The Most Deserved Deaths in Opera, Ranked

There are countless rankings of the best deaths in opera that grade by the most memorable (“La Bohème,” “La Traviata”), the most epic (“Dialogues of the Carmelites,” “Götterdämmerung”), and the most difficult to stage (“La Wally,” “La Juive”). All of those criteria are well and good, but what I want—what I really, really want—in an operatic death is catharsis for the rage that is knotted around my psyche at all times, like an overgrown philodendron. I want justifiable homicide. I want to be able to say, “It couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy.” I want bastards to understand—just once!—what it’s like to be held accountable for their actions. I don’t want “Good Deaths,” I want good deaths. 

All of which has led to my scientific survey and ranking of the actual best deaths in opera: the most deserved, the most satisfying, the most defensible. For this highly objective ranking, I considered the following:

1. What did they do to deserve death?
2. How well is the death handled in the opera’s libretto and score?
3. How objectively satisfying is it to watch said character meet their fate? 

A special thanks to Opera Twitter for sharing their own thoughts on this topic, some of which are quoted below.