Content Warning: This article discusses assault and sexual assault.
From the eradication of a whole city to the infamous death of Jason Todd, DC Comics never pulled its punches in giving audiences some of the saddest and most tragic moments in comic book history. While many of these moments can stick out in the minds of readers, some have more of a devastating emotional impact than others.
Fans voted on which of these moments were the most emotionally charged on Ranker, coming up with a fan-sources list of the saddest moments in DC Comics.
Blackest Night
Death is rarely permanent in comic book universes, with any number of ways to resurrect those who have been fatally wounded. However, Geoff Johns's run Blackest Night took the common resurrection narratives and turned them on their heads by having revived superheroes join the Black Lantern Corps as zombies.
Thanks to Nekron, a creature who can reanimate the dead, many of fans' favorite heroes were killed and revived as Black Lanterns, only to then be pitted against their still-living peers. It's one of the biggest arcs associated with the Green Lantern Corps and is extremely emotional due to all of the losses, battles, and resurrections the Justice League and Teen Titans faced.
The Death Of Supergirl
DC has always struggled with continuity, and one of the events that was used to manage that chaos was Crisis on Infinite Earths, an event that featured the Anti-Monitor attempting to destroy the many Earths within the DC Multiverse. Various heroes and villains worked together to stop the Anti-Monitor, resulting in one Earth with a single continuity.
During one portion of the Crisis, Superman, Supergirl, and Doctor Light confront the Anti-Monitor in his universe. To protect her cousin, Kara Zor-El threw herself into battle with the Anti-Monitor, destroying his solar collector and hurting him. However, she was hit by a blast of anti-matter energy that killed her before she could escape. This event became one of the most iconic in DC's history and broke many fans' hearts when it remained permanent.
The Death Of Superman
Many fans of superheroes find Superman to be boring and overpowered, but that doesn't mean they prefer the world without him. 1992 brought fans The Death of Superman, a crossover event in which Superman fought Doomsday and lost. The comic got a lot of media attention but has remained contentious as the shocking death didn't last long.
Even so, it made waves in both the comic and real worlds. Members of the Justice League, political leaders, and even Lex Luthor had parts in the mourning that followed his death, and many fans did the same. It received unprecedented media attention and remains heavily referenced in superhero media to this day, standing as a strong argument against those who find Superman unimportant.
Superman Stopping A Suicide
Sometimes, the vast mythos of the comic book world can make the characters seem too detached from the realities of life, as most people don't have to worry about supervillains and alien invasions. This is especially true when it comes to Superman, as very few real-world threats stand a chance against him.
This makes it that much more impactful when the most powerful superhero in the world is faced with a very real threat he can't easily fix. Superman #701 features a woman attempting to commit suicide. Rather than just stopping her from jumping, Superman listens to her and tries to help. It's not a world-saving issue, but it is one of the best and most emotional since it's so grounded in reality.
The Death of Arthur Curry's Son
DC villains have done some terrible things to their nemeses, but most don't compare to what Black Manta did in Adventure Comics #452. Black Manta kidnapped Arthur Curry Jr. (AKA Aquababy) and forced him into an air chamber that made him suffocate to death.
Neither Aquaman nor Aqualad was able to rescue him in time, which resulted in Aquaman trying to avenge his murdered son. The very real tragedy of losing a child changed Aquaman and resulted in his divorce from Mera. This was an unusually dark issue for 1977 and is one of the saddest moments in all Aquaman comics.
Jonathan Kent's Death
Superman can save the world, but there are some things even he can't stop. By the early 2000s, Superman had become boring, capable of defeating any foe, so Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely sought out ways to humanize him. And there's nothing more human than grieving a loss you were helpless to stop.
In All-Star Superman, fans flipped through their latest issues to find one of the most heartbreaking deaths in Superman comics. Superman lost three minutes in a battle against Chronovore, and when that time was up, he found that he couldn't hear his father's heartbeat. During those three minutes, Jonathan Kent died from a heart attack, and no matter how fast Superman flew, he couldn't undo it.
The Paralysis and Implied Rape of Barbara Gordon
The Joker's theory on life is that one bad day could make any man a villain, and he tested that theory on Commissioner Gordon by shooting Barbara Gordon and photographing her naked and bleeding. Barbara survived the attack but was paralyzed from the waist down, which caused her to leave behind her time as Batwoman and become Oracle.
The Killing Joke is one of the most famous Batman stories for this attack, with the cruelty of the Joker going far beyond his standard fare. While neither Jim nor Barbara let this moment define them, it left its mark on DC Comics fans as one of the most heartbreaking stories ever told.
The Death and Return of Jason Todd
Batman fans never quite liked Jason Todd's Robin as much as his predecessor Dick Grayson, so the writers decided to give audiences a say in what his future was. The Joker captured Jason and beat him with a crowbar, with the issue ending on a cliffhanger and a question: Should Robin live or die?
Fans were able to call in to vote, and their votes resulted in quite the impactful comic book death. Jason Todd was officially killed in Batman #428, staying dead for 16 years before returning in the Under the Red Hood arc. Jason Todd did not return as the eager young Robin he once was, but as a more violent vigilante, taking down those he viewed as irredeemable and pushing for Batman to finally kill the Joker.
The Death of Barry Allen
To simplify DC Comics' extensive multiversal canon, they created the Crisis on Infinite Earths arc, which included the destruction of the majority of known universes, culminating in one unified Earth. However, an event of this magnitude couldn't reasonably occur without casualties.
As the Antimonitor prepared to use the Anti-Matter Cannon on the final five Earths, Barry Allen created a speed vortex to absorb the energy. While it was successful in saving what remained of the multiverse, it also resulted in one of the biggest superhero deaths in comic history, as Barry Allen's Flash perished, not to return for another 23 years.
Barry Allen Remembering Wally West in DC Universe Rebirth
After all of the chaos brought about by the Flashpoint arc, Wally West was brought back to DC Comics in DC Universe Rebirth. However, he was trapped outside of time by Abra Kadabra, forcing him to watch the universe continue without him. Following Justice League #50, he was able to return to the world for a few moments at a time and try to reunite with the ones he loved.
However, there was just one problem: Everybody had forgotten him. He became dejected, and as the Speed Force attempted to pull him back in, he visited his uncle, Barry Allen, to say goodbye. As he was disappearing, Barry was somehow able to remember him and bring him home, in a powerfully emotional arc that covered everything Wally had lost and learned in his years of captivity.