Superheroes have a reputation for coming back from big and dramatic deaths. This isn't unearned considering countless superheroes from both Marvel and DC have come back from seemingly fatal incidents. The most notorious resurrection is in DC Comics when Superman's famous demise in Superman #75 by Dan Jurgens and Brett Breeding was undone.
In Marvel Comics, Captain America, Wolverine, and the Ultimate Spider-Man (Peter Parker, not Miles Morales) were given high-profile deaths that were later reversed. Jean Grey of the X-Men has also died and come back more than once. However, despite all this, there is a list of Marvel superheroes who kicked the bucket and never returned.
10 The Sentry Met His Match With The King In Black, Knull
Considering Sentry hasn't been dead more than a year since King in Black by Donny Cates and Ryan Stegman, this might be a premature reference. That said, there have been no rumblings in the comic circuit of his return (yet). The Sentry, aka Bob Reynolds, has "died" several times. Seemingly killed by Morgan Le Fay and Molecule Man during Brian Michael Bendis and Mike Deodato Jr.'s Dark Avengers, he received a more permanent death at the hands of Thor during Siege by Bendis and Olivier Coipel.
However, Dark Avengers established that the Sentry can't die – because he's too powerful – and later returned in a Sentry miniseries by Jeff Lemire and Kim Jacinto. It was after this (and the Annihilation: Scourge story by Matthew Rosenberg, Juanan Ramirez, Cian Tormey, and others) that Knull tore the Sentry in two during his invasion of Earth, and Bob Reynolds hasn't made a comeback since. His body was used as a bomb by Kingpin's new Thunderbolts, and Bob's soul finally moved onto the afterlife with the help of the Valkyrie.
9 Toxin (Pat Mulligan) Was Brutally Killed Off-Panel By Blackheart
Police officer Pat Mulligan was the first human to wear the Toxin symbiote. This symbiote was the offspring of Carnage and prophesied to be the most powerful of his symbiote genetic line. However, Toxin dropped off the radar not long after his first appearance.
The Toxin symbiote returned in the prelude to the Circle of Four story in Venom #12 by Rick Remender and Lan Medina. According to Remender at a Q&A, Blackheart beat Pat Mulligan to death and left him in a gutter off-panel. The Toxin symbiote later bonded to Eddie Brock, and it's now attached to Bren Waters.
8 The Swordsman Has Been Replicated But The Original Is Still Gone
Jacques Duquesne was once a carnie who, along with another man called Trickshot, helped teach a young Hawkeye how to use a bow and arrow (as well as other weaponry). As the Swordsman, Duquesne would go on to become a criminal and sometimes enemy of the Avengers.
The Swordsman eventually reformed and joined the Avengers, much like his student, Hawkeye. The Swordsman fell in love with fellow Avenger and future Guardian of the Galaxy, Mantis. She then became the Celestial Madonna and was destined to birth the Celestial Messiah. Kang the Conqueror – in his various identities – tried to kidnap the Celestial Madonna and killed the Swordsman in his attempt. The Cotati, a plant-based species that adopted the Celestial Messiah, later created a plant simulacrum of the Swordsman to help them wage war on the Avengers and other animal-based lifeforms across the stars.
7 Yellowjacket (Rita DeMara) Was Killed By Iron Man
After his initial unhinged Yellowjacket episode, Hank Pym's suit was stolen and used by a woman named Rita DeMara. At first, she was a crook and joined the Masters of Evil. However, she went on to help the Avengers in a fight against the High Evolutionary. She flipped to the dark side once again but ended up betraying the Masters of Evil to the Guardians of the Galaxy of the 31st Century.
Oddly enough, Rita remained a member of that future Guardians team for a time, until she traveled back in time and was killed by Iron Man under the control of Immortus (another alias of Kang). She was resurrected, alongside other heroes, during the Chaos War event by Greg Pak, Fred van Lente, and Khoi Pham. However, this was brief, and she returned to the grave shortly thereafter.
6 Ghost Rider (Alejandra Jones) Never Returned From Her Fight With Carnage
Alejandra Jones was the next mortal to inherit the Spirit of Vengeance after Danny Ketch. She became the next Ghost Rider but her tenure was short. She helped Agent Venom, Red Hulk, and X-23 during the Circle of Four event by Rick Remender and Tony Moore in Venom comics, but that was the highlight of her career.
Thanks to the events of Circle of Four, she had a symbiote codex inside of her and was hunted down by Carnage during the events of Absolute Carnage by Donny Cates and Ryan Stegman in a one-shot by Ed Brisson and Juan Frigeri. Carnage killed Alejandra, but she was briefly able to return as a ghost to help fellow Ghost Rider Danny Ketch survive Carnage's attack.
5 White Tiger (Hector Ayala)'s Story Is Quite Tragic
Hector Ayala was a small-time martial arts hero who was powered by the White Tiger Amulet to fight crime. He was an ally of Jack of Hearts, Sons of the Tiger, Shang-Chi, and Iron Fist. Unfortunately, he never received the recognition he deserved.
Hector retired for a time but later donned the White Tiger gear to stop a robbery that resulted in a cop being shot dead. The perpetrators escaped and White Tiger was blamed for the cop killing. Matt Murdock, aka Daredevil, tried to defend White Tiger in court, but Matt lost the case. Hector had a breakdown and tried to escape before he was shot dead by police. He was later succeeded by his niece, Angela del Toro, and his little sister, Ava Ayala, who now both go by the title of White Tiger.
4 Goliath (Bill Foster) Has A Successor But Has Remained Deceased Himself
Bill Foster was able to recreate the Pym Particles and become his own superhero named Goliath. He went on to have a sterling career as a superhero, teaming up with the Champions, Defenders, and The Thing of the Fantastic Four many times.
Unfortunately, Bill was killed during the Superhuman Civil War by a rampaging cybernetic clone of Thor dubbed "Ragnarok." Bill sided with Captain America, leading the rogue Ragnarok to use lethal force and put a massive hole in Goliath's chest. Bill's nephew, Tom, later took up the mantle of Goliath and initially sought revenge against The Avengers for getting his uncle killed, but he later became a hero in his own right.
3 Valkyrie (Brunnhilde) And Her Allies Were Massacred By Maliketh
Brunnhilde the Valkyrie has a storied history as a part of both the Defenders and the Secret Avengers. When Malekith's War of the Realms found its way to Midgard, Valkyrie and her comrades fought to save the innocents of Earth from Malekith's army. Unfortunately, this ended in the entire Valkyrior being slaughtered by Malekith and his forces.
Jane Foster, who was once the Mighty Thor herself, inherited Valkyrie's Undrjarn and became the new Valkyrie. Brunnhilde offers guidance to Jane from Valhalla from time to time, but it seems her time as a hero of Midgard is over for good.
2 Thunderbird May Be On Krakoa But May As Well Still Be Dead
This is a tenuous inclusion as Thunderbird, aka John Proudstar could theoretically be back from the dead thanks to the resurrection protocols of Krakoa. However, it hasn't been confirmed that happened and there doesn't seem to be any plans to bring Thunderbird back.
Thunderbird was first introduced into Marvel Comics via his recruitment to the X-Men. He was brought onto the team alongside Wolverine, Storm, Colossus, Nightcrawler, Sunfire, and Banshee. Thunderbird accompanied them (except Sunfire, who immediately left the team) on a mission to stop Count Nefaria. This mission ended with Thunderbird dying on Nefaria's exploding escape jet. He was resurrected during the Chaos War and the Necrosha event by Craig Kyle, Christopher Yost, Mike Carey, and Zeb Wells. However, these were temporary resurrections that made Thunderbird an outside force's flesh puppet instead of giving him a true comeback.
1 Captain Mar-Vell Has Seen Returns But Stayed Dead
Captain Mar-Vell was a Kree superhero; a close ally of The Avengers; the inspiration for Carol Danvers to become Ms. Marvel and later Captain Marvel, and a mortal enemy of Thanos. Mar-Vell sided with the Earth – even against his own people – which led to his demise.
A fight against Nitro the Exploding Man found Captain Mar-Vell becoming irradiated and contracting cancer. The Kree offered a cure so long as Mar-Vell betrayed humanity, but he refused and perished. He was later resurrected during Chaos War and by the Kree as a weapon against the Phoenix Force and The Avengers. However, these effectively made Mar-Vell into a mindless, undead puppet, and he returned to the great beyond after being freed from outside control. That said, Marvel has teased readers with a story starring the Silver Surfer that promises to bring Captain Mar-Vell back.
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