The Amazing Spider-Man, Vol. 10: Green Goblin Returns

The Amazing Spider-Man (2018) (Collected Editions)

by Nick Spencer

Sins rose and are now falling. The Sin Eater has returned and his scope has gone HUGE. All of Ravencroft and New York City are in danger and not in a way you can possibly expect. Situations like this make strange bedfellows and this story (including the enormous AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #850) will not disappoint!

COLLECTING: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (2018) 48-49, THE SINS OF NORMAN OSBORN, FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2020 (SPIDER-MAN/VENOM) 1 (SPIDER-MAN STORY)

Genres: Comics, Marvel, Spider Man, Graphic Novels, Superheroes, Comic Book, Fiction

160 pages, Paperback

First published December 22, 2020

About the author

Librarian Note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

Nick Spencer is a comic book writer known for his creator-owned titles at Image Comics (Existence 2.0/3.0, Forgetless, Shuddertown, Morning Glories), his work at DC Comics (Action Comics, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents), and for his current work at Marvel Comics (Iron Man 2.0, Ultimate Comics: X-Men).

Reviews

[Baba · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume rolls over from the last volume, Amazing Spider-Man by Nick Spencer, Vol. 9: Sins Rising, with Spider-Man the only thing standing in the way of Norman Osborn losing his powers and truly repenting all his sins, at the hands of possible combination of Sin Eater AND Sin Eater's disciples AND the Juggernaut! The Order of the Web (Madame Webb, Spider-Woman, Miles etc.) stand in the shadows debating the best moment to step in to save Spider-man from a death foretold!

I get the sense that maybe to newer and younger readers this is all thrilling stuff, but I just don't feel like there's any real jeopardy for Spidey under Spencer, like he's just going through the motions, creating arcs just to show how heavy handed Kindred is in Spider-Man's life? Still Green Goblin is Green Goblin and Norman always gets under my skin, such a great character! 6 out of 12.

PS: The Goodreads has got the comic book listing for this volume wrong, it is actually:\
- Amazing Spider-Man s05 #48
- ASM Sins of Norman Osborn #1
- Amazing Spider-Man s05 #49/#85o (90 page special)
- ASM & Venom FCBD, 'Moonlighting', the Spider-Man and Black Cat short story.

[Chad · Rating 2 out of 5]

Spencer treads water throughout this whole volume in what is really the 2nd half of the Sins Rising story. We find absolutely nothing out as Spider-Man and Green Goblin hash out their beefs in the same way they have in at least 10 other Green Goblin appearances. The Sin Eater continues to make no sense and should have remained dead. Then there's the whole Order of the Web nonsense where the Spider-Family stands around in limbo watching Spider-Man fight a gazillion Sin Eater disciples and talk about how he's made the wrong decision instead of helping him and I'm calling BS, because that would never happen. It's about time to take Spider-Man away from Nick Spencer. His stories go absolutely nowhere.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

Part two of Nick Spencer’s Sin-Eater story-arc and I’m still wishing they’d left the character dead, moreso if anything. The Norman Osborn aspect of the story felt tired and done before. I didn’t buy all of Pete’s allies spending the better part of two issues standing on the sidelines debating whether to help him or not. The only part of the story I did like is the slow build to the confrontation with Kindred.

The art was OK, but felt a bit rushed to me. The multiple artist changes hurt the story too. I fervently wish they’d put out fewer issues a year but keep the same artist throughout, to be honest.

The highlight of the book to me was the bonus story by Kurt Busiek and Chris Bachalo and even that was cheesy as heck. As for the bonus story by Tradd Moore, I can only assume he ate lots of cheese before bed and then sleep-drew it during a particularly bizarre nightmare...

My next book: Marvel Masterworks: The Amazing Spider-Man vol. 14

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. In issue #48, the Sin Eater has his sights set on Norman as the next person to be “cleansed”. Parker has a decision to make. Does he let the Sin Eater have Norman or does he try and stop him. Issue #49 AKA #850, Peter has made his choice and has sprung into action. But with the Sin Eater still gathering other people’s powers, Peter has to do the unthinkable to win the day. The main story of issue #850 was pretty good, I was into it. It’s the back up mini stories that were pretty boring. However, I’m still wondering why Marvel didn’t put the Sins of Norman Osborne issue in here as it was definitely part of the story. Maybe it’s just a misprint and when this book actually comes out it will be in there. We’ll see.

[James DeSantis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally a pretty fun arc with a lot of great moments.

Peter has to decide if he should let Sin Eater kill Osborn or save Osborn. You know, the guy who has made Peter's life extremely miserable. By killing his friend, lover, and more Peter could easily let Sin Eater finish him off. At the same time, he can't seem to just let someone be murdered in front of him. So his Spider Friends, Miles, Gwen, and more come to try to give him aid but will they be able to steer peter in the right direction.

Most of this was pretty good. I really liked some of the moments with Osborn and Peter bickering and having to work together. Some of the art was fantastic with awesome fight scenes. Watching the Spider-Friends help Peter and care for him was great too. I can't say I loved the idea of them having to just watch in the background or the actual Sin Eater threat being kind of lame, but overall most of this book was a step up from the last few. Around a 3.5 but I'll round it up to a 4.

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Sin Eater is at the door of Ravencroft, and he has one target left in mind - Norman Osborn. To stop this threat, will Spider-Man turn to his oldest enemy in his time of need? (The title probably gives the answer to this one away, tbh).

Sins Rising's explosive conclusion is just great. I loved the previous volume, but this one was just as good if not better. Including issues 48, The Sins of Norman Osborn one-shot, and the oversized issue 49 (legacy 850), this one hits the ground running and doesn't stop till the final page where we find out that this is all just a prelude to even more madness to come. There are some genuinely unexpected twists, and Spencer uses all the extra real estate to maximise on the story.

The art's also a smorgasbord of talent - issue 48 is drawn by Spidey master Mark Bagley, joined by current ASM artist Ryan Ottley and ASM veteran Humberto Ramos on the oversized issue 49, while Sins Of Norman Osborn is pencilled by up and comer Federico Vicentini, who we'll be seeing a lot more of once Last Remains begins in the next volume. A visual treat for the eyes.

The Green Goblin Returns, and ASM is all the better for it. Spencer's ducks are all in a row as the dominoes start to fall and I keep mixing my metaphors, it's so good.

[Rylan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m going to clarify that this gets 3 stars because Marvel decided to collect only two issues of the main series and a one shot here (one issue being oversized). This all could have fit into the last volume hell this is literally apart of the sins rising storyline. Honestly if this and the sins rising volume were all collected together easily would’ve been 4 maybe 5 five stars. Story wise I really liked the conclusion to the sins rising stuff, I think the sin eater and his cult is an interesting concept I also liked seeing the green goblin return and team up with Spider-Man. I also liked seeing the Spider-Family together I would kinda like to see them interact more. Although I’m slightly annoyed Jess is there because she has nothing to do with Spider-Man aside from close names, but if her being worked into the Spider-Family means I’ll get to see her more then that’s fine be me.

[Anna Quilter · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm following the Marvel Spider Man titles but not getting too excited about what I'm reading. The stories I can take or leave and the last story I really got into was probably Vol 4 of this series...Hunted..Kraven and his son..that was good.
Saying that, this was Ok...Norman Osborn .and seeing ASM working alongside GG briefly had novelty value..if nothing else.
I do want to be excited about this flagship important title but it ain't really happening for me.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, this is a real water-treading book. Green Goblin comes back, but his main plot lives to fight another day. A bunch of Spider-folks come together as a new super-club, but they mainly stand around and wait for the proper moment. Sin-Eater continues to be a menace, but no resolution there either. The guy with the centipedes continues to lurk.

There is a bit of really great interaction between Norman and Peter, really outlining their relationship. But it's buried in two issues and a special worth of waiting for issue #50.

(Then there are some mediocre to bad short stories that are just barely worth reading. It's the typical padding we've been getting in these in-between books from Marvel, where they don't really have enough issues to fill out a TPB, but want to sell it anyway.)

[Subham · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Sins rising story gets better as we see Sin eater amass a cult and giving them this mysterious powers and their next target: Green Goblin! We get an interlude chapter telling about Osborne's history and all and how sin eater is gonna go after him. Also we have the "Order of the web" form and they decide whether to stop Peter to save GG as its better to throw him to the wolf that is sin eater but they wait for Spidey to make his decision. And what an issue it is, Spidey and GG teaming up to take down Sin eater supposedly who has taken on the powers of the Juggernaut! And its such a fantastic read, the art is awesome, the moments are well earned and the ending shocking..a different choice Indeed! Next up: The Kindred finally!

[C.T. Phipps · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm going to honest that I'm not a fan of Norman Osbourne and really wish that he'd stayed dead. THE CLONE SAGA was the end of my love of Spider-Man for decades and I blame a lot of that on resurrecting Norman as well as making him even more of a complete monster. However, I love Harry Osbourne and think he's really well done in this storyline.

The Sin-Eater Saga continues and it treats the Elder Osbourne with just the right amount of contempt: which is a lot. It also restores an element of Norman that I liked from the Silver Age of Comics - that he could bump his head and temporary stop being an evil monster.I also like Ravencroft Asylum even if it's always felt like a rip off of Arkham.

[Frédéric · Rating 2 out of 5]

Spidey and GG bicker at each other while fighting the lame-o Sin Eater who should have stayed dead; he wasn’t as boring at least.
Lots of nonsense (gazillions of Sin Eater followers popping out from nowhere, the Spidey family reunited doing... nothing) and of course Spidey makes the wrong choice after pages of inner monologues.

Much ado about nothing; Spencer should pass the torch now.

[Kyle Berk]

While all of this should have been included in the volume 9 collection as this is the conclusion to the sins rising arc, this is very enjoyable.

It's true I always enjoy reading Spider-Man but I think this is really good. The pencils are all by really great artists Ottley, Bagley, Ramos and the content of having Spider-Man and the extended Spider people all making a decision about Norman Osborn's fate is compelling and that is what's really good here.

Other then that you have the Kindred arc still dragging on 49 issues into this run and a so so conclusion for the sin eater stuff (although I know it isn't a conclusion as Sin eater will probably be in issue #50 legacy #851).

Really this is solid stuff as I like Spencer's run other then the stretched nature of the Kindred story. I think all my problems with this volume are summed up by the fact that it was not included in volume 9.

The side stories included here from issue #850 and the free comic book day issue are all enjoyable, I love the one with black cat and the one with Vulture's granddaughter, even if they are not given enough room to fully grow.

Spider-Man is still good and I'm still having fun reading him, and the art is tops.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eh, this was fine. There were some skippable parts, some parts with potential that just kinda fell flat. Overall entertaining. I feel like this series has been going downhill for a while.

[Jason · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just when I thoughts Spencer's run was getting good.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Joker. The Green Goblin. Two irredeemable villains, neither of whom will ever be taken down by their main adversary. Here, in fact, Spider-Man actually teams up with the Goblin. Wait...what? It is a bit hard to believe, but, yes, that is what happens. We keep getting some foreshadowing that something even worse than the Sin Eater is out there, pulling the strings, but so far, we haven't seen it (next volume? please?). But Peter Parker, despite all of the Spider-Team having seen visions of his impending demise, cannot bring himself to let Norman Osborn fall victim to the Sin Eater, and the two of them briefly team up against a new version: Sin Eater in the body of the Juggernaut. Beyond that, not a whole lot happens here (it seems the wheels are spinning just a bit). But I was still immersed in the story and breathlessly waiting for what's next. Excellent artwork throughout, from a whole gaggle of different talents. Hopefully the next collected edition puts this particular storyline to rest.

[Lucy Batson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ok, I gave Nick Spencer's Spider-Man run a good try, but I need to tap out here. Things either a) don't make sense, or b) the stuff that makes sense is deeply lame? Just, everything here is a misfire. Trying to make Boomerang some breakout star? The return of the Sin-Eater, but now he literally eats sin? Maybe I'll skip ahead to Zeb Wells and things will improve?

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spider-man and Green Goblin 'team-up' against a strange Juggernaut.

[Des'Ree · Rating 2 out of 5]

Where did the other dimensional spider-people come from??? Spencer explain!!!

[Oneirosophos · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is not how you celebrate 850 issues.

[Rory Wilding · Rating 3 out of 5]

The last volume of Nick Spencer’s Amazing Spider-Man concluded with the resurrected Sin-Eater and his flock “cleansing” New York by literally stealing powers from the “cleansed” super villains. With Sin-Eater setting eyes on Norman Osborn, who has taken over Ravencroft Institute for the Criminally Insane, Peter Parker is wrestling with his own feelings, considering the horrible actions that Osborn as inflicted upon him and his loved ones.

This volume is predominately about this conflict, which is explored through multiple perspectives, not just Peter, as his fellow Spider-people debate towards each other about whether they should participate in this ordeal. They obviously do take part, but a lot of their wordplay just seems unnecessary as it goes back to this recurring problem with Spencer’s run, which is that there is so much build-up to the big moment, that you wish they could cut the fat.

One can argue that making this comic as a bi-monthly series result in a number of filler issues, whereas I think Spencer could’ve benefitted more by cutting straight to the chase if the comic was published monthly.

Once Spidey reaches to rescue Osborn from the clutches of Sin-Eater, that’s where things get interesting as you have these two characters who fought each other since 1964, during the Lee/Ditko era, now suddenly having to team up to survive. This is not a spoiler to say as it revealed on the front cover, the Green Goblin returns and Spencer writes well on how creepy Osborn can be, whether he is in Goblin mode or not.

As the extra-sized issue #49 is actually the 850th issue of Amazing Spider-Man, Spencer allows three artists to show their A-game with Spidey and the Goblin pair up to fight Sin-Eater who steals the power of the unstoppable Juggernaut. As each of the three artists – Ryan Ottley, Humberto Ramos and Mark Bagley – are given their chapter to this issue, their styles are distinctive from one another, but the story that everyone is telling remains coherent.

The remaining pages of #49 are three backups from different writers and artists, such as Kurt Busiek and Chris Bachalo does a “monster of the week” tale with Spidey and J. Jonah Jameson; to then Tradd Moore writing and drawing a surreal fantasy adventure featuring a talking dog; concluding with Saladin Ahmed and Aaron Kuder focuses on the semi-new character Starling.

It may still suffer from the same problems of this run, such as the ongoing mystery regarding Kindred, this is a slightly better volume than others, due to going deep into the conflict between the Spider and the Goblin.

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

The big Norman/Sin-Eater confrontation with Peter stuck in the middle is collected here and its a mixed bag. I'm not sold on Norman's incredibly fast change from mindless patient to this newly empowered version. I did really enjoy his interactions with Peter and thought it was handled well. There were some odd choices for antagonists and Sin-Eater's conclusion might not have been enough after the build-up. I think one of Nick Spencer's biggest issues is with pacing as the book seems to have no idea what speed it should be as it hurdles out of control. Also, the inclusion of the other Spiders seemed forced. The art was very good in virtually every issue. Overall, a decent read that has too many head scratching moments.

[Andson Rebello · Rating 4 out of 5]

People are actually out here giving this one 2 stars but the Joker War 3-4 stars. What the frick? This is why I don't trust people on Goodreads.

[Alex Sarll]

Good old sunk cost fallacy; I'm now so far into this run that I feel like I might as well finish it, even as the good bits (especially Boomerang) drop out of the story for whole volumes at a time, Spencer instead doggedly concentrating on the long-running mysteries and cosmic foreshadowing which have always been his greatest weaknesses. I mean, I appreciate a writer trying to get stronger at the stuff which doesn't come naturally, but past a certain point where you're not improving in those areas, maybe just go back to the bits you're really good at, like comedy and heists and social weirdness, especially when those are all solid Spidey territory?

To add insult to injury, this isn't even a whole arc within the wider story; the opening issue is part 4 of Sins Past, ie the previous volume. The Sin-Eater is still intent on reforming villains' personalities and nicking their powers, and now targeting Spidey's arch-nemesis, Norman Osborn – who, because failing upwards is even stronger on Marvel Earth than ours, is now running the local Arkham knock-off where he used to be incarcerated. Because, as my dad once sensibly observed, Peter Parker's superpower is kicking himself in his own balls, he's determined to save Norman from this, even though Norman will inevitably then continue trying to kill Peter, his family and friends. And all the other Spider-people – or at least the ones currently on 616, which is still an awful lot these days – are determined to save Peter from himself. And somehow, as events unfold with Spider-Man consistently making the worst possible choices, it manages to be even more maddening than you'd expect.

Fortunately, the collection is rounded out with a bunch of other stories by Tradd Moore, Jed Mackay, Saladin Ahmed, Busiek, Bachalo, Uncle Tom Cobley and all. These see Peter dealing with everything from man-eating strawberries to a wizard dog's break-up and remind us that, despite his poor life choices, Spidey can still be the opportunity for all sorts of fun stories if only creators have the sense to let him.

[Dillon Braeges · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, I said last volume I'd give it one more volume to get me back on board. Well, I gave it one more volume. And I'm jumping ship.

First, the good parts. The interaction between Spider-Man and Green Goblin are well done, and get straight to the heart of their relationship. Spencer has proven that he has the voices and internality of the major players down.

Unfortunately those good characterizations can't buoy a padded out, borderline nonsensical plot.

I am... deeply confused by the use of Sin Eater here. He bears basically no resemblance to his previous depictions, and has no coherent ideology. He wants to clean the world of sin. Sure. Good villain motivation. And back in the day, his targets were those who abused their authority. It was consistent and understandable, if extreme.

But now? He oscillates between "purifying" villains of their sins, and letting his cult (cause he has a cult now) beat random people in the streets. It just doesn't make sense. The only people he "purifies" (with a magic shotgun (ugh)) just so happen to be people with superpowers that he can steal. Everyone else? Murdered indiscriminately. Or brainwashed! Cause he can do that now!

Well, okay, sure, he's Kindreds goon now. He doesn't need his own ideology. But then, what's Kindreds ideology? What does he want, what's his plan? Do you even know Nick?

And then there's the needless padding. The other Spider-People show up to... have a moral debate about what Peter's doing and it ultimately contributes nothing. It only serves as an attempt at making this whole thing seem grander and more important than it really is. Namedropping the Web of Life and Destiny a bunch of times doesn't automatically add weight to your story, sorry.

Maybe if you're a Spider die hard, then you can get through this. Maybe there's good stuff after this! I don't know, I never read this run before! But I don't read what I'm not enjoying, and I've stopped enjoying this run some time ago.

[Adam Fisher · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars.
The battle with Sin Eater continues!
As he "purifies" each person, he is gaining their abilities, and he has his sites set on Norman Osborn next. Spidey feels compelled to save him, but his friends want the tyranny of the Green Goblin to be gone forever. Together, his friends (Miles, Spider-Woman, Ghost-Spider, Spider-Girl and Madame Web) form the Order of the Web, and unite to stop Peter.
Pete is able to get Norman to safety, but Sin Eater's prize from Ravencroft is really the Juggernaut, who transforms him into an unstoppable beast. To fight him, Norman and Peter team up for the first time ever and take down Sin Eater (at least for a while). Gwen speaks up against the Order of the Web, asking them to trust that Peter will do the right thing. They are able to join the fight near the end and save Peter from Norman's post-fight treachery, but Spidey ultimately lets Norman go. Whether or not that is wise will be seen in the future.

... And Kindred is still out there....

Overall, this Volume was better than the last, but I think it was the addition of the other characters and Green Goblin that took the focus off of Sin Eater, which is what I didn't like about the last Volume.
Hopefully this Kindred story is getting ready to resolve....

Overall, a good Volume. Nice to see to see the fun stories they added for the 850th Amazing Spider-Man. Worth it.
Recommend.

[Jason Tanner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, I really liked this collection. I really like the way Nick Spencer writes Spider-Man and his supporting cast, and the artists have been bringing their A-game for most of this series. I always enjoy when multiple Spiders get together. I enjoy the mystic web stuff if it isn't overdone. Even the fill-in issues were fun. On the other hand, I'm a little annoyed that we're back to the Norman Osborn/Green Goblin status quo, but it is pretty much in character for Peter to make bad decisions that empower Norman, even if it does mean he literally lets him drink the Goblin Formula. That being said, Nick Spencer writes a terrifying Green Goblin, and Norman's absurdly extensive underground lair was both hilarious and totally something Osborn would do.

All that being said, I'm ready for the meta story to take center stage. It's time for the Kindred stuff to come to a head. It's been a good buildup, but the last time there was a single mastermind messing with Peter Parker for this long, we ended up with the Clone Saga. (At least here, we have a single writer's vision instead of a dozen writers and editors throwing stuff at a wall and a pack of money men telling them to milk it forever.) Although, it looks like Spencer agrees with me, since the next volume appears to be the beginning of the showdown with Kindred.

All in all: fun book. I've been really happy with Nick Spencer's take on Spider-Man overall, and this volume is more of that.

[Daniel Tothill · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great follow up to the stellar last volume sins rising. This doesn’t conclude the story but rather continues it and includes the giant sized amazing 850 issue. Sins rising part 4 is great - I love any story that utilises the spider family and the moral debates are really well handled: fate vs intervention; the lesser of two evils; Peter’s moral compass vs the will of the people. I would’ve liked the wider cast to be more heavily involved but this did allow a greater focus on Peter and Norman’s dynamic - which was handled really well - although I was unsure how much I was supposed to know about Norman’s role from other comics marvel have going and how much was genuine mystery for this story.
The art is great all around and the scene which concludes issue 850 may be one of the best things Spencer has written in this book since hunted. Bagley knocks it out the park, it’s great for Ramos to be back and a shame to see Ottley go. Although I would argue he’s never topped the art of issues one to five and had a lot more potential than we actually saw in these pages. It seemed Ottley was always given the shorter arcs, apart from the anniversary issues.
However, I would’ve liked a bit more story development and wasn’t so keen on the back up stories. However the free comic book day tale with black car is a whole lot of fun.
I can’t wait for the next volume.

[Blindzider · Rating 2 out of 5]

The execution of this story-line is a little odd. Issue #48, then some type of one-shot that you must read, then issue #49 which concludes the story. This TPB also includes a few filler short stories that are for the most part terrible (one I didn't even finish) and it also includes a Free Comic Book Day issue.

While the Sin-Eater story is brought to a seemingly abrupt halt, the crux is given away in the title: the Green Goblin returns. The how and why can be left for when it is read. The final act is something that will clearly cause more guilt for Peter. I did like the debate among his friends because it pointed out a few of his strong personality points and why he is the best of them.

There's a small hint about just who Kindred is. I have one theory that I hope is wrong. It would be a terrible idea, in more ways than one, if true, but I wouldn't put it past Spencer. We shall see, although at this point the Kindred story seems to be dragging and needs to be resolved. Maybe that's why there was a separate one-shot for the GG story, so that they can leave issue #50 to reveal Kindred.

[Rocky Sunico · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, so things are certainly building up to something significant with this volume centered around the pivotal question - should Spider-Man let the Sin Eater "save" Norman Osborn? In theory, the Sin Eater's newfound mystical ability will potentially take Norman Osborn off the board for real - something that Peter Parker has yet to ever achieve. But is it the right thing to do?

This question bounces around the issues with various members of Spider-Mans extended Spider-Verse family also weighing in. And because things needed to be escalated to the level of a convoluted Madame Web prophecy, things naturally get messier. And I'm still undecided if we really needed this angle - we won't know for sure until I get to the true end of this larger story arc, which is not in this volume of the story.

Still, an interesting dilemma for Spider-Man, and this does feel very in vein with the core of this character. That last big fight scene actually gave me chills at some points.