On Comic-ish Tragedies

It’s 1992, and Superman is dead. I’m in my local comic shop, and I see the issue on the racks. Superman #75, with its iconic cover featuring a tattered red cape hanging from a pole, like a weird flag of death. Next to it sat the black-bagged special edition, with its black armband, obituary, and collectible card. It was quite the sight to see for a young comic book fan, and one that sticks with me even now. Of course, now-a-days, Cynical Comic Book Fan Chris looks at death in comics and says, “Ha! Death! That’s a good one! Tell me again about how this character or that character has died!” But, back then…

As adult fans, our cynicism is well-founded. For years, there was a saying in comics that the only comic book deaths that would stick were Bucky, Jason Todd, and Uncle Ben. Considering that even out of this short list, two of the three characters have returned, it’s easy to see why we don’t put much stock in major comic book deaths. You can tell me all you want about how Jean Grey is really dead this time, but we all know that when sales start lagging, and you need an event to really spice things up, her coffin will be conspicuously empty. (Note: This cynicism in no way applies to the recent death of Wolverine. I’m sure he’s really dead this time.)