Batman has The Joker. Superman has Lex Luthor. And Spider-Man has The Green Goblin, his arch nemesis - the villain who has caused more pain and suffering in his life than just about any other (perhaps with the exception of the original burglar who killed Peter Parker's Uncle Ben).
Originally introduced in Amazing Spider-Man no. 14 back in July 1964, and created by Spider-Man's original co-creative team (writer Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko), The Green Goblin's first few appearances were shrouded in mystery. For a long time no-one knew who the Goblin was, and in fact it took two years of comic books before Norman Osborn was finally revealed to be The Green Goblin in Amazing Spider-Man no. 39. It took another 80-odd issues before the infamous 'Death of Gwen Stacy' storyline was played out, in which Spider-Man's true love was thrown from the Brooklyn Bridge and died; racked with guilt, Spider-Man almost beat The Green Goblin to death as a result.
Later on in his comic life Norman Osborn's son, Harry Osborn, took over his father's role for a while, after being driven insane by his father's apparent 'death'. In the 1980s The Green Goblin's legacy lived on as the Hobgoblin, a new villain who plagued Spider-Man for years. The wheel has turned all the way around now though, and Norman Osborn, as The Green Goblin, is once again tormenting Peter Parker and Spider-Man in the pages of various Marvel comics.
The movie incarnation of The Green Goblin differs slightly from his comic book counterpart, although most of the changes are cosmetic. The Green Goblin's 'flying suit' and glider in the movie are both military designs, and his mask resembles an ancient tribal war mask, unlike the more freakish goblin mask seen in the comics. The Goblin's movie glider has more traditional armaments too, like missiles and machine guns, in contrast to the comic Goblin's glove blasters and pumpkin bombs. One definite similarity remains, however: The Green Goblin is the twisted, insane side of Norman Osborn's personality, and as long as he remains at large he will always be a danger to Peter Parker, and Spider-Man.
The Hype: Green Goblin Comes to Life!
"The front looks very detailed. It is a metallic green with a special purple tint when the light hits it the right way (See, there IS purple in the costume after all). The eyes are bulbous and shiney with a gold, not yellow, color to them. There are little holes in the eyes to represent the iris/pupils when they light up. The brow above the eyes is sculpted to look angry since there aren't actual eyebrows on it. The nose is the traditional pointy goblin nose with a bend in the middle so it looks more Goblin-like I guess. The mouth is wide open and looks very cool. They put high cheek bones on the face and an evil smile with six pointy, sharp silver teeth along the top and bottom, the two outter ones are nice and long too. The ears are long and pointy and stick out from the helmet slightly. The back of it extends out like a bike helmet would and comes to a point. On the inside of the mask there is padding on the forehead and nose (Mr. Dafoe doesn't have to worry about chafing) and there are two 9 volt batteries in the back with some electronics and wiring, (I assume for the light up eyes). The mouth is a black screen (up close, you can actually almost see the actor's face through this, I'm not sure how that will look on camera).
All in all, they did an excellent job on the Goblin helmet. I am a traditionalist but I suppose the old rubber mask wouldn't have been practical now. I am looking forward to seeing how it will look on the big screen. " Spider-Man Hype! Spy, March 2001
Another spy report and early Goblin description here - March 2001
