Summary
- Red Goblin #2 revealed that one version of Green Goblin’s healing factor is more powerful, and far more unsettling, than either Wolverine or Deadpool’s.
- Phil Urich’s resurrection reveals the horrifying side effects of the Goblin serum’s healing factor.
- The consequences of gaining a healing factor through the Green Goblin serum are tragic, making it the most powerful, but also the most terrifying healing ability depicted in the Marvel Universe.
Wolverine and Deadpool may have Marvel’s most well-known healing factors, but as it turns out, the regenerative abilities are not as powerful as those possessed by oneincarnation of the Green Goblin – and the side effects of this Goblin’s healing factor are deeply unsettling, definitively proving that it is as much a curse as a blessing, if not more.
Red Goblin #2 – by Alex Paknadel, Jan Bazaldua, David Curiel, and Joe Caramagna – first displayed the terrifying side effects of the Goblin serum’s healing factor. The story featured return of villain Phil Urich, in the process revealing he possessed the Marvel Universe’s most intense healing factor.
Though he was previously killed by Norman Osborn, Urich’s story didn’t end there. Instead of staying dead, the Goblin formula inside Urich’s blood worked over drive, reversing the death of his cells and bringing him back to life. But instead of fully regenerating him, it only reversed his cell death to a point, essentially turning him into a zombie.
The Green Goblin Isn’t Just a Monster – He’s a Disease
Enough people have adopted the guise of the Green Goblin that he can’t be killed – the Goblin is a disease that spreads from person to person.
Phil Urich’s Healing Factor Is Marvel’s Most Horrifying
Norman Osborn killed Phil Urich in 2018’s Amazing Spider-Man #797 – written by Dan Slott, with art by Stuart Immonen.
The character of Phil Urich has gone by many names in the Marvel Universe over the years, but is likely best known for his time as the Hobgoblin. While the Goblin formula is known for enhancing the users’ strength and typically driving them insane, it’s not as well known that Green Goblin practically has immortality due to it. However, this healing factor differs wildly from that of Marvel heroes such as Wolverine or Deadpool – in both how it functions, and its end result. As Red Goblin #2 revealed, the Goblin formula has the horrifying effect of zombifying the user after death.
Phil Urich was first introduced as the newest incarnation of the Green Goblin in 1995’s Web of Spider-Man #125 – written by Terry Kavanagh, with art by Steven Butler. Initially a hero, Urich eventually became the villainous Hobgoblin, and later the Goblin King.
This side effect of the Goblin formula has been shown a few times, such as Norman Osborn himself coming back to life, after he accidentally impaled himself with his own glider. Ned Leeds also demonstrated the ability to revive when he was killed as the Hobgoblin. The difference in both of these cases was Norman and Ned weren’t dead that long, with Norman waking up in the morgue, likely only hours after having been killed. Unfortunately for Phil Urich, as depicted in Red Goblin #2, he was dead for a much longer period of time. People had enough time to arrange a funeral and bury him; he then revived an unspecified amount of time later.
Phil Urich’s Fate Proves Healing Factors Have Consequences
Phil Urich’s return from the grave is one of Marvel’s most extreme depictions of a healing factor at work. Regenerative abilities are often high on fans’ list, when discussing what superpowers they would like to have. The depiction of characters like Wolverine and Deadpool’s healing factors often leans into how “cool” it can be – Phil Urich’s resurrection goes in the opposite direction, highlighting the existential horror inherent in powers that dance along the line of natural mortality. Further, it emphasizes the consequences of gaining a healing factor through the use of the Green Goblin serum, in particular – making it Marvel’s most powerful, but also most tragic.
Red Goblin #2 was released in March, 2023. It was written by Alex Paknadel, with art by Jan Bazaldua, David Curiel, and Joe Caramagna.