Hobgoblin's 6 Worst Moments

Hobgoblin—Roderick Kingsley under the mask—has long demonstrated he and “decent human being” never belong in the same sentence. If you don’t believe us, well, check out the list we put together below. The worst actions of Hobgoblin will certainly persuade you to side with us.

You Wanna Be the King, Gotta Blackmail the Princes
In addition to stealing Norman Osborn’s Goblin gear, Roderick also secured several of the Green Goblin’s personal files. Using those ill-gotten gains, he sought to blackmail the likes of J. Jonah Jameson. Only Kingpin’s intervention saved Spider-Man from Hobby killing the Webhead, and making Spidey have to get help from Fisk might be even worse a crime than blackmail.

Using a Patsy
Reporter Ned Leeds—through a mix of ambition, gumption, and journalistic skill—got closer than anyone to unraveling the mystery of Hobgoblin’s identity. Unfortunately, his work did not go unnoticed by Roderick. The villain kidnapped Leeds and brainwashed the investigative journalist into believing himself to be Hobgoblin.

Disposing of a Patsy
Repeated brainwashing taking their toll left Leeds increasingly erratic, slowly destroying his career and his marriage. Sensing his tool may be at the end of its usefulness, Kingsley leaked Leeds’ identity to the underworld and sent him off to Berlin, Germany, unpowered, to meet his demise at the hands of Foreigner.

Handles Criticism Poorly
In the midst of using Leeds, Kingsley further muddied the waters of his true identity by framing Flash Thompson in the press after the #1 Spider-Man fan had the nerve to bad mouth Hobby. While not an event with a horrible fallout, that kind of thin skinned reactivity to critics cannot be anything but a really bad look for anyone, even a super villain.

Join the Dark Parade!
In general, joining with Mephisto to accomplish anything cannot not be considered anything but “bad behavior.” He may not be the devil of the Marvel Universe but he remains one of the most prominent demons, certainly. Add in that Hobgoblin joins not just with Mephisto but 98 other super villains and their mission revolves around stealing the Beyonder’s power? We’re talking really bad behavior.

Rent Your Super Suits Here
Content to let Phil Urich play the role of Hobgoblin, Kingsley decided to return to his business roots, renting out costumes and identities to various criminals, allowing even more super villain crime to occur with people far less experienced and in control perpetrating it.