7 Greatest Betrayals in DC Comics History

DC Comics has a lot of great betrayals that shook up the comic book world, with one hero betraying a friend, teammate, or the entire world. Most of DC is about superheroes saving the world from villains, and that is what draws people to comic books, to begin with. However, the best stories are those that take the readers by surprise, and that is where the great betrayals come into play. When a hero that readers have grown to love, or at least trust, betrays those closest to him, it not only shocks the readers but also causes intense feelings to arise, where these readers want to keep going to see why this happened and what the fallout will be.

From the time a team leader betrayed his best friend to the moment where one of DC’s most legendary heroes turned against the entire world, here are the seven most shocking betrayals in DC Comics.

7) Maxwell Lord Betrays Blue Beetle

Maxwell Lord is known as a major DC villain, and he was so evil that Wonder Woman had no choice but to kill him to stop him, which fractured her relationship with Batman and Superman. However, at one time, he was the leader and key benefactor of the Justice League International. In Countdown to Infinite Crisis #1, Maxwell Lord admitted to Blue Beetle that he had set up a system called OMAC (One Man Army Corps) that would save the world from men “pretending to be human.” He wanted Blue Beetle to join him, but when he refused, Ted shot him in the head, and Infinite Crisis began. It was a considerable betrayal and is what led to a massive crossover event that only ended with Lord’s death.

6) Jean Loring Betrays Sue Dibney

One of the most shocking betrayals set into motion one of DC Comics’ most controversial and polarizing storylines. This was Identity Crisis, and it all began with the murder of Sue DIbney, the wife of the Elgongated Man. The entire story was set up as a mystery, and one of the suspects was Doctor Light, who was revealed to have sexually assaulted Sue years before. However, it wasn’t Doctor Light who killed Sue. It was Jean Loring, the Atom’s ex-wife, and she did it in a delusional attempt to get Ray to take her back as a wife after seeing how devastated Ralph was when Sue died. It didn’t work, and she ended up committed to Arkham Asylum.

5) Wally West Betrays Booster Gold & Harley Quinn

Another controversial storyline arrived in 2018 called Heroes in Crisis. What made this series so controversial is that it almost ruined one of DC’s most beloved heroes of the last three decades. After Flash died in Crisis on Infinite Earths, Wally West took his place, and for many fans, Wally will always be their Flash. When this version of Wally didn’t exist in the New 52, fans were mad. He finally came back, but it ended up turning him into a murderer. The series was a mystery involving a mass shooting at the Sanctuary, a mental health facility for heroes suffering from trauma. The killer ended up being Wally West, who faked his own death by killing a variant from another timeline and placing him as one of the victims. It was a sobering story that almost ruined one of DC’s most beloved heroes.

4) Hal Jordan Betrays Everyone (Parallax)

Hal Jordan was one of the first DC Comics heroes of the Silver Age, along with names like Flash and Golden Age carryovers like Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. He was always considered the greatest member of the Green Lantern Corps, and he was considered the one man with the strongest will of any DC hero. However, Mongul destroyed his home of Coast City, Hal was lost in grief and anger, and that allowed the fear demon Parallax to possess him. Parallax became the most dangerous villain on Earth, and no one could stop him or beat him. Only Hal regaining control and sacrificing himself to save the Earth stopped the monster within.

3) Green Arrow Betrays Justice League (Absolute Power)

Sometimes, a betrayal isn’t how it looks on the page. This happened with Green Arrow in the Absolute Power storyline. Arrow is a member of the Justice League, but he betrays all his teammates when he joins forces with Amanda Waller, who has a plan to come up with a way to take down all of DC’s superpowered beings. Part of the reason for this betrayal is that Waller had put one of those Suicide Squad brain bombs in Roy Harper, so Arrow knows he needs to play along. When he helped Waller steal all the heroes’ powers to Amazos, it seemed he was beyond redemption. However, it was all a long game for Arrow, who is the one who saves everyone and takes down Waller. It is perfect because Ollie never cared if anyone saw him as a hero or not.

2) Justice League Betrays Batman (Memory Wipe)

There was a second betrayal in Identity Crisis, and it was one that happened in a flashback scene. As mentioned, Doctor Light had sexually assaulted Sue Dibney in the past. The Justice League met to determine what to do about him, and they came to a shocking decision. They mind-wiped him to neuter him and ensure he couldn’t hurt anyone again, which is why he was so worthless as a villain for years in DC Comics. However, when Batman objected and tried to stop them, Zatanna mind-wiped him to delete this memory. After Batman learned what happened, he no longer trusted the Justice League, and his plans to stop every hero with a contingency plan seemed more crucial than ever.

1) Terra Betrays Teen Titans

The most shocking betrayal in DC Comics history is one of the company’s most famous moments. The New Teen Titans changed everything about DC Comics, creating a team of heroes that seemed more relatable than anything DC had done to that point and the closest they came to Marvel Comics-styled heroes. This relatability is what made the shocking moment when one of the teen heroes betrayed her teammates so sobering. Terra ended up as a double agent working with Deathstroke in Teen Titans: The Judas Contract. No one saw it coming, and it was a moment that helped bring DC Comics into the modern day for storytelling.

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