Cover to Uncanny X-Men #136 (August 1980, art by John Byrne), the penultimate issue of the Dark Phoenix saga. Jean Grey would sacrifice herself in the following issue, but Marvel later had the story retconned to allow Jean to appear in the new X-Factor series.

Comic book death is a neologism used somewhat ironically in the comic book fan community to refer to the killing off and subsequent return of a long-running character. This irony addresses the fact that while death is a serious subject, a comic book death is rarely taken seriously and is not believed to be permanent or meaningful. Cover to Uncanny X-Men #136. ... Cover to Uncanny X-Men #136. ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... John Lindley Byrne (born July 6, 1950) is a British-born naturalised American author and artist of comic books. ... The Phoenix Force. ... This article or section on a comics-related subject may need to be cleaned up and rewritten because it describes a work of fiction in a primarily in-universe style. ... Marvel Comics is an American comic book line published by Marvel Publishing, Inc. ... It has been suggested that X-Factor Investigations be merged into this article or section. ... A neologism (Greek νεολογισμός [neologismos], from νέος [neos] new + λόγος [logos] word, speech, discourse + suffix -ισμός [-ismos] -ism) is a word, term, or phrase which has been recently created (coined) — often to apply to new concepts, to synthesize pre-existing concepts, or to make older terminology sound more contemporary. ... A comic book is a magazine or book containing the art form of comics. ... Irony, from the Greek εἴρων (iron), is a literary or rhetorical device made of iron, in which there is a gap or incongruity between what a speaker or a writer says, and what is generally understood (either at the time, or in the later context of history). ...

Marvel Comics supposedly engages in this gimmick more frequently than other publishers, a tendency that has been addressed directly in the X-Men books ("Mutant heaven has no pearly gates, only revolving doors" - X-Factor #70). In contrast, one famous aspect of the younger Ultimate Marvel universe is the relative lack of this device, as stories are planned to be explicitly tied together or stand-alone in advance. Marvel Comics is an American comic book line published by Marvel Publishing, Inc. ... The X-Men are a group of comic book superheroes featured in Marvel Comics. ... The various characters of the Ultimate Marvel Universe, as seen on the cover to Ultimates (v2) #12. ...

Some comic book writers have killed off characters to gather publicity or to create dramatic tension. In other instances, a writer kills off a character that he/she did not particularly care for, but upon leaving the title, another writer who liked this character brings them back. More often however, the publishing house intends to permanently kill off a long-running character, but fan pressure or creative decisions push the company to resurrect the character. Still other characters remain permanently dead, but are replaced by characters who assume their personas (such as Wally West taking over for Barry Allen as The Flash), so the death does not cause a genuine break in character continuity. Wikibooks has more about this subject: Marketing Look up publicity in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Suspense or tension is the feeling of uncertainty and interest about the outcome of certain actions an audience perceives in a dramatic work. ... Wally West is a fictional character, a superhero in the DC Comics Universe, the first Kid Flash and the third Flash. ... Barry Allen is a fictional superhero in the DC Comics Universe and the second Flash. ... The Flash is a name shared by several DC Comics superheroes. ...

Death isn't the handicap it used to be...

The two most famous comic deaths are arguably the 1980 "death" of Jean Grey in Marvel's Dark Phoenix Saga and that of Superman in DC's highly-publicized 1993 Death of Superman storyline (although of the two, only Jean's was actually intended to be a true, permanent death, and was later retconned not to have been a death at all). Since the Dark Phoenix Saga, comic book deaths have been particularly common in X-Men-related series. 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... This article or section on a comics-related subject may need to be cleaned up and rewritten because it describes a work of fiction in a primarily in-universe style. ... Dark Phoenix on the cover of the Dark Phoenix TPB; art originally from Uncanny X-Men #135, by John Byrne. ... Superman is a comic book superhero, originally created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian artist Joe Shuster and published by DC Comics. ... DC Comics is one of the largest American companies in comic book and related media publishing. ... el 18 de mayo nacio claudia // 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The X-Men are a group of comic book superheroes featured in Marvel Comics. ...

The prominence of comic book deaths has led to a common piece of comic shop wisdom: "No one stays dead except Bucky, Jason Todd and Uncle Ben"^[1] referring to Captain America's sidekick (dead since 1964 in real world publication, 1945 in fictional continuity, but brought back to life in Captain America vol. 5), Batman's second Robin, (died in 1989, has since returned) and Spider-Man's uncle (dead since 1962), respectively. Ironically, both Todd and Bucky returned from the dead in 2005, and an Uncle Ben from a timeline where he never died recently entered mainstream continuity in the recent issues of Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. Note that sometimes a character can be dead in the mainstream continuity, but alive in an alternate reality, such as the aged Bucky in the Ultimate Marvel universe, or Uncle Ben and Gwen Stacy's return in the House of M storyline. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this comics-related article or section may require cleanup. ... Jason Todd is a fictional character in the DC Comics Universe. ... Benjamin Parker, often called Uncle Ben was a supporting character in the Marvel Universe’s Spider-Man stories. ... Captain America, the alter ego of Steve Rogers,[1] is a superhero in the Marvel Comics universe. ... Don Quixote and Sancho Panza unsuccessfully confront windmills. ... 1964 (MCMLXIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1964 calendar). ... 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday. ... Captain America, the alter ego of Steve Rogers,[1] is a superhero in the Marvel Comics universe. ... Robin is a fictional superhero published by DC Comics. ... 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Spider-Man swinging around his hometown, New York City. ... 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Benjamin Parker, often called Uncle Ben was a supporting character in the Marvel Universe’s Spider-Man stories. ... Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is a comic book series published by Marvel Comics. ... The various characters of the Ultimate Marvel Universe, as seen on the cover to Ultimates (v2) #12. ... House of M was an eight-part comic book crossover storyline published by Marvel Comics in 2005. ...

Comic book deaths have been parodied by Peter Milligan in X-Statix, in which all the characters had died by the end of the series, and by Dan Slott in his 2005 miniseries Great Lakes Avengers, in which some characters have lasted only a single issue. Parody of Back to the Future In contemporary usage, a parody is a work that imitates another work in order to ridicule, ironically comment on, or poke some affectionate fun at the work itself, the subject of the work, the author or fictional voice of the parody, or another subject. ... Peter Milligan is an Irish writer, best known for his comic book, film and television work. ... X-Statix was the name of a fictional team of mutant superheroes in Marvel Comics, specifically designed to be ironic media superstars. ... Dan Slott Dan Slott is an American comic book writer known for artfully injecting humor into typically serious superhero books. ... The Great Lakes Avengers are a comedic superhero group, fashioned after Marvel Comics’ Avengers. ...

The Simpsons also parodied comic book deaths in the episode "Radioactive Man" in which Bart mentions an issue of Radioactive Man in which the eponymous character and his sidekick Fallout Boy die on every page. Simpsons redirects here. ... Radioactive Man is the second episode of The Simpsons seventh season and was the first one to use digital ink and paint. ... Bartholomew Jo-Jo Bart Simpson is a main character in the animated television series The Simpsons, voiced by Nancy Cartwright. ... Radioactive Man, within the world of the animated series The Simpsons, is a comic book superhero who acquired his powers after surviving an atomic bomb explosion. ... This article is about the Simpsons character. ...

Common retcons include:

• An explosion didn't kill the character, they were merely buried in rubble/flung to safety/transported to another dimension (Spider-Man villain Hammerhead once survived a nuclear explosion in this way).^{[citation needed]}

• The person who died was a clone, impostor, or shapeshifter (Dark Phoenix being the most well-known example).^[2]

• The character really did die, but was resurrected, either intentionally (e.g., Green Arrow)^[3] or unintentionally (e.g., Jason Todd)^[4] by some cosmic or magical being.

Spider-Man swinging around his hometown, New York City. ... Hammerhead is a fictional character, a supervillain in publications from Marvel Comics. ... The Phoenix Force. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this comics-related article or section may require cleanup. ... Jason Todd is a fictional character in the DC Comics Universe. ...

Outside comic books

The return of a character previously thought dead is certainly not limited to comic books. In many slasher films and monster movies, the killer or monster seemingly dies at the end of the film only to return for a sequel. Daytime and prime-time soap operas are notorious for comic book deaths; famously, an entire season of Dallas was retconned into one character's dream so that a character killed in that season could return.[1] However, the term comic book death was not used at the time. This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... A sequel is a work of fiction in literature, film, and other creative works that is produced after a completed work, and is set in the same universe but at a later time. ... For Philippine soap opera, see Teleserye. ... The Southfork Ranch, home of the Ewing family The original cast of Dallas. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

See also

• List of dead comic book characters
• Retcon
• Women in Refrigerators

Below is a list of fictional characters who have died in American comic books, specifically in the superhero genre, and thus far have not returned. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Women in Refrigerators (or Wir) is a website that was created in 1999 by a group of comic book fans. ...

References

Dark Phoenix on the cover of the Dark Phoenix TPB; art originally from Uncanny X-Men #135, by John Byrne. ... Dark Phoenix on the cover of the Dark Phoenix TPB; art originally from Uncanny X-Men #135, by John Byrne. ...

External links

• X-Men: Death Becomes Them A comedy flash movie that makes fun of the comic book deaths in the X-Men comics.
• Shh! It’s a secret! An article that mentions the impermanence of death particularly in Marvel comic books