During the Brightest Day event, Ryan is murdered by Deathstroke and his new team of Titans during their first mission. His corpse is then delivered in a matchbox to Dwarfstar, who is revealed to be the person who hired the Titans. His death caused some minor controversy, given both its timing and the supposed "lighter" new direction of DC Comics. A short time after Ryan's death, Deathstroke is briefly shown dismantling his bio-belt for some unknown purpose. In an interview done during Comic-Con International 2010, Titans writer Eric Wallace stated that Choi's death would have major repercussions for the team, and would bring the Titans into conflict with the wider DCU.