I: Feature Story: "Spidey Saves the Day! Featuring: The End of the Green Goblin!"

Pages: 20

Script: Stan Lee
Pencils: John Romita
Inks: Mike Esposito (credited as Mickey Demeo)
Letters: Sam Rosen

Villain: The Green Goblin/Norman Osborn

Origin: The Green Goblin/Norman Osborn

Guest Appearance: Aunt May, Anna Watson, J. Jonah Jameson, Betty Brant, Harry Osborn, Doctor Bromwell

Flashback Cameo: Professor Stromm, Ned Leeds, The Enforcers: Ox, Montana, Fancy Dan; the Human Torch, Lucky Lobo and his gang, the Crime-Master

Gadgets & Technology: Retroscope

Synopsis: (continued from ASM #39)

The Green Goblin has Spider-Man tied up and unmasked in his waterfront lair. He has revealed himself to Peter as Harry's dad, Norman Osborn, and he declares that he now must decide how to rid the world of Spider-Man once and for all. Peter decides to try a stall tactic so he can try and get out of his predicament, so he starts a conversation with Osborn by mentioning his son Harry. Osborn becomes confused and disoriented and Peter pushes him further, taunting him into spending more time revealing his origin. The deluded man decides there's little to hurt discussing his past to the condemned Spider-Man, so he tells his story....

Norman Osborn believed he had a great relationship with his son. In reality, Norman never had any time for Harry. He gave him presents and took him to ball games but never really communicated with his son, giving him mixed messages of love and disinterest. He was ruthless in business, sending his partner Professor Mendel Stromm to prison by contriving an embezzling charge, allowing Osborn to take sole power over the company the two started together; he didn't, however, posess Stromm's scientific genius. When he tried to copy Stromm's formulae, a green solution exploded in his face! His doctor diagnosed that the blast gave him brain damage. Norman Osborn ridiculed their diagnosis, and soon became a suspicious, scheming, hard and cold man. He decided, with his knowledge of scientific devices, that he would build weapons to become the "greatest criminal of all time!!" He would become the Green Goblin!

While Peter wonders how he will get out of this scrape with the Goblin, Aunt May frets to Anna Watson that her nephew hasn't come home. She calls J. Jonah Jameson but he hangs up on her. Anna Watson worries that Aunt May is getting overwrought, and calls on Dr. Bromwell to come see her. Meanwhile, somewhere in the Midwest, Betty Brant boards a train to return to New York, to make her decision once and for all about Peter Parker.

Peter taunts the Goblin again, to keep his mind focused on fighting back instead of out-and-out killing him, and leads the Goblin to recount their earlier matches. Peter says the Goblin has never beaten Spider-Man before, but the Goblin cackles back that he's always beaten Spider-Man. He busts out his Retroscope, an elaborate machine which broadcasts mental images of past events. In their first encounter Spider-man beat the Enforcers but the Goblin escaped (see ASM #15). In their second encounter, the Human Torch helped him after Spider-Man ran away (see ASM #17). The Goblin's next two attempts to unite the underworld led to a fight with Lucky Lobo (see ASM #23) and the Crime-Master (see ASM #27.) Eager to show his total power over Spider-Man, the Goblin releases Peter from his bonds for a one-on-one fight. Peter changes into Spider-Man and the fight is on!

The Goblin uses a stun bomb, a pumpkin grenade and the exhaust from his goblin glider against him. Spider-Man throws one punch that knocks the Goblin to the ground. As the Goblin lies on the floor, Spider-Man doesn't know if he can turn the Green Goblin in to authorities should he defeat him. After all, the Goblin knows his identity!

Just then, the Goblin whips an electrical cable at Spider-Man and knocks him off his feet. Spidey leaps to the ceiling and the Goblin fires finger-blasts at him. Spider-Man blocks the shots by tearing his prison chair out of the floor. Spidey dodges batwings and a blast ray to get at the Goblin. He knocks him into live wires that electrocute the Goblin and set fire to the lair.

The shock seems to have erased Norman's memory. He has no knowledge of the Green Goblin. Spider-man can't bear to ruin Norman and Harry's lives so he changes Osborn out of the Goblin costume and into street clothes. He burns the Green Goblin costume before the fire department arrives.

Peter returns home and finds Dr. Bromwell with Aunt May. He says she'll be alright but the doctor admonishes him for staying out so late and making his aunt worry. Aunt May is delighted to see Peter again, but when she feels his high temperature (since he came straight from a burning building), she sends him right to bed.

Harry watches over his son in his hospital bed as a dutiful son. Norman Osborn talks hopefully of their future together as father and son.

--synopsis by Jonathan Clarke, aka doesitmatter, and Gormuu