Synopsis
Journey Into Mystery (2011 series) #627 synopsis by
Peter Silvestro
Rating:
Mephisto, Lord of Hell, introduces himself and claims that he is the rightful star of this comic book. We then hear the legend of how the devil likes to walk into a bar at closing time and talk to the bartender; he then leaves a tip which is good or bad, depending on the teller of the tale. Sometimes it amuses Mephisto to play along. One night during the Serpent Invasion, the Demon Lord walks into a bar and complains about his day: his visit to the Infinite Embassy, where all the pantheons were gathered to discuss the events on Earth—would Odin really destroy the planet to stop the conquering Serpent? Except for the Greek gods who dwell on Olympus, the assembled deities decided it was an internal matter for the Aesir to address. Down among all the various avatars of evil, there is just as much uncertainty so Mephisto counsels them to sit back and enjoy the show. He then stops by to visit Nightmare, who is undecided as to his course of action; Mephisto points out that joining either the Asgardians or the Serpent would lead to disaster, so suggests he wait to see if there will be a third outcome. As the Demon Lord gets up to leave, the bartender reminds him of the tip…Mephisto offers him immortality. The canny working man accepts it but only if it comes without pain—so Mephisto has him ground painlessly into ink and uses him in two letters he dictates. One is a very brief note to the Serpent and the other is to the future ruler of Asgard, revealing that it was Loki who freed Surtur from his imprisonment. Mephisto then stands back to see what Loki will do next….