Reading the final issue of the "old" Spider-Man books a while back got me to thinking about death in comics, especially Marvel Comics.
Let's face it, death has always been a temporary thing in literature…going back at least 2000 years to The Return of Jesus at the end of the landmark Crisis on Mt. Calvary maxiseries.
Even Sherlock Holmes came back from the dead.
But what Marvel especially doesn't seem to get is that some deaths are not a gimmick. We all know when the Red Skull or Doctor Doom get blown up at the end of their latest adventure that they'll be back, and overall we accept that as one of the conventions of the medium.
But when the death is a part of the core legend of the character involved, it should not be tampered with. Think Bruce Wayne's parents; their deaths are part of what makes Batman tick. That also goes for Battlin' Jack Murdock, Uncle Ben, and for that matter Doctor Doom's mother herself.
The only exception I can think of is Superman's parents. John Byrne managed to retcon them back into existence successfully, I think, because their deaths were never a factor in Superman's character. He is a Warrior of Light, if you will, motivated by an essential goodness, not a pathological obsession with revenge.
It seems unlikely that Uncle Ben would ever be brought back. And while Aunt May's death came 30 years or so into the series, she should have stayed dead as well. The arc looks something like this: Uncle Ben's death made Peter Parker a hero. Gwen's death made him a man. Aunt May's death made him the head of his family, and therefore closer to his own mortality, and better able to parent Baby May, who should NOT have disappeared (COWARDS!)
I have never accepted the return of Norman Osborn, and in fact that's what made me quit reading the Spider-Man line. Norman Osborn died a long, long time ago, as payment in full for the death of Gwen Stacy. I'll accept Ben Reilly long before I'll accept Norman Osborn being alive. He isn't. He's DEAD, DEAD, DEAD.
Frankly, I don't know how the Spider-Man books can be fixed at this point. Bringing Aunt May back sets the character back at least 20 years, and not for the better. While it's all well and good to recreate the legend for a new generation, I don't think Aunt May's death was a mistake that needed correcting. It's a crucial part of Peter Parker's character, and now it apparently has been screwed up royally.
The message, Marvel, is this: Some Dead People Should Stay Dead.