Marvel Select
Classic Green Goblin
Action Figure
Sherman, set the Way-Back Machine for the year when the first black presidential cabinet member was appointed and the first black Senator elected, Indira Ghandi was elected Prime Minister of India, the Sr-71 Blackbird went into service, the first spacecraft landed on Venus and Kwanzaa was first celebrated. That same year Lyndon Johnson was the U.S. President, Clint Eastwood was in 'The Good, Bad and the Ugly', Robert Heinlein published 'The Moon is a Harsh Mistress' and two new shows appeared on television - 'Batman' and 'Star Trek'. The year was 1966 and in the midst of all this change in the world, there was innovation in the world of comics.
The issue in question is Amazing Spider-Man #39, and the innovation was the unveiling of not one, but two secret identities. Spider-Man and his nemesis the Green Goblin were revealed for an eager audience in a move that ran counter to conventional wisdom. For decades the secret identity was held holy, but Marvel Comics in the '60's was anything but conventional. They had a team of super-heroes that didn't even have identities, and with Spidey they decided to let is all hang out with a double unmasking.
Unlike recent retellings, Spider-Man and the Green Goblin did not share an origin of sorts, but they came to fruition each on their own. However, the Goblin would eventually become one of Spidey's greatest foes and arguably the one who hurt the wall-crawler the most. Yes, the loss of his Uncle Ben is what drives Peter Parker to become Spider-Man, but the Goblin took Peter's first great love, Gwen Stacy. After killing Gwen the goblin would taunt Spidey into a rage, one that almost drove a hero to murder. However the universe likes to balance the scales, and the Goblin was killed by his own glider while trying to kill Spidey, impaled not on a cross of iron but a stake of tin...
But before that titanic tussle would come to pass, there were countless battles and a high water mark was when both unmasked the other. Amazing Spider-Man #39 was the issue with the unforgettable cover that proudly showed the world (and most importantly the Green Goblin) that Peter Parker was Spider-Man. Making the Goblin's identity that of the father of one of Peter's friends made things more personal, though this was a point of contention between the original Spider-Man team.
Steve Ditko and Stan Lee were the creators of Spider-Man and the Green Goblin, and they disagreed on who the Goblin should be under his mask. Lee insisted that he be a character that the audience should have known or met, feeling anything otherwise might be unfair to the readers. Ditko wanted him to be just a random guy off the street, and idea that ran counter to what most readers would expect. In the end, issues like this and other strife between the two led to Ditko leaving the book.
The man who took the reins next was Johnny 'Ring-A-Ding' Romita, whose style was very different from Ditko's quirky art. Both artists were important to Spidey's development and in truth probably no one was as important as Ditko since he helped raise the character. But John Romita brought a more conventional style, and more attractive women since he worked on many romance comics. Together Stan and John would unmasked the Goblin and create some of the best Spidey tales ever.
From the art of John Romita has come the latest addition to the Marvel Select line, literally bringing the cover of Amazing Spider-Man #39 to life. The classic look of the Green Goblin (and this is the best Classic Green Goblin figure made yet) is captured along with his unwitting companion, a bound and exposed Peter Parker. Breathing life into this figure with his hands is sculptor Sam Greenwell. Sam is an accomplished sculptor and his other work in the Marvel Select line includes Ultimate Venom, Ultimate Hulk, Ultimate Wolverine, Ultimate Thor and Doctor Doom. He also sculpted the Ultimate Spider-Man bust for Diamond Select Toys.
Articulation (none on Peter Parker):
- Neck - ball-joint
- Shoulders - ball-joints
- Biceps - twists
- Forearms - twists
- Wrists - twists
- Waist - twist
- Thighs - swivels with hinges
- Calves - twists
- Ankles - bends and side-to-side
Accessories shouldn't be neglected and so Crazy Norman has a complete collection. He has one Pumpkin Bomb, suitable as a paperweight or blowing up pests. He also carries a purse, just don't make fun of it. He actually is insane after all. He has his faithful Goblin Glider, suitable for riding and impaling oneself. The glider is not 100% accurate as the stirrups are drawn more towards the edges of the wings, but it is still an awesome companion for the Goblin. And it has a display stand to mount it on for in-flight displays. The last accessory is what the story is all about, namely one Peter Parker (aka the amazing Spider-Man). Pete comes in torn clothes, sans mask and tied up along with a length of rope that is perfect for being dragged over the skies of New York City.
Marvel Select is an action figure line that is a synthesis of Diamond Select Toys and Toy Biz. The line is aimed at the collector market, so Marvel Select can cover characters that may not warrant inclusion in a mass-market line. So far the line has covered a variety of figures most of which come from the Ultimate Marvel Universe and the Marvel Knights line of books. However, the line isn't limited to just those characters and so far this is the second character outside of those books in the line, joining Origin Wolverine.
The scale for Marvel Select is based around 7" equaling 6', and this scale matches the other action figures from Diamond Select (like Monty Python) and Art Asylum's Star Trek figures. With the Goblin, the scale is actually hard to tell since he is hunched and can't stand up straight (evil will do that do you). The good news is that he displays well with both Marvel Select and Spider-Man Classics and Marvel Legends figures.
Next up for Marvel Select is Ultimate Thor, Doctor Doom, and a 2-pack with Spider-Man and Doc Ock from 'Negative Exposure'.
More pictures of the Green Goblin and Peter Parker
|
