Warning! Spoilers for Sinister War #1 by Marvel Comics below.
Marvel Comics is still working on undoing one of their most critically maligned comics, as Doctor Strange is bargaining with Mephisto to try to save Spider-Man's soul. Nearly 15 years after Peter Parker made a deal with the Devil in the infamous One More Day arc to save his Aunt May. Now, the Sorcerer Supreme is about to gamble to ensure the web-slinger's soul is returned to normal.
A good portion of Nick Spencer, Patrick Gleason, and Mark Bagley's Spider-Man arc has been dedicated to retconning One More Day. In the arc, Spider-Man made a deal with Mephisto to save his elderly Aunt May, but to do so, he agreed to erase his marriage with Mary Jane from existence. In the previous issues of the current Spider-Man run, Doctor Strange paid a visit to Mephisto at the Hotel Inferno in order to find out what was wrong with Peter's soul. In Marvel's new Sinister War event, Strange's talk with the Devil finally gets expanded upon.
In Sinister War #1 by Spencer, Bagley, Andrew Hennessy, John Dell, Andy Owens, Brian Reber, and Joe Caramagna, Spider-Man deals with Kindred and many villains from his past. At the end of the issue, Doctor Strange confronts Mephisto about Peter Parker's soul. He tells the Devil to end whatever he's done to it, but Mephisto doesn't budge. When Strange questions Peter making a deal with him, Mephisto responds that he would be surprised what "circumstances" can make people agree to things. Mephisto says he is not against gambling for Peter's soul.
Marvel's Devil suggests a game of chance, asking Doctor Strange if he wants to wager on red, black, or if he's "feeling lucky." The issue ends without a decision from the powerful magic user. However, considering the hero is about to be killed off in an upcoming series, The Death of Doctor Strange, maybe he makes a deal with Mephisto to exchange his own soul for Peter's.
Gambling with Mephisto on his home turf isn't a great plan, but Doctor Strange doesn't have much of a choice to undo the events of One More Day. Will Spider-Man finally be freed from his debt to Mephisto? or is Marvel's Devil about to catch another superhero in a desperate situation and change Doctor Strange's history as well? It seems the Sorcerer Supreme is about to make one of Marvel'sbiggest gambles ever to save Spider-Man's corrupted soul. Sinister War #1 is in comic book stores now.