Superheroes have never been more popular and these beloved characters have a larger platform than ever before, whether it’s through comics, feature films, or any number of interconnected offshoots. DC superheroes have established a unique brand and style over the years that audiences have learned to both love and hate.
Many DC Comics events push creative ideas and try to reset the table for what’s to come, and a lot of the time this results in the deaths of characters. Death is an incredibly loose concept in comics, but despite this, there are still certain DC heroes who have met their end and then effectively stayed out of the picture as of this writing.
10 Rorschach Remains Dead, But His Cause Lives On
Doomsday Clock does an impressive job of meshing together Watchmen characters with mainstream DC figures. Many important Watchmen characters die, but Doomsday Clock finds ways for some of them to make appearances.
Rorschach returns, but it’s not the same one. Reggie Long, the son of Rorschach’s psychologist, Malcolm, is not just inspired by Rorschach's work much like his father was, but he's filled with anger over his parents’ death. It’s a powerful origin story and Reggie is a satisfying successor to take up the Rorschach name, but it's also confirmation that the original character is in fact still deceased.
9 Azrael Is Brainwashed And Forced To Be Handled
Antiheroes make up some of the most compelling characters in the DC universe, but Azrael is particularly notable since he started as one of several Batman replacements after Bruce Wayne’s back gets broken by Bane. Azrael builds independence from Batman and becomes a hero in his own right.
However, he’s also one of Darkseid’s most powerful mind control acquisitions during the events of Justice League Odyssey. Darkseid turns Azrael into a murderous weapon that the Justice League needs to neutralize. Azrael gets very close to killing Jessica Cruz, but Blackfire eliminates him before he gets the chance.
8 Starfire Is Taken Out By Her Very Own Sister
Starfire remains a notable DC character who’s likely to see a boost in popularity after she joins Titans season 3. Starfire is another hero that becomes victim to Darkseid’s mind control tactics during Justice League Odyssey. Jessica Cruz’s Green Lantern needs stronger allies, so she turns to cosmic reinforcements, like Blackfire.
Blackfire is focused on how their plan to reset time with the help of Epoch will therefore make any current actions reversed, so she brazenly kills her sister, Starfire, to simplify the situation. It remains to be seen what the fallout of this will look like in DC’s future.
7 Anti-Matter Lanterns Force Hal Jordan to Say Goodbye
Hal Jordan is an exceptionally powerful superhero thanks to the power of the Green Lantern Ring that he possesses, but any bearer of a Power Ring has access to vast cosmic abilities. The Green Lantern: Season Two comics put Hal Jordan and many other Lanterns up against the deadly Anti-Matter Lanterns.
Jordan remains a hero up until his final moments. He makes sure that the rest of the Lantern Corps remain safe, but he’s ultimately taken over by an Anti-Matter Lantern when he’s temporarily without his ring and attempts to acquire it.
6 Captain Atom Faces The Wrath Of The Dark Knights
DC properties have had many different event series that drastically alter the tone of characters or world, but Dark Nights: Death Metal makes it feel like the Batman and the rest of the DC universe have merged together with the Hellraiser series.
The Batman Who Laughs and all of the differently Evil Batmen cause drastic devastation and are "gifted" Earth 0 for their hard efforts. The Dark Knights execute Captain Atom, which results in basically the entire west coast of the United States being taken out with him. It's a crushing blow.
5 Pantha Is No Match For Superboy-Prime
The Teen Titans have featured many diverse members over the years, but Pantha is an honorary member who often gets overlooked due to how she never got another opportunity after she met her end. Admittedly, there are other characters that cover the same territory that Pantha did. Pantha becomes an unfortunate casualty at the hands of Superman-Prime during the Infinite Crisis storyline.
Pantha’s loss is not in vain and it helps bring the team together. At the same time, Pantha’s aggressive death also crystallizes just how evil Superboy-Prime has become and that he’s beyond redemption.
4 Wally West Is Irreparably Corrupted By Too Much Power
The reintroduction of Dr. Manhattan into the DC universe throws many characters off and some extreme measures need to be resorted to in order to deal with the supremely powerful being. The Flash Forward series explains how Wally West can stop Dr. Manhattan, as well as keep his children from being erased, by planting himself in the Mobius Chair.
This is a drastic decision that ostensibly erases Wally West's identity. His body remains, but it becomes the powerful combination of the abilities of both Dr. Manhattan and the Mobius Chair, with none of Wally's humanity left.
3 Several Legacies Of Starmen Have Met Their End
The original Starman, Ted Knight, debuted in DC Comics back in the 1940s as one of the early members of the Justice Society of America. Ted Knight meets his end and in the '90s, his oldest son David takes over the duties.
David too meets an early demise by the work of an assassin, which leads to David's younger brother, Jack, accepting the responsibility. Starman has largely been replaced by Stargirl, but it's because Jack Knight has retired, not been killed. However, the rest of his family remains out of the picture.
2 Witchfire Becomes A Bargaining Chip
Witchfire, otherwise known as Rebecca Carstairs, is a pop singer and witch when she's introduced in Justice League Dark. Witchfire becomes close allies with Wonder Woman, who inspires who to make the jump to superhero in the first place.
Both Diana and Rebecca get roped into an arrangement with the deadly Upside Down Man so that Diana can reclaim her lost body. Unfortunately, the deal doesn't go according to plan and the Upside Down Man asserts his power by breaking Rebecca's neck and leaving Diana with a lot of guilt over her lost friend.
1 Earth-22’s Superman Meets His End With The Rest Of The Planet
The Dark Nights event forever changes the makeup of the grander DC universe. It doesn’t just bring a cabal of Evil Batmen from the Dark Universe into play, but it also largely cleans house. Perpetua, a villain of extreme power, eliminates all but six of the Earths within the multiverse.
While it’s not known which exactly are left behind, it makes it explicitly clear that Kingdom Come’s Earth-22 and Red Son’s Earth-30 bite the bust, which means not only their unique takes on Superman perish, but everyone from their respective worlds do as well.