8 Times Superheroes Were Replaced By Much Better Versions (And 7 Times When The Original Was Better)

Comic books and the popular superheroes depicted in them have been around for several decades, and over the years, we have seen some of the most iconic and beloved characters from the books die. Although, it is not very common to see a comic book character die for good, instead of dying for a while and then being revived after some time. But, it is the initial shock of seeing a character die is a feeling which impacts the readers mostly. Occasionally, the death of a comic book superhero has been devastating enough for the readers that it led to national news in the real world, and that’s a proof of the emotional bond between the readers and the characters. As we said, characters die and can get resurrected, or lose and reacquire their powers. Therefore, there is never anything ‘final’ in the world of comics. Generally, such drastic changes are aimed at shaking up things and generate buzz about a title before the original character returns after a few issues (Superman) or a few years (Wolverine).

When fans know that the dead character would be resurrected, they become keen to know which character will step forward to take up the mantle of the fallen hero. This has happened after the deaths of Captain America, Spider-Man, Batman, and Superman.

The concept of replacements is not going away anytime soon. Marvel presently has a new Iron-Man and Thor. DC has been doing the switch for several decades with numerous heroes having taken up Batman and Green Lantern mantles. Surprisingly, there are times when shaking things up actually works.

At times the original character didn’t have much of a fan following or the new version of the hero revives a title that had become stale. There are times when the replacement characters are so well-received that they are continued even after the return of the original. There are also occasions when the replacement is nothing, but, a pale shadow of the older hero. Here we will look at both scenarios and find out whether the dead hero was better or the replacement!