History CruelMercy / ComicBooks

* New Republic commander [[ActionGirl Mirith Sinn]] is captured and tortured to learn the location of an enemy of the Empire. She holds out until the BigBad orders an orbital bombardment on her men's secret fallback position. She dejectedly gives him the information he wants...and he orders that the bombardment continue until every last rebel is dead. But he keeps one part of his deal... he lets her go.

* In a flashback in ''ComicBook/{{Planetary}}'' #7, Jack Carter happens to run into an {{Invisible}} man, who explains that he's "this year's Herod", a PunchClockVillain sent by the government to kill a pregnant local prostitute just in case she's carrying the second coming. Disgusted, Carter does a seemingly ineffectual spell, remarks "And be thankful that's all I do to you", and walks away. When the Herod goes to continue his mission, he finds he's been trapped on that street corner in an invisible forcefield only a few feet in diameter. For the rest of his life.

* In ''Franchise/TheFlash'', rather than killing Inertia for killing Bart Allen, Wally leaves him [[AndIMustScream trapped immobile to stare at a statue of Bart for an eternity]]. Wally has gone on record in support of killing villains under desperate enough circumstances; he intentionally took a much more sadistic approach in this case.

** Or the time he tracked down the black ops agent who helped frame him (Bruce Wayne) for murder. Since there was no evidence of the man's existence, he couldn't be tried, so Batman put him [[GoAmongMadPeople in Arkham]]. The spy tells the doctors that he's not crazy; he's a secret agent who framed Bruce Wayne for murder and there's no record of the mission because he was tasked directly to the president. [[CassandraTruth None of the doctors believe him]].

** He also managed to pull this off on ComicBook/TheJoker once in "The Devil's Advocate", when the Clown Prince was on Death Row for a crime that he, surprisingly, ''didn't'' commit. [[http://scans-daily.dreamwidth.org/4006988.html Batman's investigation found the real culprit, so Joker was spared.]] But Bats gets one last dig at The Joker.

* In ''ComicBook/WorldWarHulk'', the Hulk comes back [[ComicBook/PlanetHulk from Sakaar]] looking to smash the Illuminati (and anybody stupid enough to try to stop him) for sending him into space [[spoiler:and their starship blowing up, killing his wife Caiera (although that was not their fault)]]. When he arrives to the Xavier School, he discovers [[ComicBook/HouseOfM the aftermath of M-Day]][[note]]the revelation that only nearly 300 mutants are left on the planet and the memorial to the many teenage mutants the X-Men buried when were killed by anti-mutant terrorists almost immediately after[[/note]] and decides to leave Charles Xavier alone because killing him right now with all of this suffering piled on him [[MercyKill would be a mercy]] and there is ''no way'' he will grant Xavier that.

** During "The Gauntlet" and "Grim Hunt," the original Kraven the Hunter is brought BackFromTheDead by his ex-wife Sasha, who put Spider-Man and his "spider family" through Hell in the process, killing Madame Web, Mattie Franklin, and Kaine, the last of whom was sacrificed in a BlackMagic ritual to bring Kraven back. Having [[DrivenToSuicide met his end by his own hand]], Kraven [[UnwantedRevival is]] ''[[UnwantedRevival not]]'' [[UnwantedRevival happy to be alive again]], especially since he CameBackWrong because the ritual that resurrected him needed the ''real'' Spider-Man, not a clone. During Spidey's subsequent RoaringRampageOfRevenge against Sasha and the Kravinoffs, he nearly kills Kraven with a spear, but Julia Carpenter persuades him not to by showing him visions of a BadFuture that will result should he go through with it; Kraven is not happy, since he ''wants'' to die and, according to him, can ''only'' die by Spider-Man's hand.

** In a story published in ''X-Men Unlimited''(1st series) #40, 2003, Sabretooth did the same to a man [[HuntingTheMostDangerousGame who was hunting him]]. The hunter was treating Sabretooth like any other beast he hunted, and it was working. Sabretooth turned tables when he refrained his instincts and animalistic tendencies and started to act like a human, using his brain to outsmart the hunter. The hunter then thought he would be killed by Sabretooth...which didn’t happen. Sabretooth, instead, took the hunter’s clothes, weapons, and technology, leaving him alone and naked in the woods, telling the guy that all he needed to do to survive was [[{{Irony}} behave as an animal]].

defiantly

* ComicBook/UltimateMarvel
** ''ComicBook/UltimateVision'': Tarleton, under orders of Gah Lak Tus, drops the AIM satellite out of orbit, killing the people with reentry. He says that they should be grateful, that fire is a clean and nice way to die.
** ''ComicBook/AllNewUltimates'': One of the Skull Serpents is burning, and asks for help. Scourge helps him... with a knife.

** In ''ComicBook/{{Crucible}}'' storyline, when [[BigBad Korstus]] goes ahead with his plan to take over the titular academy he has the chance to kill his main opponent, Lys Amata. However Korstus lets her alive because he wants Amata to see her dream's destruction.

* In ''Franchise/TheFlash'', rather than killing Inertia for killing Bart Allen, leaves him [[AndIMustScream trapped immobile to stare at a statue of Bart for an eternity]]. Wally has gone on record in support of killing villains under desperate enough circumstances; he intentionally took a much more sadistic keel in this case.

* ComicBook/{{Diabolik}} usually murders those who have earned his wrath, but sometimes his revenge consists in him making them know he could kill them anytime and leaving after telling them that one day, when he'll be bored enough, he'll come back to kill them, making them live in terror as they wait for him to come back and destroy themselves in the process. Apparently, he ''never'' comes back.

* ''Atar Gull'' is the son of an African chieftain who is MadeASlave in Jamaica. He begins working his way up the ladder, gaining the trust of his masters, the Wil family (who are considered among the kindest on the island, even by the escaped slaves, for such humane treatments as only applying half the beatings prescribed by the law), and using it to slowly ruin them, poisoning their cattle and slaves (including his own son) and murdering their daughter by putting a snake in her bed. When Wil is completely broken (his wife having committed suicide), Atar refuses his freedom, claiming that he'll stay with the master in France and take care of him, earning nothing but praise and admiration from the locals for his devotion. Once Wil suffers a stroke that leaves him unable to move or talk, Atar drops the mask and gloatingly confesses everything, including his intention to keep Wil alive as long as possible, as revenge for his treatment and Wil having hanged Atar's father. When Wil dies, Atar breaks down entirely.

** In ''ComicBook/ActionComics #286'', Luthor killed himself accidentally. Because he shot himself with an experimental nuclear Kryptonite ray-gun, Supergirl was capable of finding a method to revive him. Why would she do '''THAT'''? Because he was sentenced to life, and she didn't want him to escape his life-term jail sentence through death.
--->'''Lex Luthor:''' "Before I was respected! Now the other criminals will laugh at me behind my back because I was saved by you!"

* In one of the ''ComicBook/StarWarsMarvel1977'' stories, the ''Millennium Falcon'' accidentally breaks through a NegativeSpaceWedgie to find a PocketDimension where a group of [[IconOfRebellion former Rebels]] have [[IWillFightNoMoreForever isolated themselves]] from the rest of the Universe. When a group of Imperial Destroyers follows the ''Falcon'', they [[AlwaysChaoticEvil attack and ultimately destroy]] this refuge, but doing so [[HonorBeforeReason eats up all their reserves]], leaving them defenseless to the ''Falcon'''s [[NoRangeLikePointBlankRange guns]] and unable to cross the border again. The crew of the ''Falcon'' decides against destroying the Destroyer, opting to "leave them here, rotting away as a tribute."

* In ''ComicBook/AvengersOfTheWasteland'' set in the world of ''ComicBook/OldManLogan'', Dr. Doom is dying of cancer and so he sets out to fight the Avengers one last time, hoping they'd kill him quickly (he also framed them for his own atrocities, so he'd make it look like he's a hero fighting a villain team). After the Avengers beat him, Antman gives a NoHoldsBarredBeatdown and is about to kill him, when Dani convinces him to stop. Part of it is to show that the Avengers are better than Doom and the rest is that sparing Doom means that in less than 6 months, he'll die in agony shitting his pants.

* In ''Avengers of the Wasteland'' set in the world of ''ComicBook/OldManLogan'', Dr. Doom is dying of cancer and so he sets out to fight the Avengers one last time, hoping they'd kill him quickly (he also framed them for his own atrocities, so he'd make it look like he's a hero fighting a villain team). After the Avengers beat him, Antman gives a NoHoldsBarredBeatdown and is about to kill him, when Dani convinces him to stop. Part of it is to show that the Avengers are better than Doom and the rest is that sparing Doom means that in less than 6 months, he'll die in agony shitting his pants.

* ''ComicBook/TheSandman''.
** The first time Morpheus goes to {{Hell}}, he escapes by pointing out that "What terrors would Hell hold if those entombed within could not dream of {{Heaven}}?" This gets kicked up a notch when Hell is taken over by a pair of angels after Lucifer abandons his position. The two decide that horrible things will still happen, but for the purpose of reform instead of punishment. This makes everything so much worse because it implies a false hope that the torment of the damned might someday ''end''. Keyword being "false." (The damned, for their part, are astonished that the angels achieved this.)

* In the final arc of ''Comicbook/WarMachine'' Vol. 2, Rhodey and his friends hatch a complex plan that ultimately results in a group of extremely dangerous [[WhiteCollarCrime White Collar Criminals]] suffering a collective FateWorseThanDeath. When ComicBook/NormanOsborn asks Rhodey why he was spared, Rhodey says that he studied Osborn's psychological profile extensively, and came to the conclusion that leaving him unharmed, but with the knowledge that Rhodey and his friends were too smart for him, would be far worse than any other punishment they could dole out. Osborn laughs this claim off as ridiculous, but as soon as Rhodey leaves, he falls to his knees in anguish, indicating that Rhodey's assertion was 100 percent accurate.

* In the 1993 ''ComicBook/XMen'' storyline ''ComicBook/FatalAttractions'', ComicBook/{{Magneto}}'s new MouthOfSauron Exodus explains to Fabian Cortez that the sole reason why he doesn't "hurl you into oblivion like the insignificant flea you are" is because Magneto himself has decreed that Cortez live for the purposes of this trope, knowing that being stripped of his power and authority over the Acolytes -- being reduced to a "victim of someone else's legacy" as Exodus calls it -- is a far more painful punishment for the ambitious Cortez than death alone could ever be.

* ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'':
** In ''ComicBook/ElseworldsFinestSupergirlAndBatgirl'', ComicBook/{{Batgirl}} explains to ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} that she doesn't want ComicBook/LexLuthor dead because she wants him to suffer. If he's dead she can't make him pay for his crimes which include [[spoiler:her parents and Supergirl's cousin's murders]].
--->'''Batgirl:''' Stop. I need him alive.\\
'''Supergirl:''' But why?\\
'''Batgirl:''' Because... Because he has to suffer for his crimes!
** In ''ComicBook/ActionComics #286'', Luthor killed himself accidentally. Because he shot himself with an experimental nuclear Kryptonite ray-gun, Supergirl was capable of finding a method to revive him. Why would she do '''THAT'''? Because he was sentenced to life, and she didn't want him to escape his life-term jail sentence through death.
--->'''Lex Luthor:''' "Before I was respected! Now the other criminals will laugh at me behind my back because I was saved by you!"
** Superman seems to do this to Lex Luthor on an almost daily basis without even trying. Apparently, Lex's ego is so enormous that having a man more powerful than him, who uses his might out of genuine altruism and refuses to work for him, is so [[EvilCannotComprehendGood incomprehensible]] that it galls him like nothing else ever could.
** In ''ComicBook/{{Crucible}}'' storyline, when [[BigBad Korstus]] goes ahead with his plan to take over the titular academy he has the chance to kill his main opponent, Lys Amata. However Korstus lets her alive because he wants Amata to see her dream's destruction.
--->'''Korstus:''' "Place her in stasis inside the Assembly Chamber. I want her to witness the destruction of all that she's built."
** ''ComicBook/TheKillersOfKrypton'': After Supergirl has defeated Splyce, the Omega Men agree to spare the villainess and let her go back to her master because they cannot imagine a fate worse than facing Harry Hokum after having failed him.
* In one ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' story in the early 2000s, a particularly ugly fight between Spidey and the Green Goblin (the Goblin had just crippled Flash Thompson) ended with Spidey coming within a hair's breadth of finishing Norman off. Spidey spares him and later tells him that just ''being'' a person as horrible as Norman is its own punishment. Norman's reaction implies he sees the truth of this.
** During "The Gauntlet" and "Grim Hunt," the original Kraven the Hunter is brought BackFromTheDead by his ex-wife Sasha, who put Spider-Man and his "spider family" through Hell in the process, killing Madame Web, Mattie Franklin, and Kaine, the last of whom was sacrificed in a BlackMagic ritual to bring Kraven back. Having [[DrivenToSuicide met his end by his own hand]], Kraven [[UnwantedRevival is]] ''[[UnwantedRevival not]]'' [[UnwantedRevival happy to be alive again]], especially since he CameBackWrong because the ritual that resurrected him needed the ''real'' Spider-Man, not a clone. During Spidey's subsequent RoaringRampageOfRevenge against Sasha and the Kravinoffs, he nearly kills Kraven with a spear, but Julia Carpenter persuades him not to by showing him visions of a BadFuture that will result should he go through with it; Kraven is not happy, since he ''wants'' to die and, according to him, can ''only'' die by Spider-Man's hand.

* This is what ComicBook/{{Cyclops}} decides to do to Kaga, the [[EvilCripple crippled]] [[GeniusCripple evil genius]] BigBad of [[Comicbook/XMen Astonishing X-Men]] #31-35, who hates the X-Men because they're a bunch of incredibly attractive people with superpowers, whereas he is a realistic mutant, sickly and deformed as a result of being born to a Hiroshima survivor. After Kaga's MotiveRant, Cyclops decides to arrange for Mutants Sans Frontières[[note]]Warren Worthington's X-Men-affiliated charity organization[[/note]] medical funding to be used to take the best possible care of him until he dies of natural causes.

* In the 1993 ''ComicBook/XMen'' storyline ''ComicBook/FatalAttractions'', ComicBook/{{Magneto}}'s new MouthOfSauron Exodus explains to Fabian Cortez that the sole reason why he doesn't "hurl you into oblivion like the insignificant flea you are" is because Magneto himself has decreed that Cortez live for the purposes of this trope, knowing that being stripped of his power and authority over the Acolytes — being reduced to a "victim of someone else's legacy" as Exodus calls it — is a far more painful punishment for the ambitious Cortez than death alone could ever be.
* In the "Acts of Vengeance" storyline, Magneto captures Red Skull and buries him in an underground tomb. He says he [[IfYouKillHimYouWillBeJustLikeHim should kill him, but he's not like him.]] He instead leaves him there, with only air and ten gallons of water.
* In the 2010 ''ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} — Mr. X'' one-shot, [[TheFightingNarcissist the]] [[AxCrazy titular]] [[CombatClairvoyance villain]], having lost once before to the titular hero, trains obsessively for months to prepare himself to counter Wolverine's berserker rage, then lures Wolverine into a fight. But Wolverine refuses to let him trigger his rage and ultimately refuses to fight him at all, realizing that leaving Mr. X forever wondering WhoWouldWin will cause him more torment than simply defeating him.
** A particularly nasty example is Wolverine's treatment of Matsu'o Tsurayaba, the {{Yakuza}} boss who killed Wolverine's lover Mariko. Every year on the anniversary of her death, Wolverine fought his way past Tsurayaba's defences, took a piece of his body, and left him alive. This was taken to the point of Wolverine actively stopping Tsurayaba from killing himself or anyone else from killing him because Wolvie wanted him to suffer as long as he did. By the time we find out about this, Tsurayaba is missing a hand, an arm, a leg, half his face, and his body is covered with scars and medical implants.
** Wolverine isn't a stranger to this sort of treatment himself: during Creator/ChrisClaremont's run, his ArchEnemy Sabretooth had his "yearly tradition": every year, on the day that Wolverine believed to be his birthday, Sabretooth would track Wolverine down, regardless of where he was or what he was doing, beat him to within an inch of his life... and then walk away, just so that Wolverine knew that Sabretooth could kill him whenever he wished.
** In a story published in ''X-Men Unlimited''(1st series) #40, 2003, Sabretooth did the same to a man [[HuntingTheMostDangerousGame who was hunting him]]. The hunter was treating Sabretooth like any other beast he hunted, and it was working. Sabretooth turned tables when he refrained his instincts and animalistic tendencies and started to act like a human, using his brain to outsmart the hunter. The hunter then thought he would be killed by Sabretooth...which didn’t happen. Sabretooth, instead, took the hunter’s clothes, weapons, and technology, leaving him alone and naked in the woods, telling the guy that all he needed to do to survive was [[{{Irony}} behave as an animal]].
* In ''ComicBook/AmericanVampire'', infamous outlaw-turned-vampire Skinner Sweet attends the book signing of a writer who was there back when Sweet was turned and has since made a fortune from his one novel, a fictionalized account of the outlaw's story. Sweet exits the event, leaving behind a note saying "You are old and I am young for eternity. So I let you live to suffer and die. Why not? What better revenge is there than that?"
* In a flashback in ''ComicBook/{{Planetary}}'' #7, Jack Carter happens to run into an {{Invisible}} man, who explains that he's "this year's Herod", a PunchClockVillain sent by the government to kill a pregnant local prostitute just in case she's carrying the second coming. Disgusted, Carter does a seemingly ineffectual spell, remarks "And be thankful that's all I do to you", and walks away. When the Herod goes to continue his mission, he finds he's been trapped on that street corner in an invisible forcefield only a few feet in diameter. For the rest of his life.
* [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]] at the end of the ''ComicBook/YoungJustice'' comic book; [[spoiler:when Secret turns back to the light side,]] {{ComicBook/Darkseid}} takes "revenge" [[spoiler:by restoring her to life as an ordinary mortal]]. Though he considers this cruel mercy, in reality, it's exactly what she wanted.

* During the events of "Dead End Kids", the ComicBook/{{Runaways}} become stuck in UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity in 1907, where they encounter past versions of Gertrude Yorke's parents. When the Yorkes discover that their daughter is dead, they launch a plan to nuke the city to kill the Runaways. It fails, and the Runaways' leader, Nico Minoru, decides to punish them by casting a spell that forces them to go back and live out the rest of their lives knowing that they and Gertrude will all die, and they can't do or say anything to stop it.
-->'''Nico''': They'll go back where they came from. And they'll know. What happens to Gert, what happens to them, they'll know every second it's coming. They won't be able to change anything they do. Or say anything. Not even to each other. For all the world, their short, useless lives will play out exactly as they did before. But inside... ''they'll never stop screaming.''
* In one of the ''ComicBook/StarWarsMarvel1977'' stories, the ''Millennium Falcon'' accidentally breaks through a NegativeSpaceWedgie to find a PocketDimension where a group of [[IconOfRebellion former Rebels]] have [[IWillFightNoMoreForever isolated themselves]] from the rest of the Universe. When a group of Imperial Destroyers follows the ''Falcon'', they [[AlwaysChaoticEvil attack and ultimately destroy]] this refuge, but doing so [[HonorBeforeReason eats up all their reserves]], leaving them defenseless to the ''Falcon'''s [[NoRangeLikePointBlankRange guns]] and unable to cross the border again. The crew of the ''Falcon'' decides against destroying the Destroyer, opting to "leave them here, rotting away as a tribute."
* In the ''[[ComicBook/ThePunisher Punisher]]'' Franken-Castle arc, Frank spares the life of overzealous monster hunter Robert Hellsgaard. Hellsgaard thanks him for his mercy, which prompts Frank to smirk, "Yeah, right. ''Mercy''," as he leaves him behind, alive but forever trapped in the burning demonplanes of limbo.
* In ''[[ComicBook/MyLittlePonyFiendshipIsMagic My Little Pony: Fiendship Is Magic #1]]'', Sombra ultimately chooses not to enslave or harm Radiant Hope in any way as he still had feelings for her after he embraces his inner darkness. Though this ultimately leads to his defeat, Sombra's final act of making the Crystal Empire disappear for 1,000 years is a form of suffering specifically meant for Hope as she is forced to spend the rest of her life as the sole surviving Crystal Pony and isolated from everything she had ever known.

* In ''ComicBook/KickAss'', [[spoiler:Vic Gigante, the big DirtyCop of the series, is the only major villain to survive the trilogy, but not before Mindy brutally maims him with a GroinAttack which also cripples him waist-down, intending to let him live and force him to become TheStoolPigeon to his fellow {{Corrupt Cop}}s. The last time Dave heard of him in the ending is that the whole experience caused him to lose quite a lot of weight when he was brought to court to testify]].
* Franchise/GreenLantern: Red Lantern Bleez intended to inflict this on one of the men responsible for selling her into slavery. She wanted him to live the rest of his life in fear of her, but her leader Atrocitus killed the man on the spot, saying that her method wasn't how the ComicBook/RedLanterns worked.
* ''ComicBook/LuckyLuke'': "The Bounty Hunter" ends with the titular bounty hunter, having brought in a small army to capture a wanted Indian (who wasn't even guilty in the first place), be let off by Luke. Luke then claims the reward for the Indian and puts it on the bounty hunter's head instead to let him experience being hunted down.
* ComicBook/{{Diabolik}} usually murders those who have earned his wrath, but sometimes his revenge consists in him making them know he could kill them anytime and leaving after telling them that one day, when he'll be bored enough, he'll come back to kill them, making them live in terror as they wait for him to come back and destroy themselves in the process. Apparently, he ''never'' comes back.
** Done more horrifically to Elisabeth Gay, that he drove to insanity ''because'' he knew she considered it a FateWorseThanDeath. When she recovered and tried to take her own revenge for that and [[WomanScorned choosing Eva over her]], he let her leave [[SubvertedTrope not because of this]] but [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone he had realized he had gone overboard]] and couldn't bring himself to hunt her down.
** {{Subverted}} in "Diabolik's Treasure": it ''seems'' he's planning to do this to most members of the group that [[spoiler:stole his favoured treasures]], but in the end his revenge is limited to enjoy their fear as they escape the country as not only this was their own revenge for when Diabolik unwittingly ruined their own lives as part of his capers (and that's something he can respect) but [[spoiler: he's actually ''grateful'' for them exposing one of his weaknesses and starting a chain of events that destroyed it]].
* ''Atar Gull'' is the son of an African chieftain who is MadeASlave in Jamaica. He begins working his way up the ladder, gaining the trust of his masters, the Wil family (who are considered among the kindest on the island, even by the escaped slaves, for such humane treatments as only applying half the beatings prescribed by the law), and using it to slowly ruin them, poisoning their cattle and slaves (including his own son) and murdering their daughter by putting a snake in her bed. When Wil is completely broken (his wife having committed suicide), Atar refuses his freedom, claiming that he'll stay with the master in France and take care of him, earning nothing but praise and admiration from the locals for his devotion. Once Wil suffers a stroke that leaves him unable to move or talk, Atar drops the mask and gloatingly confesses everything, including his intention to keep Wil alive as long as possible, as revenge for his treatment and Wil having hanged Atar's father. When Wil dies, Atar breaks down entirely.
* ''ComicBook/{{Purgatori}}'': After Lucifer takes away her powers and sends her to Earth to suffer never-ending hunger, Purgatori repays him by leaving Lucifer to fend for himself in the pit of hell after he just lost most of his own power due to Cremator's demon-destroying blade.
* ''ComicBook/ThanosRising'': During his confrontation with his father at the end, Thanos decides to leave him alive just so he can continue to witness his son's atrocities while being unable to stop him.
* Subverted in ''ComicBook/DarkTimes''. Jennir spares the life of the FallenHero Demanna, and the latter presumes it’s this trope; robbing him of his honor and [[AnArmAndALeg cutting off his hand]], but leaving him alive to suffer. A disgusted Jennir says that, no, he really is showing Demanna mercy and giving him a chance to regain his honor. Demanna just [[EvilCannotComprehendGood can’t understand that]] because of the same arrogance that led to his defeat in the first place.
* ComicBook/UltimateMarvel
** ''ComicBook/UltimateVision'': Tarleton, under orders of Gah Lak Tus, drops the AIM satellite out of orbit, killing the people with reentry. He says that they should be grateful, that fire is a clean and nice way to die.
** ''ComicBook/AllNewUltimates'': One of the Skull Serpents is burning, and asks for help. Scourge helps him... with a knife.

* In ''ComicBook/BatmanDamned'', Etrigan saves Batman, but tells Constantine that he only did so in order for Batman to experience more suffering.
* In ''ComicBook/HaloEscalation'', Jul 'Mdama captures and spares Sali 'Nyon, rather than give him an honorable death in combat.
* In ''ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes'' story ''ComicBook/TheGreatDarknessSaga'', [[spoiler:ComicBook/{{Darkseid}}]] fights and defeats the Legion in the Sorcerers' World, but he decides against killing them because he wants them to watch helplessly how he destroys the galaxy.
* In ''Avengers of the Wasteland'' set in the world of ''ComicBook/OldManLogan'', Dr. Doom is dying of cancer and so he sets out to fight the Avengers one last time, hoping they'd kill him quickly (he also framed them for his own atrocities, so he'd make it look like he's a hero fighting a villain team). After the Avengers beat him, Antman gives a NoHoldsBarredBeatdown and is about to kill him, when Dani convinces him to stop. Part of it is to show that the Avengers are better than Doom and the rest is that sparing Doom means that in less than 6 months, he'll die in agony shitting his pants.
* Marvel's ''Lifeform'' storyline, which ended in ''ComicBook/SilverSurfer'' Annual #3, had the Surfer transport the titular mutant horror, a bio-engineered BlobMonster that absorbs all organic life it touches into itself, to a dead world previously visited by Galactus. When he prepares to destroy it, the creature's [[WasOnceAMan original human self]] momentarily forces itself to the surface and thanks him for ending his tormented existence as a slave to the virus's hunger to consume. But because the Surfer was recently traumatized by being involved in the apparent death of ComicBook/{{Thanos}}, he instead declares that he ''cannot'' kill the Lifeform now that he knows it has a human mind, and instead he just abandons it on the dead world, screaming for him to come back and give it the peace of death. [[LampshadeHanging And as the Surfer leaves, he wonders which of them is the greater monster because of this.]]

* In a flashback in ''ComicBook/{{Planetary}}'' #7, Jack Carter happens to run into an {{Invisible}} man, who explains that he's "this year's Herod", a PunchClockVillain sent by the government to kill a pregnant local prostitute just in case she's carrying the second coming. Disgusted, Carter does a seemingly ineffectual spell and walks away. When the Herod goes to continue his mission, he finds he's been trapped on that street corner in an invisible forcefield only a few feet in diameter. For the rest of his life.

* ''Franchise/TheFlash'', rather than killing Inertia for killing Bart Allen, leaves him [[AndIMustScream trapped immobile to stare at a statue of Bart for an eternity]]. Wally has gone on record in support of killing villains under desperate enough circumstances; he intentionally took a much more sadistic keel in this case.

* In ''Avengers of the Wasteland'' set in the world of ''ComicBook/OldManLogan'', Dr. Doom is dying of cancer and so he sets out to fight the Avengers one last time, hoping they'd kill him quickly (he also framed them for his own atrocities, so he'd make it look like he's a hero fighting a villain team). After the Avengers beat him, Antman gives a NoHoldsBarredBeatdown and is about to kill him, when Dani convinces him to stop. Part of it is to show that the Avengers are better than Doom and the rest is that sparing Doom means that in less than 6 months, he'll die in agony shitting his pants.