, you get one of Spider-Man’s greatest fights of all-time, with all kinds of surprises along the way. Of course, we all know how it turns out. Spider-Man always wins. Unfortunately, for Peter Parker though, even when he wins, he still manages to lose. So the real question is, what’s the cost of this fight?

You can read “Amazing Spider-Man: Red Goblin” for free now. And be sure to check back as we look back the rest of these classic Marvel Comics stories over the next several weeks.

By the way, did I mention this story has a post-credits scene, err… page? Well it does, so be sure to read all the way to the end.

Mike Mack
Mack is the Editorial Director for Marvel and ESPN content and he has covered comic cons, theme park events, video game showcases and other fun events. He is a fan of theme parks, sports, movies, Marvel Comics and is a self-proclaimed "nerd."