Those who say that comic books are just for children clearly are not prolific comic book readers, as there have been numerous plots that are definitely not made for children. The DC Universe, in particular, has a number of villains who are pure evil, committing terrible crimes that could upset even the most detached reader.
The Joker has committed crimes that have no punchline. Lex Luthor is more than just the standard rich egomaniac. The Flash's enemies have tormented, brainwashed, and killed his friends and family. And that's just a taste of the horrible things DC villains have proven themselves capable of.
Darkseid Kills Batman And Martian Manhunter In Final Crisis
Every hero goes into battle knowing they might not come out the other side, but it doesn't make it any easier for fans to see their favorites tormented and killed. During "Final Crisis," Earth's mightiest heroes take a stand against Darkseid and suffer horrible casualties along the way.
Darkseid used mind-control against most of the Earth's population, making them all his slaves and many of the superheroes his soldiers. However, some fought back too hard to be tolerated, resulting in the deaths of Martian Manhunter and Batman. While Superman was eventually able to fix most of the damage Darkseid did, those deaths ended up being permanent, as some of the most surprising deaths in DC history.
Reverse-Flash Continues To Torment Barry Allen With His Own Family
Reverse-Flash just can't stand to see Barry Allen happy, using his time-travel abilities to manipulate his family in the worst ways, both in the past and the future. In the past, Eobard Thawne destroyed the Allens' marriage, killed Nora Allen, and framed her husband for it, resulting in a broken childhood for young Barry.
However, causing havoc in the past wasn't good enough for the Flash's best villain, who wanted to truly break Barry. In The Flash #758, he set an attack in motion in Central City, along with some unlikely allies. It's revealed that Thawne radicalized Barry's children, Don and Dawn, bringing them into the past to destroy Barry's childhood home and any hope he had for a happier future.
Lex Luthor Murdered His Own Parents For The Insurance Money
There have been a variety of different origins for Lex Luthor throughout comic, cinema, and television history. Some show him as a natural extension of his parents, while others show him desperate to destroy his past for the sake of his future.
In the canon created after Crisis on Infinite Earths, it was revealed that Lex Luthor killed his parents for the insurance money, which he then invested in getting LexCorp off the ground. He explains that he had been scheming about how to kill them since he was able to walk, making him a figure of evil incarnate, rather than just the image of capitalism gone too far.
Doctor Destiny Drove An Entire Diner Of Innocents Insane
In the Sandman story 24 Hour Nightmare, Doctor Destiny held a diner hostage and tormented all of its customers. Doctor Destiny used a ruby he stole from Morpheus to control the patrons, who were forced to reveal their darkest secrets, worship Doctor Destiny, and kill themselves and others in horrific ways.
The story has been designated the scariest DC story of all time, and it's not hard to see why. There is no hero coming to save the day, and there is no reason for the horror. Doctor Destiny torments the diner's patrons because he can and because it would briefly entertain him, and that's all there is to it.
The Flash's Rogues Beat A Powerless Bart Allen To Death
For the most part, the Flash's rogues gallery lives by a code, one that Barry Allen is shown to understand and even respect at times. One part of that code is that they do not kill unless it becomes necessary. However, that rule is broken in Flash: Fastest Man Alive when they come together to cause one of the most heartbreaking deaths in Flash comics.
The speedster Bart Allen was fighting against the rogues when he lost access to the speed force, making him virtually powerless. Fans of Flash comics might expect the rogues to then tie him up or knock him unconscious while they finished their tasks, but instead, they took a darker approach, beating Bart to death on the street.
Major Force Murdered Kyle Rayner's Girlfriend And Stuffed Her Into A Refrigerator
If you've ever wondered where the term "fridging" came from, look no further than Green Lantern #54, where Major Force tracked down Kyle Rayner's girlfriend, used her for information, killed her, and then stuffed her in her refrigerator, with a note telling Rayner to look inside.
While killing a love interest to get at the hero is nothing new, this instance was particularly brutal, and prompted the coining of the term. Major Force was a psychopath and clearly took pleasure in being overly savage with his kills and how he presented them, making one of the most iconic—and horrific—issues of Green Lantern to date.
The Batman Who Laughs Slaughtered Every Other Hero On His Earth
Batman has a plan for what to do if any member of the Justice League were to go rogue and needed to be taken down. What he really needed was a plan for taking himself out, as seen in the creation of the Batman Who Laughs. Imagine Batman's intellect, weaponry, and fighting skills with all the insanity and cruelty of the Joker, and you'll have a good picture of just how bad it can get.
The Batman Who Laughs was infected by a toxin stored in the Joker's heart, which created one of the most terrifying and deadly villains in DC history. The villainous Batman went to work quickly and efficiently, taking out every member of the Bat-Family and Justice League, before getting bored and making his way into the multiverse to cause further chaos.
Bane Snapped Alfred's Neck
While most casual Batman fans know about Bane breaking Batman's back, far fewer know the worst thing he did to the Bat-Family. In Batman #77, Bane was in control of Gotham and held Alfred hostage, threatening to kill him if any member of the Bat-Family entered the city. Damian Wayne thought he'd figured out a way around that threat and was rewarded a front-row seat as Bane snapped Alfred's neck.
Though there are several of the Bat-Family who have died and found a way to return, Alfred has always avoided that fate. Many fans consider Alfred to be the most important member of the Bat-Family, and his slaughter was completely heartbreaking.
The Joker Brutalized Multiple Of The Bat-Family
The Joker is at the heart of most of Batman's darkest days, as he has no qualms ing the Bat-Family against Batman. The most memorable examples of this come from famous storylines Death in the Family and The Killing Joke.
In the first, Joker beat Jason Todd to death with a crowbar before blowing up the facility he was left in, an act that the Bat-Family never quite recovered from. While The Killing Joke didn't actually include a murder, it did include the paralyzation and implied rape of Barbara Gordon, which was used by the Joker to try to prove his "one bad day" theory.
Joker Tricked Superman Into Beating Lois Lane To Death, Then Nuked Metropolis
Believe it or not, Joker's worst crime was done to Superman, not Batman. In Injustice Year One, the Joker managed to infect Superman with fear toxin, making him hallucinate a fight against Doomsday, a foe powerful enough to kill Superman once before.
Because of their history, Superman didn't hold back, putting all of his power behind defeating his foe... only for the fear toxin to wear off, revealing that his true opponent was Lois Lane, who had been pregnant with their unborn son. To top it all off, the Joker then blew up Metropolis, to prove to Superman how truly he had failed and to take absolutely everything away from him.
