How to Bring Back the Marriage

[HowardtheDuck95]

I’m of the mindset they need to do something like Superman Reborn; a cosmic restitching of reality to undo the problem. There needs to be a confrontation, a catharsis. And at this point, I’m done with caring about post-OMD continuity being preserved. They made 20 years of stories nebulously canon for their stuff, I’d say it’s only fair to do the same in turn.

[HowardtheDuck95]

I like Garlador’s idea; it would involve actually understanding that stuff is broken and needs fixing, which should be at the core of it.

[Kaitou D. Kid]

What option is "Peter defeats Mephisto and we learn Peter/MJ weren't acting themselves since OMD due to Mephisto's influence?" It's the best way to restore things without retconning the post-OMD runs the fans that like it. (The only exceptions are OMD, OMIT and the Wells run. Those have to be retconned.)

I do think they can get away with retconning BND/Slott. But I don't think it's entirely fair to pull a reverse-OMD. It's not like most of those stories will have long-term consequences once Peter and MJ are remarried, anyway.

I think the Skrulls work if you have them replace Peter and MJ during the Clone Saga. So you still got a pregunate MJ and Peter in stasis somewhere. Skrull MJ gave birth to a baby Skrull who Norman made think was Aunt May. Therefore OMD was actually the result of two parents trying to save their child.

It works because it doesn't give lost time between Peter and MJ AND it doesn't break the character devolopment that his supporting cast has gone through

I think the 2000-2007 era is too important to be retconned. This pitch would essentially be saying that the Peter of the JMS era who fought Morlun and became a teacher, who had "The Conversation" with Aunt May, who went through all the Paul Jenkins stories and Marvel Knights Spider-Man, who unmasked and turned against Tony in Civil War, and who went through To Have and To Hold wasn't the "real" Peter.

That would be like when the Clone Saga tried to argue that the Peter of the 1980's (who fought Venom, seduced Black Cat, went through Secret Wars, Kraven's Last Hunt, etc.) wasn't the real one either.

[Man With No Name]

What about a situation where Mephisto is forced to go back on the deal? Peter or Mary Jane hold some leverage over him and they get him to restore the original timeline sans everyone knowing Spider-Man's identity?

[witchboy]

I’m of the mindset they need to do something like Superman Reborn; a cosmic restitching of reality to undo the problem. There needs to be a confrontation, a catharsis. And at this point, I’m done with caring about post-OMD continuity being preserved. They made 20 years of stories nebulously canon for their stuff, I’d say it’s only fair to do the same in turn.

That's my thought too. The timeline was altered to take out the marriage, so alter it to put it back. What exactly would we be losing? No relationships with Carlie and Michelle? Boo hoo. Just hand wave that events happened largely the same except Peter and MJ were married. Give us a mini covering the highlights of the era showing how things happened to get us where we are now.
With all this new status quo, how about bringing back Mayday?

[clonegeek]

That's my thought too. The timeline was altered to take out the marriage, so alter it to put it back. What exactly would we be losing? No relationships with Carlie and Michelle? Boo hoo. Just hand wave that events happened largely the same except Peter and MJ were married. Give us a mini covering the highlights of the era showing how things happened to get us where we are now.
With all this new status quo, how about bringing back Mayday?

Or have the mini be a Marvel Unlimited exclusive with no phyisical printing for 5 years to promote the service

[Venomsaurus]

I like them finding out they were married. Maybe grappling with if that means they want to get married again. Discussing it and coming to terms with what they lost. Then finding it again, together, coming back stronger than ever.

[clonegeek]

I like them finding out they were married. Maybe grappling with if that means they want to get married again. Discussing it and coming to terms with what they lost. Then finding it again, together, coming back stronger than ever.

I just want them to get the lost time back

[Celgress]

How about Dormammu kills Mephisto thus negating all the latter's deals? I just want to see Big Red die so it works for me.

[godisawesome]

I’ve long wanted some sort of mini-epic with a chaotic but climactic conflict for the era, with all it’s possible consequences on the board, before ending in a way that treats the period of separation the way that OMD treated the marriage. Something like:

- Aunt May begins having suspicions about stuff not making sense, and Murder She Wrotes her way into realizing that time has been changed, regaining her memory first… assisted along the way by, strangely enough, Loki, because he still owes Peter for that one time, and is bored enough to want to see if he can take on Mephisto’s in a war of proxies and win.

- Loki reveals that Mephisto’s cheated by messing with May’s wounds and gaslighting both Peter and MJ well before OMD, but still left them enough free will to make the deal somewhat work. If May can get the deal to break entirely, things get “goofy” in a way that can work, but it’ll be dangerous - which excites Loki as entertaining, and which May ends up feeling is her responsibility to get going.

- May knows there’s a major risk to herself here, and has to trick Peter and MJ into remembering as well, and succeeds… at the cost of immediately reopening her injuries and being put in the hospital again, and alerting Mephisto to the deal being in danger as the world subtly changes - particualrly because, now, a daughter Peter and MJ were supposed to have by now re-enters existence as an infant in a villain’s custody, and remains a threat to him.

- Loki and Mephisto’s confront each other, along with some “arbiter” higher power, and are allowed to reawaken knowledge of Spider-Man’s identity in a set number of people as champions in the mortal realm to determine how the chaotic timeline will be sorted. Mephisto’s plan is to just kill them and wipe them off the table now to cement his previous deal, while Loki seeks to, if anything, get Peter to owe *him* a debt instead, given Mephisto’s preoccupation with preventing the family from going into another generation.

-Epic fights are had, surprising choices are made by certain heroes and villains, and things get resolved where the marriage is restored, with Peter and MJ having a complicated, hot and cold marriage during the OMD period (creating a miniseries set during that period that “fills in the gaps” rather than replacing the OMD timeline entirely) before reconciling in the present with their “surprise” daughter, who was rescued from a nefarious villain by her uncle Kaine in this timeline as well… but May is either dead or ends up permanently injured, and Peter owes Loki now…

[KC]

They find out they were married and get married again. Any of the "it didn't happen" or "it wasn't them" options would make me drop Spider-Man so fast.

[ARkadelphia]

Time is split at OMD. All the stories we’ve been reading are the ones where Peter/MJ make the deal. The other timeline is where they don’t make the deal wit Mephisto. These stories can be told in a new series that takes place in the past (just after OMD and moving forward. Meanwhile, in the current timeline, some event (many ideas posted above would work) causes the timelines to merge together again. All key characters (Pete, MJ, Mephisto) remember BOTH timelines. Aunt May survives, meaning she doesn’t remember the other timeline where she died, obviously.

[Morgoth]

Two options. They're either just getting married again, or it's indeed something like Superman Reborn, in case if there's some bigger change needed.

[Daibhidh]

What option is "Peter defeats Mephisto and we learn Peter/MJ weren't acting themselves since OMD due to Mephisto's influence?" It's the best way to restore things without retconning the post-OMD runs the fans that like it. (The only exceptions are OMD, OMIT and the Wells run. Those have to be retconned.)

That probably counts as the second option, they get remarried and find out.

That would be like when the Clone Saga tried to argue that the Peter of the 1980's (who fought Venom, seduced Black Cat, went through Secret Wars, Kraven's Last Hunt, etc.) wasn't the real one either.

The critical issues of the Peter/Felicia relationship weren't up on Marvel Unlimited when I was subscribing; but from what I gather, Felicia made it clear that she wanted a relationship with Spider-man and Peter decided to reciprocate. Peter didn't do any seducing if I understand correctly.

[witchboy]

I’ve long wanted some sort of mini-epic with a chaotic but climactic conflict for the era, with all it’s possible consequences on the board, before ending in a way that treats the period of separation the way that OMD treated the marriage. Something like:

- Aunt May begins having suspicions about stuff not making sense, and Murder She Wrotes her way into realizing that time has been changed, regaining her memory first… assisted along the way by, strangely enough, Loki, because he still owes Peter for that one time, and is bored enough to want to see if he can take on Mephisto’s in a war of proxies and win.

- Loki reveals that Mephisto’s cheated by messing with May’s wounds and gaslighting both Peter and MJ well before OMD, but still left them enough free will to make the deal somewhat work. If May can get the deal to break entirely, things get “goofy” in a way that can work, but it’ll be dangerous - which excites Loki as entertaining, and which May ends up feeling is her responsibility to get going.

- May knows there’s a major risk to herself here, and has to trick Peter and MJ into remembering as well, and succeeds… at the cost of immediately reopening her injuries and being put in the hospital again, and alerting Mephisto to the deal being in danger as the world subtly changes - particualrly because, now, a daughter Peter and MJ were supposed to have by now re-enters existence as an infant in a villain’s custody, and remains a threat to him.

- Loki and Mephisto’s confront each other, along with some “arbiter” higher power, and are allowed to reawaken knowledge of Spider-Man’s identity in a set number of people as champions in the mortal realm to determine how the chaotic timeline will be sorted. Mephisto’s plan is to just kill them and wipe them off the table now to cement his previous deal, while Loki seeks to, if anything, get Peter to owe *him* a debt instead, given Mephisto’s preoccupation with preventing the family from going into another generation.

-Epic fights are had, surprising choices are made by certain heroes and villains, and things get resolved where the marriage is restored, with Peter and MJ having a complicated, hot and cold marriage during the OMD period (creating a miniseries set during that period that “fills in the gaps” rather than replacing the OMD timeline entirely) before reconciling in the present with their “surprise” daughter, who was rescued from a nefarious villain by her uncle Kaine in this timeline as well… but May is either dead or ends up permanently injured, and Peter owes Loki now…

That sounds amazing. I love Aunt May having agency in that story instead of just being a pawn or victim. I'd prefer in the end she be allowed to be able to recover but it could take awhile rather than being dead or permanently injured.