Summary
TheGreen Goblinis perhapsSpider-Man’s most iconic (and terrifying) villain to date, not to mention the one who’s hurt Peter Parker more than any other in the history of Marvel Comics. Green Goblin killed Gwen Stacy, he orchestrated theClone Saga, and he recentlytransformed Spider-Man into the Spider-Goblin, effectively turning the hero into the very thing he sought to destroy.
Over the years, theGreen Goblin has only continued to prove why he’s such an impactfulSpider-Manvillain. Not only is he responsible for the aforementioned examples, but the Green Goblin has also caused widespread chaos and destruction in many other storylines - and in alternate forms.The most iconic Green Goblin is unarguably Norman Osborn, but the Goblin also came to life in the likes of Harry Osborn, who proved to be equally villainous.
The Green Goblin transcends ‘host forms’ and exists as a staple of villainy inSpider-Manlore, no matter who wears the haunting green mask- including Spider-Man himself in the current canon. Therefore, there is no shortage of stories to choose from that highlight theGreen Goblin’s villainy in whatever form the evildoer takes, and among those, are a plethora of quotes that prove he’s Marvel’s most unhinged villain - here are 10 of the best!
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10“Nothing That Lives Can Stop Me Now!”: Green Goblin Regaining His Memory is Mania at Its Finest
Amazing Spider-Man Annual#9 (reprint ofSpectacular Spider-Man#2) by Stan Lee and John Romita
After the Green Goblin is seemingly defeated in a fire that broke out at Oscorp some time before, Norman Osborn suffered amnesia that took away his memories of being the Green Goblin. However, after sitting through a ‘supervillain seminar’ run by Captain Stacy, the memories of his time as the supervillain come flooding back, resulting in Norman Osborn running out of the hospital (as he fell ill when the memories started coming back), screaming at the top of his lungs, “Out of my way! Nothing that lives can stop me now!”.
This is truly mania at its finest, as ithighlights the extent of Osborn’s fractured psyche as the maniacal supervillain, Green Goblin. Once the Goblin persona took control over Osborn’s body once more, he felt invincible, like ‘nothing can stop him’, and he made a giant show of it the second that feeling overtook him in the most unhinged way possible.
9“Circles!! Circles of Life. Circles of Death. Circles of Hell. Circles of Responsibility”: Ultimate Green Goblin Justifies Targeting Spider-Man
Ultimate Spider-Man#24 by Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley
Norman Osborn is also the Green Goblin in the original Ultimate Universe of Earth-1610, and just like his Earth-616 counterpart, he is absolutely obsessed with Spider-Man. In Earth-616, Gobby initially hates Spider-Man because the web-head constantly stops his villainous schemes, but in Earth-1610, the start of their rivalry is much more personal. Peter Parker became Spider-Man as a result of Oscorp experimentation, which is also what gave life to the Green Goblin. Therefore, Norman believed that Spider-Man was essentially his property, so when Peter rejected that assertion, the Green Goblin made it his mission to make Spider-Man pay.
When Spider-Man asks Green Goblin why he’s ‘picking on him’,the Green Goblin blurts out, “Circles!!” followed by a chain of cryptic justifications related to his belief that Spider-Man belonged to himdue to the nature of the hero’s origin. The obsession itself is insane, and the justification for that obsession is utterly unhinged.
Amazing Spider-Man#136 by Gerry Conway and Ross Andru
After Spider-Man defeats Norman Osborn’s Green Goblin (which resulted in the villain seemingly being the means of his own demise), he’s startled to learn that the Green Goblin was still at large. When Spider-Man faces this ‘new Goblin’ (aka Harry Osborn), he tries to get under the villain’s skin by essentially calling him a copycat, stating that they both knew the original Green Goblin was dead. To that, Harry replied, “Dead? You say I’m Dead? Why, that’s most amusing. If I’m dead, then I must be a ghost”.
This quote is not only unsettlingly unhinged, but it is also a great example that speaks to the true nature of the Green Goblin better than most.The Green Goblin isn’t one person, but something of a disease that can spread to otherssusceptible to its influence. Here, it’s Harry Osborn who suffers from this ‘Goblin disease’, and that point is made chillingly clear with this quote, as it highlights how Spider-Man will never truly be rid of this sinister villain.
7“Talk About Ssssoking!”: Even the ‘Heroic’ Green Goblin is Utterly Unhinged
Green Goblin#1 by Tom DeFalco and Scott McDaniel
Speaking of the ‘Green Goblin’ being more of a disease than a single character, the insane essence of this ‘virus’ once inhabited the son of acclaimed Marvel Comics journalist Ben Urich,Phil Urich, turning him into the new Green Goblin. However, unlike his predecessors, Phil decided to use his newfound tech and powers to be a hero, battling the criminal elements in his life in the form of a local gang leader named Ricko the Sicko. Unfortunately, just because his intentions were pure, Phil still suffered the same mania experienced by every Goblin before him - and this quote highlights that perfectly.
“Talk about ssssmoking!” is a reference to the iconic catchphrase of Jim Carrey’sThe Mask, and in this context, it’s said to emphasize the euphoric feeling that washed over Phil Urich when he became the Green Goblin. The mania starts taking hold of him immediately after accidentally exposing himself to the ‘Goblin chemicals’ developed by Oscorp, and it took full control when Phil put on the Goblin costume and flew on the villain’s glider. In other words, even with the best intentions, the Green Goblin is still utterly unhinged.
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6“I Want Your Undivided Attention, and I’m Going to Have It”: Green Goblin Goes ‘Full-Joker’ on Spider-Man
Peter Parker: Spider-Man#44 by Paul Jenkins and Humberto Ramos
In more of a meta-sense, theGreen Goblin has always felt like Marvel Comics’ answer to DC’s Joker. Both are maniacal tricksters who act as their hero’s archenemy, and both villains are utterly obsessed with their respective rivals. However, while the Joker has taken the idea of complete obsession over Batman to a horrifying degree in a multitude of storylines, the Green Goblin doesn’t always lean into that aspect of his character, as there’s only one Green Goblin that feels this way: Norman Osborn.
Practicallyevery Green Goblin is obsessed with making Spider-Man’s life a living hell, but that personal, almost familial connection is only shown with Norman Osborn, as opposed to the Joker, who always feels that way about Batman. In this case, Norman Osborn is the Green Goblin, and he’s going to insane lengths not to destroy Spider-Man or make him pay for any one of their previous encounters, but for his ‘undivided attention’. This level of insanity is the most like the Joker Green Goblin has ever been, as it displays a corrupted sort of affection for Peter, and that’s what makes it so unhinged.
5“Come To Me, Son”: Green Goblin Takes His Obsession with Spider-Man to the Next Level
Amazing Spider-ManVol. 2 #25 by Howard Mackie, John Romita Jr., and Scott Hanna
Norman Osborn has oftentimes viewed Spider-Man as his surrogate son(including in the previous example), but it’s arguably never been as prominent - or as insane - as inAmazing Spider-Man#25. In this issue, Green Goblin gives Peter Parker steady doses of the Goblin serum in an effort to make Spider-Man his heir. Then, Osborn stalks Parker and slowly starts driving him insane, which culminates in Spider-Man actually losing his mind and unwittingly taking up the mantle of the Green Goblin.
“Come to me, son” may not be an outlandish quote on its own when compared to some of the others, but in the context of this storyline, it’s one of the most unhinged on this list. It outlines how deranged the Green Goblin is, and the steps he’s willing to take to not only defeat Spider-Man, but transform him into another ‘Green Goblin’.
4“You Broke the Rules!”: Green Goblin ‘Losing Control’ Over Spider-Man is Utterly Terrifying
Civil War: Front Line#2 by Paul Jenkins and Ramon Bachs
DuringCivil War, Peter Parker revealed to the world that he is Spider-Man - and Norman Osborn was furious. In this issue, Peter is holding a press conference broadcast live across the nation, where journalists can ask him anything they want about his experience being Spider-Man. One reporter asks about his connection to the Green Goblin, and Peter takes the opportunity to talk about how dangerous Norman Osborn is, and how he should never be allowed out of prison (he’s serving a prison sentence during the events of this comic).
From prison, Osborn watches the press conference, which sends him into a fit of rage, screaming, “You broke the rules!” over and over again while breaking things in his vicinity. Osborn’s rage can be explained by looking at the few previous examples.The Green Goblin has always used the threat of exposing Spider-Man’s secret identity to manipulate him, and his sick mind made him think that blackmail meant there was some type of ‘father-son’ relationship between them.But now, Peter exposed himself as Spider-Man, thereby robbing the Green Goblin of his imagined controlwhile simultaneously severing their connection.
3“Mary Jane - We Have To Talk.”: Green Goblin Hilariously Downplays Abducting MJ
Spectacular Spider-Man#200 by J.M. DeMatteis and Sal Buscema
What truly makes a quote unhinged is the context surrounding it, and in this case, this quote is an obvious standout. Mary Jane is walking alone at night on the streets of New York City when she’s accosted by Harry Osborn’s Green Goblin. Green Goblin startles MJ by coming out of nowhere and shouting, “Mary Jane - we have to talk”, and then abducts her that very same second only to bring her to the spot where Gwen Stacy died, to then tear his mask off and swear that she has nothing to worry about.
While Norman Osborn is the more sinister Green Goblin,Harry is arguably the crazier of the two, as he swings back and forth between the terrifying Green Goblin and the sniveling Harry Osborn at the flip of a rapidly moving switch- and this quote highlights that perfectly.
2“What Did I Do? Oh, Nothing Much… I Kidnapped His Girlfriend. And Killed Her. Right In Front of Him. It was a Blast!”: Green Goblin Gleefully Recounts the Death of Gwen Stacy
Spider-Man’s Tangled Web#13 by Ron Zimmerman and Sean Phillips
This issue ofTangled Webis a fun look at the Marvel Universe from the villains’ perspective. It centers around a group ofSpider-Man’s rogues exchanging stories and/or making assertions about their encounters/hypothetical encounters with superheroes, including and especially Spider-Man. While a number of costumed villains are featured, there’s one man whose identity remains hidden under a hat and trench coat the entire time. This man remains fairly silent throughout the comic, listening as the other villains brag about how close they came to destroying Spider-Man.
Then, as he gets up to leave, the man is asked what he’d ever done to Spider-Man. At that point, the man takes off his disguise and reveals himself to be Norman Osborn as he replies, “What did I do? Oh, nothing much… I kidnapped his girlfriend. And killed her. Right in front of him. It was a blast!”.The Green Goblin was bragging about being responsible for one of the greatest tragedies Spider-Man has ever faced, and he did so with so much insane glee, that even the other villains were stunned silent.
1“Heigh-Ho, Heigh-Ho… To Your Lab We Go!”: Green Goblin Comes Back in All His Unhinged Glory in Current Spider-Man Continuity
Amazing Spider-ManVol. 6 #50 by Zeb Wells and Ed McGuinness
The Green Goblin has said things that were creepy, obsessive, and ironically hilarious, but arguably his best quotes are those that are simply crazy in a way that only a costumed supervillain can be - and that’s exactly what readers get with his recent comeback. For a long time in Marvel Comics canon, Norman Osborn has been free of his Goblin persona thanks to Sin Eater, and he even sought to atone for his former villainy by becoming the short-lived superhero Gold Goblin. Butnow, the Green Goblin is back, and his historic return did not disappoint.
After learning that Peter Parker had something valuable in his personal laboratory within Oscorp (as Peter started working there specifically to keep an eye on the allegedly reformed Norman), the Green Goblin drags him to the lab’s location while shooting through the building on his glider. In the tune of the iconic Snow White melody, the Green Goblin gleefully sings, “Heigh-ho, heigh-ho… to your lab we go!” emphasizing the last word by throwingSpider-Man’s head through a door. This scene was pure, unadulteratedGreen Goblin, complete with a quote that was exactly his brand of unhinged lunacy.
