15 Emotional Comic Book Moments That Made Us Shed A Tear
2. The Night Gwen Stacy Died
The 1973 Amazing Spider-Man storyline, The Night Gwen Stacy Died, is considered a definitive moment in comic book history. In it, Gwen Stacy, the girlfriend of Peter Parker, aka, Spider-Man, is killed after she is thrown off a bridge by the villain, the Green Goblin. Spider-Man attempts to rescue Gwen by webbing her leg to break her fall, but inadvertently snaps her neck instead.
The storyline is historically significant because it marks one of the first times in mainstream comics that an innocent, non-superpowered character is killed. This event is made even more egregious by the fact that the hero is depicted in failing in trying to save her. The story's grittiness has led some comic book historians to cite it as an unofficial transition point from the more innocent, fantastical Silver Age of comics, to the darker, more realistic Bronze Age. In fact, the storyline has been dissected and discussed by fans and critics so frequently over the past 40 years it has arguably lost some of its emotional impact.
However, if you put yourself in the shoes of a Spider-Man fan in 1973, reading The Night Gwen Stacy Died for the very first time without any knowledge or prejudice about what was about to come, then you will understand why this story is considered one of the most extraordinarily sad moments in comic book history. How many comic books can stake the claim of ending an era of innocence for an entire industry?