Cover: Dan Fraga & Al Milgrom

Spider-Man #-1

Jul 1997 · Marvel · 1.95 USD; 2.75 CAD

☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join free

“A Prelude in Red”

★ 1st appearance — Proto-Goblin

"A Prelude in Red" offers a gripping glimpse into the world before the web-slinger, set in the days when Peter Parker was still just a high school student. Written by Howard Mackie and illustrated by Dan Fraga, with inks by Scott Hanna and colors by Gregory Wright, this 1997 issue follows George and Arthur Stacy as they dig into a string of mysterious killings that point toward Osborn Industries. The cover by Dan Fraga and Al Milgrom captures the tension with a striking, red-hued portrait of a figure in shadow.

writer Howard Mackie · artist Dan Fraga · inker Scott Hanna · colorist Gregory Wright · letterer RS · letterer Comicraft/KS · cover Dan Fraga, Al Milgrom

ComicBooks.com Value

Our Model is In Beta

Raw (NM) $0

Flagged key issue — estimate limited by sparse sales.

Our model’s value — refined as new sales data arrives · CGC census counts shown where available

More listings for this title

Ultimate Spider-Man comics select an issue $7.99

Related listings we couldn't confirm as this exact issue · 1 total · seen 22 days ago

Sell my copy

Have this issue — or a whole collection? Get a fair offer from us, skip the marketplace fees and the hassle.

We Buy Collections ▸

Fast, fair offers · we handle grading & shipping

Trivia · 8 facts

First and only Silver Age-style appearance of Nels van Adder / Proto-Goblin, created by writer Howard Mackie and penciller Dan Fraga; van Adder is never called 'Proto-Goblin' in the story's dialogue — that name appears only on the cover.
First absolute appearance of Helen Stacy (George's wife, Gwen's mother), who had not previously appeared in any Marvel comic.
First chronological (in-universe) appearance of Arthur Stacy, Gwen Stacy, Jill Stacy, Nancy Stacy, and Paul Stacy, establishing the extended Stacy family gathering before Peter Parker becomes Spider-Man.
The story, titled 'A Prelude in Red,' is set years before Amazing Fantasy #15; a young Peter Parker appears briefly at a Norman Osborn science exhibition, where Osborn cryptically tells him they are destined to be either great friends or fierce competitors.
The issue retroactively establishes that Captain George Stacy's signature limp and cane resulted from a leg broken during the Proto-Goblin battle at Osborn's plant.
Norman Osborn discovers Mendel Stromm's missing Goblin formula notes in the wreckage of the climactic fight, directly advancing his path toward becoming the Green Goblin — a piece of prequel continuity that ties into the Stromm storyline already established in early Amazing Spider-Man issues.
Part of Marvel's July 1997 'Flashback Month,' a line-wide initiative inspired by events in Generation X #24 in which nearly every Marvel title published a #-1 issue revisiting characters' pasts.
The Proto-Goblin's story was left unresolved at the issue's end (van Adder survives by climbing from a river), a plot thread Marvel did not follow up on until the 2024 miniseries Spider-Man: Shadow of the Green Goblin by J.M. DeMatteis and Michael Sta. Maria.