HISTORY: With explosive Jack-O-Lanterns, razor sharp blades shaped as bats and gaseous grenades that appear as ghosts, the Halloween themed supervillain himself, the Green Goblin is one of Marvel's most notable foes. Typically at the opposition of Spider-Man, Green Goblin made his first appearance in The Amazing Spider-Man #14 in July 1964. The most popular version and original Green Goblin, Norman Osbourne, was the head of the city's organized crime syndicates, OSCORP or S.H.I.E.L.D., depends on what issue you're reading. The goblin formula, however ingested, injected, inhaled enhances the speed, endurance, reaction, reflexes, senses and even healing ability. However, it formula comes at a great cost, one's sanity. The Green Goblin, until recently redrawn as a Hulk-sized character, is often spotted riding his Goblin Glider that's shaped like a bat and has maneuverability that'd make the Chitauri aliens envious.
FIRST GLANCE: As a staple villain in the gallery of Spidey rogues, it's inevitable Green Goblin made it to packaging. In this case, we got two. One in Diamond Select Toy's earlier years and one within the past few years. The more classic, less articulated figure is sculpted by Sam Greenwell and comes with an unmasked Peter Parker tied up in rope as homage to the cover of The Amazing Spider-Man #39. The latter with a bit more articulation and an updated paint scheme was sculpted by Eli Livingston from Art Asylum,
PROS: Sculpt is ridiculous. The little details on the skin and face stand out among other classic and modern Selects. The figure has good balance as an already crouching piece and joints hold up well. Pumpkin bombs are a plus. The Goblin Glider is smaller as opposed to the Livingston version but sits well on the 4 piece glider base. The additional Spider-Man figure is a great plus despite its lack of articulation, you can throw it into nearly any diorama. Color choices on the Parker accessory and the figure itself are superb.
CONS: Despite having the manpurse, we only get the pumpkin bombs. Perhaps bat blades, not to be confused with batarangs, or smaller incendiary devices would be a nice plus. The lack of articulation does validate some complaints but at the same time, this was a Toy Biz era Marvel Select figure when the balance between articulation and sculpt leaned a lot towards sculpt. The only suggestion I would make would be to get some sticky tac, roll it up and use it to hold one of Silver Surfer's energy blasts to create a flame coming out of the glider.
ARTICULATION:
360° head with good vertical movement
Ball shoulders
Bicep swivel with fixed elbows
360° wrists
360° waist
Fixed bent knees that rotate inward/outward/forward/rearward at the hip
Ankles go up and down and can move inward and outward
Unmasked Peter Parker has no articulation
PROS: Who doesn't like improvements on articulation and poseability? With arguably a more evil grin, the Livingston Goblin features an interchangeable right hand with another pumpkin bomb. The larger goblin glider and added smoke effects make make it more appealing to a regular collector. Most do prefer the Livingston over the Greenwell for the glider and its modern sculpt.
CONS: Joints don't hold up that well and the side of the glider encompassed in smoke is curved more, unlike the exposed side. So it's not exactly symmetrical which is a disappointment. It's tricky to get the figure into a good pose with the glider on such an angle but posing off the glider isn't as bad. Excess paint was a problem on a few pieces and you'd probably need some carving tools to clean up some joints. And the figure falls over a lot.
ARTICULATION
Head would do 360° if the hood weren't as long, good vertical movement
Standard shoulder joints
Ball elbows
360° wrists
360° waist
Peg joint legs
Ball knees
Roller ankles
OVERALL RECOMMENDATION: Prior to its reissue, the Greenwell Goblin fetched big bucks on the secondary market. Now, not so much. Since more rogues have been released and the Livingston Goblin came about, it's more common to find this either at or around retail. No Goblin is more rare than the other so pick your poison. You can go with the classic or modern, either way, it's a win win. Both are solid figures. They do have their quirks but in the grand scheme of all things Marvel Select, there are much worse figures out there to gripe about.
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