Jean Grey’s Wildest Deaths EVER?! You Won’t Believe #4!

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Let’s explore the claim that Jean Grey frequently dies in comic books, a notion that’s widely recognized among fans. Historically, the death and resurrection of characters like Superman have made comic book deaths seem as common as passing through revolving doors in many fictional prisons. However, there was once a belief that only Jason Todd, Bucky Barnes, and Gwen Stacy truly stayed dead after their demise. Today, that assertion no longer holds up. Nevertheless, even among characters who frequently die and come back to life, Jean Grey is often cited as one who dies more than the average. Therefore, it’s worth investigating this claim by examining every instance where Jean Grey has actually perished in comic book stories and assessing whether her reputation is justified.

To begin, it’s important to establish some guidelines. We’ll focus solely on deaths that occur in the primary Marvel universe and its continuous timeline. This excludes stories from alternate realities or futures like “What If” scenarios or “Age of Apocalypse.” Additionally, we won’t be including events that result in universal erasures or global wipes, such as Thanos’ snap which affected everyone equally. In essence, these types of deaths aren’t fair as they increase the average number of deaths across all characters and would extend our discussion for an extended period. With these boundaries established, let’s delve into how many times Jean Grey has actually perished.

1) Piloting the Crashing Space Shuttle

In the Uncanny X-Men issue 100, Jean experiences her initial demise while on a space shuttle hurtling towards Earth. To steer the spacecraft safely into the water, she employs her psychic abilities to absorb all the astronauts’ knowledge. Simultaneously, she is hit by intense cosmic radiation which ultimately leads to her death. Yet, her strong will to live triggers a remarkable resurrection, as she revives and reclaims her powers, henceforth known as the Phoenix. Although later retconned to be the merging of Jean with the Phoenix Force, with her body cocooned beneath the bay instead of a literal death and resurrection, this significant event showcased her power for many years, making it a valid death in my opinion.

2) Sacrifice to End the Dark Phoenix

Jean Grey’s most memorable demise occurs in Uncanny X-Men #137, where she sacrifices herself on the moon to prevent the return of the Dark Phoenix forever. Despite being technically written out of continuity due to the Phoenix Force duplicate issue in X-Factor volume one #1 (a retcon often criticized as one of Marvel’s least intelligent), this death remains significant and is widely recognized by fans. This demise had a lasting impact for about six years before her return, which I found particularly captivating among her numerous deaths.

3) Fitzroy’s Sentinels (But Just Her Body)

In the comic book series “Uncanny X-Men” #281, Jean Grey and her team, the Hellions, are assaulted by Trevor Fitzroy’s Sentinels, leaving them seemingly dead on the scene. However, before her body expired, Jean transferred her consciousness to Emma Frost’s body, raising the question of what defines death: is it when the physical body ceases to function or does it require a departure to another realm? This ambiguity leaves it up to individual interpretation as to whether this instance should be counted as death.

4) Given a Stroke by Xorn/Magneto

In issue #150 of “New X-Men,” we witness an undeniable demise. When Magneto, who had disguised himself as Xorn, unveils his true identity and takes control over New York City, he ends the life of Jean Grey despite her resurrection of the Phoenix powers. However, it’s important to note that Magneto’s true nature was later retconned, meaning he only believed he was Magneto due to a complex chain of events we won’t delve into here. Nevertheless, this marks one of the most significant deaths in Marvel comics for Jean Grey. Interestingly, it lasted the longest, being absent for an impressive thirteen years before making a full return. There was a brief period where she lived again for approximately five issues over a span of about five years.

5) Endsong Sacrifice(s)

The unusual limited series titled “Phoenix: Endsong” presents a conundrum due to its potential for inflating the number of deaths. In essence, the Phoenix Force resurrects Jean Grey against her wishes, taking control of her body. Jean attempts to weaken the Phoenix Force in an effort to return herself and it to death, as she was not prepared for revival. This results in Wolverine slashing Jean at least six times, though it could have been more, and leaving her frozen in a glacier. However, these deaths are brief and their counting is questionable. Although one may argue that if the shuttle death is counted, so should these, the shuttle death was significant for character development while these were primarily to set stakes and provide gore. Ultimately, Jean ascends to the White Hot Room as she is blasted by Cyclops’s optic beams. This death, however, seems countable, which feels odd given that the series emphasizes the wrongness of reviving Jean.

6) Assault on Orchis

In the new Krakoan era for X-Men, even death has become as routine as sleeping due to the Five’s ability to resurrect anyone at any time. Jean is a member of the X-Men squad that assaults Orchis in House of X #4, with the goal of preventing them from creating the advanced Sentinel, Nimrod. Despite successfully destroying their main facility, the team did not escape unscathed; Jean was among the last to go. Her ship was destroyed by Sentinels following the others’ efforts to bring down the facility. However, as expected with Krakoa’s powers, Jean and her fellow team members were immediately resurrected, showcasing the mutant nation’s remarkable capacity to evade death. In truth, their deaths served to highlight this impressive power, although it certainly comes with its own set of issues; nonetheless, it was an awe-inspiring scene.

7) Betrayal at the Hellfire Gala

Regardless of Wolverine’s numerous deaths throughout Krakoa’s era, Jean Grey only perished on two occasions – initially and finally. This certainly disproves any claims that she dies frequently. In the comic book X-Men: Hellfire Gala #1, the Krakoan celebration is attacked by Orchis, and Jean is stabbed in the back by her longtime X-Men ally Moira MacTaggert, who has transformed into an evil cyborg. However, this attack is merely a minor setback for Jean, who guides the displaced mutants through the White Hot Room and resurrects herself with the immense power of the Phoenix. Her latest demise, in particular, demonstrates that death no longer holds any sway over her, and she can triumphantly return from it using nothing but her indomitable will, a trait she has consistently demonstrated throughout her existence.

In summary, Jean Grey’s deaths – both canonical and mainline ones – can be puzzling due to their number. If we exclude the initial two deaths and brief resurrections, Jean has died as few as four times. Yet, if we consider every possible death and are loose with our counting, she might have perished around fourteen times or more. Overall, Jean Grey’s encounters with death are complex, especially compared to other superheroes. Regardless of how many times she dies, Jean always seems to return, thanks to her zest for life and enduring popularity. It would be nice for Marvel to allow her to live for a while this time, although it remains debatable whether Jean truly deserves the reputation of dying frequently. At the very least, her deaths are known for their confusion and ambiguity.

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2025-05-17 20:15