11 Comic Book Characters Who Died In 2019

11. Alfred Pennyworth

Issue: Batman #77

Alfred Pennyworth has been a significant supporting character in comics since Batman #16 all the way back in 1943. The guy has been serving the Wayne Family for nearly a century, and he's been through a lot. He's been depicted as an elderly servant and as a British spy, but no matter how he was portrayed, he was a loyal friend to Bruce Wayne.

Killing off Alfred in any permanent manner was a complete shock to fans, but that's exactly what Tom King did at the end of his run on Batman. King had Bane kill the loyal butler in Batman #77, and with all the losses Bruce suffered over the years, this one may be the hardest to overcome.

Alfred's death will be explored in Batman: Pennyworth R.I.P., a one-shot dropping in February 2020, which will focus on the impact of his death, and how Bruce will deal with it. He spent his entire crimefighting life protecting the man who raised him, and his death is comparable to that of his parents.

It was the death of his mother and father in Crime Alley that pushed him to fight crime, but now that Alfred's been killed by one of his deadliest enemies, the Dark Knight will need to come to terms with his lot in life. Will he continue to don the cape and cowl, or will he double down, and continue his life of vengeance among the denizens of Gotham's deepest, darkest alleys?