Big time revelation this issue… Mary Jane was dating Harry Osborn (secretly) when the series started. Not sure how well this retcon fits in or if Bendis had it planned all the time.

But it definitely changes one’s perspective on Mary Jane. After all the issues of Peter telling her his secrets… she never told him a big one.

Otherwise, the issue just has Harry coming back. Peter’s got an action scene, but it’s probably unconnected to the bigger plot.

Bendis front loads the issue with the Mary Jane and Harry thing, then brings it back at the end to surprise the reader. Harry and Peter have the beginnings of an honest conversation–though nothing explains why Bagley draws Harry like he’s twenty-eight–but Bendis is mostly just trying to entice the reader.

He introduces a handful of rather big questions to answer; maybe even fundamentally rocking the boat.

CREDITS

Hobgoblin, Part One; writer, Brian Michael Bendis; penciller, Mark Bagley; inker, Scott Hanna; colorist, Jonathan D. Smith; letterer, Chris Eliopoulos; editors, John Barber, Nick Lowe and Ralph Macchio; publisher, Marvel Comics.