History DyingMomentOfAwesome / ComicBooks

!!'''As a DeathTrope, all spoilers will be unmarked ahead. Beware.'''

** The first Phoenix, [[CloningBlues a superpowered duplicate who thought she was Jean Grey]]: [[HeroicSacrifice Blew herself up with an alien weapon]] to stop herself from [[ApocalypseHow destroying the universe.]]

** Gorgon in ''ComicBook/XOfSwords'', facing the White Sword of the Ivory Spire and his 100 Champions, who have spent thousands of years in unending battle against an army of demons. Gorgon slaughters the first champion with contemptuous ease. Two more are sent against them, and he kills them too. White Sword sends three; Gorgon kills them, but the third manages to blind him before she dies. Then White Sword sends the remaining 94 all at once, and Gorgon cuts down seven more of them before White Sword's allies beg him to stop giving Krakoa points. By that time Gorgon is dead on his feet, but White Sword [[WorthyOpponent offers to resurrect him as one of his Champions]]. Gorgon refuses, because "I walk my own path", so White Sword gives him a quick death. [[Characters/MarvelComicsApocalypse Apocalypse]], watching, tells his allies: "That is how a mutant dies, children."

* The death of ComicBook/UltimateSpiderman in the aptly named "The Death of Spider-man" arc certainly applies. For starters he jumps in front of a bullet for Captain America without a moment's thought, shows up to fight the Sinister Six still wounded and having had an ''entire bridge fall on him'' and doesn't stop fighting until he's taken them all out and uses his last ounce of strength to hit the Green Goblin with a semi-truck to protect Aunt May.

* One of the earliest ones in comic books; the original ''ComicBook/DoomPatrol''. General Zahl forced a SadisticChoice on the team, letting them choose between being blown up with a nuke, a sacrifice that would never be remembered, or save their own skins by letting him blow up a dinky fishing village of just fourteen people. The Patrol pretty much stared him down and said [[BringIt "Fire away, Zahl!"]]

** [[spoiler: The Multiverse Exploratory Team]] gets [[KillEmAll completely wiped out]] and fails to really slow down [[EldritchAbomination the Beyonders]], but they ''don't'' go quietly. Confronted by two Beyonders, the team throw everything they have at their foes and [[spoiler: [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu actually win]]. Nightmask dies teleporting the team across the universe, Abyss and the Ex Nihili give their lives to forcibly and permanently reshape one Beyonder into a tree, Star Brand explodes with enough force to take the other Beyonder with him, and Thor and Hyperion hurl themselves into the subsequent army of Beyonders that swarm out to finish them off]]. Special mention must go to [[spoiler: Thor]], who's bravery is so epic that [[spoiler: he becomes worthy of wielding Mjolnir again, meaning he redeemed himself at last]].

* ''[[ComicBook/TheMightyThor Thor]]'' # 343: Eilif the Lost, last survivor of a Viking LostColony, aided Thor against a dragon that {{Mjolnir}} couldn't harm. Wounded, feeling his energy failing, he climbed to a position above the dragon and dived onto it with his spear. "The son... of Odin... must not... perish... because Eilif... failed in his duty!" Eilif didn't realize it, but Odin had earlier put a special blessing on the spear, and it pierced the dragon's hide. Then Thor hammered it into the heart.

'''ComicBook/{{Superboy}}:''' I know, Cass. Isn't it cool? *dies*

* The death of ComicBook/UltimateSpiderman in the aptly named "The Death of Spider-man" arc certainly applies. For starters he jumps in front of a bullet for Captain America without a moment's thought, shows up to fight the Sinister Six still wounded and doesn't stop fighting until he's taken them all out and uses his last ounce of strength to hit the Green Goblin with a semi-truck to protect Aunt May.

** The first Thunderbird, John Proudstar: [[SenselessSacrifice Punching out a fighter jet.]] In mid-flight. It's one of the few that has actually stuck.
** The first Phoenix, [[CloningBlues a superpowered duplicate who thought she was ComicBook/JeanGrey]]: [[HeroicSacrifice Blew herself up with an alien weapon]] to stop herself from [[ApocalypseHow destroying the universe.]]

* ''ComicBook/JonathanHickmansAvengers'':

* ''ComicBook/FinalCrisis: [[TitleRequiem Requiem]]'' reveals that the ComicBook/MartianManhunter didn't go to his ComicBookDeath merely being stabbed in the back but went down fighting the Secret Society while getting his friends to write down his life story as he died.

* Minor ComicBook/HellBlazer character Nigel Archer is a ButtMonkey of the first order, but dies during torture from TheDevil, without giving up a thing on Constantine. Even the Devil's a little impressed.

* During ''ComicBook/JLA1997'', the story envisioned a dark future where Darkseid had taken over Earth. Third-tier hero ComicBook/{{Aztek}} was a survivor, and in a last-ditch effort, was sent to shut down the slave device power generators Darkseid had built on the moon. Surrounded and beaten, he whispered to his dying teammate: ''My armor's powered by a four-dimensional battery, yeah? The only thing that stops the energy from erupting into 3-D space with a destructive force greater than any weapon known on Earth... is a little fader switch on my belt. And '''guess what I just did'''.'' [[DetonationMoon And boom went the moon.]]
** Aztek had a similar exit against Mageddon.
-->"I am in the heart of the shadow-god of my people, Tezcatlipoca -- and he's just an old computer. Just a machine. But for a long time we have had a weapon designed to stop him. This weapon is called 'Aztek'. Tell them I did my duty."

--> ''Human Torch'': "A billion to one? You think I'm afraid of that? '''YOU THINK I'M AFRAID OF THAT?! FLAME ON!'''"

* ''ComicBook/FinalCrisis: [[TitleRequiem Requiem]]'' reveals that the ComicBook/MartianManhunter didn't go to his ComicBookDeath merely being stabbed in the back, but went down fighting the Secret Society while getting his friends to write down his life story as he died.

--> ''Hawkeye'': NOT LIKE THIS! NOT LIKE THIS! '''LIKE THIS!'''

* [[ComicBook/GrantMorrisonsBatman Damian Wayne's]] death. He entered the Batman franchise a whiny murderous entitled brat and exits it as true a hero as any other member of the Bat-family. He puts up a valiant but futile fight against his own monstrous clone Heretic to protect a girl. Damian refuses to give up even after being riddled with bullets and arrows and having his back broken by Heretic. Right to the very end, up to the moment Heretic impales him with a sword, Damian [[LastSecondChance also tries to reach out]] to his mother Talia one last time. Damian was raised to be a tyrant but died a hero.

* During ''ComicBook/GrantMorrisonsJLA'', the story envisioned a dark future where Darkseid had taken over Earth. Third-tier hero ComicBook/{{Aztek}} was a survivor, and in a last-ditch effort, was sent to shut down the slave device power generators Darkseid had built on the moon. Surrounded and beaten, he whispered to his dying teammate: ''My armor's powered by a four-dimensional battery, yeah? The only thing that stops the energy from erupting into 3-D space with a destructive force greater than any weapon known on Earth... is a little fader switch on my belt. And '''guess what I just did'''.'' [[DetonationMoon And boom went the moon.]]