Which well-known Marvel hero dies in Civil War II #1?

A well-known Marvel superhero has become the first casualty of the company’s latest comic book event.

Note: This article contains spoilers for Civil War II #1, out this week. Please read on only if you want to see who dies in the first chapter of this story.

Marvel has been pretty transparent about the fact that someone was going to die in Civil War II. We just didn’t know it was going to happen right away.

In fact, it happened even before the story got started in earnest. And before we even get to the spoilery part, let’s just say it was someone more high profile than Goliath, the superhero victim in the original Civil War.

As confirmed by Comic Book Resources, James Rhodes, also known as War Machine, is dead. She-Hulk is also in danger, lying in a coma for the majority of Civil War II #1 and flatlining at the end, leaving her fate up in the air until the next issue.

Both heroes were involved in a battle with Thanos that occurred during Marvel’s Free Comic Book Day offering, a fight that only took place because the Inhuman Ulysses predicted that the Mad Titan would attack Project Pegasus. That showdown went poorly for the good guys, though it wasn’t clear by the end of that issue if War Machine and She-Hulk were dead.

One is, one may yet be. And yes, this is the second Civil War to feature the death of an African-American hero, something that Marvel’s Tom Brevoort discussed with Newsarama. It’s not a decision that was made lightly, and poor Rhodey made a logical casualty because he’s BFFs with Iron Man and was dating Captain Marvel.

Fans won’t have to wait long to see if the body count climbs. Civil War II #2 hits comic shops and other retailers on June 15.

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