Top 10 Times DC Animated Movies Left Us Speechless

“Superman vs. The Elite” (2012)
After a superpowered team known as the Elite begins executing criminals, Superman fights them to stop their deadly campaign. At first, it seemed like the Krytponian couldn’t win. But everything changed after Superman was hit with an attack meant to kill him. A moment after he disappears, Clark’s disembodied voice tells the Elite that he will execute them all. The sight of Superman taking multiple lives in cold blood was truly shocking. And just when it looked like he had permanently crossed the line, Clark revealed he was just pretending to slay the criminals. But the sight of the blue boy scout sinking to a criminal’s level just to prove a point still makes for an eye-opening watch.

“Justice League: Throne of Atlantis” (2015)
Despite being a powerful member of the Justice League, a lot of people have trouble taking Aquaman seriously. Many find his power to talk to marine life to be especially ridiculous. However, Aquaman silenced his critics by showing us how dangerous that ability can be. During a one on one battle with Black Manta, the villain stops to gloat by the sea. Aquaman swiftly shuts him up by summoning a gigantic shark to pull the villain underneath the surface. This surprising scene was a reminder that you might not want to make fun of the hero. If the sea king hears you, he might send an underwater army swimming towards your head.

“Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero” (1998)
Gotham’s coldest villain spends most of the runtime of “Subzero” trying to find a cure for his wife’s terminal disease. Once he discovers that she also needs an urgent organ transplant, he decides to take more drastic measures. Freeze captures Batgirl because her blood is compatible with his wife’s. Although Barabara thinks it will be a low risk transfusion, she was stunned when she realized Freeze was going to put her through a dangerous operation. The images of Batgirl struggling to escape are genuinely disturbing. And for a terrifying second, it looked like the doctor was actually get the organs he wanted. Thankfully, a young bystander stopped the operation before it went any further.

“Justice League: Gods and Monsters” (2015)
During this alternate universe DC film, several scientists that participated in a top secret project get slain by superpowered beings. The survivors decided to meet up to brainstorm a way to stay alive. But once they all gather in one place, superpowered enemies arrive to complete their deadly mission. We thought that a vampiric Batman would be able to save them all. Unfortunately, he and the audience watched in horror as every scientist in the room was systematically executed. There are a few especially brutal deaths that we can’t begin to show you here. Just take our word for it when we say that this scientist slaughter is one of the most graphic and unexpected scenes we’ve seen in any DC universe.

“Batman: The Killing Joke” (2016)
When the celebrated “Killing Joke” graphic novel was made into a movie, a new storyline about Barbara Gordon was added to the plot. Her adventures were fairly standard for Gotham until one infamous scene. After Batman and Barbara get into a heated argument, Batgirl starts throwing punches. But she suddenly stops the fight by planting a kiss on Bruce. We couldn’t believe our eyes when the dark knight decided to embrace the moment and hook up with the heroine. Since Batman had been set up as a mentor figure to Barbara, their intimate scene felt inappropriate. Their hookup also drew additional backlash because their shocking encounter ultimately had very little impact on the rest of the film.

“Superman: Red Son” (2020)
A version of Superman that grew up in Russia eventually decides to use his powers to influence world politics. To keep him in check, Lex Luthor makes a clone of the Kyrptonian named Superior Man. It doesn’t take long before the two superpowered beings clash with their words and their fists. When Superior Man is pushed into a corner, Lex forces the being to absorb additional power. But his strategy begins mutating the clone’s body beyond recognition. Although we were expecting Superman to strike the final blow, Lex’s cruel actions end up causing Superior Man to suffer a painful and horrific death. The superbeing’s savage end at the hands of his creator stunned us into silence.

“Justice League Dark: Apokolips War” (2020)
This dark film is full of jaw-dropping moments that you can’t look away from. But the writers saved one of the most brutal twists for last. Early on in the movie, Superman told us that many major heroes were killed by Darkseid’s forces. However, the Kryptonian didn’t know that a few of his fallen friends were turned into brainwashed members of the villain’s army. The idea that the heroes were now vicious servants was hard to swallow on its own. But it was the fact that portions of their bodies were replaced with mechanical parts that really made the scene hit home. Not even earth’s greatest champions were safe from being manipulated and twisted by Darkesid.

“Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox” (2013)
We were appalled when Wonder Woman decided to execute Shazam during the middle of an alternate timeline war. But that despicable act was overshadowed by the scene where Flash first talked to Batman. While we all expected the dark knight to be Bruce, it turns out that his father Thomas Wayne was the caped crusader in this reality. This twist was soon followed by the bombshell that he became the hero because his son was slain in Crime Alley. The tragic death of young Bruce also pushed Martha over the edge and caused her to become the Joker. We admittedly didn’t see much of her in the film. But the thought of Batman’s mom tormenting the people of Gotham was enough to give us pause.

“Injustice” (2021)
In the “Injustice” universe, the Joker tricks Superman into ending Lois Lane’s life. This incident pushes the Kryptonian so far over the edge that he kills the clown. Superman’s dark deed leads to a series of progressively more shocking deaths. In the end, the most stunning demises occur at a club. When Superman sees a bunch of human partygoers wearing clown makeup, he loses his cool. He proceeds to use his powers to execute every single person in the building. We never thought we’d see Superman take the lives of people who weren’t committing actual crimes. After this scene, we knew that the hero we knew was truly gone.

“Batman: Under The Red Hood” (2010)
Years after the Joker left Jason Todd’s Robin to die in an explosion, the sidekick returned as the trigger happy Red Hood. The violent vigilante wanted to settle his scores with the clown and the bat-mentor that failed him. Once the three of them end up in a room, the Dark Knight is asked to either let the clown be killed or shoot his former sidekick to save the villain. Batman’s refusal to choose either option leads to an explosive three way confrontation that gets worse by the second. We were both speechless and breathless as we waited to see if any of them would walk out alive. The tension, dramatic weight, and surprising end turned this trio’s struggle to survive into an astonishing scene.