Ahira's Hangar

Good post Duchess. I think it depends on the reason really. Sometimes I've been surprised. I was hell of a surprised at the end of the Chrons for example. Especially back then, killing the protaganist wasn't much done. Not in the books I'd read anyway.

What I don't like is when the author kills them just because its a convenient way to tie up their story.

--A

I have been trying to think of an example of a "good" character death, and the one I keep thinking of is (and I am not going to spoil this, as the books have been out for decades now) Boromir in Lord of the Rings.

Reasons why this death works for me:
* the character at least partially redeems previous bad desires/actions in the manner of his death

* the death had an important impact on the other characters, both those on the scene, and those we have not even met yet

* the death is very important to the later plot, when the action moves on to Gondor


Another example of a "good" death would be the death of Buck's beloved master in Call of the Wild. This destroyed the last barrier between Buck being a domesticated dog and a wild wolf. While the death made me very sad, it was a key turning point in the story. (for those who have not read that classic story, you've missed some good stuff. is a free copy on the web that you can read).

Now - does anyone have an example of a BAD death they would like to share? If it is a more recent book, please spoil it out, but if it is in an older book, it should be OK not to do spoilers.

This is an interesting subject. I myself haven't read nearly enough books to provide clear examples of "good" or "bad" deaths, but I voted that it depends on the reason behind the character's death. Like you said, is it an event that serves the story or is it just used for shock value? Maybe it can be both in some cases.

Menolly, those two deaths bothered me as well...and then one of my friends pointed out that
[spoiler]
their baby son is left in pretty much the same circumstances as Harry when he was a baby, and Harry will probably be involved in some degree in his upbringing, bringing things "full circle" with Harry becoming to the baby what Sirius tried to be for Harry.
[/spoiler]

Taraswizard makes an excellent point about comic books. I only got into comics in a big way for a brief period in the early '90s - mostly spurred by Watchmen. Unfortunately, many of the titles I'd read ultimately disappointed me because of their shallow writing and/or lame story resolutions. Maybe I was under the delusion that every comic book could or should be as deep as Watchmen, that every comic book writer could be as brilliant as Alan Moore. It just goes to show, it all still boils down to the quality of the writing, even in a comic book. I don't care how flashy or glossy the art is if the story is half-baked.

Taras mentions that comic books nowadays are full of character deaths. Maybe it's been overdone. One of the things about superhero comics that annoyed me was when they had some character killed at the end...who would then be resurrected the next issue or so - as if the death had never occurred. That cheapens the emotional value of the death. The whole story then feels like a joke.

You know, that's right. To me a "good" character death has to have lasting consequences in the story and to the other characters..

To switch to a beloved TV series, look at the death of Tasha Yar in Star Trek the Next Generation. That death lead to entire other episodes of the long lasting consequences and effects the death had on the other characters. This would be a "good" death in my eyes.

Like comic books, soap operas tend to bring people back from the dead quite often, usually when they have had to recast the role for whatever reason. They will come up with some lame reason the person was thought to be dead, and a lamer reason the character is now portrayed by someone who looks so different (usually an accident and plastic surgery). That is just so stupid. I wish they would just let the character die and be mourned. In real life people pass on, and it is messy and painful and has long lasting effects on the survivors. So why not let it be that way in these TV shows, too? As it is, whenever someone dies on a show like this, the viewer cannot take it seriously, as the character will probably be popping back into the story weeks/months/years later.

Yeah, excellent point. I hate ressurections. And the comics especially are full of them. Hell, it seems like there isn't an X-Men character who hasn't died.

--A

I was totally surprised when Jesus died! I never see things like that coming.