Spider-Tracer: Spider Vs Glider

In last month’s Spider-Tracer article we spoke about five infamous vehicles from Spider-Man comics, but one you may have noticed that was oddly missing was the Green Goblin and Hobgoblin’s favorite mode of transportation: The Goblin Glider. The reason for that is twofold: One, Top Five lists sound better than Top Six Lists. Two, I planned to do a whole article on this very important vehicle, as I feel that it definitely warrants the extra attention. So join me as we take an in depth look (seriously, we’re going to look inside of a few models) at the ever deadly Goblin Gliders.

 

Ironically, the Green Goblin, aka Norman Osborn, creator and designer of the original Goblin Glider, didn’t ride one at all in his first appearance: He actually rode a broomstick in “The Amazing Spider-Man” Vol. 1, #14.

 

 

Obviously, this early model could stand some improvement, as the Green Goblin’s second appearance in “The Amazing Spider-Man” Vol. 1, #17 featured an entirely new flying device much closer to the Goblin Glider we know today. With the added wings and stirrups, Norman could fight much better standing as opposed to sitting down, and presumably hit much higher speeds and altitudes. He also added a flat, bat-shaped head to allow for the ramming of his opponents, which would undoubtedly come in handy for him over the years (and not so handy for Gwen Stacy).

 

 

 

As you can see in the diagram above from “The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe” Vol. 1, #15, it’s a Hobgoblin modification of Norman’s designs; I think the only major difference was the bat head on the glider. With that being said, you can see quite a few nifty designs incorporated into the vehicle. There’s a device linking the mask to the glider which allows for vocal commands to dictate the Goblin Glider’s flight direction. This also allows hands-free flying, which thus eliminated the need for any remote controls and allowed for the pilot to lob more weapons at any intended targets. There’s a “magna-clamp” for the boots to lock firmly and securely into the stirrups. This would allow for more wild flying patterns, such as flying upside down at death-defying speeds if one needs to shake a Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man off and down to his death.

 

The flying vehicle itself, as you can see, is extremely light weight, all things considered; it only weights 95lbs, and that’s with fuel. It also allows for up to 470lbs of cargo, meaning that even the Kingpin could probably fly on this thing, but any additional weight would probably throw its stability off. It can reach speeds up to 110MPH and climb 90 feet per minute. I’m truly surprised the original Hobgoblin, Roderick Kingsley, never sold the designs for cash, as something like that has applications for everything from the military to crime families like the Maggia.

 

While the Hobgoblin’s glider seemingly only updated the look of the bat head design, it did come with the additional feature of being able to not only shock anyone who grabbed the horns, but the entire bat head could be detached as well, which Spider-Man found out in “Hobgoblin Lives” #2.

 

 

Aside from the original Hobgoblin, several other criminals utilized Goblin Gliders with their own updates, like Lilly Hollister, aka Menace, whose glider has sharp points for ramming and the ability to fire offensive weaponry.

 

 

The points on the front of Miss Hollister’s Goblin Glider remind me of the Goblin Glider that was damaged in “The Amazing Spider-Man” #122 by Spidey himself. It was the bent and broken front of this Goblin Glider that allowed for it to pierce Norman’s heart and seemingly kill him after Spider-Man leapt out of the way.

 

 

While Demogoblin initially used a standard Goblin Glider, he eventually began using his own version of the device, albeit entirely composed of mystical hellfire.

 

 

Norman even recently updated the Goblin Glider with the Carnage symbiote, albeit briefly. I’m not sure how that works, given that the Goblin Glider has a flame exhaust and symbiotes aren’t particularly crazy about flames.

 

 

Here we have a more recent Goblin Glider design post Norman’s time with the Thunderbolts circa 2013. A few things have been added, such as twin fans on the wings, but other than that, the basic design remains the same for the most part, at least externally.

 

 

Even Spider-Man and the Punisher have gotten in on the act:

 

 

 

Which Goblin Glider is your favorite design? I’m kind of leaning towards the one utilized by the original Hobgoblin, Roderick Kingsley, but that’s just me (Ditko’s and Romita Sr’s take is a close second for me). Let me know your thoughts in the comments section below.