Harry Osborn
From Spider-Man Wiki
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| Green Goblin II | |
| Real name: | Harry Osborn |
| First Appearance: | Amazing Spider-Man #14 (July 1964) |
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Created by: | Stan Lee Steve Ditko |
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Affiliations: | Sinister Six The Cabal of Scrier, Sinister Twelve, the Crime-Master, Hellfire Club |
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Abilities: | Superhuman strength, Superhuman endurance |
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Portrayed by: | James Franco |
Harry Osborn is the son of Norman Osborn (the Green Goblin).
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[edit] Biography
Harry is the son of industrialist Norman Osborn and his wife Emily. Unfortunately, the circumstances of Harry's birth weakened Emily, and she died after several years of illness. Heartbroken, Norman becomes a cold and unloving father; he either contemptuously dismisses Harry, or lashes out at him in fury. Harry spends much of his life trying desperately to earn his father's approval.
Upon graduating from high school, he enrolls in Empire State University. Among the wealthiest students in the school, Harry soon becomes one of the most popular as well, despite his aloof manner. He has a clique of rich, popular students around him; one of these is the lovely Gwen Stacy. Gwen is intrigued by a new student: bookish, studious and painfully-shy Peter Parker. Harry takes a dislike to Parker; he resents the attention Gwen gives to Peter, and he assumes that Peter's standoffishness is snobbery. After confronting Parker, Harry realizes that Peter is merely shy, and is also worried about his ailing aunt, May. Despite this rocky start, Harry and Peter became friends, eventually sharing an apartment.
Harry does not realize that Peter is the superhero Spider-Man. Harry's father became the Green Goblin in an accident while attempting to create a super-serum. Spider-Man and the Goblin had already battled twice when Peter and Harry become friends. In a later battle, the Goblin discovers Spider-Man's identity and captures him, revealing his own identity in the process. Horrified that his greatest enemy is also his best friend's father, Peter's loyalties are torn. When the Goblin falls onto an electric transformer during the resulting fight, the shock removes all memory of being the Green Goblin from Norman Osborn's mind. Spider-Man removes the Goblin's costume and equipment, hoping it will be the end of the Goblin menace, that Mr. Osborn will return to normal, and that no one else, especially Harry, will ever need to know the truth.
However, Norman's Green Goblin persona resurfaces from time to time; he then battles with Spider-Man, only to become Norman Osborn again when the fight is over. These are difficult times for Harry, as his father's periodic episodes are unexplainable. He had experimented with drugs in his teens, but he escalates his usage, as well as trying ever-harder substances. This affects his mental stability and his relationships with his friends. Spider-Man uses this to his advantage during one battle with the Green Goblin; he is able to stop the fight by showing Norman his son's emaciated condition, brought on by an accidental cocaine overdose. The sight shocks Norman so much that it brings him back to sanity for what is to be the last time.
It wasn't long after, though, that stress caused Norman to become the Green Goblin again. Harry's life had fallen apart. His relationship with Peter's friend Mary Jane Watson had come to an end when she dumped him, fed up with his self-destructive lifestyle. A disconsolate Harry turned to drugs and suffered an LSD overdose. He survived, but this tragedy, compounded by imminent bankruptcy, drove the Green Goblin over the edge. He kidnapped Gwen as bait for Spider-Man, and then threw her off the George Washington Bridge. When Peter pulled her back up with his webbing, she was dead. A vicious battle between Spider-Man and the Green Goblin ensued, with Peter barely able to control himself from killing the villain. The Goblin then directed his goblin glider to impale Spider-Man, but the wall-crawler jumped out of the way, and the Goblin was impaled through the chest himself, and seemingly killed. Peter was wracked with guilt and sorrow, but took comfort in the fact that the Green Goblin was finally gone.
[edit] The Second Goblin
However, Harry had secretly witnessed the battle. Wanting to protect his father's identity, he stripped Norman's body of the Green Goblin costume and hid it. Blaming Spider-Man for his father's "murder," Harry swore vengeance. Having inherited his father's company, Harry managed to get the business back in shape as he planned his revenge. One day, to his shock, he found a Spider-Man costume in Peter's apartment, and realized that his best friend was the man he blamed for his father's death. Using his father's old equipment, Harry confronted Peter as the new Green Goblin.
Not wanting to hurt Harry, Peter avoided fighting his old friend. Eventually, Harry was knocked unconscious and taken into police custody. There, he raved that he was the true Green Goblin and Peter Parker was Spider-Man, but was dismissed as a lunatic. He was put in the care of criminal psychologist Dr. Bart Hamilton, who extracted the secrets of the Green Goblin from Harry through hypnosis, and buried the knowledge deep with Harry's mind. However, this was not altruistic on Hamilton's part - he then raided one of Harry's hideouts and became the third Green Goblin, hoping to become the new boss of the underworld. However, his power was no match for his enthusiasm - he never even bothered to use the strength-enhancing formulas on himself, seemingly believing that just being the Green Goblin would enable him to defeat Spider-Man, and, despite an elaborate plot to kill Silvermane, the power-mad psychologist was killed by a bomb he had planted for Spider-Man. Although he suffered a brief setback during the confrontation with Hamilton, Harry was released and considered cured, sustaining a concussion that made him forget his knowledge of Spider-Man's identity, and he and Peter rekindled their friendship.
For a while, Harry's life seemed back on track; his company began turning profits once more, and he developed a romance with Liz Allen, whom he met at the wedding of Betty Brant and Ned Leeds. Not long after, the two were married, and eventually they had a son, whom Harry named Normie in memory of the boy's grandfather. Harry also gave his blessing to the marriage of Peter and Mary Jane. However, Harry started regaining his memories when he was being blackmailed by the original Hobgoblin, who mailed him a package which contained evidence that his father was the original Green Goblin. When the Hobgoblin learned he had raided all of Norman's hideouts, he left Harry alone, knowing he had nothing more to offer him. Later, Harry was forced to act as the Green Goblin a few times, once to defeat Jason Macendale, the second Hobgoblin. Macendale sought the Goblin formula that gave the Green Goblin superhuman strength; Harry was able to defeat Macendale by doubling back during an aerial chase and emptying his entire supply of pumpkin bombs onto the Hobgoblin. Harry even wondered if he could use the Goblin persona for a career as a superhero, but Peter convinced him that the Goblin had too much baggage for such a role, and Harry buried the Goblin menace within his mind once more, and focused on his business and family.
[edit] Death
This tranquility was shattered when the aftereffects of the Inferno crisis sundered the barrier between Harry's conscious and subconscious minds. Once again, he remembered being the Green Goblin - and his irrational hatred of Spider-Man (Harry had now convinced himself that Peter resented the Osborns' "stable family life" due to never having been wanted by his own parents or guardians, when in fact it was the complete opposite). His sanity shattered, he declared that their next confrontation would be their final one, and only one of them would be alive at the end. To ensure that he was the victor, Harry researched his father's chemical notes, hoping to recreate the original Goblin's superhuman strength. Harry made his own modifications to the formula, and upon ingesting it, it proved better than he had dreamed. The Green Goblin II formula had made him stronger than both Spider-Man and his father. Now a physical match for Spider-Man, Harry planned his final revenge.
Harry took to stalking Peter Parker on his Goblin Glider, claiming that there was no law against just soaring around town in a colorful costume, and taunting Peter that someday he would destroy him, but he relished keeping Peter in suspense in the meantime. After weeks of this, Peter finally lost his nerve and struck at Harry, only to be sent flying when Harry hit back, demonstrating his new strength. He then rocketed away, taunting Spider-Man's inability to stop him.
Not long after, Harry held a prestigious dinner at his townhouse, inviting many of his father's old business associates. However, it was actually a trap, and Harry had planted explosives throughout the townhouse, which he planned to detonate, thus destroying everybody who had slighted the Osborns.
Spider-Man, worrying the most, dropped in to investigate, only to be confronted by Harry as the Goblin. The two former friends engaged in a dangerous battle, which ended when Harry injected Peter with a drug that left him immobile, but still alive. However, even as he celebrated over his victory, he realized that Mary Jane and his son Normie were also in the townhouse, and that the explosives would detonate in thirty seconds. Despite protestations that he was not a hero, Peter convinced Harry to use his damaged glider to get the two to safety. After rescuing Normie and Mary Jane, Harry finally returns to his senses and realized that he had left Peter to die. Harry rescued Peter from the explosion just in time. However, as his friends thanked him, he suddenly collapsed. The Goblin Formula was damaged by the explosion, and while it had increased his strength, it was also lethally poisoning him. Paramedics were called, but Harry died en route to the hospital. With his final words, he apologized to Peter, and confirmed that despite everything, they were still, and would always be, best friends.
[edit] Post-Mortem
Sometime before his death, Harry had created a computer system with copies of his and Norman Osborn's minds programmed into it; after Harry's death, the computer system activates and abducts Normie Osborn with the intent of subjecting him to the Goblin serum (the same one that that caused Harry's death) and making him the newest Green Goblin. This computer facsimile of Harry and its robotic drones (which resemble female versions of the Green Goblin) are all destroyed by Spider-Man and the Molten Man, who manage to save Normie from it.
However, Harry had one last trick up his sleeve. Sometime before his final confrontation with Spider-Man, Harry had employed the Chameleon to construct Life Model Decoys of Peter's parents to play with his emotions. The plot ended with both constructs revealed to be fake when both "died," shattering Peter's mind. After nearly killing the Chameleon, Peter found a tape Harry had left before he died, revealing his role in the plot and mocking Peter. Peter went temporarily insane from the shock, which proved that Harry could be as manipulative and cruel as his father ever was when gripped by insanity; Peter even briefly rejected his identity as Peter Parker, until the return of his clone Ben Reilly snapped him out of his "mood".
[edit] Post-One More Day
Following the events of One More Day, Peter and Mary Jane's decision to accept Mephisto's offer to erase their marriage from history (and all knowledge of it) in exchange for Aunt May's life, has seemingly resulted in the alteration of the timeline to an undetermined degree. Among the changes was the warping of the timestream to erase Harry Osborn's death and resurrect him.
In this new, altered reality (Brand New Day), Harry's death was faked by Mysterio and his father Norman Osborn, who spirited his son away to Europe where he was held prisoner in several "rehab" clinics. The reason given was Norman's belief that his son had relapsed into drug addiction, due to his brief return to wearing the Green Goblin costume.
At some point, in the altered timeline, Harry was let go from rehab and reunited with his friends. However, due to his time imprisoned by his father as well as Peter's deal with Mephisto, Harry no longer remembers that Peter Parker is Spider-Man. His marriage to Liz Allan also disintegrated, leading to the two divorcing and Harry responding to his break-up by engaging in a string of relationships with other women, of which several of them ended with Harry marrying and divorcing them in rapid fashion. He is currently engaged in a relationship with Lily Hollister. Harry has tried to help Lily's father run for Mayor of New York, funding her father's campaign with his dwindling finances.
Harry is also one of the leading suspects of the secret identity of Menace, a new Green Goblin-themed villain. In the "New Ways to Die" story arc, Menace battled Norman Osborn and was infuriated by Norman stating that all he cared about was killing Spider-Man. New Ways to Die has Norman put back on the Green Goblin costume, Norman mentions that Harry has been in the Goblin's Lair. Norman calls Harry, who recognizes from Norman's distorted voice that Norman is wearing the Goblin suit, which horrifies and disgusts Harry. Harry vows to stop his father. Harry angrily confronts his father who wants Harry to follow in his legacy and become a greater man. The confused Harry is saved by Spider-Man. Spider-Man, wanting to beat Norman senseless, stops when he sees an area of Human Testing. Harry is claimed to be the one responsible for the atrocious acts although he attempts to plead innocence. Harry later states that he wants to talk to Peter who moments earlier was kissed by Lily, while seen leaving with a mysterious canister labelled "Prometheus X-90".
It has since been revealed that Prometheus X-90 was developed as a a successful cure for Mark Raxton's condition as Molten Man. Furthermore, the only human test subject was Charlie Weiderman, the short-lived second Molten Man, and the only person whom the serum could be tested on. After the cure is administered, Liz finally forgives Harry, and gives him back the wedding ring, which she originally claimed she lost.
Following the events of Secret Invasion, Norman Osborn is placed in charge of the H.A.M.M.E.R. organization, and forms his own team of Avengers.
Renting out all of Liberty Island, Harry takes Lily to the island. On top of the Statue of Liberty, he gets down on one knee and appears to propose to her. Lily however rejected Harry's proposal as she is not sure as to where their relationship will lead, which has surprised Harry by her answer. Harry later went to Lily's place to check up on her, and as he enters the room he was surprised to discover Lily wearing what appears to be clothes belonging to Menace.
She found a hidden door in his closet and found an old journal of his. She begins giving him a hard time about whining so much about his father. Harry thinks her behavior is because she's sick. She continues to tell him she uncovered one of Norman's secret room in the journal. This explains why she kissed Peter after the Thunderbolts attacked, he almost found the secret trigger to open the room. When she had first gone in, she found all of the Goblin's equipment along with some experiments. Knocking over some chemicals, she absorbed them and is now able to transform at will. She explains that she discovered Menace's attacks against her father gave him more public support. She also tells him that she accepts his marriage proposal. After their talk, Harry enters one of his father's weapons caches, taking a glider, a pair of Goblin gloves, and a dart gun containing an unknown chemical. In the midst of a battle between Menace and Spider-man, he confronts and shoots her with that chemical, which is a type of antidote that reverts her back to her human form. He saves Spider-Man from the crowd and leaves. Lily is incarcerated, but later escapes, leaving Harry her ring and a note. This causes Harry to sink back into alcoholism, during which he is helped by Carlie Cooper.
[edit] Dark Reign
Norman approaches Harry with the offer of a job within his organization. Harry declines, but after getting a visit from Lily, who revealed to him that she was pregnant, he accepts. Norman welcomes him into Avengers Tower, wanting to make his son part of the "American Son" project. However, Harry is shown to have an ulterior motive, based on his need to protect Lily and his child, disabling the camera in his room and sneaking off. He finds a cure for Lilly's Goblin Serum that would be safe for her and the baby, but she pushes him away, revealing that it was all a ruse to make Harry become American Son, whom Norman would eventually have die in a tragedy to increase sympathy for Norman and the Dark Avengers. She also reveals that the baby is not Harry's but in fact Norman's. In retalliation to this news, Harry dons the American Son armor and fights against his father.
During the battle, Norman declares that Harry is no longer his son, and that he has bred a better child to replace the failure Harry. After further taunts from Norman, Harry lashes out and defeats his father, declaring "I was never your son!" When Harry has the option to kill Norman, Spider-Man goads him to decapitate Norman, as his healing factor may repair a blow to the head. Spider-Man states that by killing Norman, he would "become the son Norman always wanted." Harry backs down, and walks away from Norman Osborn forever.
We last see Harry in a psychiatrist's office, claiming he is getting over the effects of a medical treatment he received. The doctor offers to prescribe him oxycodone, a nod to Harry's past drug abuse, but it is not revealed if Harry takes the prescription.
[edit] Powers and Abilities
For most of his life, Osborn had no superhuman abilities. However, when he takes the reins of the second Green Goblin , he becomes exposed to the Goblin formula, causing Harry to become much stronger, cunning, and agile. The glider he carries has swords, along with usual Goblin technology.
[edit] Other versions
[edit] Ultimate Harry Osborn
In the Ultimate Marvel universe, Harry Osborn is the rich son of Norman Osborn who meets and befriends Peter Parker. Norman eventually subjects himself to the Oz Formula, and he becomes the Green Goblin. He kills his wife, and attempts to kill Harry. Harry is placed into the custody of his uncle, but he eventually returned to his father and brainwashed by Miles Warren to forget the previous events. During another battle with Spider-Man, Harry stops his father, and he is taken into S.H.I.E.L.D.'s custody. He is later used as a bargaining piece to negotiate with Norman. Harry begins to blame everyone around him for the situation, and a second personality introduced by his father after many years of hypnotic therapy, Shaw, begins to take control. He eventually consumes the serum and becomes the Hobgoblin. Harry tries to stop himself during a battle with Spider-Man, but Shaw takes over and he is wounded by S.H.I.E.L.D. He is once again used by S.H.I.E.L.D. to attract his father, but the two end up doing battle, which leaves Harry dead. Norman is then "killed" by S.H.I.E.L.D. soldiers at his own request. Peter later honors Harry with a speech about him being a good friend and a true hero.
[edit] In Other Media
[edit] Film
[edit] Spider-Man
Main article: Spider-Man (Movie)
In High School, Harry protects his friend Peter Parker from bullies. Peter helps Harry pass school in return. He is a son of a multi-millionare, Norman Osborn. So he often felt weird and embarrassed around others. After graduating school, Harry and Peter shared a apartment in the city. For a brief time, Harry dated Mary Jane Watson, who was also loved by Peter Parker. After Mary Jane overhears Norman talking badly about her to Harry, she leaves Harry. Harry starts to become closer to his father. Then one night in the Osborn's Penthouse, Harry finds his father dead in Spider-Man's arms. Spider-Man flees from the scene, being that his mask was revealing his face, which was caused in a battle with Harry's father, the Green Goblin. After this Harry believes that Spider-man killed his Father and wants to take revenge against the wall crawler.
[edit] Spider-Man 2
Main article: Spider-Man 2
Two years later, Harry Osborn takes over Oscorp industries. He sponsors an experiment, who is ran by Doc Ock Which goes wrong. Harry and several others are almost killed. Fortunately for him, Spider-man saves him and the others. Harry tells Spider-man that this doesn't change anything. Later on, Doc Ock wants more tritium to make another experiment, only larger. But can only get it from Harry. Harry makes a deal with him, He has to bring Spider-Man to him alive, so he could kill him himself. After this Harry finds out Spider-man's secret identity. He is shocked to see it is his best friend Peter. After Peter goes of to stop Doc Ock, Harry then starts to have hallucinations of his father telling him to avenge him, and ends up discovering his Father's old goblin lair. He is last shown in the film at Mary Jane's wedding to James Johnson, being the only person to have a green tie.
[edit] Spider-Man 3
Main article: Spider-Man 3
Harry now decides to take his revenge on Spider-Man. After taking the Goblin serum, which was used by his father Norman, Harry goes after Peter Parker. As soon as the New Goblin swoops Peter off his motor bike, he does not let Peter get the chance to think what to do. Harry easily is beating Peter, until the webslinger knocks out Harry with a strand of web, which Harry hit when going at full speed, and he hit his head on a pipe, a building, and finally, the ground. Peter takes Harry to the hospital. Peter is told that Harry is fine, but he has memory loss that could be permanent. Harry completely forgets who Spider-Man was, and that his father was the Green Goblin, and he also forgets that he has superhuman powers. Harry treats Peter as if they were the best of friends again. Later on when Harry is done recuperating, Mary Jane comes to his penthouse. They seem just to be friends, as they cook and dance to music. Mary Jane then goes to kiss Harry but leaves realizing that she really loves Peter. Harry is upset that Mary Jane used him, then Harry's hallucinations of his father come back again. This brings Harry's memory back, His "father" tells him to attack Peter's heart (much like "he" told himself in Spider-Man 1). Harry now goes after Mary Jane and tells her to break up with Peter or he will kill Peter. Mary Jane does so, Peter and Harry meet in a restaurant, where Peter tells Harry that M.J has found another guy. Harry tells Peter that he is the other guy. Peter leaves horrified that Harry regained his memory. When Peter has the symbiote costume on, he arrives at Harry's penthouse, After intimidating Peter, the two engage in a battle. Peter easily defeats Harry, after taunting Harry about his dad, Peter begins to leave just then Harry throws a pumpkin bomb at Peter in a last attempt to kill him. Peter throws it back at Harry, blowing it up in Harry's face. Later on, when Venom and Sandman hold M.J hostage, Peter comes to Harry and asks for help. Peter sees the damage he has done to Harry's face, and Harry tells Peter to leave. When Harry's butler, Bernard, tells Harry that his father's death was by his father's own hands. Harry now realizes that Peter was in fact telling the truth. Harry then goes to help Peter defeat Venom and Sandman. When Venom is about to impale Peter with Harry's glider, Harry dives in the way and gets impaled by Venom instead of Peter. This, in a way, fulfills what Harry says in the past. "There my best friends, I'd give my life for them." Harry then lets Peter know that they are once again the best of friends before Harry passes away.
[edit] Harry's equipment
After Harry gets the powers of the Goblin, he has superhuman strentgh, endurance, and also is more agile. Unlike the Green Goblin, the New Goblin had a glider that was based on a snowboard. His mask is not as creepy as the Green Goblin, because Harry only wanted to kill Spider-Man and wasn't out to take over the world or kill people. Harry also had an electrical green sword, which the Green Goblin did not posess.His glider referred to as the Sky Stick was equipped with a flamethrower,seeking missiles and blades. It served as a storage for the pumpkin bombs,they could also be ejected at arm height when needed. After Venom had been destroyed the Sky Stick was never seen again. The New Goblin also posessed a blade weapon on his left hand that had been destroyed during a battle between black suit Spider-Man,but was fixed just in time for his battle with the Sandman.
[edit] Video Game
In the Spider-Man game based on the first movie, the Green Goblin is available as the game's biggest unlockable. When a player completes the game on Hero status (or uses a cheat), the Green Goblin comes up under unlockable costumes. Upon selecting the costume, the player will follow a different storyline (based on the same levels of the normal game) in which Harry Osborn researches his father's death.
The New Goblin is also a playable character in the Spider-Man 3 PS3/Xbox360/PC games. After fighting Venom as Spider-Man, the player gets to play as New Goblin as he flies to the construction site and then eventually fights Sandman. Most of the New Goblin's weapons are available, including the Green Goblin's famous Pumpkin Bombs and Razor Bats.
In the PS3 Collector's Edition of the game, once the player finishes the game the New Goblin comes up under the unlockable characters (among Spider-Man and Black-Suited Spider-Man). The player will then be able to fly around New York on the Goblin's glider, competing in races and helping out with the various crimes going on around the city. New Goblin can also be downloaded for free-roam on the Xbox Live download centre. Also, in the game, the player can find Harry's mansion and explore it when free roaming through the city. At the mansion, the player can go in through the front balcony or through an opening in the roof leading to the Goblin's lair, which is also accessable by breaking the mirror that serves as its doorway.
New Goblin is also available as an unlockable character in Spider-Man: Friend or Foe, although he does not have any part in the game's storyline. Neither the Green Goblin or the New Goblin can use their gliders in the game (except for the one section of the game when the Green Goblin is fought as a boss battle).
