10 Most Tragic Deaths In The History Of DC Comics

9. Superman

The death of the Man Of Steel himself made national news when it happened, way back in that heady decade we call the nineties. Obviously we all knew that it wasn't going to last - even those of us not cynical and jaded enough to be intimately familiar with the concept of "comic book death" realised that DC weren't going to kill of their biggest character, especially one who is such a cultural icon, recognisable (and bankable) worldwide.

Still, marketing ploy or otherwise, their gamble worked out and we all went out to buy the Death Of Superman miniseries - and its many, many tie-in issues - in our droves. There was a particular poignancy about the murder of the last son of Krypton. Since the Crisis On Infinite Earths series which had reset his history, Clark Kent had finally managed to "come out" as Superman to his long-term romantic interest Lois Lane, before proposing to her - which she gladly accepted.

Everything seemed to be coming up Superman, and following a rocky decade of trying to make this decidedly sunny character into something befitting the grim grittiness of Batman or Watchmen, it really suited him. Which couldn't last, obviously.

In practice, The Death Of Superman was actually not all that great of a series. The way the hero got taken out - bludgeoned to a pulp by new villain Doomsday - felt pretty cheap and boring, and the pacing was all off.

The fallout and genuine grief people felt about this paragon of pop culture, this icon of American values, being killed off, though? That was real, and it was long-lasting, both in the public consciousness and in the Superman comics too, as his supporting cast tried to deal with the tragedy of losing their greatest champion, their closest friends, their one true love.

That's pretty sad, right?