A beautiful thing about superhero movies and TV shows is that they can do things comic books can’t. The main reason for that is that the source material has to worry about continuity or things getting too silly or violent. Without that restraint, you see things from Batman, Superman, and others that won’t happen in their issues.
This list will highlight 10 odd, wild, and sometimes unhinged moments in DC Comics TV shows and movies. Some of them are funny, while others are destructive, vile, and flat-out weird. Let’s start with a scene of accidental pleasure.
Wrong muscle
TV show: Doom Patrol
Flex Mentallo's superhuman ability took a weird turn. Instead of sending the Doom Patrol to another dimension, everyone in Danny the Street (except Cliff) was left having a moment of pure ecstasy. Oops.
It’s been years since this moment happened, and I still can’t believe that this made it onto the show and is still among the funniest scenes in superhero TV show history. That's saying a lot considering how many shows there are.
How far will you go for revenge?
Movie: The Dark Knight Rises
In The Dark Knight Rises, Talia al Ghul wanted revenge against the man who killed her father and was willing to do whatever it took to get it. Now, killing people is normal for a villain. However, sleeping with her enemy, someone who disgusts her, takes a lot of inner strength. And that was only the beginning of her master plan, which involved having Bane wreak havoc on Gotham City and eventually plan to destroy it.
Talia would stop at nothing to carry out her revenge. It would ultimately be the very thing that brought her down as Batman, Catwoman, and Commissioner Gordon stopped her.
Justified
TV show: The Penguin
Sofia Gigante was gaslit, sent to Arkham for murders she didn’t commit, and forced out of her family. The funny thing is, the Falcone family's fatal mistake was underestimating her.
After giving a riveting speech (that should have gotten Cristin Milioti all the awards), Sofia kills everyone in her family who wasn’t useful to her. Extreme for sure, but also justified in her mind. She no doubt felt that she did what she had to do... and she pulled it off convincingly.
All to myself
TV show: The Penguin
Understandably, Oz Cobb loved his mother in The Penguin. But letting his brothers drown in the sewer so he could have her all to himself was a bit much. It was also the moment viewers realized that Oz had never been a good person - or, at the very least that he needed the kind of help that only a medical professional could provide.
Don’t save Martha
Movie: Teen Titans Go! to the Movies
Seriously, nobody would have thought that a Teen Titans Go! movie would involve a murder. Not only that, but that the titular team would be directly responsible for it and smile after the crime was committed (oh yeah, and Robin gave a thumbs up!). This is absolutely unhinged. Funny, but unhinged.
Robin is a jerk
Movie: Teen Titans Go! to the Movies
As I was writing the previous section, it dawned on me that Robin did something even worse than the above entry. Instead of letting the movie end, he told kids to ask their parents where babies came from. There’s no way this didn’t lead to dozens, if not hundreds, of awkward trips back home.
Batman "Doesn't kill"
Movie: Batman Returns
Whether or not Batman kills people is something that can be endlessly disputed in the comics. What can’t be disputed is that he totally murdered someone in Batman Returns. You know the scene I'm talking about!
What makes it even more deranged is his smile after the criminal notices that he has a bomb strapped to him. Yep, this Batman is ruthless!
Valentine's Bane
TV show: Harley Quinn: A Very Problematic Valentine's Day Special
Bane is one of the best characters in HBO Max animated series Harley Quinn because he’s a parody of the version of him in both the comic books and The Dark Knight Rises. But growing to the size of a kaiju and humping buildings was a bit much.
I’ll never unsee it. And you haven't seen it, you'll never unthink it now either.
For the greater good
Movie: Watchmen
The idea of killing millions to save billions is a scenario that will always be questioned, regardless of the project or the character involved. Ozymandias, the smartest man in the world, set things in motion to test that theory in Watchmen. Fun fact: It didn’t work.
So, the deaths of millions meant nothing because it was spoiled by a person he had underestimated. It actually made the world worse.
Anybody else!
TV show: Peacemaker
Lastly, we have John Cena at his finest as Peacemaker names dozens of people who could have been sent to jail instead of his father. What makes this particularly unhinged is that some of these were off the top of his head. That means Cena was having a blast doing this and decided to keep it going. Fans are hoping that we get another scene like this in season 2 of Peacemaker.