Top 10 Saddest Character Deaths!

Check out who made our list of the top 10 saddest soap opera character deaths ---->>>

This month you, our readers, selected the saddest character deaths for this month’s Top 10! And let me tell you that you voted on some of the most heartbreaking! I know, because I binged watched them all at the risk of my emotional state! LOL. We did add in the rule that the characters eligible for this list had to have stayed dead to make it fair! So, break out those tissues and check out the list of some of the saddest and most shocking soap opera deaths! 

Honorable Mentions

12. Maureen Reardon Bauer (Guiding Light) -

In 1993, Guiding Light fans were left devastated by the sudden death of Maureen. Maureen was the wife of Ed Bauer and the mother of Michelle Bauer Santos. A realistic and relatable character that fans connected with from the beginning. Things between Ed and his “Mo” went sour after Maureen discovered a letter from Lillian Raines to Ed that talked about their brief affair. Ed spent most of the day trying to get ahold of his wife to discuss the situation, and when they finally came face to face Ellen Parker (Maureen) and Peter Simon (Ed) delivered some of the most emotionally raw scenes in soap history. Maureen would storm out on Ed and wreck her car in bad weather. Leaving the cabin a little later, Ed would come across the scene of the accident. Ellen’s performance earned her a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. 

11. Katherine Chancellor (The Young and the Restless) -

The soap world was overcome with heartbreak when we not only had to say goodbye to the heart and soul of The Young and the Restless, but her iconic portrayer as well. In 2013, the legend Jeanne Cooper passed away at the age of 84. Katherine Chancellor was recovering from surgery to remove a brain tumor and had decided to step down as CEO of Chancellor Industries. In what would become her final scene, Jill watched as Katherine climbed the stairs to rest in her bedroom. Katherine’s loved ones would come together to honor the life of the great Katherine Chancellor. 

Top 10

10. Nathan West (General Hospital) -

In 2018, we watched as Nathan West rushed to protect the lives of his wife, Maxie and their unborn child from his father, the infamous Cesar Faison. When the elevator doors opened and he saw Maxie being held at gunpoint by Faison it was clear that the situation was not going to end well. Faison shot his own son without remorse. Nathan would die from his injuries at General Hospital leaving his loved ones and all of us devastated. What made this storyline that much more heartbreaking was watching the spirit of Maxie’s sister, Georgie, guide Nathan to heaven. 

9. Neil Winters (The Young and the Restless) -

This one is still so hard to believe. This year fans of The Young and the Restless had to say goodbye to Kristoff St. John and his character Neil Winters. Kristoff passed away at the age of 52 in February. On the show, Devon came home to check on Neil when he didn’t show up to the opening of his restaurant. It was there Devon discovered that Neil had passed away in his sleep from a massive stroke. The soap then honored KSJ and Neil with one of the most beautifully heartbreaking tributes I have ever seen. We miss you, Kristoff!

8. Stone Cates (General Hospital) -

The heart-rending story of Stone Cates will forever be one of General Hospital’s best. Stone learned that he was HIV positive due to one of his exes being a drug addict. This news was made more devastating by the fact that he had recently made love to his girlfriend, Robin. Stone would later find out that he had developed AIDS, and we watched his devastating descent into illness. Robin, who had tested positive for HIV during this time, stayed with Stone the whole time. In his last moments, he saw his love clearly for the first time in a while as she stood by the window. 

7. Megan Gordon (One Life to Live) -

Megan Gordon’s life was cut tragically short when she passed away after battling Lupus. Her love, Jake, carried her to the window so she could see her tree that he had transplanted outside the window one last time, only to have her die in his arms. Her mother, Viki’s disbelief that she was gone made the whole thing that much more crushing. Jessica Tuck and Erika Slezak were nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series that year for their performances with Erika winning.

6. Frankie Frame (Another World) -

In a move that many fans of Another World would consider the beginning of the end of the soap, fan-favorite character Frankie Frame was murdered. Fans watched in horror as Frankie was stalked and brutally strangled by serial killer Fax Newman. Her death would cause the heartbreak of many including her husband Cass, her daughter Charlie, and the audience. The final blow to our hearts came at Frankie’s memorial service when Cass and Charlie said their final goodbyes. 

5. Isabella Toscano Black (Days of Our Lives) -

In the span of five months Days of Our Lives fans watched as Isabella Toscano’s life went from her happiest to her darkest. In May of 1992, she married John Black and that same day she went into labor with their son, Brady. Shortly after she would start suffering from back pain that was revealed to be caused by advanced pancreatic cancer. Wanting to die in her own home, John takes his Izzy B to Venice where she would eventually die in her lover’s arms. Somebody hand me the tissues!

4. Cassie Newman (The Young and the Restless) -

This was the first soap opera death that I can truly remember growing up. I remember sitting on the couch with my mother after school and just bawling my eyes out! Young Cassie Newman had yearned to be part of the popular crowd at school, especially in the eyes of her crush, the older Daniel. One night Cassie lies about going to hang with a friend and goes to a party instead. There she finds a drunken, passed out Daniel in the back of his car. She decides to drive him home even though she had very little driving experience. Cassie crashed the car injuring herself and Daniel. Everyone would assume that Daniel had been driving, but as Cassie started to remember the accident she tried to tell her father, not wanting Daniel to be in trouble. Cassie would eventually succumb to her injuries leaving her family devastated. Her death would be the catalyst to many storylines and is still affecting characters to this day. 

3. Bo Brady (Days of Our Lives) -

BO!!!!! We’re still not over this one! And we never will be! Days’ fans were heartbroken to learn after fan-favorite character Bo Brady fought his way out of captivity to get back to his family that he only had days to live. The scenes where his sister Kayla informs him that he had a brain tumor and that his body was just too worn from his time held captive to pursue treatment are heartbreaking. Bo and his Fancy Face reminisced about their epic love before he would pass away in her arms. 

2. Zack Brady (Days of Our Lives) -

My personal number one, the death of little Zack Brady! On New Year’s Eve, Zack had been staying at a friend’s house when he went outside to check on a cat. At the same time his half-sister Chelsea was texting and driving. In a twisted turn of events, Chelsea hit Zack with her car and kept going - not knowing that she had hit her brother. Hope went to pick Zack up early from his sleepover wanting to spend time with him when she discovers her son’s injured body in the middle of the road. The scene when Lexie has to tell her friends that their son had succumbed to his injuries were traumatic. Hope’s scream!  And I’m forever bitter by the fact that Kristian Alfonso and Peter Reckell did not win Emmys for this storyline! 

And your number one pick is…

Barbara Jean “B.J.” Jones (General Hospital) -

The saddest character death picked by you is B.J. Jones! In 1994, B.J. was on her way home when her school van crashed. The child was rushed to the hospital with a traumatic brain injury and was pronounced brain dead. The situation was made much worse for viewers because her parents Tony and Bobbie couldn’t grieve for their child together. Moments before B.J. was brought in the two had been arguing over by the fact that Bobbie had been caught having an affair. Tony made the heartbreaking decision to take his daughter off of life support and donate her heart to her ailing cousin, Maxie. The scene where Tony lays his head on Maxie’s chest after the surgery to hear his daughter’s heart beating...gut-wrenching!