Content Warning: Mild Gore
Death is a part of life, especially in superhero comics. The massive explosions and alien invasions so commonplace in comic books have led to nearly every major super character biting it at one point or another. However, some of these noble sacrifices have been more meaningful than others.
Whether due to cheeky creatives, slim storyline stakes, or just illogical character motivations, there are plenty of Marvel heroes whose deaths have been a little dumb. From major Avengers and X-players to inconsequential characters made to die, not every hero death in the Marvel Universe is as noble as one might think.
10 The Zombie Fantastic Four's Death Is A Macabre Zombie Comedy
Marvel's Marvel Zombies is equal parts funny and disturbing. It's an alternate universe of classic Marvel heroes infected by a zombie virus that retained the victim's personalities. The Robert Kirkman-created series went on to become one of Marvel's most visited alternate universes.
The Fantastic Four's death in this universe is tonally apt. After Franklin and Valeria Richards are eaten by She-Hulk, Reed Richards goes mad and secretly infects his fellow FFers with the virus. Much to their horror, the trio partially consumes Mister Fantastic and transmits the virus to him in a particularly revolting development.
9 "Onslaught" Caused "Heroes Reborn"
'90s mega-event Onslaught was all over the place. After Professor X brain wiped Magneto, his evil thoughts joined with Magneto's newly-reconstituted mind to form the psychic supervillain entity known as Onslaught. Alternately epic and aimless, Onslaught marauded through Marvel's comics for much of 1996.
In the climactic final battle of the event, the X-Men, Avengers, and Fantastic Four stood with their allies against the menace. Thor led the charge against the psychic entity while the X-Men stayed back to not feed him mutant energy. The Avengers and FF seemingly perished, resulting in the much-maligned Heroes Reborn reboot.
8 Iron Man's Death In "The Crossing" Satisfied No One
Movie fans recognize Iron Man for having one of the most stand-out deaths in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but the early '90s saw Tony Stark die a far less heroic and interesting death. The events of The Crossing saw Iron Man retconned to be a sleeper agent of Kang the Conqueror from the team's very beginning.
After Stark's betrayal, the Avengers time-traveled to recruit a teen version of the Armored Avenger. Teen Tony shocked his adult self so much that he sacrificed his life to stop Kang, leaving fans with both a sour taste in their mouth and a dead favorite.
7 Hawkeye Didn't Need To Kill Himself In Disassembled
Avengers Disassembled was a dark sea change for Earth's Mightiest Heroes. After 500 issues of adventure, writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Steve McNiven brought an explosive end to the classic era of the team. The Scarlet Witch's mental instability led to her destroying the Mansion and killing several of her teammates.
Among the dead was ace archer Hawkeye, who grabbed a jetpack-wearing Kree soldier and flew into a spaceship once his quiver of explosive arrows caught fire. Though undoubtedly a noble sacrifice, many readers felt like Hawkeye should have just taken off his quiver rather than kill himself.
6 Punisher Nuked All The X-Men
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In the '90s, there seemed like an endless amount of X-Men. Similarly, there seemed an endless amount of Punisher comics. As Marvel's lone gunman rose in stardom, it was only a matter of time before the House of Ideas put him against the rest of their costumed crusaders.
Writer Garth Ennis and artist Doug Braithwaite's Punisher Kills the Marvel Universe is a one-shot that does exactly what the title says. Frank's most egregious slaughter was his destruction of nearly every X-character via a nuclear ambush on the Moon. Though undoubtedly effective, surely at least one of the multiple mutant geniuses might have seen it coming.
5 Black Widow Accidentally Died In "Secret Empire"
2017's Secret Empire went down as one of Marvel's most controversial crossovers. After a reality rewrite made Captain America a Hydra sleeper agent, Black Widow helped lead a majority of Marvel's heroes in forming a resistance against Cap's new fascist rule.
Black Widow was one of the crossover's biggest casualties and one of its dumbest. After attempting to separate Spider-Man (Miles Morales) from Captain America, Black Widow caught an accidental, neck-snapping blow from Hydra Cap's shield. Fans had a hard time believing the ex-spy would be so clumsy, and the offhand nature of her death made an ignominious end for the longtime Avenger.
4 The Original Hellions Returned From Obscurity Just To Die
When Chris Claremont needed a rival for his teen team the New Mutants, he and artist Sal Buscema created the Hellions, a darker group of youngsters led by the somewhat villainous White Queen. However, as the New Mutants evolved from fledging heroes to paramilitary forces, their onetime rivals became largely forgotten by continuity.
After returning in 1991's Uncanny X-Men #281 (written by Jim Lee, John Byrne, and Whilce Portacio, and drawn by Portacio), the majority of the team was killed by newly-introduced villain Trevor Fitzroy. While the Hellions had never been major Marvel players, the team's abrupt death by a frankly frustrating villain made few fans happy.
3 Hulk's Death In "Old Man Logan" Was As Violent As It Was Ridiculous
Writer Mark Millar and artist Steve McNiven told one of Wolverine's most influential stories in the pages of Old Man Logan. Millar's dark storyline and McNiven's apocalyptic pencils saw Logan take a grounded journey through a fantastic wasteland. He and Hawkeye sought to restore a semblance of heroism to a defeated and divided nation.
However, the end of the story was pretty loud and dumb. After returning to his farm, Logan discovers his murdered family and seeks to find and kill those responsible. This culminates in a fight where the Hulk eats Wolverine, only for the aged hero to rip his way through Hulk's guts.
2 Members Of "X-Statix" Were Always Being Killed Off
Writer Peter Milligan and artists Mike and Laura Allred's X-Force/X-Statix run is a high point of aughts comics. A satire on the disposable humanity of reality television, the comic took the idea to the next level by introducing an ever-evolving, death-prone cast of fame-obsessed mutants.
Lots of deaths in X-Statix were stupid, but that was the point. The team's first appearance in X-Force #116 saw the team seek to rescue kidnaped pop group Boys R Us, but the group failed spectacularly. Members Battering Ram, Gin Genie, Plazm, and La Nuit all perished, secretly arranged by team leaders Coach and Zeitgeist for TV ratings.
1 "Ultimatum" Killed Just About Everybody
Marvel's Ultimate imprint was an exciting way for the company's top creators to retell the stories of classic heroes in a freshly modern, reader-friendly context. However, over the course of time, the new universe became bogged down in its own equally labyrinthine continuity, causing Marvel to attempt a reset with the mega-event Ultimatum.
The kick-off of Ultimatum saw a massive tidal wave rip through New York City, killing numerous heroes including Beast, Nightcrawler, Dazzler, Daredevil, and most infamously, the Wasp. Dozens of other heroes senselessly died in the aftermath, leading critics and fans alike to pan the violent, unceremonious end of half the Ultimate Universe's cast.