Harry Osborn

For the EastEnders character, see Harry Osborne.

Harry Osborn
Harry Osborn. Art by John Romita Sr.
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics
First appearance	Amazing Spider-Man #31 (December 1965)
Created by	Stan Lee Steve Ditko
In-story information
Full name	Harold "Harry" Theopolis Osborn
Supporting character of	Spider-Man
Notable aliases	Green Goblin, New Goblin, American Son.
Abilities	Goblin serum grants: Enhanced intelligence and superhuman physical attributes identical to that of the Green Goblin Goblin-themed weapons and paraphernalia

Harry Osborn is a fictional character, a supporting character of Spider-Man in the Marvel Comics Universe. In addition to being Peter Parker's best friend, Harry was the second Green Goblin and is the son of Norman Osborn. Harry Osborn first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #32 (December 1965), and was created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko.

Publication history

Harry Osborn first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #31 (December 1965), and was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko. Harry Osborn received an entry in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Update '89 #5.

Fictional character 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. As a result, 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 causes Norman to become the Green Goblin again. Harry's life has fallen apart. His relationship with Peter's friend Mary Jane Watson has come to an end when she dumps him, fed up with his self-destructive lifestyle. A disconsolate Harry turns to drugs and suffers an amphetamine overdose. He survives, but this tragedy, compounded by imminent bankruptcy, drives the Green Goblin over the edge. He kidnaps Gwen as bait for Spider-Man, and then throws her off the George Washington Bridge (or Brooklyn Bridge). When Peter stops her fall with his webbing, she is dead. A vicious battle between Spider-Man and the Green Goblin ensues, with Peter barely able to control himself from killing the villain. The Goblin then directs his goblin glider to impale Spider-Man, but the wall-crawler jumps out of the way and the Goblin is impaled through the chest and seemingly dies. Peter is wracked with guilt and sorrow, but takes comfort in the fact that the Green Goblin is finally gone.

The Second Goblin

Harry Osborn as the new Green Goblin, battling Spider-Man on the cover of The Amazing Spider-Man #136 by John Romita.

However, Harry secretly witnesses the battle. Wanting to protect his father's identity, he strips Norman's body of the Green Goblin costume and hides it. Blaming Spider-Man for his father's "murder," Harry swears vengeance. Having inherited his father's company, Harry manages to get the business back in shape as he plans his revenge. One day, to his shock, he finds a Spider-Man costume in Peter's apartment and realizes that his best friend is the man he blames for his father's death. Using his father's old equipment, Harry confronts Peter as the new Goblin.^[1]

Not wanting to hurt Harry, Peter avoids fighting his old friend. Eventually, Harry is knocked unconscious and taken into police custody. There, he raves that he is the true Green Goblin and Peter Parker is Spider-Man, but is dismissed as a lunatic. He is put in the care of criminal psychologist Dr. Bart Hamilton, who extracts the secrets of the Green Goblin from Harry through hypnosis, and buries the knowledge deep with Harry's mind. However, this is not altruistic on Hamilton's part - he then raids one of Harry's hideouts and became the third Green Goblin, hoping to become the new boss of the underworld. However, his power is no match for his enthusiasm - he never uses the strength-enhancing formulas on himself, seemingly believing that just being the Green Goblin will enable him to defeat Spider-Man. Despite an elaborate plot to kill Silvermane, the power-mad psychologist is killed by a bomb he plants for Spider-Man. Although he suffers a brief setback during the confrontation with Hamilton, Harry is released and considered cured. He sustains a concussion that makes him forget his knowledge of Spider-Man's identity and he and Peter rekindle their friendship.

For a while, Harry's life seems back on track; his company begins turning profits once more, and he develops a romance with Liz Allan, whom he meets at the wedding of Betty Brant and Ned Leeds. Not long after the two are married, and eventually they have a son, whom Harry names Normie in memory of the boy's grandfather. Harry also gives his blessing to the marriage of Peter and Mary Jane. However, Harry starts regaining his memories when he is blackmailed by the original Hobgoblin, who mails him a package which contains evidence that his father was the original Green Goblin. When the Hobgoblin learns he had raided all of Norman's hideouts he leaves Harry alone, knowing he had nothing more to offer him. Later, Harry is forced to act as the Green Goblin a few times, once to defeat Jason Macendale, the second Hobgoblin. Macendale is seeking the Goblin formula that gave the Green Goblin superhuman strength; Harry is able to defeat Macendale by doubling back during an aerial chase and emptying his entire supply of pumpkin bombs onto the Hobgoblin. Harry even wonders if he could use the Goblin persona for a career as a superhero but Peter convinces him that the Goblin had too much baggage for such a role. Harry buries the Goblin menace within his mind once more and focuses on his business and family.

Death

The death of Harry Osborn.

This tranquility is shattered when the aftereffects of the "Inferno" crisis sunder the barrier between Harry's conscious and subconscious minds. Once again, he remembers being the Green Goblin - and his hatred of Spider-Man. Harry has now convinced himself that Peter resents 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 declares that their next confrontation will be their final one, and only one of them will be alive at the end. To ensure that he is the victor, Harry researches his father's chemical notes, hoping to recreate the original Goblin's superhuman strength. Harry makes his own modifications to the formula, and upon ingesting it, it proves better than he had dreamed. The Green Goblin II formula has made him stronger than both Spider-Man and his father. Now a physical match for Spider-Man, Harry plans his final revenge.

Harry starts stalking Peter Parker on his Goblin Glider, claiming that there is no law against just soaring around town in a colorful costume, and taunting Peter that someday he will destroy him, but he relishes keeping Peter in suspense in the meantime. After weeks of this, Peter finally loses his nerve and strikes at Harry only to be sent flying when Harry hits back, demonstrating his new strength. He then rockets away, taunting Spider-Man's inability to stop him.

Not long after, Harry holds a prestigious dinner at his townhouse, inviting many of his father's old business associates. However, it is actually a trap and Harry has planted explosives throughout the townhouse which he plans to detonate, thus destroying everybody who has slighted the Osborns.

Spider-Man drops in to investigate, only to be confronted by Harry as the Goblin. The two former friends engage in a dangerous battle, which ends when Harry injectes Peter with a drug that leaves him immobile but still alive. However, even as he celebrates over his victory he realizes that Mary Jane and his son Normie are also in the townhouse and that the explosives will detonate in thirty seconds. Peter convinces Harry to use his damaged glider to get the two to safety. After rescuing Normie and Mary Jane, Harry returns to his senses and realizes that he has left Peter to die. Harry rescues Peter from the explosion just in time. However, as his friends thank him, he suddenly collapses. The Goblin Formula is damaged by the explosion, and while it increased his strength, it is also lethally poisoning him. Paramedics are called, but Harry dies on the way to the hospital. With his final words, he apologizes to Peter, and confirms that despite everything, they are still, and always would be, best friends.^[2]

Post-Mortem

Sometime before his death, Harry creates 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.^[3]

However, Harry has 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 ends with both constructs revealed as fakes when both "die," shattering Peter's mind. After nearly killing the Chameleon, Peter finds a tape Harry had left before he died revealing his role in the plot and mocking Peter, demonstrating that Harry is as manipulative and cruel as his father when gripped by insanity. Peter goes temporarily insane from the shock, even briefly rejected his identity as Peter Parker until the return of his clone Ben Reilly snaps him back to reality.

Return From the Grave

In order to save the life of May Parker (who is near death with no prospect of recovery), Peter and Mary Jane agree to allow the demon Mephisto to alter history. In the new timeline, Peter and Mary Jane have never been married, and his identity as Spider-Man, revealed to the world during the superhero "Civil War"n^[4] is erased from the world's memories. As a consequence of these changes, Harry's death is erased from history as well.^[5] It is subsequently revealed that Harry's supposed death is faked by Mysterio and his father Norman Osborn, who spirits his son away to Europe where he is held prisoner in several "rehab" clinics. Norman believes that his son had relapsed into drug addiction, and this in turn led to his brief return to wearing the Green Goblin costume.^[6]

At some point, Harry is released from rehab and reunites with his friends. However, because of the machinations of his father and the mindwipe of the world's knowledge of Peter's secret identity by Dr. Strange, Reed Richards, and Tony Stark,^{[clarification needed]} Harry no longer remembers that Peter Parker is Spider-Man. His marriage to Liz Allan also disintegrates and the two divorce. Harry engages in a string of relationships, several of which result in Harry marrying and divorcing in rapid fashion. He is in a relationship with Lily Hollister. Harry tries to help Lily's father in the latter's bid for Mayor of New York by funding her father's campaign with his dwindling finances.

Harry is also one of the leading suspects for the secret identity of Menace, a new Green Goblin-themed villain. In the "New Ways to Die" story arc, Menace battles Norman Osborn and is infuriated when Norman states that all he cares about is killing Spider-Man. Norman dons the Green Goblin costume and mentions that Harry has been in the Goblin's Lair. Norman calls Harry, who realizes from Norman's distorted voice that Norman is wearing the Goblin suit. This horrifies and disgusts Harry who vows to stop his father. Harry angrily confronts his father who wants Harry to follow his legacy and become a greater man. The confused Harry is saved by Spider-Man. Spider-Man, who wants to beat Norman senseless, stops when he sees an area for 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, and is seen leaving with a mysterious canister labelled "Prometheus X-90".

Prometheus X-90, it is revealed later, was developed as a successful cure for Mark Raxton's condition as Molten Man. The only human test subject was Charlie Weiderman, the short-lived second Molten Man, and the only person on whom the serum could be tested . After the cure is administered, Liz finally forgives Harry and gives him back the wedding ring, which she originally claimed she lost.^[7]

Following the events of Secret Invasion, Norman Osborn is placed in charge of H.A.M.M.E.R., the successor organization to S.H.I.E.L.D., and forms his own team of Avengers.

Renting out all of Liberty Island, Harry takes Lily there and, at the top of the Statue of Liberty, he gets down on one knee and proposes to her.^[8] Lily rejects his proposal because she is not sure where their relationship will lead, which surprises Harry. He later goes to her place to check up on her, and as he enters the room he is surprised to discover Lily wearing the costume of Menace.

She found a hidden door in his closet and one of his old journals. 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 rooms described 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 first entered the room she found the Goblin's equipment and 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 gives 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, takes a glider, a pair of Goblin gloves, and a dart gun containing an unknown chemical.^[9] In the midst of a battle between Menace and Spider-Man, Harry 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.^[10] Lily is incarcerated but later escapes, leaving Harry her ring and a note. Harry sinks back into alcoholism, after which he is helped by Carlie Cooper.^[11]

Dark Reign

Norman approaches Harry with the offer of a job within his organization. Harry initially declines, but after a visit from Lily, who reveals that she is pregnant, he accepts.^[12] Norman welcomes him into Avengers Tower and wants to make Harry part of the "American Son" project. Harry is shown to have an ulterior motive, however, based on his need to protect Lily and his child. Disabling the camera in his room, Harry sneaks off.^[13] He finds a cure for Lilly's Goblin Serum that will be safe for her and the baby but she pushes him away. Lily reveals that it is all a ruse to coerce Harry into 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 for this news, Harry dons the American Son armor and fights against his father.^[14]

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 of killing Norman, Spider-Man tells him to decapitate Norman, since Norman's healing factor may repair a blow to the head. Spider-Man states that killing Norman will cause Harry to "become the son Norman always wanted." Harry backs down, and walks away from Norman Osborn forever.

Harry is next seen in a psychiatrist's office, claiming to be getting over the effects of a medical treatment he received. The doctor offers to prescribe him oxycodone but it is not revealed if Harry takes the prescription.^[15]

After the events of American Son, Norman cuts Harry off financially and he is forced out of his penthouse apartment. He moves into Peter Parker's old room at Aunt May's.^[16] He also begins secretly dating Peter's cousin, Amy Reilly.^[17] After Aunt May returns and is corrupted by Mister Negative, she kicks Harry out of the house, forcing him to move in with Mary Jane.^[18]

Heroic Age

After the fall of Norman Osborn the American Son armor, which can only be used by one of the Osborn bloodline, is stolen by a mysterious figure. The police begin questioning Harry. Later, Harry is visited by Gabriel Stacy who identifies himself as Norman's other son and shoots Harry in the chest, claiming that Norman gave Harry a better life.^[19] American Son arrives, saves Harry from Gabriel and taks him to a hospital. After Harry recovers from his wounds he is escorted home by police. Fearing the damage that could be done with the American Son armor and perplexed by his encounter with Gabriel, Harry decides to figure things out on his own. After enlisting the help of a talented reporter named Norah from Frontline, Harry decides to visit Norman as only he would know about Gabriel. Harry and Norah eventually visit the Raft where they find Norman in the cell consumed by madness. Harry demands to know about Gabriel and American Son but Norman is unresponsive. Frustrated, Harry and Norah begin to leave, but before they exit his cell Norman briefly returns to his senses and tells Harry that Gabriel is indeed Norman's son.^[20]

Trying to make sense of everything, Harry visits Aunt May's work where he plans to volunteer. On his way he realizes that he is being followed by the FBI. It is then revealed through FBI security footage that Gabriel is the one who stole the American Son armor and has been using it all along. Meanwhile Gabriel confronts the American Son armor and is revealed to have developed a split personality similar to Norman's after his exposure to the Goblin Serum. This split personality explains to Gabriel that it represents all that is good in his soul and will use the American Son armor to undo each of Gabriel's crimes. After an intense psychological battle, Gabriel appears to gain the upper hand and proceeds with his plan.

Still attempting to understand Gabriel's plans, Harry determines that in order for Gabriel to truly hurt him he will attempt to abduct an innocent person and lay a trap. Harry then rushes to find Norah. Meanwhile, the police arrive at Gabriel's hideout but are unable to rescue Norah because of the American Son's interference. Harry manages to sneak in through one of his father's secret tunnels and confronts his half-brother.^[21] As the police prepare to make another attempt to save Norah, Harry frees her and gets the young reporter to safety. With Norah out of harms way Gabriel and Harry engage in an epic battle; during the fight Harry attempts to convince Gabriel that Norman is evil and that attempting to follow in his footsteps is madness. Gabriel refuses to listen and continues his attempts to kill Harry. Saddened by his brother's choice Harry hacks the American Son armor and knocks Gabriel unconscious. The battle causes the warehouse to go up in flames, trapping Gabriel and Harry inside, but Spider-Man arrives and saves them. Afterward, Norah visits Harry in his coffee shop, and notices a bottle of oxycodone in Harry's things. Troubled by what she finds Norah concludes that Harry has a drug problem and resolves to help him through it.^[22]

After many near encounters, Carlie and Peter meet at the coffee shop. Harry and MJ are there and the four are talking when Lily bursts through the wall, followed by an attacking team of supervillains. MJ asks Harry to help Lily, who's gone into labor, but they are held captive by Doctor Octopus.^[23] Spider-Man manages to save them and rescue Lily's newborn baby from the supervillains. Harry and MJ take Lily to get medicine care, but Carlie was too angry with Lily to accompany them.^[24] When Spider-Man secures the baby from Doctor Octopus he runs an analysis on a sample of the baby's DNA and finds it matches Harry Osborn. Spider-Man encourages Harry to raise his son on his own and start a new life.^[25] Soon thereafter, Harry prepares to leave New York with the baby, whom he has named Stanley. At his going-away party Harry encounters former NYPD officer Vin Gonzales, who views Norman Osborn as a deity. After Gonzales threatens him, Harry shocks the man with a taser and brutally beats him.^[26]

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.

American Son

While Harry is temporarily the American Son, he has access to the American Son armor and formula (The American Son formula had been created by combining the Super-Soldier Serum and Goblin Serum).

Other versions

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 is 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.

Marvel Zombies

In Marvel Zombies: Return #1, Zombie Spider-Man is taken to an alternate reality where it's the past and Peter is still in college, Harry and Gwen are alive, etc. Harry is shown hanging out (with a mustache) with Peter, MJ and Gwen. However he is later shown being eaten by a zombiefied Sinister Six.

Spider-Man: Clone Saga

In the simplified re-telling of the Clone Saga, Harry secretly survived his final battle with Spider-Man and has Kaine under his employment. He appears to still be mad from the goblin serum and clones his deceased father, who apparently was indeed killed by his goblin glider in this reality. Harry soon heads out to attack Ben Reilly in the guise of the Green Goblin. His plans are thwarted when Kaine switches sides. The Norman clone, who is not insane due to not being exposed to the Goblin serum, tries to convince Harry to stop before sacrificing himself by jumping in front of the moving Goblin Glider (akin to Ben Reilly's death in the main universe). The series concludes with an irate Harry swearing vengeance.^[27]

In other media

Television

• Harry is first mentioned 1981 Spider-Man cartoon as Peter's friend and roommate.

• Harry Osborn appears in Spider-Man: The Animated Series voiced by Gary Imhoff. At the start of the series, he is Flash Thompson's best friend and he and Peter aren't well-acquainted with each other, something Peter points out when Harry asks him to be his college roommate so as to please his father, though they eventually become best friends. That eventually was changed when Peter dated Mary Jane Watson who he was originally engaged until she turned him down. Harry's father, as the Green Goblin, and Mary Jane Watson soon became trapped in the Negative Zone after battling Spider-Man which left Harry in depression over losing the two people that he loves the most. Peter tried to comfort Harry but his life of becoming Spider-Man interfered. Harry slowly began to realize that Peter was Spider-Man and have nightmares that Spider-Man is trying to take away his father and that he's next. The Green Goblin then subconsciously began to appear to him in his reflections. Harry then becomes the Green Goblin under a promise to see his father again, though after many failures to kill Spider-Man, he learns that his father is the Green Goblin. This soon leads to Harry slowly becoming insane. After continuing his villainy, he attempts to ruin the wedding of Peter and Mary Jane, though Liz Allan is able to calm him down, allowing him to leave peacefully and seek help in the Ravencroft mental institution.

• Harry Osborn appears in Spider-Man: The New Animated Series (loosely based after the first Spider-Man movie) voiced by Ian Ziering. He constantly blames Spider-Man for his father's death, but shows signs of beginning to put the grudge aside in later episodes. He is also pictured as being blonde.

• Harry Osborn appears in The Spectacular Spider-Man voiced by James Arnold Taylor. Whereas Harry and Peter didn't meet until college in the comic books, in the cartoon, he is Peter's classmate in high school. While constantly trying to appease his father, he takes the "Globulin Green" serum to boost his physical abilities, but this causes the development of a second personality, one which symbolizes Harry's notion of "the man his father wanted him to be". Learning of this, Norman uses his son as a scapegoat for his own alter ego, the Green Goblin. Believing Harry to be the Green Goblin, Spider-Man allowed Norman to look after him as Harry is taken away on a European tour to help him break his addiction to the serum. Harry returned from his trip. After Flash exposed the addiction to league administrators, losing the trophy their team won as a result, Harry destroys the remaining vials of Globulin Green he kept hidden. Soon after, Harry attempts to have a relationship with Gwen, though expressed some anger when he overheard her talking about breaking up with him to Peter. It was later that Harry learned the truth of his father being the real Green Goblin as he witnesses his fight with Spider-Man up to his father's supposed death. Attending the funeral soon after, using his father's death to have Gwen stay with him out of guilt, Harry expresses intent to have revenge against Spider-Man (similar to the movie). This storyline, however, was never resolved, as copyright issues led to the show's premature cancellation.

Films

Harry, portrayed by James Franco, as the New Goblin in Spider-Man 3.

• In the Spider-Man film series, Harry, played by James Franco, is Peter Parker's closest friend and the main tritagonist. He constantly tries to impress his father, who is very invested in his work, and he eventually grows jealous of Peter Parker's close relationship with him. He dates Mary Jane Watson during the first film, though she eventually falls for Peter, and he manages to somewhat mend his relationship with his father. After his father's death as the Green Goblin, Harry believes that his father was murdered by Spider-Man, and seeks revenge, unaware that Spider-Man had in fact tried to save Norman Osborn's life, and went to great lengths to keep secret the billionaire's secret life as the Green Goblin, though also subconsciously forgets his father's secrets due to unable to cope this knowledge.

• Harry takes over Oscorp in Spider-Man 2, forming an alliance with Doctor Octopus to get his revenge, providing Octopus with a rare element he needs to complete his fusion reactor in exchange for Octopus capturing Spider-Man. Although the plan fails, he learns that Peter is Spider-Man when he unmasks the hero in preparation to kill him. Afterwards, he begins to hallucinate, seeing his father's image in a mirror which demands that Harry avenge him. He refuses and smashes the mirror only to find a hidden room with the Green Goblin equipment and serum behind it and realize that his father was the infamous Green Goblin.

• Becoming the New Goblin in Spider-Man 3, he attempts to take revenge, but he briefly sustains amnesia after Peter knocks him unconscious during their first battle. While in this state, he reverted back to to how he was before the time of is father's death. After regaining his memory, due to the efforts of his father's ghost, he attempts to destroy Peter by sabotaging his relationship with Mary Jane and then claiming that she left Peter for him, only for Peter — falling increasingly under the influence of the black suit — to attack Harry in his penthouse, throwing one of his own pumpkin bombs back at him and scarring the right side of his face. However, after learning the truth of his father's death from his butler Bernard, he helps Spider-Man save Mary Jane from Venom and Sandman, and ultimately sacrifices himself to save Peter during the ensuing fight. He dies with Peter and Mary Jane at his side. Peter and Mary Jane, both heartbroken by their friend's death, attend Harry's funeral together.

Video games

• Harry appears in the Spider-Man: The Movie video game, where he was voiced by Josh Keaton. Though he doesn't play a major part in the main plot, it features a bonus story mode where Harry takes on the role of the Green Goblin and investigates a plan to take over Oscorp.
• Harry appears in the Spider-Man 2 video game, again voiced by Josh Keaton. Here, like in the movie, he's obsessed with killing Spider-Man for the presumed murder of his father, going as far as to ask Doctor Octopus to capture Spider-Man for him.
• Harry appears in Spider-Man 3 with James Franco reprising his role. He assumes the identity of the New Goblin to take out Peter as a boss and later assists Peter in dealing with Sandman and Venom as a playable character. He is also a downloadable character on Xbox 360. In the limited edition of the game for the PlayStation 3 he is unlockable, he is now downloadable for the normal version as well.
• Harry in his New Goblin alias appears in Spider-Man: Friend or Foe where Josh Keaton reprised the role. Similar to Spider-Man, Green Goblin I, and Doctor Octopus, he resembles his movie counterpart, especially his look as the New Goblin in Spider-Man 3. He assists Spider-Man early in the game and is the last unlockable character when the game is completed for the first time.

References

1. ^ The Amazing Spider-Man #136
2. ^ Spectacular Spider-Man #200
3. ^ Spider-Man: Legacy Of Evil
4. ^ Civil War #2
5. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #545
6. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #581
7. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #582
8. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #583
9. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #586
10. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #588
11. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #591
12. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #595
13. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #596
14. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #598
15. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #599
16. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #604
17. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #605
18. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #618-619
19. ^ Amazing Spider-Man Presents: American Son #1
20. ^ Amazing Spider-Man Presents: American Son #2
21. ^ Amazing Spider-Man Presents: American Son #3
22. ^ Amazing Spider-Man Presents: American Son #4
23. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #642
24. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #643
25. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #646
26. ^ Amazing Spider-Man #647
27. ^ Spider-Man: Clone Saga #4-6

External links

• Harry Osborn at Marvel.com
• Spider-Man 3: The Spider & The Goblin: Peter Parker and Harry Osborn - A retrospective at Marvel.com
• Harry's Profile at Spiderfan.org
• Harry Osborn on the Spider-Man Wiki