In the aftermath of Secret Invasion, Tony Stark was removed from power and replaced with the publicly lauded “hero” of the event — Norman Osborn, aka the former Green Goblin. Having rehabilitated his image and successfully recorded ending the conflict with the Skrulls by killing Queen Veranke, Norman was given control of S.H.I.E.L.D. — quickly converting it into H.A.M.M.E.R. and trying to shore up his power by forming the first Cabal.
However, one of his grand plans during the ensuing Dark Reign was to create a list of eight objectives, which if completed could cement him as Marvel’s greatest villain. And while many of them failed, he did manage to achieve some surprising wins along the way. Here are the results of Norman Osborn’s very specific “list” of goals.
NEUTRALIZE CLINT BARTON
Enraged at the announcement of Norman Osborn hijacking the Avengers, Hawkeye went to confront Osborn in The List: Avengers by Brian Michael Bendis and Marko Djurdjevic. Despite the warnings of the rest of his teammates on the New Avengers, Barton attempted to assassinate the former Green Goblin. But thanks to the stolen equipment of Norman Osborn and the durability of Ares, Osborn was able to neutralize Barton and capture him. Although he’d later be rescued by his teammates, Osborn’s mission to remove one of the most dangerous remaining active Avengers from the playing field was a success.
ELIMINATE DAREDEVIL
Dark Reign happened in the build-up towards Shadowland, with Murdock briefly taking control of the Hand. After Daredevil was framed of provoking Osborn, The List: Daredevil by Andy Diggle and Billy Tan, Osborn sent Bullseye — a member of Osborn’s Dark Avengers — to confront his old enemy. The par’s fight resulted in the destruction of a building and the deaths of hundreds. Although this didn’t fully remove Daredevil from the city, it distracted and effectively eliminated him as a priority — with the rage in Daredevil building and leading him to murder Bullseye in revenge at the beginning of Shadowland.
KILL NAMOR
After Namor betrayed the Cabal, Osborn made revenge a top priority. To that end, he found Namor’s former wife Marrina in The List: X-Men by Matt Fraction and Alan Davis, converting her into a monster. Rendering her a mindless beast, Osborn unleashed her on Atlantis, in the hopes of luring Namor into a fight that would cost him his life. But thanks to his alliance with the X-Men, Namor was able to save his kingdom, wrangle and wound Marina, and eventually defeat her. Namor delivered the killing blow, and later confronted Osbornon — vowing to kill him for this, and making this mission a failure for Osborn.
KILL NICK FURY
Osborn came up against Fury himself in The List: Secret Warriors by Jonathan Hickman and Ed McGuiness. After discovering a former S.H.I.E.L.D. liaison funneling money to Leviathan, Fury convinces Osborn to interrogate the man. The two work together, and Fury gets the drop on him and escapes with the intel. On top of being an objective loss for Osborn, it’s also a hint of things to come: Ares proves to be Fury’s man on the inside thanks to the latter’s connection to the Green God’s son Phobos and helps him escape Norman — setting up his eventual full betrayal against Norman and his ensuing demise in Siege.
NEUTRALIZE BRUCE BANNER
During the events of Dark Reign, Bruce Banner was on the run across the country alongside his Sakaar-born son, Skaar. Temporarily without his powers, Banner was constantly reminded that his son wanted to murder his father — but only when he’d become the Hulk again. The List: Hulk by Greg Pak and Ben Oliver saw Victoria Hand and Moonstone ordered to assault the pair — and exposing Banner to the right concentration of gamma-radiation to produce another transformation into the Hulk. Although Banner survived, his attention was fully drawn to that brewing conflict with Skaar, effectively neutralizing him.
KILL FRANK CASTLE
The Punisher may not have been the most powerful threat to Osborn but the lethal dedication made him one of the most dangerous. Deciding to remove that threat from the board entirely, Osborn had Daken — in disguise as his Wolverine — lead a H.A.M.M.E.R. assault team against Castle in The List: The Punisher by Rick Remender and John Romita, Jr. After a long battle, Punisher was finally killed by Daken — who cuts him to pieces and dropped the remains in the sewers. It’s a successful mission — but one that’s upended by the Moloids collecting his remains and mystically restoring Frank as their short-lived guardian.
CONTROL THE WORLD
The World is home to some of the most potentially powerful inventions in the Marvel Universe. Deciding that if he could take control of it he could further his goals, Norman sent an entire armada of forces to take it in The List: Wolverine by Jason Aaron and Esad Ribic. Working with Norr-Var, Wolverine and Fantomex intercepted Osborn’s plans and were able to confront his forces — wiping out Norman’s proto-type Deathlok army. Fantomex even shrinks the World and takes it with him, removing it from Norman’s potential grasp and resulting in this mission being an abject failure.
KILL SPIDER-MAN
Osborn’s longest-standing enemy remains Spider-Man, and Osborn tried to use his newfound power to his advantage against the Wall-Crawler. In The List: Spider-Man by Dan Slott and Adam Kubert. by Dan Slott and Adam Kubert. Considering killing Spider-Man his “reward” for his other successes, Osborn is shocked when Spider-Man goes on the offensive and breaks into Avengers Tower to steal incriminating evidence of Norman’s darker side. Revealing it to the public, Spider-Man does serious damage to Osborn’s reputation — and even escapes retribution, leaving Osborn furious and scrambling in failure.
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