Spider-Man: One More Day - Future Direction

Future Direction

Marvel posted a sneak peek at the final pages of the first post-"One More Day" issue, Amazing Spider-Man #546, and a two-page spread penciled by John Romita, Jr. entitled "Spider-Man: The New Status Quo!", which established the new continuity of Spider-Man. The retcon brings back Harry Osborn from the dead (in this new continuity, instead of having been dead he had been living in Europe for many years), and explains that although Spider-Man unmasked himself during the events of Civil War, no one remembers who was behind the mask. Although Quesada would initially take the position that the changes to the timeline did not have to be explained since they were the result of magic, subsequent writers would, in short order, provide detailed, in-continuity explanations for the changes. In 2010, Quesada himself wrote a sequel storyline, One Moment in Time, that addressed questions left unanswered from "One More Day". In particular, this story established that the only actual change Mephisto wrought upon the timeline was allowing a criminal to escape custody, causing a butterfly effect that prevented Peter and Mary-Jane's marriage as Peter was delayed in reaching the wedding, prompting Peter and MJ to reconsider marriage. The storyline also explained that May was saved by Doctor Strange, who also worked with Iron Man and Mister Fantastic to create a mass mind-wipe across the globe to protect Peter's identity, using the Extremis as a dispersal system to simultaneously erase Spider-Man's identity and establish a 'psychic blindspot' that prevents anyone from realising that Peter Parker is Spider-Man, regardless of the evidence they might discover, unless Peter is unmasked in front of them.