8 Mysteries Even Spider-Man Couldn't Solve

2. The Identity Of The Hobgoblin

Spider-Man Hobgoblin
Marvel Comics

Even now, it's not 100% set in stone who was the Hobgoblin at any particular time in history. As such, this mystery was one that Spider-Man never fully had under control - and a large part of that was down to the creative process at Marvel Comics.

With Marvel deciding they wanted Spider-Man to fight the Green Goblin once more, but not wanting to resurrect Norman Osborn or have Harry Osborn back under the mask, the Hobgoblin was created and debuted in early 1983. Similar to Green Goblin but vastly stronger and more calm and sensible, writer Roger Stern and artist John Romita Jr. intended to draw out the mystery of this new rogue's real identity for as long as possible.

Even once the character debuted, there was no set idea who the Hobgoblin actually was. Stern eventually decided it would be corrupt fashion designer Roderick Kinsgley under the HG guise, but that plan was changed to Richard Fisk once Stern was replaced by Tom DeFalco. DeFalco later stated to new editor James Owsley how Ned Leeds might be the Hobgoblin, which then saw Owsley insist the character actually be C-level rogue, the Foreigner.

By the time the now-dead Hobgoblin was finally unmasked in 1987, it was indeed Ned under the mask. It would then be explained how Leeds had actually been brainwashed into being Hobgoblin and the real Hobby was Jason Macendale, aka the former Jack O'Lantern.

Even after that, Flash Thompson was positioned as the Hobgoblin, Phil Ulrich became the Hobgoblin, and Roderick Kinsgley's twin brother Daniel was another to take on the role.

So, Spider-Man never had a damn clue who the real Hobgoblin was, and that was largely due to how Marvel itself couldn't decide who the real Hobgoblin was.

Senior Writer
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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.