Top 10 Most Heartbreaking Scenes in DC Animated Movies
Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the Top 10 most devastating scenes in DC Animated Movies. Since we’ll talk about major plot points, beware of spoilers ahead. What DC moment broke your heart? If you have any suggestions, let us know in the comments below.
#10: Bruce Finds Guns
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“Batman: Gotham Knight” (2008)
During an extremely long night underground, Batman’s bitten by Killer Croc, infected with fear toxin, and shot by a bystander. Despite having multiple injuries, the hero tries to emerge from the sewers alone. Batman’s brutal struggle to escape was hard to watch by itself. But the saddest part comes when he’s nearly homefree. When Bruce finally sees a way out of the sewers, he discovers that he’s standing on a pile of guns. The weapons instantly take him back to the night he lost his parents. Bruce’s pain left him frozen and on the edge of breaking down. And as a final heartbreaking nail in this scene, Batman refuses to let Alfred help his physical or emotional pain.
#9: Raven Reveals Her Ruined Home
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“Justice League vs. Teen Titans” (2016)
While standing amongst ruins, Raven told her team about her sad origins. Her father, a demon named Trigon, needed her to be born so he could travel to and conquer Earth. Fortunately for Raven, she was taken away from the demon and into a safe realm called Azarath. The young magic user lived in this peaceful land until she mistakenly contacted Trigon. Shortly after arriving, he slaughtered everyone he saw in Azarath and dragged his daughter into his realm. When Raven’s friends ask what happened to her home, she tells them to look at the ruins around them. What makes this scene so devastating is how young the heroine is. She suffered more pain in her short life than some heroes endure in a lifetime.
#8: Superman Fails to Save His Friend
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“Superman: Red Son” (2020)
In an alternate world, the boy who would become the man of steel kept his powers a secret until he told his close friend Svetlana that he had abilities. After she encouraged him to tell adults about his strengths, he was forged into Superman. The duo didn’t reunite until a relentlessly tragic day. When Superman finds out about a hidden Russian gulag, he inspects it and is shocked to find Svetlana. Unfortunately, his old friend is so sick that she can barely stand up. This scene hits the lowest point when he discovers why Sveltana was punished. Before Superman can process this information, she dies in his arms. It’s depressing that he couldn’t use any of his mighty powers to save her.
#7: Chas Loses All His Love
“Constantine: City of Demons” (2018)
After a malicious demon causes his daughter to fall into a coma, Chas seeks help from his friend Constantine. Although the duo finds the entity responsible, they aren’t powerful enough to stop him. But everything changes after Constantine reveals there’s a spell that carries a terrible cost that can save them. After casting the enchantment, the two meet up at a diner. It’s then revealed that Chas sacrificed his daughter and wife’s love for him to make the spell work. Not only will they lose all memories of him, but he’ll also forget about Constantine as well. The DC hero is left sitting alone with the knowledge that his magic essentially robbed Chas of his loved ones.
#6: Wonder Woman Watches a Family Shatter
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“Wonder Woman: Bloodlines” (2019)
Geologist Julia Kapatelis invited Diana into her home to help the amazon get acclimated to the human world. So, when the scientist’s daughter Vanessa gets into trouble, the heroine races to help. Diana eventually finds the young woman in the middle of a deal with supervillains. During a battle between the heroine and the antagonists, Julia is fatally wounded. To add salt to the wound, the geologist dies reaching out to Wonder Woman instead of her daughter. This heart wrenching death opened up a tremendous rift between Diana and Vanessa. In the span of one scene, Wonder Woman lost her connection to two people she truly loved.
#5: Bruce & Andrea Permanently Separate
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“Batman: Mask of the Phantasm” (1993)
Once upon a time, the playboy billionaire was going to give up his quest to be a vigilante and fully commit to Andrea Beaumont. But the relationship came to an untimely end when the bride-to-be had to flee the country with her father to avoid mob bosses. After Andrea’s dad is killed abroad, she returns to Gotham to assassinate her father’s old enemies. Although she and Bruce still love each other, she’s too consumed by revenge and pain to rekindle their romance. A final scene shows how the two heartbroken vigilantes cope with the loss. Batman’s sorrow and Andrea’s loneliness are both palpable. As much as they wished they could comfort each other, the tragedies they suffered made their romance impossible.
#4: Lois Lane’s Final Message
“Justice League Dark: Apokolips War” (2020)
Over the span of a few years, Superman was fatally wounded, tormented by Darkseid, and watched the Earth get devastated by big bads. But through it all, his love Lois Lane stood by his side. The duo’s relationship was tested once again when Superman had to go to Apokolips while his partner carried out a mission on Earth. After their plan goes array, Lois realizes that she’ll have to lay down her life to give the heroes a chance of defeating Darkseid. The reporter manages to leave her love with one last message. Since we saw their relationship develop over the course of multiple movies, this scene absolutely wrecked us. Their romance deserved a much happier ending than this.
#3: Tim Drake’s Total Breakdown
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“Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker” (2000)
The clown prince of crime woke up one day and decided that he’d like a young sidekick of his own. Instead of trying to find one, he twisted and tormented Tim Drake until the kid was a spitting image of the Joker. The former Robin was so brainwashed that he nearly shot Batman. However, Tim turns the gun on the clown and ends the Joker’s life. While we expected the moment after the shot to be triumphant, we instead watched a traumatized Robin break down. We couldn’t tell if Tim was crying because of what he endured or because of how he freed himself. But what we knew for certain was that the traumatized kid would never be the same.
#2: Barry Allen Lets His Mother Die
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“Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox” (2013)
When the scarlet speedster was young, he arrived home one day to discover that someone had slain his mom. After Barry Allen grew up and gained superspeed, he used his powers to run back in time and undo her death. But his mother’s survival had a butterfly effect on the timeline that resulted in a world war. In order to stop the earth from being annihilated, Barry Allen had to run back to the past and let his mom die. Watching the Flash fight his past self to save the timeline made for a tragic sight. However, the saddest part came when Barry gave his mom an apology she’d never hear. We’ll never forget what Flash sacrificed to save everyone.
#1: Remembering a Happy Robin
“Batman: Under the Red Hood” (2010)
At the beginning of this grim tale, Jason Todd is severely beaten and blown up by the Joker. After the sidekick is brought back to life, he becomes a bloodthirsty vigilante known as Red Hood. Every scene between Batman and his former Robin is tinged with tragedy. While all their interactions are sad, the most gut-wrenching moment was saved for last. After Batman promises to keep his sidekick’s old costume, we flashback to Jason’s first time in the suit. The kid was so excited that he even got a smile out of Batman. But since we know the dark path that awaits him, this flashback is absurdly painful. When Jason ends the movie with one last joyful line, our hearts broke into a million pieces.
