Post by crazyoldhermit on Feb 23, 2015 0:01:04 GMT -5
Amazing Spider-Man #23 (April 1965)
"The Goblin and the Gangsters"
Script: Stan Lee
Art: Steve Ditko
Letters: Artie Simek
Cover: Steve Ditko
Summary: The Green Goblin has crashed mob boss Lucky Lobo's meeting with an "offer" to take over his rackets. Lobo ain't having it and orders his men to attack the Goblin. Gobby blasts them with sparks and throws a pumpkin bomb to stun them before leaving (he doesn't want to kill them, they will be valuable soldiers when he's boss). The police and a reporter see the Goblin leaving and they investigate. The reporter starts his story and the cop tells Lobo to stay out of trouble. Lobo's lieutenant, a man in a funny hat, tells him they should leave town. Soaring through the night, the Goblin lays out his plan: Take over Lobo's gang and use them to force the other mobs to fall in line, giving the Goblin ultimate control over the city.
The next morning Peter checks on his costume in the attic, where he's hung it to dry after laundering. Still wet he decides not to wear it. He heads to the Bugle to visit Betty and finds a letter from Ned Leeds on her desk. He also sees Jameson talking to Frederick Foswell, who has been released from prison and is back working for the Bugle. Jameson hired the ex-con for the good PR. Pete finds Betty sorting files in Jameson's office. He asks her out to a movie but she has to work late tonight. He asks if there's any news in her life but she can't think of any. Figuring that she's keeping Ned's letter he leaves suspicious. But it turns out Betty wasn't keeping anything secret, she just had a brain fart and forgot.
Out on the street Peter sees Foswell talking with a suspicious character. He wants to follow but he can't, as he isn't wearing a costume. Elsewhere, the Goblin is talking to the man with the goofy hat. He's decided to betray Lobo and gives Goblin a record of his income. Gobby plans to release it publicly and get the IRS to crush Lobo. He knows just the way to do it.
At the Midtown Business Executives Club, J. Jonah Jameson is chatting with his buddies about his selflessness in hiring Foswell (including a man with an absolutely improbable wavy hairdo...). A club employee informs him that one of his employees is calling for him. Jameson finds Foswell with a list of Lucky Lobo's financial secrets. Jameson sees the information as a way to solidify both the Bugle's reputation and his own reputation as a do-gooder. Jameson turns the information over to the police, who immediately prepare to arrest Lobo. The Goblin eavesdrops and is happy that his plan is going so smoothly.
With his costume now dried Spidey heads out looking for some action. He finds the raid at one of lobo's businesses and is about to snap some pictures when he sees a getaway car. But the Goblin sees it as well and wants the witnesses to remain so they can rollover on Lobo. He disables the car with a bomb and flies off. Spidey wonders why he is aiding the police and follows him. Gobby notices this and leads Spidey to Lobo's hideout. Gobby busts in on Lobo and starts unloading with bombs, sparks and smoke. Spidey sees him battling the criminals and decides to help him out. But as soon as he shows up Gobby leaves. Now Spidey has to deal with a room of Lobo's top men. It's no sweat and soon Spidey is able to barricade himself in a room. He's not hiding from them, he just wants to call Aunt May and let her know he's running late. As soon as he hangs up the gang busts the door down but they're captured in a large net Spidey cast up on the ceiling.
Spidey demands an explanation from Lobo. Lobo explains that while the Gobby is making it look like he's a hero, he's really using the police to create a power vacuum for him to fill. Realizing he's been duped Spidey webs Lobo up and heads after the Goblin. He jumps on top of him and forces him down through a skylight. Inside a strange industrial facility the two weave between a web of pipes and machinery. The battle ends when Gobby runs out of his tricks and Spidey runs out of web fluid. With no other choice Gobby flees. Spidey makes a mad leap after him but falls short and the Goblin escapes once more.
In his hideout the Goblin checks the news report and finds he's made a terrible mistake: He was too thorough in assisting the police and the entire gang has been captured, leaving him with nothing to take over. His criminal aspirations are ruined for now.
Peter heads to the Bugle to see Betty. He overhears Jameson thanking Foswell for the information on Lobo's gang. Peter wonders if theres a connection between him and the Goblin. Foswell is an intelligent man and he puts Peter on edge. Jameson asks Peter if he's got any pictures but Peter's been too busy to take them. Jameson can't believe it. Peter makes some small talk with Betty and she doesn't bring up Ned's letter. At home he sits in the dark and wonders why he's feeling so edgy. His grades are good, Betty is just being forgetful and he almost beat the Goblin but he still feels like terrible danger is just around the corner.
Observations: After two so-so issues Stan and Steve are back. The Goblin appears for his third story and his character continues to evolve. The first time around he had a hairbrained scheme to kill Spidey and mostly told the Enforcers what to do. The second time he was much more direct in battling Spider-Man. Now he's playing the role of a strategist, with an unconventional plan that actually makes sense and doesn't involve Spidey at all. It also makes sense for Gobby to be able to win some good press, as so far the only crimes he has committed are attacking Spider-Man. His alter-ego makes his first appearance this issue. Comic legend says that Stan and Steve split over disagreement regarding the Goblin's identity but the inclusion of Norman Osborn 14 issues before his official debut and 8 issues before the debut of his nearly identical son can't make it a coincidence, and Ditko himself has said that Norman was always intended to be the Goblin. So what we have in this issue is a brilliant bit of foresight on Ditko's part, simply because of how inconspicuous it is. Who would suspect? And yet, there he is.
Of course, to a kid in 1965 Foswell is probably the #1 suspect. It's not a difficult leap to make, except Foswell was in jail during the Goblin's first two appearances and when Peter saw the Goblin unmasked in #17 he didn't recognize him. So it's impossible but a nice bit of misdirection. The return of Foswell creates its own little mystery as a question of how trustworthy he really is and if he has actually reformed.
The Betty Brant situation sours a bit but this time Peter is at fault. Of course, he didn't break down in tears like a hysterical female (as he would say) but he feels the snub even though Betty simply forget to bring it up (twice). To his credit, Peter is able to keep it limited to a bit of slight coldness and passive-aggressiveness. But Betty staying in contact with Ned is a bad omen, since Peter had been wanting to take advantage of his absence to clinch their relationship once and for all.
Overall it's an engaging and exciting story with moody artwork and quite a bit of mystery. The Goblin becomes deadlier than ever (even if Spidey scores more and more points each fight) and the question of his identity is as engaging as ever. 5/5
Other notes:
- First appearance of Norman Osborn
- For the first time Peter dresses casually, wearing a snazzy white jacket and black shirt instead of his usual blue suit jacket, yellow sweater vest and white dress shirt.
"The Goblin and the Gangsters"
Script: Stan Lee
Art: Steve Ditko
Letters: Artie Simek
Cover: Steve Ditko
Summary: The Green Goblin has crashed mob boss Lucky Lobo's meeting with an "offer" to take over his rackets. Lobo ain't having it and orders his men to attack the Goblin. Gobby blasts them with sparks and throws a pumpkin bomb to stun them before leaving (he doesn't want to kill them, they will be valuable soldiers when he's boss). The police and a reporter see the Goblin leaving and they investigate. The reporter starts his story and the cop tells Lobo to stay out of trouble. Lobo's lieutenant, a man in a funny hat, tells him they should leave town. Soaring through the night, the Goblin lays out his plan: Take over Lobo's gang and use them to force the other mobs to fall in line, giving the Goblin ultimate control over the city.
The next morning Peter checks on his costume in the attic, where he's hung it to dry after laundering. Still wet he decides not to wear it. He heads to the Bugle to visit Betty and finds a letter from Ned Leeds on her desk. He also sees Jameson talking to Frederick Foswell, who has been released from prison and is back working for the Bugle. Jameson hired the ex-con for the good PR. Pete finds Betty sorting files in Jameson's office. He asks her out to a movie but she has to work late tonight. He asks if there's any news in her life but she can't think of any. Figuring that she's keeping Ned's letter he leaves suspicious. But it turns out Betty wasn't keeping anything secret, she just had a brain fart and forgot.
Out on the street Peter sees Foswell talking with a suspicious character. He wants to follow but he can't, as he isn't wearing a costume. Elsewhere, the Goblin is talking to the man with the goofy hat. He's decided to betray Lobo and gives Goblin a record of his income. Gobby plans to release it publicly and get the IRS to crush Lobo. He knows just the way to do it.
At the Midtown Business Executives Club, J. Jonah Jameson is chatting with his buddies about his selflessness in hiring Foswell (including a man with an absolutely improbable wavy hairdo...). A club employee informs him that one of his employees is calling for him. Jameson finds Foswell with a list of Lucky Lobo's financial secrets. Jameson sees the information as a way to solidify both the Bugle's reputation and his own reputation as a do-gooder. Jameson turns the information over to the police, who immediately prepare to arrest Lobo. The Goblin eavesdrops and is happy that his plan is going so smoothly.
With his costume now dried Spidey heads out looking for some action. He finds the raid at one of lobo's businesses and is about to snap some pictures when he sees a getaway car. But the Goblin sees it as well and wants the witnesses to remain so they can rollover on Lobo. He disables the car with a bomb and flies off. Spidey wonders why he is aiding the police and follows him. Gobby notices this and leads Spidey to Lobo's hideout. Gobby busts in on Lobo and starts unloading with bombs, sparks and smoke. Spidey sees him battling the criminals and decides to help him out. But as soon as he shows up Gobby leaves. Now Spidey has to deal with a room of Lobo's top men. It's no sweat and soon Spidey is able to barricade himself in a room. He's not hiding from them, he just wants to call Aunt May and let her know he's running late. As soon as he hangs up the gang busts the door down but they're captured in a large net Spidey cast up on the ceiling.
Spidey demands an explanation from Lobo. Lobo explains that while the Gobby is making it look like he's a hero, he's really using the police to create a power vacuum for him to fill. Realizing he's been duped Spidey webs Lobo up and heads after the Goblin. He jumps on top of him and forces him down through a skylight. Inside a strange industrial facility the two weave between a web of pipes and machinery. The battle ends when Gobby runs out of his tricks and Spidey runs out of web fluid. With no other choice Gobby flees. Spidey makes a mad leap after him but falls short and the Goblin escapes once more.
In his hideout the Goblin checks the news report and finds he's made a terrible mistake: He was too thorough in assisting the police and the entire gang has been captured, leaving him with nothing to take over. His criminal aspirations are ruined for now.
Peter heads to the Bugle to see Betty. He overhears Jameson thanking Foswell for the information on Lobo's gang. Peter wonders if theres a connection between him and the Goblin. Foswell is an intelligent man and he puts Peter on edge. Jameson asks Peter if he's got any pictures but Peter's been too busy to take them. Jameson can't believe it. Peter makes some small talk with Betty and she doesn't bring up Ned's letter. At home he sits in the dark and wonders why he's feeling so edgy. His grades are good, Betty is just being forgetful and he almost beat the Goblin but he still feels like terrible danger is just around the corner.
Observations: After two so-so issues Stan and Steve are back. The Goblin appears for his third story and his character continues to evolve. The first time around he had a hairbrained scheme to kill Spidey and mostly told the Enforcers what to do. The second time he was much more direct in battling Spider-Man. Now he's playing the role of a strategist, with an unconventional plan that actually makes sense and doesn't involve Spidey at all. It also makes sense for Gobby to be able to win some good press, as so far the only crimes he has committed are attacking Spider-Man. His alter-ego makes his first appearance this issue. Comic legend says that Stan and Steve split over disagreement regarding the Goblin's identity but the inclusion of Norman Osborn 14 issues before his official debut and 8 issues before the debut of his nearly identical son can't make it a coincidence, and Ditko himself has said that Norman was always intended to be the Goblin. So what we have in this issue is a brilliant bit of foresight on Ditko's part, simply because of how inconspicuous it is. Who would suspect? And yet, there he is.
Of course, to a kid in 1965 Foswell is probably the #1 suspect. It's not a difficult leap to make, except Foswell was in jail during the Goblin's first two appearances and when Peter saw the Goblin unmasked in #17 he didn't recognize him. So it's impossible but a nice bit of misdirection. The return of Foswell creates its own little mystery as a question of how trustworthy he really is and if he has actually reformed.
The Betty Brant situation sours a bit but this time Peter is at fault. Of course, he didn't break down in tears like a hysterical female (as he would say) but he feels the snub even though Betty simply forget to bring it up (twice). To his credit, Peter is able to keep it limited to a bit of slight coldness and passive-aggressiveness. But Betty staying in contact with Ned is a bad omen, since Peter had been wanting to take advantage of his absence to clinch their relationship once and for all.
Overall it's an engaging and exciting story with moody artwork and quite a bit of mystery. The Goblin becomes deadlier than ever (even if Spidey scores more and more points each fight) and the question of his identity is as engaging as ever. 5/5
Other notes:
- First appearance of Norman Osborn
- For the first time Peter dresses casually, wearing a snazzy white jacket and black shirt instead of his usual blue suit jacket, yellow sweater vest and white dress shirt.
