Earth-616 and The Amazing Spider-Man are forever tainted by how egregious the “One More Day” storyline is. Today, a lot of readers have lost faith in Spider-Man’s ongoing series, despite some runs since being interesting and meaningful, as the status quo it delivered has been prevalent for the last 18 years.
Paper-shredding Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson-Parker’s marriage, The Amazing Spider-Man has never been the same. However, more than a decade later, a story beat was delivered that foretold a way that the status quo of “One More Day” and “Brand New Day” could be reversed or fought, and this may now be the sole path to redemption for The Amazing Spider-Man and the web of lore that has spun out from it.
Spider-Man (or His Kid) Must Beat the Devil, Literally
Nick Spencer’s Amazing Spider-Man run—The Amazing Spider-Man #74 (2018), specifically—explicitly prophesies that Mephisto’s defeat would come via Peter and MJ’s daughter, Mayday, who becomes Spider-Girl. This remains one of the more fascinating story beats to be proposed in this era, particularly as it teases a war waged by Mephisto that is won only by somehow having Mayday there.
Of course, a lot would need to transpire in the present era for this to be remotely possible, such as Peter and MJ’s daughter reaching them via some sort of multiverse shenanigans, and no future solicitations seem to suggest that anything like it will occur by The Amazing Spider-Man #1000. If Marvel ever wants to renew The Amazing Spider-Man and debut an agreeable status quo, though, this would be how it achieves that.
One More Day Has Irreparably Ruined Spider-Man
Sadly, even if Marvel did fulfill Mephisto’s feared prophecy, it’d probably be met with more disdain. Retconning this event so soon after it had struck would’ve been a quick balm for readers, and it’s fascinating that it hasn’t been resolved or reversed in almost two decades, for instance, but surely Marvel could’ve corrected it sooner, and preferably once The Amazing Spider-Man’s readership became vocally furious.
Now, no editorial or creative team should ever be beholden to the opinions and plights that readers have at the cost of the status quo or storytelling potential. That said, it’s plain to see how poor The Amazing Spider-Man’s prestige as an ongoing comic book series has been since “One More Day” and “Brand New Day.”
First Appearance
Amazing Fantasy
Alias
Peter Parker, Ben Reilly, Otto Octavius, Yu Komori, Kaine Parker, Pavitr Prabhakar, William Braddock, Miles Morales, Kurt Wagner
Alliance
Avengers, Fantastic Four, X-Men, Secret Defenders, Future Foundation, Heroes for Hire, Mighty Avengers, New Avengers, Web-Warriors
Race
Human