Thanos Reveals A Huge Change To Death In The Marvel Universe

Contains spoilers for "Thanos" #3 (by Christopher Cantwell, Luca Pizzari, German Peralta, Ruth Redmond, and VC's Cory Petit)

Thanos' greatest love in the Marvel Universe, the living embodiment of Death, has undergone a considerable change in order to learn more about humanity and life itself. As a result, she's evolved into something new — and made unlikely allies to help her achieve her goal.

Thanos' quest for Death's love is vital to the Mad Titan's motivation during the "Infinity Gauntlet" saga and beyond. He initially collected the Infinity Stones so that he can erase half of the universe's population to impress Death and earn her love. However, his attempts to win her cold heart are met with utter rejection and no reciprocation of his strong feelings. And yet, despite being rebuffed, Thanos continues to seek ways to win her over.

In the current "Thanos" miniseries, the supervillain has emerged from his most recent near-death experience after being sucked into a black hole before being pulled back by Phastos of the Eternals. Now, Thanos has arrived in Fresno, California, where he's looking for a woman named Roberta –  a woman who is revealed to be Mistress Death in disguise. His newest quest brings him in direct conflict with Marvel's Illuminati, a secret cabal of superheroes who know more about Death's transformation than anyone else. Now, readers are finding out why Death took over a human woman's body, how a deal with the Illuminati made it happen, and how it may have changed her permanently.

In "Thanos" #3, the titular villain comes face-to-face with a terrified Roberta and attempts to convince her she's really Death. Despite the Illuminati's efforts to stop Thanos, he kills Roberta in a car crash as she tries to flee, causing her true form to be revealed. The story flashes back to the Realm of Death, the home of the cosmic entity. It's there that Christine Collins, the mother of the original Roberta, who passed away despite her young age, reaches out with the help of Life, Death's sister, asking for her daughter to be brought back to life. Death refuses, but when Christine blasts her for not understanding pain or the value of life, it sparks the cosmic entity's curiosity.

Death visits the Illuminati, where she shares with the group that she wants to experience human life and death. In exchange for keeping her safe as Roberta, Death tells the Illuminati she will reveal information regarding the extinction and ultimate destruction of their world, which she says is happening sooner than anyone thinks.

Using Doctor Strange as a catalyst to take over Roberta's body, Death takes the place of the recently deceased young woman. For a time, Death lives in Fresno as Roberta. In her new life, she has no clue about her past existence as Death until she dies at Thanos' hand. Realizing he is responsible for stealing her one chance at existing as a living being, Death, permanently changed by her experience, loses control and attacks Thanos.

The Death readers meet in this issue has evolved from her previous state into something new. She is not the same character who rejected Thanos as he sought her hand while she focused on her cosmic responsibilities, offering nothing but silence in response to his overtures. Now, she's experienced what it means to be alive. Death has emotions, and an entirely different understanding of life and, well, death. Taking on a human form gave her a new perspective she hadn't considered before, as she previously operated as a cold and calculated force of nature. Her quest to live as a human proved fruitful and changing. Now, having lived as Roberta, she's aware of the human meaning of loss.

Her new understanding of emotion is seen in her subsequent outburst at Thanos. After he kills Christine, she snaps. Instead of staying quiet and taking his life, she focuses her considerable rage on the Mad Titan. The fireworks are all due to Thanos' actions, as he puts his feelings before Death's, pushing his already microscopic chance of earning her love even lower. As a result, Death turns against Thanos, justifiably seeing him as solely responsible for ruining the life she tried to have thanks to his own selfish aspirations.

It's hard to imagine how Thanos can rebound from this, as he might have put the final nail in the coffin that was his chance at achieving his ultimate wish and being with Death.

The brawl between the Mad Titan and Death continues in the next issue, as previews for "Thanos" #4 hint at one of the most consequential fights in Marvel history, with potentially huge stakes on the line. Cover art by Leinil Francis Yu and Sunny Gho teases Thanos becoming the new embodiment of Death, possibly hinting at the villain taking over from his would-be significant other. Will Death step away from the role due to her newfound humanity and force Thanos into taking up the cosmic mantle as she seeks to live once again? And what is the cataclysmic event Death used to bribe the Illuminati into helping her? What happens next is unknown, but the fight will surely send shockwaves across the Marvel Universe. 

Readers will discover more when "Thanos" #4 from Marvel Comics releases on March 6, 2024. Check out the cover art and the text solicit for the issue below.

Marvel Comics/Leinil Francis Yu

THANOS VS. DEATH! Death rejects Thanos once and for all, and the Mad Titan does not take it well. What follows is the most consequential fight in the history of the Marvel Universe...

Death and Thanos' showdown unfolds in "Thanos" #3, available now in comic book stores and through online retailers.