Top 20 Marvel Deaths That Still Hurt
#20: Howard & Maria Stark
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“Captain America: Civil War” (2016) Although Tony didn’t always get along with his parents, he spent a lot of time thinking about them after hearing they lost their lives in a car crash. Their losses become even harder to bear when the truth about their deaths was revealed. Near the end of “Civil War”, Zemo plays a recording of Howard and Maria’s last moments to Tony, Cap and Bucky. It quickly becomes apparent that the brainwashed winter soldier ended the husband and wife’s lives personally. What made this tragic hit hard to watch was the fact that Bucky and Howard were once friends. Although we know the winter soldier had no control, the thought that the eldest Stark died believing his old buddy betrayed him is still incredibly dark.
#19: Pietro Maximoff
“Avengers: Age of Ultron” (2015) Pietro Maximoff originally teamed up with the robotic Ultron to take the Avengers down. Using his powers of super speed, he furthered his ally’s plot while annoying Hawkeye. But once Pietro realized how twisted Ultron was, he helps the Avengers unplug the robot. Pietro’s speed allowed him to rescue people in seconds and literally run through enemy forces. But when Ultron fires artillery at the heroes, Pietro wasn’t fast enough to move Hawkeye out of the way. Instead, he shields Hawkeye by running in front of the bullets. Pietro’s shocking death was a gut punch to his allies and our expectations. Just when it seemed he’d have a long hero career, his time was cut short.
#18: The Animated Christine Palmer
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“What If…? (2021-) After losing Christine in a car accident, Dr. Strange acquires the time stone and tries to prevent her untimely end by going back to the past. But no matter what new idea he tries, he sees the love of his life die over and over again. It was gut wrenching enough watching Strange lose hope in saving Christine. Unfortunately, the most painful part was yet to come. When the magical doctor breaks the rules of time to finally save her, reality itself crumbles around him. His vast power isn’t enough to stop Christine from fading in his arms. Even though this Strange committed horrific acts to get to this point, we still couldn’t help but feel his pain in the end.
#17: Frigga
“Thor: The Dark World” (2013) The Queen of Asgard was every bit as fierce as she was kind. Not only did she defend her own people, but she made sure that the outcasts and outsiders were taken care of. During Frigga’s last day alive, she did whatever she could to protect the Earthling Jane in Asgard. The Queen even tried to fight the sinister Malekith to keep the doctor safe. But when the villain became impatient, he ordered Frigga’s death. Knowing that she died for a virtual stranger is a difficult fact to accept. She shouldn’t have had to suffer the ultimate price for being so unfailingly kind.
#16: Ho Yinsen
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“Iron Man” (2008) Without Ho Yinsen, Iron Man would've never taken flight. He first met Tony Stark while they were both imprisoned by the ten rings. Ho Yinsen encouraged his ally to build a way to escape their captors and talked about reuniting with his family. When Stark was just almost ready to get his suit moving, the duo discovered the armor needed more time. Yinsen proceeded to sacrifice his own life to give Tony the opportunity to turn on the suit. If the doctor’s selfless last act wasn’t enough to get you emotional, his last words will. In a heartbreaking reveal, Yinsen revealed that his family was already dead. The innocent doctor also passed away without knowing he helped give the world one of its greatest champions.
#15: The Original Groot
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“Guardians of the Galaxy” (2014) Baby Groot is so adorable that we constantly forget about the dark event that led to his existence. In the original “Guardians”, a tall and treelike alien stole our hearts. When this Groot wasn’t stopping to make someone smile, he was demonstrating how loyal he was to his friends. His good nature is exactly what led to one of the space franchise’s saddest scenes. After Groot and the guardians get trapped on a ship about to crash, he protects them with his entire body. The hero explains his motivations with three tear jerking words. Rocket’s expression at seeing the remains of Groot speaks volumes on its own. Thankfully, the presence of the tree’s offspring has helped us and the Guardians process a truly tragic end.
#14: Peggy Carter
“Captain America: Civil War” (2016) Cap and Peggy’s whirlwind romance first began in the turbulent era of World War II. It tragically came to an abrupt halt when Steve volunteered to land in ice to stop a plane full of deadly bombs. After he awoke 70 years later, he discovered that Peggy was struggling with memory loss and kept forgetting that he had returned. This devastating turn was followed by the news that she had passed away during the events of “Civil War”. The sight of Steve carrying her coffin gets us choked up every time. Although he eventually gets to spend time with Peggy thanks to time travel, it doesn’t change the fact that he knows exactly how hard it was to lose her.
#13: 2018 Loki
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“Avengers: Infinity War” (2018) For most of his life, Loki was a selfish god who would backstab anyone to get ahead. But he slowly started to become a genuine hero. Shortly after Loki saved the lives of tons of Asgardians, we were ready to see him join the Avengers. But then he came face-to-face with his old boss Thanos. Although Loki could’ve saved himself by serving his old employer, the god of mischief risked everything to try and kill the titan. It’s instantly revealed that his act of defiance was futile. Thanos proceeds to slowly choke the life out of Loki. While the death is harrowing on its own, the demise reached a new level of pain when a variant of the god had to watch his own end.
#12: May Parker
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“Spider-Man: No Way Home” (2021) While most parental figures and guardians would probably be against their nephews swinging into danger, Aunt May was different. She fully supported the fact that Peter was willing to risk his life to save others. Following his example is what led to her demise. When the Green Goblin tried to slay Peter, May tried and failed to stop the villain. The cruel man returned the favor by fatally wounding her. It initially appears that May survived the attack. However, our hearts sank when she fell. It was especially agonizing to watch May’s last moments because she didn’t know how dire her wounds were. Although she’s gone in an instant, we will never forget Peter’s face when she took her last breath.
#11: Wanda’s Westview Family
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“WandaVision” (2021) Admittedly, Vision, Billy and Tommy didn’t come into existence through natural means. But their emotions and memories made them feel and function like real people. That’s why seeing them go was nearly impossible to watch. After Wanda realizes that bringing her family to life hurts a town full of people, she makes the painful decision to let her loved ones go. The young Billy and Tommy had no idea they were on their way out. Meanwhile, Vision knows that his time is up and embraces his last moments with his wife. The children’s final bedtime and the synthezoid’s acceptance makes for a devastating one-two gut punch we haven’t recovered from.
#10: Aaron Davis
“Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” (2018) Within the first half hour of “Into the Spider-verse,” we witnessed the tragic passing of Peter Parker’s Spider-Man. But the film’s most heart-wrenching death is reserved for Miles Morales’ uncle Aaron. It’s established early on that the nephew and uncle share almost everything with each other. But before Miles reveals he’s the new Spider-Man, he learns that Aaron is the supervillain Prowler. When they’re forced to fight one another, Miles reveals his true identity. The revelation causes Aaron to stop attacking. When his boss Kingpin realizes Spider-Man is being shown mercy, Kingpin fatally shoots Aaron. Miles is ultimately left alone with his uncle’s body and feeling responsible for his death.
#9: Queen Ramonda
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“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (2022) By the time Ramonda had become the ruler of Wakanda, she had seen a tremendous amount of loss. That made her extremely determined to protect anyone else from dying. Unfortunately, she was put into a difficult situation when she sheltered Riri Williams against King Namor’s wishes. When the aquatic ruler arrived to slay his target, he trapped Ramonda and Riri in deep water. The Queen of Wakanda doesn’t hesitate to save her new ally from drowning. But by the time Ramonda reaches the surface, it’s too late for anyone to save her. The sheer anguish her daughter feels radiates off the screen and hits us hard. Queen Ramonda deserved to reign much longer than she did.
#8: Gwen Stacy
“The Amazing Spider-Man 2” (2014) The strong relationship between Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy was the best part of the “Amazing Spider-Man” saga. No matter what hardships tried to tear them apart, they always came back together. Their love story came to a devastating end in the second film. During a fight with the Green Goblin, Gwen falls from a high point in a clock tower. Peter immediately leaps into action and tries to catch her with his web. But just as his web reaches her, Gwen’s head hits the ground. Peter repeatedly tells her she’s okay before realizing he was too late. The image of Peter crying over Gwen’s body still haunts us.
#7: Gamora
“Avengers: Infinity War” (2018) When Gamora was a child, Thanos killed half of her people before adopting her as his own daughter. As she grew to openly resent him, he secretly grew to love her. So, when Thanos had to throw a loved one off a cliff to acquire the Soul Stone, he heartbreakingly chose Gamora. Although she tries to fight back, Thanos overpowers her and throws her off the edge. The look of disbelief and anguish on her face mirrored exactly what the audience was feeling. Gamora had been at the mercy of Thanos for almost her entire life. Seeing her sacrificed for his twisted goals felt like an unfair ending for her tortured character. At least there’s another version of the character out there.
#6: Charles Xavier
“Logan” (2017) After mutant professor Charles Xavier develops a neurological disease, he starts losing memories and control of his powers. Knowing the professor’s abilities could hurt innocents, Logan planned to buy a boat that would get them away from people. But their plans are interrupted when they become targets of a corporation that creates and clones mutants. While on the run, Charles tearfully remembers hurting people with his powers. After unknowingly confessing his guilt to Logan’s clone, the clone stabs Charles. Having the professor be killed by someone that looks like his friend was agonizing to watch. As the final twist of the knife, Charles’ last words to Logan are all about the boat they planned to buy.
#5: Natasha Romanoff
“Avengers: Endgame” (2019) Five years after Thanos ended countless lives, the Avengers hatch a plan to bring the victims back with Infinity Stones. Natasha and her close friend Clint choose to get the Soul Stone. When they arrive, they learn that one must let the other fall to their death to get the stone. But they both volunteer. Unable to let the other go, Clint and Natasha fight to choose who will make the sacrifice. In the end, Natasha overcomes Clint and asks him to let her go. He tries to hold on, but Natasha makes the ultimate sacrifice. Our hearts sank as she fell. Although Natasha lost her life, her soul lives on in the countless amount of lives that she helped save.
#4: Yondu Udonta
“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” (2017) At first glance, Yondu doesn’t seem like he was a good father figure to Peter Quill. After all; he did kidnap Peter at a young age before forcing him into a life of crime. But it turned out that kidnapping Peter kept him away from his homicidal father for two decades. Shortly after Star-Lord meets his biological father, the two fight on a planet that gets destroyed. Yondu helps Peter escape the destruction by flying the two into space with a jetpack. But since he only has one holographic space suit, he gives up the suit and his life so Peter can survive. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house when this daddy used his last moments to comfort his grieving son.
#3: Logan
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“Logan” (2017) For centuries, Logan’s fast healing powers enabled him to survive any fight. When his abilities begin to slow down, Logan tries to avoid battles. He’s forced to fight again, however, upon discovering that he has a daughter named Laura who needs protection from mercenaries. Logan overcomes most of their forces while bonding with his daughter. But when they send Logan’s younger clone into the fight, the clone ends up impaling the original on a tree. Although Laura shoots X-24 down, it’s too late. Logan can only encourage Laura to have a peaceful life before he passes away. We wish his healing factor could’ve kicked into overdrive to give him another quiet moment with his daughter.
#2: Tony Stark
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“Avengers: Endgame” (2019) As Earth tried to cope with losing half the population to Thanos’ snap, Tony Stark made a happy life for his daughter, Morgan. When Tony’s fellow Avengers ask him to help undo the snap through time travel, he agrees with a condition: he can’t lose his little girl. When the Avengers return from time with the Infinity Stones, Thanos follows them and tries to use the stones for a second snap. It’s Tony who decimates the Mad Titan, however, with a snap of his fingers. Unfortunately, Tony’s actions damage his body beyond repair. Seeing a character we loved for eleven years pass away and leave his friends and young daughter behind is almost too painful to put in words. We’ll always love you 3,000, Tony.
#1: T’Challa
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“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (2022) Around two years after Chadwick Boseman’s sudden passing, we saw his iconic character T’Challa get laid to rest. The film chose to have the Black Panther die of a mysterious ailment to reflect the real life circumstances of the actor’s passing. After watching an emotional funeral service, the story constantly showed the profound effect T’Challa’s death had on others. The movie’s heavy focus on grief helped viewers process their own feelings about Boseman. And while the weight of his loss was always felt, the story ended on an optimistic note. The final reveal that T’Challa left behind a son showed that you can always find light and hope after grief.
