Whether it beMarvelor any other amusing publisher , death is frequently handle as an impermanent narrative machine think of to oblige the plot or character forward . However , its impermanence threatens to slip the literal substance of death in a write up . When a character or their roll in the hay one is travel , that ’s presuppose to be it . The harm , grief , and sadness can motivate those around them to accomplish impossible feat .

As pathologic as it vocalize , fortunately , some Marvel charactersnever come back . Some have been go for 10 . When these characters depart the human beings of the living , each lead behind a shock moving ridge of wallop , changing the lifespan and destinies of other Marvel characters constantly . Their death mean something because they are n’t coming back . It can be hard and hurtful to see your favorite Hero and villains in conclusion bite the dust , but their deaths often dish a greater storytelling purpose . Amid the army of seemingly immortal reference , these tenlong - dead Marvel part are dead and are rest that way .

1Gwen Stacy

Death:Amazing Spider-Man #121 (1973)by Gerry Conway & Gil Kane

After the Green Goblin discovered Peter Parker ’s identity , the villain go on a unrestrained violent disorder trying to upend the paladin ’s life . Osborn later trapped Spider - Man in a frightening choice between stopping him or savingthe living of Gwen Stacy . After the Goblin cast Gwen off of a nosepiece , Peter successfully caught her with his webbing . However , the impact of the sudden stop was too vivid , fall apart her neck instantly . Horrifically , Gwen continued to live past this for a few here and now , inquire why she deserve to die like this .

The bit that exchange Spider - Man ’s aliveness for expert is nothing compared to a visitation that ’s about to make him palpate a pain bad than Uncle Ben ’s dying .

The last of Gwen Stacy is one of the most influential moments in Peter Parker ’s life , next to the end of Uncle Ben . While Mary Jane remains the iconic honey interest for Peter , it was Gwen who really steal Pete ’s meat . Her end is a well - known pop - culture momentthanks to her on - screen back - breaking deathinThe Amazing Spider - Man 2.In the comedian , Gwen ’s death became the narrative backbone thatkickstarted the Clone Saga , one of Spider - Man ’s most tortuous write up to date .

Tom Holland’s Spider-Man in the MCU and Uncle Ben in Marvel Comics

2Brunnhilde and the Valkyries

Death:War of the Realms #2 (2019)by Jason Aaron, Russell Dauterman, & Matthew Wilson

Before Jane Foster leave behind her title as Thor to come out as the one and only Valkyrie , Asgard used to be the home to the Valkyrior . With Brunnhilde chosen as his first Valkyrie , the warrior goddess and her compatriots were tasked with ushering the souls of worthy and devoted follower to the first-class hall of Valhalla . During Malekith ’s violent waracross the Ten Realms , the Valkyrie soon became one of the only forces that could keep the Dark Elf tyrant back .

Odin , the forces of Asgard , and the Avengers had all been bested by Malekith , forcing them to take a tactical hideaway . Left behind , Brunnhilde and her Valkyrior stood their undercoat against the menace , only to be utterly massacred . As her sister lie around her , bloodied , humbled , and utter , Malekith impaled the Valkyrie before cleaving her in half . Of course , Jane Foster later took on the responsibleness of the Valkyries , but the original sheepman of the numb have stayed dead ever sincethe War of the Realms .

3Karen Page

Death:Daredevil #5 (1999)by Kevin Smith & Joe Quesada

One of Marvel ’s most heart - shatter deaths of all time , Karen Page shatter the hearts of Marvel ’s mightiest heroes after she become flat . The long - time helper , friend , and lover of Matt Murdock , Karen was just as iconic to Daredevil as Gwen Stacy was to Spider - Man . unluckily , in the Day before her death , her life had become a living Hell thanks tothe evil efforts of Mysterio . In an seek to push Daredevil insane , Mysterio infected Karen with HIV , drive her back to Murdock after a messy separation .

4Happy Hogan

Death:Iron Man #14 (2006)by Daniel Knauf, Charles Knauf, & Patrick Zircher

Unlike his MCU variant who happily lives in Iron Man ’s legacy , fielding heroes for the Avengers , and turn away the ilk of Deadpool , Happy in the cartoon strip assemble a sorry portion . After an unsuccessful vocation as a boxer , Happy found a second future aftersaving Tony Starkfrom a violent car crash . Like his MCU opposite number , Happy would go on to dish out as Stark ’s chauffeur and escort and the two remained close until his death .

Duringthe Civil War event , Happy loyally follow Iron Man ’s push of the Superhuman Registration Act . He quickly became the target of their political foe and was attacked and used as bait to pin Iron Man . While Happy kill his attempted captors , his body eventually collapsed . He was placed on life support untilTony had to make the impossible conclusion to let his friend go .

5Kraven the Hunter

Death:Amazing Spider-Man #22 (2019)by Nick Spencer and Humberto Ramos

AfterKraven ’s Last Hunt , Kraven the Hunter and Spider - Man had become narratively bound in a way that few Spidey villains have before . Kraven was a simple human beings . He want to turn up himself the best hunter ; if his prey were too infirm , he ’d move on to something bigger . However , after believing that he had killed Spider - Man , Kraven jubilantly took his own life . yr later , Kraven ’s family attempted to resurrect him , but due to meddling by Kaine Parker , Kraven was bequeath alive butcursed to be unable to die unless he killed Spider - Man . Kraven detest that he had been brought back and continued tosearch for Spider - Manpurely as a mean to allow himself to rest .

Sony ’s " Kraven the Hunter " pic underperformed at the box role , failing to experience up to expectations for one of Spidey ’s most highly - regarded enemy .

The big - game - hunter would continue to push Peter over the twelvemonth in an attempt to violate his no - kill policy . Kraven finally submitted , realizing that Spider - Man was an infallible hoagie . embrace his foe ’s valorousness , Kravendisguised himself as Spider - Manand crusade his Word , intending to die . Technically having met the terms of the curse , Kraven could at last move on . After his death , his son discover a bank note from his father , detail how proud he was and thatthe “ Kraven the Hunter ” title now belong to him .

Live-action Kraven the Hunter (left) and the comic book version (right.)

6Harry Osborn

Death:Spectacular Spider-Man #200 (1993)by J.M. DeMatteis & Sal Buscema

Another Spider - Man character who has front a permanent death despite his popular pop - civilisation notoriety , the original Harry Osborn has stayed dead for over thirty years . Like his father , Harry had ego - administered a version of the Goblin Formula which slowly head him toward madness . Asthe Modern Green Goblin , Harry wanted to prove that he could stand out his male parent ’s legacy without sacrificing his household as Norman had done to him . However , asthe Goblin Formula proceed to wreak havoc on Harry ’s mind , he became singularly obsessed with destroy Peter Parker ’s life sentence .

In what almost became a execution - self-annihilation , Harry click back to his senses when he realise that his son Normie had been put in scathe ’s way by his own action at law . After saving Spidey , Mary Jane , and Normie , the Goblin Formula rive Harry apart on the inside . He presently drop dead , holding Peter ’s hand at the end . Horrifically , Harry ’s psyche was send to Hell due to a mickle Norman hadmade with Mephisto . After being tortured by demons for geezerhood , Doctor Strange at long last freed Harry from his fiendish luck .

7Loki

Death:Siege #4 (2010)by Brian Michael Bendis, Oliver Coipel, Mark Morales, & Laura Martin

Loki , the original of deception and faux hope , is idle and has been for a while . While a reincarnation of himself is presently alive and well , the current Lokiisn’t technically the original . In another of the crazy god ’s incessant schemes , Lokipitted Asgard and Earth ’s superhero community against each other . His greater goal was for Asgard to return to its place within the Ten Realms , severing its tie with Midgard .

Faced with his failures , Loki joined the hero at the last minute and sacrificed himself to put down the Void before uttering his terminal words,“I’m drab , comrade . ”

To further instigate this scheme , Loki manipulated the hero sandwich Sentry to give into his dark other half , the Void . However , when the Void was release , it began devour Asgard . Faced with his nonstarter , Loki connect the heroes at the last minute and sacrifice himself to destroy the Void before verbalize his final words,“I’m sorry , brother . ”While a interlingual rendition of Loki is still scheming away in Earth-616 , it was confirmed in theLoki : Agents of Asgardseries thatthe two Lokis are both physically and spiritually dissimilar multitude .

marvel forgotten characters sleeper, nighthawk and stingray

8The Living Tribunal

Death:New Avengers #30 (2015)by Jonathan Hickman & Dalibor Talajic

The Living Tribunal is an exceptionally odd addition to this list because the Living Tribunal was never technically active or dead . Like Eternity , Infinity , or demise , the Living Tribunal was have it away as an Abstract Entity , a multiversal sentient being who represent concepts of existence . However , in the course of instruction of the secondSecret Warsevent , the Beyonders regain a direction to down the Living Tribunal , lead the Multiverse without its ultimate evaluator . fortuitously , its death was n’t a meaningless one .

As the Multiverse remain to collapse in on itself under the weight of the penetration , the Illuminati harvest the sliver of the Living Tribunal that had fallen into Earth-616 . Using its corpse , the paladin create a Life Raft which saved hundreds of animation in the wake of the cosmic demolition . However , because the Living Tribunal was a multiversal concept , it did not hark back after the Eighth Cosmos was make . alternatively , the One Above All chosea stochastic variable of Adam Warlockto arise and serve as the next Living Tribunal .

9Darkhawk (Chris Powell)

Death:Darkhawk: Heart of the Hawk #1 (2021): “Last Flight”by Kyle Higgins, Juanan Ramirez, & Erick Arciniega

Darkhawk originally gained traction in the 1990s as a Peter Parker - alike character , thrust into responsibility beyond his old age . As a teenager , Chris discovered the Raptor Amulet , which allowed him to trade bodies with the Shi’ar humanoid now recognise as Darkhawk . As Darkhawk , Chris would go on to act as a righteous hero sandwich , fighting alongside Spider - Man andthe Fantastic Fouron legion function . Unfortunately , like his report after the XC , Darkhawk experience a painfully unceremonious and lackluster death .

These Marvel sub have awful design and unequaled superpower , making it even more felonious that the publisher has forgotten them .

After face a fault in prison term - space , Chris spent months studying the phenomenon , hoping to send the data of the anomaly to a successorwho would summarize his mission . Nobly sacrificing himself for the sake of the military mission , Darkhawk tape his entire life ’s story and his adventures as a hero , before sending the information , his memoir , and his Raptor Amulet to whoever would becomethe next Darkhawk . Afterward , Chris ’s ship lost power as he plunged into the cosmic rift , never to be seen again .

The Death of Captain Marvel cover image

10Uncle Ben

Death:Amazing Fantasy #15 (1962)by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko

What would any “ dead Marvel characters ” listing be without the big name in lasting deaths ? While his death may be a well - known risible playscript staple , it ’s probablythe most important death in all comics . Of course , his death inspired the birth of Spider - Man and defined the kernel ofPeter Parker ’s valorousness . However , it ’s the impact of his death off the page that make it especially important .

When a character dies , never to return , that death then defines the actions of the heroes and villains around them for decades to add up .

The entire full point of this inclination is to highlight eccentric who have stayed drained . Unfortunately , comic strip ca n’t get off with killing off major character , so it ’s become part of the diligence ’s substructure to expect that a dead hero will return . However , there is importance in the permanence of expiry . The moment someone lead this world , they ’re gone from it forever . When a character dies , never to return , that death then defines the actions of the hero and villains around them for decades to come .

Gwen Stacy dies in Spider-Man’s arms.

Both comical characters and reader have become accustomed to death merely becoming a irregular Department of State , taking away any impact that a character ’s passing would have . But at the kickoff of it all , there was Uncle Ben . To this solar day , Marvel’smost well - known phrase,“With cracking powerfulness comes swell responsibility,”carries a overweight weight not because of its meaning , but because of the impact Uncle Ben go out behind with it .

Maliketh kills Brunnhilde

Daredevil holds Karen Page’s dead body.

Pepper Potts mourns next to Happy Hogan

Kraven’s son cries over his dead body.

Spider-Man holds Harry Osborn’s hand as he dies.

Loki sacrifices himself to save Asgard.

The Living Tribunal dies during the Secret Wars event.

Darkhawk waits until his ship runs out of power.

Peter Parker blames himself for Uncle Ben’s death.

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