Ever since that famous rocket carrying its oh-so-precious cargo was launched from the doomed planet of Krypton back in 1939, it seems that death and superheroes have been constant companions. Most didn’t have to endure the demise of an entire planet, but in the world of the comic book superhero, death has quite often been the impetus for many folks to don a mask, leotard and occasionally a cape in order to combat injustice. If not for the death of his parents in that shadowy alley, Bruce Wayne would’ve undoubtedly grown up as a spoiled rich kid. Similarly, without the death of his beloved Uncle Ben, Peter Parker might be enjoying a career as a professional wrestler or using his spider-powers for a variety of selfish reasons. But death reared its ugly head and the knock of justice was heard on the door. Death may not be a friend to all, but there are probably a lot of citizens of Gotham City who have unknowingly benefited from the deaths of Thomas and Martha Wayne.
As time progressed, death did not limit itself to the origin story. Over the years, many a hero has fallen while fighting that never ending battle for truth and justice. They’ve gone off into the great beyond, leaving us with only our memories of their heroic deeds. Heroes such as Ferro Lad and … umm … uh… Ferro Lad and … uh… hurm. Jean Grey? Yeah, she’s still dead, isn’t she? For now, at least. And Cypher, right? He never came back, did he? Or … what was that whole Douglock thing? Was that Cypher?
Anyway, that’s sort of what I wanted to talk about today. In the world of superhero comics, nearly every death brings with it an eventual rebirth. It’s just something that comes with the territory and most of us accept it. But I’m wondering if it’s gotten to the point yet where readers are totally desensitized to death and it no longer has the intended effect.
In real life, death is a pretty big deal. Whether it’s quick and unexpected or long and drawn out, it never comes without repercussions for those who cared for the deceased. The same generally holds true in comics: Captain America got a five-issue limited series when he died. Superman got a polybagged book that came with a black armband, poster, and newspaper clipping. The Dark Phoenix Saga trade paperback is always in print and even Bart Allen got a nice memorial service. Provided the writer handling the material is capable, most superhero deaths are given the proper amount of respect they would be given if these were flesh-and-blood people who had passed on.
But for the reader, a superhero death might not have the same amount of impact. As I said earlier, with death comes an inevitable rebirth. Superman, Reed Richards, Green Arrow, Hawkeye, Hal Jordan, Colossus, Cyclops, Lightning Lad, Barry Allen: the list of heroes who fall under the “he’s dead, no he’s not” category goes on and on. It’s gotten to the point where it’s long since become cliché. Hell, when Martian Manhunter died, Superman spoke at his funeral and actually went so far as to say that he was hoping for a rebirth!
I know I’m not the first to tackle this topic and I don’t mean to beat a dead horse (no pun intended). I’m really writing this to pose a question to you, the readers. Is it too much? Are you at the point where the impact of the story isn’t lessened when a character returns from the dead, but rather the impact is immediately lessened because of the knowledge that death isn’t permanent?
Was that a run-on sentence? Did that actually make any sense? Allow me to elaborate.
The first issue of “Ultimatum” arrived in comic shops last week and with it the Ultimate Universe’s answer to Final Invasion or Secret Crisis or whatever event the big two are currently in the middle of. I guess the whole deal with Ultimatum is that “everything as we know it will change”. Sounds familiar, huh?
We’re only one issue in and right off the bat we’ve got (presumably) some dead X-Men, Ultimates and FF-ers. I’m assuming at least a few of these characters will be revealed to be among the living by the end of next issue, but that’s not really what I’m driving at. I know that with this story, Jeph Loeb intends to shake up the Ultimate Universe. I’m not trying to say anything negative about him or his story, especially since it has yet to unfold, but as a longtime reader of comic books, I’m always a bit skeptical when I hear about a story that promises to change everything and I’m even more skeptical when I hear about the death of a costumed adventurer. I don’t want to take anything away from what Loeb is doing, but with my knowledge of the history of comic books, my immediate reaction is “Dead? Sure… for how long?”
Is it possible for the death of a character to actually have an impact anymore if you’ve been reading comics for over 5 years? When you read about the death of a favorite character, does it really bother you that much, knowing that he or she will be back as soon as the next writer takes over?
There was a time when I couldn’t have conceived of a story featuring the return of Bucky that would’ve been worth reading. Obviously, Ed Brubaker has proven me wrong. I’m happy to say that Captain America is better than it has been in years and I look forward to every upcoming issue. But there’s one problem: Steve Rogers. My opinions might not make me a popular guy around here, but at this point I actually prefer James Buchanan Barnes under the mask and I’m not particularly looking forward to Steve’s return. But I know it has to happen. The specter of rebirth hangs over Captain America just as the specter of death hangs over my 97-year-old grandmother. I don’t like it one bit.
Of course, when Steve Rogers was killed last year, I knew he would return eventually. So it never bothered me that he died. As a matter of fact, I think he’s become even more relevant and more important of a character in death than he has been in life over the past few years. The real impact of that story lies within the aftermath: the reactions of friends and family to his passing. But I have to admit, a large part of that story is tainted with the knowledge that in due time, Steve Rogers will be back and everything I’ve been enjoying will be swept under the rug. And with a Captain America movie looming on the horizon, that return is looking like it’ll be even sooner than I might’ve thought.
Is it even possible for a death of a superhero to have any sort of impact at all outside of a few days of mainstream publicity and a few extra copies sold? Is it possible for a reader to become emotionally invested in a story in which he or she knows the eventual outcome?
I’ve heard the excuse that every five years there’s a whole new crowd of readers and for them, the whole death-and-rebirth story isn’t quite as redundant to them as it is to the longtime readers. I think its a little closer to the truth to say that comics are a business like any other and these businesses need to protect their interests, so as much as things change, they ultimately have to stay the same. This is a business and these people have to sell a product. I’m totally aware of that, and I’m cool with it. Once you accept these truths, it’s much easier to free yourself and just enjoy the story for what it is. The bottom line is that superhero comics exist in the now, not in the past or the five minutes from now.
Hey, I used to be that guy in the comic shop frothing at the mouth and ranting about the fact that “dead means dead!” and how the return of a dead hero cheapened the story’s impact. And to a great extent, I still believe that’s true. But I’ve grown up, loosened up and become more educated and now I’m the guy in the comic shop frothing at the mouth and ranting about how “As long as the writing is good, anything can and should happen in a superhero comic!”
And that’s really what it all boils down to: the story. As I said earlier, there was a time when I would’ve went nuts at the mere suggestion of Bucky’s return from the grave and I won’t deny that I’m the guy who constantly argues for dead heroes to stay dead. But if the story is good and the writer’s heart is in the right place, who am I to argue? That’s sort of how it works if you intend to read superhero comics over any length of time. You either have to accept that every so often the reset button has to be hit, or you will go mad worrying about the details.
Marvel and DC (especially DC) aren’t going to stop killing heroes anytime soon and they’re certainly not going to stop bringing them back to life either. It might be a cheap stunt to boost sales or it might be an honest tale intended to tug at our heartstrings. It’s important as a reader to take them one at a time. One must be careful about obsessing over every little ridiculous and unrealistic detail of a superhero comic: sooner or later, you might just realize how ridiculous and unrealistic the very notion of men and women flying around in tights is. It’s like Bruce Lee said in Enter the Dragon, “It is like a finger pointing at the stars. Do not concentrate on the finger or you will miss all the heavenly glory.”
By Ben Johnson and Chad Derdowski
DARK HORSE COMICS
BPRD The Warning #5 (Of 5) $2.99
BTVS Season 8 TP Vol 03 Wolves At The Gate $15.95
Chronicles Of Conan TP Vol 16 Eternity War & Other Stories $16.95
Cleaners #1 (Of 4) $2.99
Ben: The day to day heroics of the dry cleaning industry.
Oh My Goddess Rtl TP Vol 10 $10.95
DC COMICS
100 Bullets #97 (MR) $2.99
Action Comics #871 New Krypton $2.99
Ben: Holy crap my pants I’m sold on this.
Chad: Yup.
Action Comics #871 New Krypton Var Ed $2.99
Ben: But if you buy this I’ll hunt you down.
Chad: Just say no to ‘90s gimmicks, folks.
Batman Cacophony #1 (Of 3) $3.99
Ben: I want to read it, but the cover isn’t rare enough.
Editor: I hear issue #2 is going to be super rare.
Batman Cacophony #1 (Of 3) 1 In 25 Var Ed $3.99
Ben: Almost, but not quite there yet.
Editor: Get it? It's a Kevin Smith comic.
Batman Cacophony #1 (Of 3) 1 In 50 Sketch Cover Ed $3.99
Ben: Sweet! Hopefully the guy at my shop only charges me five times cover!
Editor: Never mind.
Batman Confidential #23 $2.99
Batman Ego And Other Tails TP $17.99
Booster Gold #14 $2.99
Cartoon Network Action Pack #31 $2.25
Detective Comics #850 Rip (Note Price) $3.99
Exterminators TP Vol 05 Bug Brothers Forever (MR) $14.99
Fables #78 (MR) $2.99
Ben: The war is over, and somehow this book is still getting better.
Fables Covers By James Jean HC (MR) $39.99
Gears Of War #2 (MR) $3.99
Gen 13 #24 $2.99
Girl Who Runs Through Time Vol 02 $9.99
Green Arrow Black Canary #14 $2.99
Green Lantern Corps #30 $2.99
I Hate You More Than Anyone Vol 06 (Res) $9.99
Chad: This is what Ben told me when he heard I was taking over for Kurt.
JLA Avengers TP $19.99
Ben: Whoa, blast from the past!
JSA Kingdom Come Special Superman #1 $3.99
Ben: Isn’t a special Superman basically just Bizarro?
JSA Kingdom Come Special Superman #1 Var Ed $3.99
Justice League International HC Vol 03 $24.99
Kiichi And The Magic Books Vol 03 (Res) $9.99
Legion Of Super Heroes In The 31st Century #20 $2.25
Mad Magazine #496 $4.99
Manhunter #36 $2.99
Nightwing #150 Rip (Note Price) $3.99
Nightwing #150 Var Ed (Note Price) $3.99
Push #1 (Of 6) $3.50
Simon Dark #14 $2.99
Superman Batman Vs Vampires Werewolves #3 (Of 6) $2.99
Tears Of A Lamb Vol 04 (Res) $9.99
Ben: It’s what I boil puppies in.
Titans #7 $2.99
Trinity #24 $2.99
Young Liars #9 (MR) $2.99
IMAGE COMICS
Brit #9 $2.99
Broken Trinity #3 Keown Cvr$2.99
Broken Trinity #3 Sejic Cvr $2.99
Darkness #7 Lucas Cvr A (MR) $2.99
Darkness #7 Sejic Cvr B (MR) $2.99
I Hate Gallant Girl #1 (Of 3) $3.50
Ben: Hate is such a strong word.
I Kill Giants #5 (Of 7) $2.99
Jack Staff #19 $3.50
Ben: Possible side effects include blindness and hairy palms.
Mice Templar #6 $2.99
Savage Dragon #140 $3.50
Stray Toasters TP (New Ptg) $24.99
Ben: How does that happen, exactly?
Ted Mckeever Library HC Vol 01 $24.99
Walking Dead #54 (MR) $2.99
Ben: Kirkman’s new direction is amazing. By introducing vampires the whole series has changed. Oh, don’t read the preceding if you don’t want any spoilers.
MARVEL COMICS
Amazing Spider-Girl #26 $2.99
Ben: About to get cancelled for the 30th time.
Amazing Spider-Man #577 $3.99
Amazing Spider-Man #577 Buscema Var $3.99
Avengers Fairy Tales #4 (Of 4) $2.99
Big Hero 6 #3 (Of 5) $3.99
Captain Britain And Mi 13 #7$2.99
Civil War HC $39.99
Ben: I’m waiting for the movie.
Chad: They play it on PBS during every pledge drive. I liked the baseball one better.
Civil War HC Dm Ed $39.99
Dark Tower Treachery #3 (Of 6) $3.99
Dark Tower Treachery #3 (Of 6) Ferry Var $3.99
Dark Tower Treachery #3 (Of 6) Lee Sketch Var $3.99
Dead Of Night Devil Slayer #3 (Of 4) (MR) $3.99
Eternals Annual #1$3.99
Fantastic Four True Story #4 (Of 4)$2.99
Ghost Rider TP Vol 05 Hell Bent Heaven Bound $16.99
Ben: I know I’ve said it before, so I won’t repeat myself here.
Hulk Chronicles WWH #5 $4.99
Ben: I wish Marvel would just release their mega-events in this format to begin with.
Hulk Prem HC Vol 01 Red Hulk $24.99
Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #45 $2.99
Marvel Illustrated Odyssey #3 (Of 8) $3.99
Marvel Illustrated TP Man In The Iron Mask $14.99
Ben: Not Leonardo Dicaprio.
Marvel Spotlight Punisher Movie $2.99
Marvel Zombies 3 #1 (Of 4) 2nd Ptg Var (Pp #839) $3.99
Marvels Greatest Collections 2009 (Bundle Of 25) $10.00
Ben: From the future… future… future…
Mythos HC Vol 01 $24.99
New Exiles #14 $2.99
New X-Men By Morrison Ultimate Coll TP Book 03 $34.99
Punisher TP Barbarian With A Gun $15.99
Spider-Man Brand New Day #2 $3.99
Ben: Déjà vu all over again.
Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane Season 2 #4 (Of 5)$2.99
Stand Captain Trips #3 (Of 5)$3.99
Ben: One of my favorite books becomes one of my favorite comics.
Stand Captain Trips #3 (Of 5) Bermejo Sketch Var $3.99
Stand Captain Trips #3 (Of 5) Perkins Var $3.99
Thunderbolts Warren Ellis TP Vol 02 Caged Angels $14.99
Wolverine #69 $2.99
Ben: Now that is just gross.
Wolverine Origins #28 2nd Ptg Var (Pp #839) $2.99
X-Men Magneto Testament #3 (Of 5) $3.99
Steve Rogers/Captain America's rebirth is inevitable.
However, I'm wondering if Ultimatum might be the real deal. I mean, you have a comics line that is largely redundant. Some have felt the line should be discontinued. Obviously that's a function of sales, but if Marvel decided to shutter the Ultimate line, it would be cool to go out with a huge BANG: Let the supervillain win!
Well, to be fair to DC, they've been pretty good at keeping certain characters dead while simultaneously keeping their trademarks intact. What with Blue Beetle, Firestorm, etc. dying and then being replaced by new people (until the original come back, hehehe).
I am also in the column for leaving Steve Rogers dead. Its nice to see Bucky trying to live up to a legacy while cementing what the character of Captain America is and should be.
Besides, with an infinite number of alternate universes and timelines, what does death really mean?
Long Halloween and Dark Victory both featured Batman in stories that took place in the past. Granted, Batman is not a dead character, but my point is that no character is truly dead as long as good writers are around that are willing to write about the character. How many Barry Allen stories did Mark Waid tell? Like, a million. There's no reason creators can't mine the past even if a character is dead and buried.
I'm curious about Ultimatum... it could be that it's the end of the Ultimate line, or perhaps they really will do something drastically different by simply keeping their dead characters dead? It would be an interesting twist on what is essentially the longest running "What If...?" story ever written.
Let us pause for a moment to remember one of my personal favorites from back in the day, Captain Mar-Vell. After some twenty-five years, he has defied the odds and remains dead, to the best of my knowledge. I greeted the news of his "return" in Civil War with mixed feelings - yes, it was cool to have him back, but I kew it just wouldn't be the same. When it was revealed that it wasn't actually him, I was relieved. Yes, I probably should get out more ... but it can be done - heroes can stay dead, although Mar-Vell is clearly the exception to the rule.
I still believe there are certain iconic heroes of comic books that can not and should not be replaced. Also killing them off is tantamount to an actual crime. Steve Rogers as Captain America is one of those characters. Bucky should have been left dead and Steve should still be wearing the red white and blue.
Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Spiderman, Hulk, Captain America... these are not characters that belong to one writer or one company, they belong to the fans. They belong to the customers who put their cash down to read about their favorite heroes in the comics. Escapism is something we all look for at one time or another. Some by watching movies, or soaps, others through reading books or playing games, still others may have active hobbies that take them out of their lives for a few hours and let them forget about the economy, how their great aunt Gertrude is living in a house with fifty cats, drinks to much and is blowing their inheritance
The icons of an age such as ours, are some of the things that help us get through our petty problems and enjoy life. Don't kill them.
Some heroes must die, and yes they have lost the edge in their stories because readers already know they will be back. But taking away a readers hero, killing an icon, is stealing hope from the imagination of your fans. Tread lightly on that path or fear the wrath of a fickle fan. I was once a religious follower or Captain America. I have not bought a book since they shot him and will not until he's back. There is only one Captain America, and his name is Steve Rogers.
Yep, if the Walking Dead introduces vampires, then I'm done with it. And then my quest to turn Ben into a zombie begins...
LOGIN
REGISTER
RSS
HOME
Chad, spot on article, but I'm surprised you didn't bring up the non-DCU/MU comics in this one. Outside of the big two universes, people die and typically stay dead. The finite worlds in the likes of Preacher, Y, Walking Dead, and many others, allow for close-ended stories in which a character isn't a product, in which things don't need to revert back to 1963. Writers aren't dictated to by an editor who tells them that the movie is coming out in a few months so Yorick needs to start wearing a black costume. I understand this column is now geared more towards the capes, but it's worth noting the advantages of an indie line. Also relevant, Exiles manages to generally keep people dead, though in an odd way (and it's kinda gone down hill since restarting at #1).
RE: Walking Dead Comment
Ben, I'm going to uncle-ize you if that turns out to be true. The trades! We wait for the trades on this one!