Does the Graphic Novel come after "the death of the novel"?

After the heat of the debate over "the death of the novel" (1960s and 1970s), the 1980s saw the birth and flourishment of the graphic novel (not really a genre, but a format, which, like comics, uses sequential art, but can be read - either in collected issues or in a single volume - as a stand-alone story. Many are personal narratives and quite as many are superhero stories).

Art Spiegelman, Maus (1980-1991)

Frank Miller, The Dark Knight Returns (1986)

Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, Watchmen (1986/1987)

Alan Moore and Brian Bolland, The Killing Joke (1988)