MARCO SPEAKS SPIDEY: Gold Goblin (2022) #1 REVIEW

Aside from being a Spider-Man fan from birth, I am also a huge follower of anime. And my favorite moments or storylines when it comes to anime is whenever there is a redemption arc for one of the former villains. Gold Goblin promises to be an excellent introduction for the younger generation to Norman Osborn, as well as a fresh, new take on the character for old fans. The nuances are what make character stories like this great. Here we have a Norman Osborn, cleansed from his sins, but still struggling in life, trying to find the balance between his past and this new superhero version of himself. It will also be very entertaining to see how Norman Osborn works with Peter Parker, both as his boss and as his partner in crime… fighting.

OFFICIAL MARVEL COMICS DESCRIPTION:

Published:

November 16, 2022

Writer:

Christopher Cantwell

Penciler:

Lan Medina

Cover Artist:

Taurin Clarke

It’s not easy being…gold? Norman Osborn’s sins may have been cleansed, but his memories weren’t and he’s done plenty of horrific things to remember. Norman’s worked hard to avoid all things “Goblin” and to stay on the straight and narrow. Consequences in Amazing Spider-Man pushed him to try super-heroing, and he liked it. But when the media dub him the Gold Goblin, he has to start wondering – can he ever get away from the Goblin inside?

PROS:

• This first issue was a masterclass in characterization and storytelling. The creative team was able to effectively portray a new Norman Osborn, intent on leaving his past, but unable to completely remove himself from the ghosts of his sins. While he is now a superhero, who is actually gaining quite the fanbase, he cannot help but be haunted by the blood on his hands. And the scenes where the ghost of Gwen constantly surrounds him continue to be the creepiest and darkest moments for us, the readers.
• The interaction between Norman Osborn and his supporting cast is what creates the most tension… even more than his action-packed superhero deeds. His attitude with Normie shows his killer instinct being drowned out by his desire to just be a good relative. His bond with Peter Parker exposes the very thin line of trust and faith that his former rival holds… muddled by what seems to be an ongoing grudge. Then, you have Norman’s own inner demons constantly plaguing him, almost driving him to madness. Yes, he was cleansed of all his sins. But that does not mean his inner, true nature has been eliminated. And, true enough, Norman Osborn finds that he simply cannot live without being a Goblin… whether it be for bad or for good.

CONS:
– While this was a masterpiece in itself, the first issue went from 0 to 100 right away, leaving Norman Osborn no time to simply just enjoy his new life. It would have been lighter on all our souls if we had one or two issues of Norman Osborn being completely happy and unbothered as a hero before getting dragged down once again by the demons of his past. Maybe some good ol’ fashioned superhero team-ups would have been a much sunnier way to go.

FINAL GRADE: A

This is definitely a series that I will be following well into the new year, as we approach 2023. The character of Norman Osborn has always been fascinating to me, because I believe we all have a bit of him in us. We may not be as extremely troubled or crazy as the Gold Goblin, but I do feel that we all have mistakes or sins in our past that we want to move on from… and while we can be cleansed or even forgiven at times, it is still a daily struggle to keep ourselves on the right track. It will be interesting to see how Peter Parker keeps Norman Osborn on the light side of things. And I am really looking forward to seeing more of their adventures together as a dynamic duo. It was refreshing to see Gold Goblin in action easily take down a villain from his past. And it was a very powerful move to establish himself as the one, true Goblin in town. And now kids love him. Truly… Amazing.