All 10 Times Captain America Died in the Comics, Explained
Captain America has been a staple in the world of comic books as he is one of the most iconic heroes that Marvel Comics has ever written. While he is far from being the strongest hero, Steve Rogers has played the role of a symbol of peace, heroism, and leadership in Marvel Comics. He is strong, brave, and selfless, which has allowed Captain America to become one of the constants of the comic book universe.
Of course, Steve Rogers was never immune to the effects of death and is not as durable as some of the other superheroes in Marvel Comics’ history. This has allowed him to have a few brushes with death here and there. On top of that, he has also experienced actual death more than once. So, with that said, let’s look at all of Captain America’s deaths in the comics.
Captain America has died at least ten times
When it comes to Marvel Comics, not a lot of heroes are as iconic as Captain America. Sure enough, he was never the strongest, fastest, and most powerful hero because his superhuman strength and durability aren’t even on par with some of the other mighty heroes in the history of Marvel Comics. Despite that, he has consistently played the role of a great hero due to his natural selflessness.
The fact that Steve Rogers is selfless and isn’t even immune to injuries and powerful attacks means that he has had a few meetings with death in the comics. Yes, Captain America has experienced death before, and this shouldn’t come as a surprise to fans of Marvel because even the strongest heroes in Marvel Comics also have their own fair share of deaths.
In Captain America’s case, he has died at least ten times in the comics, and that means that he isn’t necessarily immune to death despite how iconic and heroic he may be. So, with that said, let’s look at all the times that Captain America has died in the comics.
The ten times that Captain America died
1. ‘Avengers’ #4
Released back in 1964, ‘Avengers’ #4 allowed people all over the world to witness Steve Rogers’ first “death” as a character. This storyline explores the retcon of Captain America as he joined the Avengers for the first time. Before this comic book, Steve Rogers stopped appearing in comic books as he was specifically written to be a World War II character, and it was difficult to write a character who was basically just created to be an American symbol during wartime.
Nevertheless, he appeared in this comic book and was thrown off an exploding airplane by Baron Zemo. After that, he sank into the depths of the Atlantic Ocean as he froze to his “death” but was actually just in suspended animation. It’s hard to believe how a man could live without air and sustenance for decades, as Cap didn’t necessarily die in this comic book.
2. ‘Captain America’ #111
After Captain America miraculously survived frozen in the ocean depths for years, he eventually joined the Avengers. He started going on missions with his teammates or by himself. As such, the comic book series of Steve Rogers continued to release more issues, and it was in 1969, he was “killed” in a solo storyline.
In ‘Captain America’ #111, Captain America is supposed to meet Nick Fury at an amusement park for a secret S.H.I.E.L.D. meeting before he gets caught in a trap set by none other than his enemies over at Hydra. He was attacked by a Hydra robot named Mankiller, who proved to be too much for Steve, as the hero jumped into the water while the robot continued to shoot him. Cap was assumed dead by Hydra and the police because a bullet-ridden costume was fished out. However, the truth was that he merely faked his death.
3. ‘Avengers’ #177
Up until now, both of Captain America’s previous deaths were just retcons and faked deaths. But in ‘Avengers’ #177, Steve Rogers actually dies for the very first time in a real death. Yes, this isn’t a death that he faked or was believed to be real but wasn’t. Instead, we are talking about an actual death here. Michael Korvac was responsible for the events that led to Steve’s death, as he spent the entire comic book beating the Avengers up.
During the Korvac Saga in the comics, the aforementioned character started a fight with the Avengers. Fearing that the Avengers would gather all the powerful cosmic entities in the universe to defeat him, Korvac decided to kill Captain America and the rest of the Avengers. Eventually, however, Korvac resurrects everyone to show that he isn’t really evil, and Moondragon erases everyone’s memories as none of the Avengers remembered that they died.
4. ‘Secret Wars’ #11
Years after Captain America died for the very first time in an event that actually killed him, ‘Secret Wars’ happened, and this is still one of the biggest crossover events in the history of the world of comic books. In ‘Secret Wars,’ The Beyonder used his omnipotent powers to transport some heroes and villains to a different planet so that he could see them fighting one another in what was the ultimate move for a godlike being bored with life.
In this storyline, the heroes were able to win a few battles before they sat at a table together. However, after that, everything explodes in Secret Wars #11 as Steve Rogers and the other superheroes sent by the Beyonder to that planet are killed. As such, Captain America died again, and he happened to die with some of his heroic allies.
5. ‘Secret Wars’ #12
After Steve and many different heroes died in ‘Secret Wars’ #11, they came back in the next issue and towards the end of the storyline. In that regard, Captain America was never going to stay dead for long. Still, he died once more in Secret Wars #12.
In this storyline, Cap returns from the dead and fights Doctor Doom, who stole the power of the Beyonder. Doom disintegrates Steve Rogers using his omnipotent powers, but Klaw, whose body was possessed by the Beyonder, uses his powers to bring Steve Back. So, in that regard, Rogers died twice in Secret Wars but ended up getting revived twice as well.
6. ‘Infinity Gauntlet’ #4
It became a regular for a lot of different superheroes to die in gigantic crossover events involving a lot of different characters. This was one of the things that happened in ‘Infinity Gauntlet #4,’ which allowed us to see Steve Rogers dying once more in a memorable event that included tons of different people dying. Of course, the threat in this storyline is none other than Thanos and his Infinity Gauntlet.
Because Thanos had become so powerful using the powers of the Infinity Gauntlet, he decided to use his powers in a manner consistent with his tyrannical nature. Thanos uses his new powers to kill almost everyone in the universe, as Captain America was one of those most likely killed by the tyrant. But Cap, of course, comes back later through the power of the Gauntlet, which means that his death was never permanent.
7. ‘Punisher/Captain America: Blood & Glory’ #2
After four straight storylines wherein Steve Roger actually dies, he returns in another story that allows us to see him faking his own death. During this three-part miniseries, Cap is involved with the Punisher, widely known as one of the biggest antiheroes in the world of Marvel Comics. Of course, Frank Castle was the one responsible for “killing” Steve in this storyline.
In ‘Punisher/Captain America: Blood & Glory’ #2, Cap died when the Punisher shot him to death because the antihero was under the influence of someone else. Rogers is wheeled into the emergency room, where he tells Fury to let him die as a funeral actually happens. Nevertheless, Cap simply faked his death so he could team up with the Punisher in secret to defeat the man responsible for trying to kill him.
8. ‘Captain America’ #443
In this storyline, Captain America only has 24 hours to live after learning that the Super-Soldier Serum is deteriorating his heart, eventually stopping at the end of 24 hours. As such, Cap decides to spend his time with guys like Batroc and Crossbones before deciding to go to sleep. An entire funeral was arranged for Steve, with President Bill Clinton attending the funeral.
However, a couple of issues later, Cap wakes up to realize that someone had stolen his body before he died and that this same person saved him. This person was none other than Red Skull, who possessed a body cloned from Steve Rogers. It can be presumed that Red Skull stole Steve’s body and saved him so that he could use it to create a new body for himself.
9. ‘Onslaught: Marvel Universe’ #1
One year after he was cloned by the Red Skull, Captain America returns in a story that involves a lot of different characters again as he, the X-Men, and several more characters come face to face with a powerful villain called Onslaught, who is a being created from the fusion between Professor X and Magneto. In that regard, the heroes are now in the middle of an incredibly difficult fight as Onslaught proves to be too powerful for them.
At the end of the Onslaught Saga, Cap and the other Avengers tried their best to defeat the powerful entity because the fate of the world was hanging in the balance. The only way for them to win was to join Onslaught, as all the heroes knew they would never return. However, Franklin Richards created a pocket dimension that allowed all of the heroes who gave themselves up to Onslaught to live there. However, Cap and the other heroes couldn’t remember what happened in their fight with the powerful Mutant.
10. ‘Captain America’ #25
At the end of the Civil War event in the comics, Captain America was now a criminal who had been arrested as those who were against the registration act were now struggling to find a new leader. But the worst part was that Steve was killed by someone close to him as he had to sacrifice himself by taking a bullet for a police officer. Sharon Stone seemingly runs to Cap’s aid but ends up killing him instead.
Captain America dies for real in this comic book event as this paved the way for Bucky Barnes to take up the Captain America mantle in honor of his fallen best friend. Nevertheless, Steve returns at some point in the future as it is revealed that the gun Sharon used on him was merely meant to freeze him in space and time. Steve returns to action after being freed but still allows his best friend to carry the Captain America mantle.
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