10 Most Devastating Comic Book Endings

Despite Image Comics really going off the rails in some places, the Invincible comics line is one of it's better success stories. The tale of the half-alien sidekick-turned-messiah ran for 144 issues over sixteen years and became a staple of the independent comic scene. It ran out its course in 2018 with one final issue wrapping up all the major story lines while leaving open a few tantalizing loose strands.

Invincible, a.k.a. Mark Grayson, tells his son the story of their people before leaving him behind with his step father. Mark takes the remaining members of his alien species, the Viltrumites, along with his immortal wife and their daughter into space to establish an empire of galactic peace-keepers. As the years fly by, his son takes on the Invincible moniker, his empire becomes the political foundation of the galaxy, and his entire family is successful in their individual endeavors. The story ends with Mark and his family relaxing at their house, content with their lives.

While seemingly just a happy ending, this hit long-time readers hard. A big element of the series was that whenever something good happened to Mark, it was immediately followed by a devastating event that changed his life, always keeping his well-deserved happiness well out of his reach. So for Mark to have such an extended period of contentment meant that either he was finally being rewarded for his heroism or the apocalypse was right around the corner.