Hemo-Goblin: The Infamous DC Comics Villain Explained

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As a comic book enthusiast, I can’t help but notice how death is surprisingly fluid in the realm of superhero comics, especially within the DC Universe. The frequent reboots make it a breeze for writers to resurrect characters who’ve been out of commission for years. With almost a century of DC comics at their disposal, these authors have an abundance of talent to tap into. It’s intriguing, though, that none have ever ventured to revive The Hemo-Goblin, the villain from “New Guardians” #1 penned by Steve Englehart, Joe Staton, and Mark Farmer.

To refresh your memory on a past event from 1988 in DC comics, “New Guardians” was a spin-off series stemming from the same creative team’s “Millennium” crossover event. The main protagonists were an international group of individuals selected by Guardians of the Universe Herupa Hando Hu and Zamaron Nadia Safir to influence the course of human evolution in this series, which was not in line with Comics Code guidelines and often discussed relationships between characters in a rather explicit manner, using terms like “breeding” to describe their interactions.

The series contained numerous clumsy attempts at relevance, and Hemo-Goblin stands out as one of the most bluntly offensive examples. This character, a vampire designed by white supremacists to eliminate all Black people in South Africa through HIV transmission, targeted several New Guardians members before succumbing off-panel due to the impact of AIDS on his fast metabolism. Given this backstory, it’s clear why DC Comics has no immediate plans to resurrect this little-remembered figure.

Hemo-Goblin might have infected DC’s first gay superhero

Prior to his unexpected demise, the character known as “AIDS vampire” encountered Jet – a Jamaican-British superhero with electromagnetic abilities who was the New Guardian – and scratched Extraño, the Peruvian New Guardian who is also believed to be DC Comics’ first gay superhero (though his sexuality was not explicitly stated but heavily implied). In “New Guardians” issue 3, it was revealed that Jet had HIV, and in issue 6, she perished while battling an extraterrestrial invasion. Another New Guardian named Harbinger felt the physical harm Jet sustained and feared he too might contract AIDS, but his powers managed to conquer the illness.

It turns out that Extraño, too, tested positive for HIV, but it’s unclear if he contracted it from the vampire bite or through other common means. The comics’ creators seemed to change their minds on this topic, perhaps deciding later that HIV couldn’t spread via a scratch was risky information. The game of ‘telephone’ has led many to wrongly believe Extraño died from AIDS, but he remained asymptomatic throughout the “New Guardians” series and his death was never explicitly shown in any DC comics. His last appearance in the New Earth continuity was being saved along with his team in Green Lantern Vol. 3 #35 from 1993.

Hemo-Goblin wasn’t the only edgelord-y New Guardians villain

In the “New Guardians” series, the white supremacist AIDS vampire marked the beginning of transforming real-world problems into unbelievably absurd supervillains. However, he wasn’t the only one; the second issue presented another notorious adversary – Snowflame, a supervillain who gains his fire powers, strength, and speed from using cocaine. Without a doubt, there has never been a more 80s-themed character in print. Similarly to Hemo-Goblin, he met his end in the same issue where he made his debut, exploding in a chemical storage facility.

In 2020, Snowflame made a comeback in the main DC Earth continuity through “Catwoman” Vol. 5 #23. Since then, he’s been featured in the 2023 miniseries “Peacemaker Tries Hard!” (Black Label), as well as some episodes of “Harley Quinn” and “Kite-Man: Hell Yeah!” animated series. A more nuanced, non-stereotypical version of Extraño was debuted post-DC Rebirth in the 2016-2017 “Midnighter and Apollo” miniseries. Jet was brought back to life as the head of the Global Guardians during the “One Year Later” event in 2006. In contrast, Hemo-Goblin has yet to regain prominence and remains a minor note in DC’s history.

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2025-03-24 19:30