Spider-Man Just Gave His Most Hated Story a Totally New Meaning

Warning: Contains spoilers for Ultimate Spider-Man #2 (2024)For more than a decade now,Spider-Man fans have been frustrated by the events of One More Day, a story that separated Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson for years to come. Now, the newest Ultimate Marvel Universe is showing fans a look at an adult Peter Parker, happily married to MJ with children before he ever becomes Spider-Man. In this world, “One more day” has a whole new meaning.

In Ultimate Spider-Man #2 by Jonathan Hickman, Marco Checchetto, Matthew Wilson, and Cory Petit, an adult Peter Parker tries to adjust to his new life as a super-powered vigilante. He balances his job as a photographer and his role as a father alongside his continued patrols weeks after getting his spider powers.

By the end of the issue, Peter wants to quit; he hasn’t adjusted to being Spider-Man, and he doesn’t know if he’s right for the job. A kind note from his daughter (who knows his secret), however, convinces Peter to give being a superhero “One more day.“

Spider-Man’s Daughter Gives “One More Day” A Whole New Meaning

Hickman and Checchetto’s Ultimate Spider-Man shows audiences a radically different version of Peter Parker in a universe where he is married with children before getting bitten by a radioactive spider. The machinations of The Maker prevented Peter from getting his powers when he was a teenager, thus radically altering his life: he married MJ, they had two children (May and Richard), and Uncle Ben never died. When Peter is offered the chance to take his life back, however, he allows a radioactive spider given to him by Tony Stark to bite him and grant him powers.

This Ultimate Spider-Man story is almost the polar opposite of One More Day. One of the most controversial Marvel stories of all time, One More Day is a 2007 storyline by J. Michael Straczynski and Joe Quesada featuring the end of Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson’s marriage. After Aunt May is shot in the fallout of Peter’s identity reveal in Civil War, her wounds prove fatal as the Parkers are told she can’t be saved. Unable to accept his role in her death, Peter makes a deal with the devil, Mephisto, that would trade May’s life for his marriage with MJ. To this day, the two have not remarried.

Peter Parker’s Daughter Saves Spider-Man

This issue continues the idea of Spider-Man coming as a sort of midlife crisis for the new Ultimate Peter Parker. He feels that his life has been robbed from him, and Tony Stark’s arrival with a radioactive spider only confirms that. Now, he faces one major struggle: how do you make up for lost time? By the end of the issue, Peter has two failed confrontations with the Shocker under his belt and still doesn’t have a true superhero name, costume, or even purpose. He is ready to say “Spider-Man no more” when he’s only hardly begun.

At the end of Ultimate Spider-Man #2, May’s note proves to be the driving force behind Peter’s continued heroics. Without her support, who’s to say he wouldn’t have quit? Thus, Peter Parker’s daughter effectively turns “One more day” from a statement of defeat to a rallying cry. Peter is no longer giving up his love to rectify one of Spider-Man’s mistakes; instead, someone he loves is encouraging him to press forward. While Spider-Man fans have long viewed One More Day as one of the hero’s greatest defeats, Ultimate Marvel‘s May Parker has made it the hero’s earliest victory.

Ultimate Spider-Man #2is available now from Marvel Comics.