Spoilers ahead. You’ve been warned. For more on this issue, read our review.
Amazing Spider-Man #72 revealed today there may be more to “One More Day” than we originally knew. “One More Day” is the infamous story written by J. Michael Straczynski and Joe Quesada that had Mephisto make a deal with Mary Jane and Peter Parker to save Aunt May. The cost was Peter’s secret identity being removed from everyone who knows including the love of his life Mary Jane.
Amazing Spider-Man #53 already heavily referenced the final issue of the “One More Day” story arc–nearly panel for panel–and in today’s issue, it takes our knowledge of this and adds whole new layers that could change how we think about the story. Could Nick Spencer be “fixing” the story so fans actually like it? One could argue what we learn in today’s issue is separate, but given how heavily the current and ongoing story has referenced “One More Day” that’s likely not the case.
Before we get into it, talk about crazy timing when it comes to Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer revealing heavy “One More Day” vibes while Nick Spencer’s current storyline is also toying with it.
Amazing Spider-Man #72 starts by showing us Spider-Man getting beaten up by his greatest foes–see Sinister War for more on that–but quickly becomes a story about Norman Osborn. Set “years ago,” the story reveals Mephisto was soliciting Norman for some time to make a deal.
Eventually, Norman bends when Mephisto confronts him in his own home.
Courtesy Marvel Comics
Norman is no longer rich or successful. He needs a pick me up and Mephisto offers it to him. Norman is well aware what he’s about to do is wrong and is worried about what will happen to him and his family.
Courtesy Marvel Comics
He’s considering making a deal with the devil, but unlike Peter Parker working with Mephisto to save a life, Norman is considering sacrificing one.
Mephisto actually calls this his finest deal–which may suggest the one he made with Peter in “One More Day” is less fine. We then find out what it’ll cost Norma.
Courtesy Marvel Comics
And that is Norman’s firstborn son Harry.
As we’ve learned in Spencer’s run on Amazing Spider-Man, Kindred is in fact Harry Osborn or at least some sliver of him. That was all but confirmed in Amazing Spider-Man #31 but fully revealed a bit later. Could this mean it’s Norman Osborn’s fault that Harry was turned into Kindred? It’s hard to know the exact details, but Amazing Spider-Man #72 does confirm Norman made a similar deal as Peter did in “One More Day.”
We’ll likely find out the answer to that question and more as Nick Spencer’s run on Spider-Man comes to a close with Amazing Spider-Man #74.
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