Phil Urich is something of an anomaly in the generations-long line of
Green Goblin’s. Despite his alias, he strived to be heroic and help
others. But what if I told you, that may not have always been the case in the
history of the MC2? Today I want to discuss a theory that I am sure
some readers have had. This theory might have even proved true at some point
in the Main Marvel Universe’s own history, if not for editorial
interference: Was Phil Urich secretly a villain?
First, a brief history lesson! Phil Urich was the fourth character to
take up the mantle of the Green Goblin, but the first to primarily use
his abilities for good. First appearing in Web of Spider-Man #125, we
don’t learn Phil’s origin until his solo title in the pages of
Green Goblin #1. While helping his uncle reporter
Ben Urich investigate an old hideout of
Harry Osborn’s
during his latter stint as the Green Goblin, Phil inadvertently
uncovers a hidden cache containing new Goblin equipment, costumes and
designs. One such design of Harry’s included a Goblin
mask which directly stimulating their brain to activate the wearers
Goblin Formula-derived powers. Phil is accidentally drenched in
the Goblin Formula and shortly after uses the high-tech
Goblin mask to save his Uncle Ben by scaring the gang members
and Phil makes the decision to use these powers for good. One of these
new abilities includes his distinctive ‘Lunatic Laugh’.
After a brief stint as the good Green Goblin, including encounters with
the likes of
Angel Face, Phil’s Glider and Goblin mask was irreparably damaged during
a battle with a
Sentinel
amid the events of
Onslaught. Seemingly unable to access his Goblin powers without the mask to
activate them, Phil soon after retired from heroics and returned to
college after losing his intern job at the Daily Bugle (Green Goblin #12-#13, Amazing Spider-Man #422, #425).
This Green Goblin was also used by Norman Osborn during
his conflict with the original Hobgoblin
Roderick Kingsley in the fantastic ‘Goblin at the Gate’
story seen in Spectacular Spider-Man #259-#261. During this arc,
we see more of this Green Goblin’s less than stellar ability in
combat and while riding his glider but more importantly, he is
apparently very much under the control of Norman Osborn. After
performing poorly against Kingsley and being unmasked (though not
identified) by Spider-Man, Norman threatens to ensure he
‘loses something far more valuable’.
This is the last time we see this incarnation of the
Green Goblin prior the Spider-Man titles reboot where
after going unmentioned for some time and despite the clues provided
previously, the character is revealed to be literally no one at all; a
genetic construct of Norman’s. Not only was this an unsatisfying
resolution, it ignored the established information readers were given
(Amazing Spider-Man and
Peter Parker: Spider-Man (vol.2) #18).
Now let’s look at an alternative resolution to this mystery, one that
could have played out in the Main Marvel Universe if not for
editorial interference and one that just might have occurred in the
MC2! A flashback in Spider-Girl #97 depicts a scene from
Spectacular Spider-Man #261 confirming that at least the events
established prior to this occurred in both the MC2 and the
Main Marvel Universe. What’s interesting- though possibly
unintentional -is that the Green Goblin’s glove is depicted as
fingerless thanks to the colouring. This is curious because
Phil was the only Green Goblin to use fingerless
gloves.
In Part 33 of the brilliant Life of Reilly column (which
can still be found online
here
and
here) editor and writer Glenn Greenberg discussed with
Andrew Goletz his brief mention of Phil’s Green Goblin in
the one-shot Spider-Man: The Osborn Journal (I refuse to misspell
it!) and his personal belief that Norman should have ‘taken action against Phil for daring to take on the
Goblin identity’. Further to this, Greenberg adds he ‘had plans for this to happen in a later Spider-Man story line I
wrote, called “Goblins at the Gate.” The story line saw print,
but the Phil Urich element was dropped at the request of the
editor.’
With this in mind, Norman’s new Green Goblin lackey
makes far more sense, don’t you think? Due credit, this point was
brought up by Minor Irritant in a profile
for this fifth Green Goblin over on the
Marvel Appendix.
So, I propose that Norman Osborn took his revenge on
Phil Urich for taking on the mantel of the
Green Goblin and stealing from his son Harry’s hideout by
either coercion or brainwashing. This would not only provide
Norman a method for distancing himself from his villainous
identity in the public eye, but also allows him to psychologically
target the reporter largely responsible for outing him to the public:
Ben Urich, Phil’s own uncle. Obviously, this is just a
theory that fits nicely with the ongoing stories being published at the
time but I feel it does help to fill in the gaps for Phil’s own
curiously undisclosed past in the MC2 between his tenure as the
‘good’ Goblin and his later attempt at heroism as the
Blue Wail (Spider-Girl #3).
Considering we never learn how Phil regained his ability to use
his ‘Lunatic Laugh’ without his Goblin mask (as seen in
Spider-Girl #5), nor the details of how he obtained the
distinctive scar upon his right cheek I feel there is a lot that could
be explored here. If Phil were the fifth Green Goblin, it
would stand to reason that he had some or all of his abilities
reactivated following the treatments by Dr Angst and new gear
provided by Norman Osborn. Supporting this,
Norman’s grandson, Normie Osborn states ‘He [Norman Osborn] designed the special mask for us’ (Spider-Girl #93).
What doesn’t fit here is that the hideout containing the mask was
Harry’s, not Norman’s. But Normie was a child at
the time and wouldn’t know all the details, so why does he think
Norman designed the mask at all? It would make sense for
Norman to make his own version of the hi-tech mask so that the
treatments Dr Angst used to re-empower Phil could be just
as easily stripped away, allowing him more control over his lackey? I
can certainly imagine a climactic battle wherein Phil’s mask is
again damaged (and along with it his face scarred) in battle with
Spider-Man. Wild speculation here but this could also help to
strengthen the connection between Peter and Phil,
explaining how they came to be such close friends and colleagues.
As I mentioned, I can’t take credit for this one because I’m certainly
not the one who conceived of the idea but it is one I enjoyed expanding
upon and working into an MC2 theory. It neatly ties up loose ends
from a period in the Spider-Man books that were abruptly cut
short. Furthermore, I like the way it deepens Phil’s connection
to the Goblin legacy without him being outright evil and it would
go some way toward explaining his overwhelming desire to do good
afterwards under various monikers. Anyway, it’s just a theory, an
MC2 Theory. Thanks for reading!
Until I find a crazier theory to outdo this one, I remain
frogoat
