Meet Janine Godbe, the Ghastly Hallows' Eve

Ben Reilly is no stranger to tragedy. In the decades since his introduction, Peter Parker’s most famous clone has had his life turned upside down and destroyed on numerous occasions. Nevertheless, his girlfriend Janine Godbe has always remained a bright spot amid all that darkness. 

Recently, Reilly’s villainous turn as Chasm caused a ripple effect that led Godbe to become a mystical superhuman called Hallows’ Eve. Here’s everything you need to know about Godbe as she becomes her own hero in her new solo series, HALLOWS’ EVE.

Godbe’s Dark Origins

Created by J. M. DeMatteis and John Romita Jr., Godbe debuted in SPIDER-MAN: THE LOST YEARS (1995) #1. After learning he was Parker’s clone, Reilly traveled across the United States and eventually ended up in Salt Lake City, Utah, where he met Godbe, who was working in a diner at the time. The two soon struck up a romantic relationship. 

However, Reilly quickly found himself pulled into conflicts with both a gangster named Vincent Tannen and an increasingly unhinged Kaine Parker, another Parker clone. Then, after their first meeting, Reilly discovered Godbe was born Elizabeth Tyne and that she was on the run from the police for killing her abusive father. 

At the end of SPIDER-MAN: THE LOST YEARS, Reilly and Godbe fled Salt Lake City and ended up in Santa Cruz, California. While this change of setting initially seemed good for the couple, Kaine eventually returned and kidnapped Godbe. Rather than kill Godbe, though, Kaine convinced her that Reilly would be better off without her. As a result, Godbe faked her own death.

Afterwards, Reilly returned to New York City and began operating as Spider-Man. During the events of SPIDER-MAN: REDEMPTION (1996), Kaine came back to wreak havoc on Reilly’s life again, this time by using Godbe as a weapon against him. At the end of the series, Reilly gave Kaine a speech about facing his past that resonated with Godbe, who decided to finally turn herself over to the police.

Godbe Becomes Hallows’ Eve

Although Godbe spent some years in prison, her sentence was interrupted when the Beyond Corporation turned Reilly into its own version of Spider-Man. Hoping to manipulate Reilly through Godbe, the company relocated her to Beyond Tower, the base of operations for its Spider-Man. 

Soon, Reilly and Godbe discovered that the Beyond Corporation had not only been creating villains, but was also altering Ben’s memories. Godbe escaped Beyond Tower, which caused the company to send Goblin Queen out to hunt her down. In the end, Parker and his allies successfully defeated the Beyond Corporation, but at a price: Reilly’s mind was fractured due to memory loss, and he became the villainous Chasm. 

In the aftermath, an increasingly unstable Reilly continued waging war against the Beyond Corporation in search of his lost memories. Godbe attempted to leave, though she ended up getting recognized and nearly arrested. This left her in a dark place, so she vowed to stay with Reilly to make him whole, no matter what. Their journey then took them to Madelyne Pryor, the Queen of Limbo.

A clone of Jean Grey, Pryor established an alliance with Reilly and Godbe with the goal of taking down both Parker and the X-Men; Reilly specifically wanted to take Parker’s memories for himself. To further strengthen their alliance, Pryor used the severed finger of a demon named S’ym to give Godbe powers. Under this pact, Godbe received a bag of magical Halloween masks that gave her unique abilities associated with the creature on the mask. Thus, Hallows’ Eve was born. 

At the beginning of DARK WEB (2022), Godbe used her powers to help Pryor steal a Cerebro Drive from the X-Men’s Treehouse. As the event progressed, though, Pryor sided with the X-Men and turned against Reilly and Godbe. In response, Godbe stole the Scythe of Sorrows, the weapon that gave Pryor her ability to command Limbo’s demons.

In the end, Hallows’ Eve and Chasm were no match for the combined might of their foes, and the latter ended up imprisoned by Pryor. However, before their defeat, Chasm used the Scythe of Sorrows to send Godbe away. Now, with Godbe still on the outside, she’s setting her sights on springing Reilly. In the process, though, she’s going to find herself up against some dangerous foes—and faced with the question of just how far she’s willing to go for the person she loves.

Still a wanted woman, Godbe’s story continues in HALLOWS’ EVE #1 by Erica Schultz and Michael Dowling, on sale now!

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