Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Civil War: Unmasked #2
Marvel Comics' One More Day/Brand New Day storyline is still one of Spider-Man's most infamous and controversial storylines nearly 20 years later. Set in the aftermath of the first Civil War event, Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson chose to have their entire marriage erased to save Aunt May's life. However, the consequences of this decision just became even more heartbreaking thanks to an all-new series.
During Marvel's first Civil War, Peter Parker publicly revealed his identity to the entire world, aligning himself with Tony Stark and the Superhuman Registration Act. A major moment in Marvel Comics history, it seemed as though Spider-Man's entire status quo was going to change for years to come...until it didn't.
Thanks to Marvel's new Civil War: Unmasked series, celebrating the original event's 20th anniversary, new details have been revealed about why Peter seriously considered and ultimately chose to register in the first place. Not only does it add new context to Peter Parker's key role in Civil War, but it also makes the fallout with One More Day even worse.
Marvel's new Civil War: Unmasked miniseries has been exploring previously unseen moments during the iconic crossover, and Unmasked #2 from Christos Gage and Edgar Salazar puts Peter Parker front and center as Spider-Man weighs the pros and cons of joining Iron Man, registering with the government, and revealing his identity to the world. Naturally, this is something Peter talks over with Aunt May as well as his wife, Mary Jane Watson.
As revealed by Peter Parker in this new issue, the government was offering registered heroes an incredibly substantial benefits package: a $50,000 signing bonus, student loan repayment and eventual forgiveness after five years, comprehensive health insurance with vision/dental, life insurance with long-term care benefits, and even a pension. That's nothing to sneeze at, especially for Peter Parker, who's historically had lower-paying jobs and struggled to make ends meet when he's not webslinging. Financial stability is something he's never really had. Likewise, it also opens the door for future opportunities...
While talking with Mary Jane, Peter and his wife both agreed that while they're not ready just yet to talk about having kids, it would be nice to be in a comfortable position to do so once they are. While it makes sense that a married couple would factor a future family into the mix of such a big life decision, it hits like a ton of bricks for Spider-Man fans who know what's coming for Peter and MJ right after Civil War concludes.
Following the events of Civil War, Peter's public unmasking led directly to disaster, especially after Spider-Man switched sides and no longer had the protection of Tony Stark and Avengers Tower for his family. With his secret identity no longer secret, a hitman was paid by Wilson Fisk's Kingpin to go after Peter and his loved ones. While the assassin missed Peter, the bullet still hit Aunt May, leaving his critically wounded and near death. Thus began One More Day, one of the most infamous Spider-Man stories ever published.
Desperate to save Aunt May, Peter and Mary Jane were encountered by the demon lord Mephisto. In exchange for May's survival, Mephisto erased their marriage from existence.
This decision effectively soft-rebooted Spider-Man's life, effectively regressing the Webslinger to a much earlier status quo while removing years of character development, generating major backlash from fans and bitterness that has persisted to this day. Furthermore, it's also been revealed that Mephisto's motivation behind his dark deal with Spider-Man was to prevent the birth of Peter and Mary Jane's daughter, whom he knew would grow up to become a hero like her father and interfere with his plans.
As such, this new issue of Civil War: Unmasked adds new layers to the heartbreak. Before One More Day, Peter and Mary Jane were indeed looking forward to the future, weighing financial security and stability to create the possibility of starting a family. Twenty years later, One More Day is one of Spider-Man's most controversial stories, and Marvel is remarkably still finding ways to make it even more painful.
Civil War: Unmasked #2 is on sale now from Marvel Comics.
