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1[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/destiny_0.jpg]]
2[[caption-width-right:350:'''''[[NightmareFace Now you see the real me.]]'''''[[note]]This isn't a mask. This was behind his face.[[/note]]]]
3
4'''WARNING:''' Spoilers are unmarked.
5
6''Justice League'' may have heralded the end of the DCAU, but it still had plenty of chilling scenes to send shivers down any viewer’s spine.
7
8----
9[[foldercontrol]]
10
11[[folder:''Justice League'']]
12[[AC:1x01/02/03 -- Secret Origins]]
13* Really, the nightmares started from episode one. However {{narm}}y the Imperium may have been, its attack was [[NightmareFuel anything]] [[ColdBloodedTorture but]].
14** For starters, there's the fact that they replace key figures in society entirely, and keep the victim trapped in a sort of pod. That's some real ''Film/InvasionOfTheBodySnatchers'' level stuff.
15** For that matter, there's a certain shock to seeing what appears to be an ordinary guard dog start ''walking straight up a wall'' as it transforms into something entirely different.
16* Whenever Superman cries out in pain and images flash through his mind, it's probably a good idea not to pause the video and look at them. [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/justice_league_nightmare_fuel1.JPG Some of them are truly terrifying]].
17* J'onn's torture. It, quite frankly, looks like someone digging their fingernails inside someone's face. All [[BloodlessCarnage bloodless]], though. Even so, it's terrifying, especially when he's essentially ''absorbed'' by another Martian.
18** The absence of blood arguably makes it even ''more'' disturbing, almost like J'onn's body is being denied the chance to even express or expose its pain.
19** The part where he deals with the Imperium, grabbing the tentacles ''still embedded into his own body'' and dragging it into the sunlight. We see the Imperium's outer layers starting to form bubbles that quickly burst like a hyper skin irritation or boils. And as it screams, J'onn delivers the line: "You live in the shadows, and shun the light. Why? ''Does it '''burn''' your '''pale, putrid skin'''?''" The seething hatred in J'onn's voice is all the more chilling.
20* J'onn tricks a pair of Imperium soldiers into cornering a few League members so he can get the drop on them from behind. He puts an intangible fist through each of their chests and goes solid. ''Ouch''. Lampshaded by Flash who highlights how J'onn veers into being a straight-up HorrifyingHero because of this.
21-->'''Flash:''' Is it just me or does he creep you out too?
22
23[[AC:1x08/09 -- Paradise Lost]]
24* Faust's ultimate fate. [[AssholeVictim Yeah, he deserved it]], but it's still really chilling to see him go from SmugSnake to screaming horror while Hades just stands there calmly explaining that [[GoMadFromTheRevelation he now merely has knowledge of human suffering]]. The scene [[DiscretionShot cuts away]] as he undergoes RapidAging and is implied to have crumbled into dust.
25-->'''Superman:''' Good Lord.
26
27[[AC:1x16/17 -- Legends]]
28* While generally amusing, the entirety of the episode has some extremely creepy subtext. Indeed, the fact that [[CrapsaccharineWorld the world is so bright and sunny]] makes it all the more frightening when you put together the pieces. The idyllic [[TheFifties 50s]] comic book fantasy world was created by [[TheDogWasTheMastermind Ray Thompson]], formerly a young child who had to experience his [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt entire world go up in flames]] when a nuclear war broke out, was [[TransformationHorror mutated by the radiation into]] [[BodyHorror some... inhuman... cancerous...]] ''[[HumanoidAbomination thing]]'', and was [[SanitySlippage driven so insane]] that the only way he could cope was by using [[RealityWarper his newfound psychic powers]] to create an [[LotusEaterMachine eternal happy dream world]] where this horrible tragedy never happened.
29** TheReveal of what happened to Earth in that alternate dimension is chilling, when you consider how close [[RealLife our world]] has come to that, and that it could still end up as such.
30
31[[AC:1x20/21 -- A Knight of Shadows]]
32* We get to see what J'onn is really capable of when he cuts loose. Under Morgan le Fay's influence with the promise of bringing back his dead family and homeworld, J'onn starts fighting Etrigan for the Philosopher's Stone and shows off a few different powers that we hardly ever see again: he turns into solid metal, apparently becomes invisible to to get in a sucker punch, and turns into smoke to get behind Etrigan before attacking his mind with a declaration which seems to suggest he's planning to ''kill'' Etrigan right there.
33-->'''J'onn:''' Nobody will keep me from my loved ones! ''Especially not '''you!'''''
34* We also get to see Morgaine le Fay kill a man onscreen by stealing his life-force.
35
36[[AC:1x24/25/26 -- The Savage Time]]
37* J'onn being tortured by the Nazis. [[NothingIsScarier We don't actually see what happens]], but we can definitely hear the screams...
38** Well, actually, that was probably him faking it, since he replaced the torturer easily enough. Shape-changing, SuperStrength, phasing...he's equipped for this. Doesn't make his screaming any less creepy. Seriously, something about J'onn's voice makes ''any'' screaming, real or faked, kind of scary.
39** Hearing what sounds like J'onn's voice as he is tortured on an operating table becomes HarsherInHindsight as J'onn's voice actor Creator/CarlLumbly would play Isaiah Bradley who revealed to have being forcibly turned into a SuperSoldier human experiment for thirty years with memories of it continuing to haunt him up to his advanced age in ''Series/TheFalconAndTheWinterSoldier''.
40** Given that the torturer looks weak when the guards find him strapped to the table, this leads to the very real question of whether some of those screams might have been from J'onn torturing ''[[PayEvilUntoEvil him]]''?!
41
42[[AC:2x01/02 -- Twilight]]
43* The sheer destruction the New Gods inflicted upon Apokolips's army and Darkseid's palace shows that GoodIsNotSoft. Granted Darkseid started it.
44--> ''Highfather:'' We know of your mad ambitions. Break the treaty again and you will be destroyed.
45* Desaad's death. Darkseid blasts him to oblivion after he called him a fool without thinking.
46
47[[AC:2x03/04 -- Tabula Rasa]]
48* By the end of the episode, the MonsterOfTheWeek, AMAZO, leaves Earth and heads out into space. That would be a good thing.....until you realize that he'll explore new worlds and gain new abilities along the way. Like J'onn said, we better pray he better not comes back.
49** And then, of course, come ''Unlimited'', AMAZO really ''does'' return. And the entire expanded Justice League is ''absolutely powerless to stop him.'' Luckily for the entire universe, AMAZO decides against doing anything especially destructive and becomes fully neutral by the end of the episode.
50
51[[AC:2x05/06 -- Only a Dream]]
52* The episode's plot itself. You can't deny this is a cartoon adaption of ''[[Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet Nightmare on Elm Street]]''. That was a horror movie for adults; [[WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids this is a cartoon for kids]].
53* The ending of Part 1 where Doctor Destiny (who provides the page image) has gotten everybody but Martian Manhunter and Batman to go to sleep. Each of the heroes go to sleep, while a toned-down music box plays in the background. Finally, you hear Doctor Destiny softly chuckling. Not an EvilLaugh, just a...chuckle. Worst of all, Superman goes to sleep and Batman calls him moments later, trying too late to warn him. End of episode.
54* What John Dee does to his wife Penny. She leaves him for another man, but upon getting his powers, Dee pays her a visit and unveils his costumed, skull-faced appearance as Doctor Destiny, growing a set of razor-sharp fingernails as he does. [[NothingIsScarier Whatever he does to Penny, she is left screaming in a sleep no one can wake her from]]. She dies not too long afterwards.
55-->'''Penny:''' John, please.\
56'''Dee:''' You know, I never liked that name. It's so...ordinary. Especially for someone who has such big things in store. You know, a destiny. [[EurekaMoment Oh, destiny!]] I like it--''Doctor'' Destiny. What do you think?\
57'''Penny:''' You're crazy.\
58'''John:''' I think you're finally seeing the real me. ''[his clothes turn into spooky robes]'' And now that I'm a doctor... ''[[[FacialHorror his face falls off, revealing a skull]]]'' ...I think I'll perform some surgery.
59* Doctor Destiny looms over Flash when he enters his dreams and delivers a chilling line.
60-->'''Flash:''' I get it, I'm dreaming. All I have to do is close my eyes and I'll... ''[closes eyes, nothing happens]''\
61'''Doctor Destiny:''' ''Wake up''?
62* While someone is inside the dream Doctor Destiny traps you in, you can't wake up, and the torture the victim goes through causes their heart to accelerate to dangerous levels until it eventually gives out. Batman and Martian Manhunter make every attempt they can to wake the others, and Martian Manhunter in the end resorts to [[JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind entering the dreams to save the others]], with nothing else working.
63** [[ParanoiaFuel There is no hiding from this guy. You can be anywhere in the world, and he can find you, even if he doesn't know where you are]]. If you get closer to him, his powers can affect you even if you're awake. Batman thankfully had the HeroicWillpower to keep him out.
64* Hawkgirl's nightmare deserves mention. Green Lantern, Flash, and Superman all have nightmares relating to their powers. Hawkgirl has the [[PrimalFear much more relatable fear]] of [[{{Claustrophobia}} confined spaces]], which Doctor Destiny exploits by [[BuriedAlive burying her alive]]. [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness The terrified screaming from the otherwise tough Hawkgirl doesn't help]]. ''She breaks down and cries in fear, begging for anyone to help'' while Supes, GL, and J'onn are right outside the locked dream door unable to go through, an unsettling reaction she never quite matches later on in the series. Prompting a HeroicWillpower moment in GL (which is good, as his powers are driven by willpower). Unfortunately, the door to Hawkgirl's dream ''even being locked in the first place'' serves as subtle {{Foreshadowing}} that Hawkgirl isn't what she seems, and it would've certainly doomed her to die at the hands of Doctor Destiny if Batman hadn't beaten him in time.
65* The [[ImAHumanitarian cannibalistic]] kids in Flash's nightmare? They had nothing to do with the nightmare ''per se'', but it was so out of nowhere. They got to be even scarier than the context of the scene. Good thing he has SuperSpeed... Or not.
66* Superman's nightmare is both horrifying and heartbreaking. It starts with him accidentally frying Lois with heat vision. [[ScreamDiscretionShot We don't even see it, but from Supes' response, it must have been horrifying]], especially given what we see of his reactions; of all the Leaguers, his is the most outwardly pronounced. After he accidentally kills Lois, we cut to his apartment where we see him screaming and flailing around [[TearJerker/JusticeLeague as if in agony]]. And given what we see of the rest of the nightmare, it probably didn't get any better for him from there.
67** Superman accidentally destroying Metropolis and ''snapping Jimmy Olsen's spine'' later in his nightmare. When Superman inadvertently crushes Jimmy with a hug, [[SickeningCrunch you can actually]] ''[[SickeningCrunch hear]]'' [[SickeningCrunch the poor teen's bones snap]] as he screams in agony -- and suddenly goes limp. ''Then'' the viewer gets treated to a few seconds of seeing his body, [[DiesWideOpen his eyes wide open in a chillingly blank stare]]. The whole thing is [[BloodlessCarnage completely bloodless]], but that doesn't mean it isn't disturbing.
68* Green Lantern's nightmare is another one that's very effective in how relatable and relatively subtle it is. Imagine coming home, only to find that it isn't home anymore, that no one recognizes you, and that the people you care about are terrified of you for reasons you don't understand, that even your surroundings have changed.
69** Later in the nightmare, Green Lantern is being led to a giant battery with false promises of finding inner peace when he is actually being lured to his doom. Superman and J'onn's desperate attempts to stop him are overpowered by Doctor Destiny. The moment GL runs into the battery, Doctor Destiny lets out an uncanny laugh that truly signals his transition from a vindictive human experimenting with powers into a genuine monster.
70* Even though he's on the side of good, hearing Batman's quiet humming in his head has a creepy sound to it, like you can hear him about to snap underneath from lack of sleep, and yet he's so calm...
71* Dee's fate at the end is creepy. He's lying in bed, seemingly catatonic and humming ''Frere Jacques''. Who knows what he's seeing...
72
73[[AC:2x07/08 -- Maid of Honor]]
74* What happens to the King of Kaznia, who is poisoned and paralyzed by Vandal Savage as part of his plan to take over the country. He's unable to move and {{forced to watch}} his daughter Audrey get married to the man responsible for his predicament.
75** Worse, since we never see what happens to him, it's heavily implied he most likely perished when the rail-gun was redirected to destroy the castle!
76*** Which, if that wasn't bad enough, also means that ''[[DoesNotLikeGuns Batman]]'', of all people, almost killed him with a big honking space gun!
77*** When we see the people running out of the castle, you can see one of the soldiers carrying someone dressed in purple. The king was wearing purple pajamas. So, the king didn't actually die in the explosion. But what if the guard ''hadn't'' been on the watch?
78* Near the end of the episode, Savage, who was in ground zero for an asteroid hitting the Kasnian royal palace, confirms his {{immortality}} by breaking out of the rubble, [[HealingFactor still healing from the blast]], [[BodyHorror resetting his bones]], and screaming in a mixture of rage and indescribable pain.
79* The look of horror on Flash's face when he briefly [[ThrownOutTheAirlock gets spaced]].
80
81[[AC:2x09/10 -- Hearts and Minds]]
82* Despero tries to MindRape Hawkgirl, causing her to scream in agonizing pain that grows louder and more intense until Green Lantern saves her.
83* The ending. Despero's army is turned into trees, all the while they are aware of this. Their faces as this happens tells you everything need to know. Especially chilling is a close-up of a face stuck in a scream, while only one eye is left open.
84
85[[AC:2x11/12 -- A Better World]]
86* The Justice Lords' Superman's PsychoticSmirk after he kills President Luthor, all with creepy background music.
87** Also, Lord-Batman asking "Do you smell something burning?" right before a cut to where we see the burned remains of the Oval Office desk and Lord-Superman standing next to it, which lets us know that, yes, he did blast Luthor.
88** What he says to Lord-Batman and Lord-Diana right after makes it a LOT worse. "''[[WhamLine I'm great]]''."
89** Lord-Superman ''lobotomizes'' Doomsday. The matter-of-fact way in which he does it and the speed in which Doomsday goes from being relatively well-spoken to drooling are equally chilling.
90*** In "The Doomsday Sanction," the ''real'' Superman is actually driven by desperation to attempt the same maneuver, but due to Doomsday's AdaptiveAbility, this no longer works. Thus three bits of NightmareFuel in one scene: 1) Superman ''can'' do that, 2) and he ''will'' if he's desperate enough, 3) and on some enemies, ''it still won't be enough''.
91** Lord-Batman. The biggest nightmare in all this is that Batman himself has [[FaceHeelTurn turned over to the dark side]]. That in itself is scary enough (this is the guy who sees the Justice League, ''all of the Justice League'', as a countermeasure to himself). But what's scarier is that after Lord-Superman vaporizes Luthor, all he offers is a disinterested "[[IDidWhatIHadToDo Well, it had to be done]]." He has no sadness, no revulsion towards Lord-Superman; in fact, he sees Lord-Superman killing Luthor as a necessary move. If ThouShaltNotKill was ever a principle for this version of the character, he abandoned it before even Lord-Superman.
92* The League visits the Lords-verse Arkham. Many villains, particularly Batman's rogues gallery, are acting very much out of character. Then you notice two small dots on all of their heads. Then, you recall what Lord-Superman did to Doomsday. Oh, and Scarface's dots are on the dummy, not on the ventriloquist.
93** The first person who is revealed to have been lobotomized by Lord-Superman is Joker, who is now the secretary of Arkham Asylum. Hearing his voice and seeing his appearance to be so calm, almost serene, it really draws an unsettling feeling, considering we're used to seeing him as a psychopathic and murdering clown. Who would've thought one way for Joker to be scarier was to calm him down?
94** Flash's scene with Poison Ivy. Ivy's an unpleasant and fanatical piece of work in the DCAU and without, but seeing her like that...content, calm, friendly, and ''humming'' as she cuts the the buds off of flowers...seems just fundamentally ''wrong''. Creepy, you might call it. Especially when you think about Ivy's obsession with plants--she nearly goes into conniptions if anyone so much as touches one of her plants. For her to go so far as to actually be "hurting" plants...it's so thoroughly not her. Even when a decapitated robot head falls right next to her, she just ''continues on with her work''.
95* Then there's Flash telling Lord-Superman that he couldn't kill him, since the death of ''his'' Flash was what started everything, and that even now he wouldn't go that far.
96-->'''Lord-Superman:''' I've done a lot of things I've never thought I'd do these last two years. One more won't hurt.
97
98[[AC:2x13/14 -- Eclipsed]]
99* The soldier who is possessed at the beginning. This guy wakes up and learns he killed his whole unit, with whom he seemed rather close. Especially since the last time we see him in the episode, he's still held responsible for it.
100* The song people possessed by the gem sing starts out kinda [[{{Narm}} narmy]] until everyone but Flash gets possessed and starts singing it. Combined with the dark, enclosed Watchtower with no exits, it really hammers home [[AloneWithThePsycho the oppressive nature]].
101
102[[AC:2x15/16 -- The Terror Beyond]]
103* Being an homage to the Franchise/CthulhuMythos, this episode is ''stuffed to the gills'' with it.
104** Ichthultu is an {{expy}} of [[Franchise/CthulhuMythos Cthulhu]], appearing as a [[EvilIsBigger gigantic]] and monstrous skull-like apparition with [[GlowingEyesOfDoom flaming eyes]] and CombatTentacles. Even worse, Hawkgirl's race used to worship the thing because it gave them technology, knowledge, and prosperity, but they eventually took a NayTheist approach when [[DealWithTheDevil its exchange price of the souls of Thanagarians people became too great]]. Ichthultu is shown to still be bitter about the rejection.
105** The Screamers. Oh God, the Screamers. These are headless horrors with screaming mouths in their palms.
106*** [[FromBadToWorse It only gets worse]] when you realize that they're Shoggoths in the shape of [[EldritchAbomination Y'golonac, Lovecraftian God]] of [[FetishRetardant Rape and Sexual Perversion]].
107** The huge multitude of [[EliteMook Elder Things]] that attack Atlantis and try to defend Ichthultu from our heroes.
108
109[[AC:2x17/18 -- Secret Society]]
110* Killer Frost is basically Mr. Freeze but much more gleefully homicidal. Grodd even states that the only reason Frost joins the Secret Society is just to have the opportunity to kill people.
111
112[[AC:2x19/20 -- Hereafter]]
113* Savage himself in said future. There's another reason why he's become much more sedate and friendly: Countless generations of living with the consequences of his actions had made him ''[[BoredWithInsanity bored]]'' [[BoredWithInsanity with insanity and madness]]. Which makes the way he chirpily recalls how he killed the Justice League as if he remembering a sports game seem so unnerving.
114* Though it doubles as a [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments CMoH]], the ending. The particular alternate future, [[ReallySevenHundredYearsOld 30,000 years older]] [[WhoWantsToLiveForever and more insane]] version of [[{{Immortality}} Vandal Savage]] encountered in this episode had [[ApocalypseHow destroyed almost all life on Earth]] [[WhoWantsToLiveForever except himself]], [[HoistByHisOwnPetard allowing himself 30,000 years to think about what he has done]]. He wants Superman to use his TimeMachine (that Savage could not use himself) to rectify his mistake despite his knowledge that, in doing so, his current self would [[RedemptionEqualsDeath cease to exist]], while the present-day Savage would live ''forever''. Savage [[FridgeHorror hits two birds with one stone]]: Simultaneously [[PrimalFear ceasing to]] [[NothingIsScarier exist]] and [[{{Immortality}} living]] [[HealingFactor and]] [[WhoWantsToLiveForever living]] ''[[ICannotSelfTerminate and]]'' [[FateWorseThanDeath living]] until [[ApocalypseHow no one]] [[LastOfHisKind and]] [[InTheEndYouAreOnYourOwn nothing is around]] [[AndIMustScream to care]] that he still exists... Either that, or stopping the {{evil plan}} that had resulted in the apocalypse in the first place resulted in the actual death of the present-day Savage...which is unsettling in and of itself.
115
116[[AC:2x21/22 -- Wild Cards]]
117* The episode's twist gives a healthy dose of ParanoiaFuel: Joker set up the bombs in Las Vegas just to increase viewership so he could broadcast Ace's hypnotic waves to drive them all insane. And guess [[TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou who's watching the television while Ace blankly stares at the screen...]]
118** Then there's the scene where Ace shows Joker that, no matter how crazy you are, there's always an even lower depth to fall...though seeing Joker HoistByHisOwnPetard was simply ''priceless''.
119** Not to mention, the Justice League is ''utterly helpless'' to stop Ace. Her [[InvincibleVillain psychic powers are so strong]] that Superman and Flash are dumbstruck and paralyzed, and Batman--who managed to shut Dr. Destiny out of his mind--is left ''crawling around and doing his best not to throw up''. Even after the threat has passed, Batman can do nothing but watch Ace escape. WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds though she may be, Ace is a pretty terrifying villain.
120
121[[AC:2x24/25/26 -- Starcrossed]]
122* J'onn's mental interrogation of Kragger; he couldn't normally read Thanagarian minds due to their mental defenses.
123-->'''J'onn:''' I'll just have to try...''[[GlowingEyesOfDoom harder]]''.
124
125[[/folder]]
126
127[[folder:''Justice League Unlimited'']]
128
129[[AC:1x02 -- For the Man Who Has Everything]]
130* At the end, Wonder Woman puts the Black Mercy on Mongul. Right before the episode ends, we get to hear painful screaming and horrible destruction, presumably all from Mongul's fantasy. And Superman wasn't the only one screaming.
131** This episode deserves mention for when the Black Mercy is put on Batman: We get to relive the moment his parents were shot (in [[DeliberatelyMonochrome black and white]], to give it a proper FilmNoir feel), but in his dream, his father fights Joe Chill and continues to punch him. But as Wonder Woman tears off the plant, we see Thomas Wayne be overpowered by Chill via shadow, zoom in on young Bruce's face turning more and more horrified as we finally hear a combination of a tearing sound and a gunshot when the Black Mercy is removed...it's truly horrifying. Made worse in that when the plant attaches to him, we see the only genuine and contented smile Batman ''ever'' has in the entirety of the ''Justice League'' run.
132*** Even the nature of the fantasy is unnerving in and of itself. In the comic the episode was based off of, by the time the Black Mercy is pulled off of him, the fantasy had extended to growing up, settling down, and having a child. That's not the case here; Bruce's deepest, truest wish is simply to watch his dad beat Joe Chill to a pulp. Forever.
133* Wonder Woman falling victim to a NoHoldsBarredBeatdown by Mongul is pretty unsettling to watch. We have seen her take a beating before, but this episode in particular makes it worse than the others. For instance, you have Mongul coming close to actually killing her. She had to crawl to Batman to save him from the Black Mercy because she can hardly stand after the beating she took from Mongul. When Mongul takes her down and then stomps on her, the scream she lets out is chilling.
134* This episode also stresses just how dangerous Mongul is. Literally the only being that can stop him is Superman, but he was already taken care of (temporarily). Batman even states that if Superman doesn't snap out of it, Mongul will kill Wonder Woman, then him, then everyone on the planet. That's right, even ''Batman'' is scared of Mongul and can't think of a plan to beat the alien tyrant other than "get Superman into the fight."
135** Mongul himself gives a very chilling BadassBoast right before he starts beating Wonder Woman.
136--->'''Mongul:''' You don't understand. ''He'' was the only obstacle in my way. The rest of you are already dead.
137
138[[AC:1x03 -- Kid Stuff]]
139* The ending. Mordred's spell to get rid of all grown-ups is reversed when Mordred is tricked into turning into an adult himself, and his mother Morgan le Fay notes the spell giving him eternal youth is now broken, leaving him only with [[AgeWithoutYouth eternal life]]. As if simply thinking about the ramifications of this isn't enough, the last shot of the episode shows Morgan tenderly wiping the drool from the mouth of [[FateWorseThanDeath a glassy-eyed old man]] wearing the clothes Mordred wore as a child. [[LaserGuidedKarma That's not to say he didn't deserve it, though.]]
140
141[[AC:1x04 -- Hawk and Dove]]
142* When Wonder Woman is trying to get the Kasnians to stop fighting to depower the Annihilator armor, one of them gets the [[SarcasmMode terribly bright idea]] to not only be indignant and say he doesn’t take orders from women, but assault her with the butt of his rifle. Then Wonder Woman gives him this look of murderous rage and snatched his rifle from him and almost runs it through him, before calming down and simply bending it instead. The nightmare fuel is in that brief moment of anger, had Wonder Woman not been tempered with compassion and wisdom she could have just as easily broken him like a twig.
143* While Dove’s plan to stop the Annihilator is a SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome, Hawk is visibly terrified at the sight of his brother potentially dying. Made even worse if you’ve read ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths''.
144
145[[AC:1x06 -- Fearful Symmetry]]
146* The episode starts off with a horrifying nightmare of Supergirl hunting down and trying to kill a man in cold blood and demolishing any forces that get in her way. She wakes up right as she kills the man with heat vision and is so frightened by the dream she actually blew through the ceiling with her heat vision. Gets worse when it's revealed they were actually memories of her assassin clone Galatea, essentially meaning Kara has been reliving the murderous acts of a psycho clone.
147-->'''"Supergirl":''' '''[[PreMortemOneLiner You can scream now]]''' '''[[EyeBeams if you want.]]'''
148--> (cue [[ScreamDiscretionShot blood-curdling scream shot heard from afar]])
149
150[[AC:1x08 -- The Return]]
151* Seeing Amazo tear through the Justice League to get to Luthor. In space, he destroys a fleet of Javelins and defeats nearly dozens of heroes, including Green Lantern, Doctor Light, Captain Atom, and ''Superman himself''. In the sky, he goes through the second wave (Supergirl, Fire, Red Tornado, and Rocket Red) like tissue, during which he splits Red Tornado in half and destroys him. He doesn't even try in the last wave (Wonder Woman, Flash, Steel, and Ice). The thought of something that powerful existing is horrifying. Doctor Fate was not kidding when he claimed Luthor was saving the world.
152
153[[AC:1x09 -- Ultimatum]]
154* Amanda Waller knows Batman's {{secret identity}} and holds the knowledge over his head during every one of their later meetings.
155
156[[AC:1x10 -- Dark Heart]]
157* Earth is being devoured piece by piece, and everyone involved in the situation is mostly being able to do nothing as they see the wave of machines sweeping towards them.
158** How Cadmus decides to take the machines that utterly destroyed the Justice League and could have possibly destroyed the world with ease. Even after learning of what they are, they still think they are capable of controlling it.
159** From the US government's view, the fact that the Justice League's Watchwower has a nuke beam equivalent on board that is pointing down would scare anyone. The League didn't tell anyone about it; they just had it, justifying it by saying had they had it during the Thanagarian Invasion, it would have ended sooner. It solidifies the fear the government and Cadmus has for the League; if they wanted to take over the world, the beam combined with their metahuman manpower would make it so.
160* The episode ''starts'' with a nightmarish moment. A couple are out rock-climbing and the boyfriend gets to the top of the mesa first; the girlfriend is apparently getting a bit fed up with him and is about to chew him out when she sees the Dark Heart on the plateau, its mechanical spiders starting to come out, and literally all that's left of her boyfriend is one of his shoes, already devoured by the extraterrestrial abomination. She screams in horror. Fade to opening title sequence. Luckily for her, there's a very brief, easy-to-miss moment where we see her being evacuated by the US military as they get there even before the Justice League does--if they'd been only a few seconds late, she would've been eaten by the Dark Heart, too.
161
162[[AC:1x11 -- Wake the Dead]]
163* The nerds who performed the satanic ritual and accidentally revived Solomon Grundy definitely got killed by him and possibly the nerds' family as well.
164
165[[AC:1x13 -- The Once and Future Thing, Part 2: Time, Warped]]
166* [[TimeMaster Chronos]]. His wide-open CreepyBlueEyes and [[SoftSpokenSadist soft voice]] really sell the whole "mad with power" thing.
167* Static's death howl after getting sucked into a spatial rip is rather chilling, as is Terry dying from being ripped limb from limb by the Dee-Dees. Worse, the universe is collapsing all around them and they are all completely helpless to stop it.
168** Wonder Woman fades out of existence thanks to Chronos' meddling with the timeline, an insubordinate Chucko is dropped in the Cretaceous Period to be killed by the mass extinction event that wiped out the dinosaurs, plus the implication that ''every other member of the Justice League is already dead''. Green Lantern nearly had something like this happen to ''him'', too--luckily for John, he was just temporarily replaced by Hal Jordan and came back after a few minutes.
169* Batman traps David and Enid in a time loop to ensure that David never enacts the chain of events that occurred over the episode. That is one chilling AndIMustScream fate.
170** Though this might not be as horrible as it seems; see the FridgeBrilliance section.
171
172[[AC:2x01 -- The Cat and the Canary]]
173* After Green Arrow make too many cracks about Wildcat's age and competence, Wildcat mercilessly beats him to a living pulp. By the time he was done, Wildcat had seemingly ''killed'' Green Arrow. First, we only had silence, horror from both Wildcat and Black Canary and then, the audiences start cheering. This is more than enough to convince Wildcat to stop participating underground fighting.
174
175[[AC:2x01 -- The Doomsday Sanction]]
176* Dr. Milo, in means to get vengeance on Waller and the board of Cadmus, releases Doomsday from confinement. Doomsday doesn't go along with Milo's pact and kills. [[GoryDiscretionShot We don't see how, and only hear Milo's screams as Doomsday's hand reaches him.]]
177-->'''Doomsday:''' Your problem's solved.
178* In the comics, Doomsday was horribly killed over and over until he became the insane mindless beast he's most known for. Here Doomsday was tortured and conditioned into hating Superman by Cadmus, but he still retains intelligence and ability to communicate. There's one thing about his character that hasn't changed; he ''still'' has a desire kill anything he sees. Superman tried to reason with him and Milo told him of his origins; Doomsday just doesn't care about ''why''.
179* Doomsday remembers Justice Lord!Superman lobotomizing him with his heat vision. So he ''punches Superman in the eyes with his spiked fist.''
180** Superman's battle with Doomsday is arguably the most brutal fight he's been engaged in. By the end he's covered in scars, (In particular a large one across his face over his nose) while Doomsday doesn't have a scratch on him. Superman gets so pushed to the brink that he ''tries to lobotomize Doomsday.'' Eventually he's so exhausted that Wonder Woman has to carry him.
181
182[[AC:2x04 -- Task Force X]]
183* Task Force X sneaks into the Watchtower, makes off with the secret weapon they've been sent for, mops the floor with several unexpected obstacles, and [[MookHorrorShow suddenly comes face-to-face]] with J'onn. And suddenly the Martian is ''really creepy''.
184-->'''J'onn:''' [[PreAssKickingOneLiner Ask yourselves: is being in here with me what you truly desire?]]
185** It's one thing to say that to an enemy who's ass you're about to kick. But it's after the event that brings concern. J'onn finds a Cadmus mole amongst the watchtowers' staff who's mind he couldn't read, and when GL asks what's to be done with him, the normally calm and civilized Martian says this;
186-->'''J'onn:''' '''[[TranquilFury I would like to go in there and]] [[MindRape wipe clean]] [[TranquilFury the last two years of his memory.]]'''\
187
188[[AC:2x08 -- Hunter's Moon]]
189* The consequences of J'onn's interrogation of Kragger back during the Thanagarian Invasion: Years later and he's now a babbling fool who has been DrivenToMadness.
190
191[[AC:2x09 -- Question Authority]]
192* The vision the Question sees while being TORTURED is pretty chilling. Hell, him being tortured ''period'' was chilling.
193** He was missing for almost ''a week'' before Huntress tried to get Superman's help. Even then, nobody in the League noticed he was missing.
194
195[[AC:2x10 -- Flashpoint]]
196* Luthor hijacks the Watchtower's binary fusion generator, forcing it to fire on an abandoned Cadmus facility. When the gun goes off, the scene cuts to a peaceful suburban neighborhood that suddenly goes very quiet as the sky starts to ''light up''. Then the blast wave comes and nearly levels the city, followed by a [[EverythingMakesAMushroom mushroom cloud]]. Aside from the fact that, somehow, nobody (onscreen) is killed, and there's no residual radiation, the entire sequence is frighteningly reminiscent of a ''nuclear attack''.
197** That's right, kids! {{Death from above}}, with no warning, no escape, and no explanation! It could happen to ''you'' before you finish reading TV Tropes!
198** [[FridgeBrilliance Well, it]] ''[[FridgeBrilliance was]]'' [[FridgeBrilliance an abandoned facility]]. For all we know, the city was merely a model used for experiments like in ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheKingdomOfTheCrystalSkull''.
199* When Green Arrow tries to call out Superman on seriously considering burning a government agency to the ground and generally putting himself and the team above humanity as of late, all the attention Superman can spare for him is to say he could care less about his opinion or that Batman recruited him to be the team's conscience. When Green Arrow admits he's starting to become scared of Superman himself, it's pretty understandable, especially since if Superman had just snapped then and there, he could have blown Green Arrow's brains out with the flick of a finger for talking back to him, or simply turned him to ash with a glance--not an unreasonable response from Lord-Superman, who Superman teeters on the verge of becoming for the entire Cadmus arc.
200
201[[AC:2x11 -- Panic in the Sky]]
202* The League just lost control of their KillSat superweapon that they save for emergencies like the events of "Dark Heart," which they fear may have killed hundreds, if not thousands, of civilians. Understandably, the President is ''pissed'' about this and the founding members of the League, sans Batman, decide to submit to government custody until they can sort it out. While they're gone and the Watchtower is still out of commission, Cadmus sends [[ComicBook/PowerGirl Galatea]] and an army of Ultimen to attack the Watchtower and kill--not arrest, not defeat, ''KILL''--every last person on the Watchtower. That includes the non-powered civilians who run the Watchtower's everyday systems. In particular, we're treated to a group of those non-metahumans hiding in a safe room when one of the Shifter clones rips the door open, then transforms into a ''Tyrannosaurus rex''. The workers are clearly ready to fight for their lives as they charge at her and the Ultimen are eventually defeated, but one shudders to think about [[EatenAlive what may have happened to some of them]].
203* Supergirl fries Galatea with the Watchtower's reactor. There's a good shot of ''her twitching corpse''!
204** As a clone of Supergirl, she ''might'' have survived. Still disturbing, though.
205* Brainiac [[BodyHorror slowly bursting his way out of Luthor's body]] in a manner very reminiscent of ''[[Film/TheThing1982 The Thing]]''. If observed closely, one can see Luthor's limbs painfully exploding and his fingers flying off as his limbs contort into tentacles.
206
207[[AC:2x12 -- Divided We Fall]]
208* It turns out Brainiac was hiding in Luthor all along, having infected Luthor with his nanites during the events of STAS' "Ghost in the Machine."
209* Brainiac tries to ''absorb'' the Justice League. Fortunately, he fails.
210* Flash finally turns the tables on Brainthor by going all out. He knocks Brainthor down, pins him, and starts tearing them apart with his fists while Brainthor ''screams''.
211
212[[AC:2x13 -- Epilogue]]
213* The {{flashback}} involving eight-year-old [[WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond Terry]] and his parents walking from a movie. As they start to head home, [[WesternAnimation/BatmanMaskOfThePhantasm the Phantasm]] stalks them from behind. Upon getting closer, she raises her hook hand, moments away from killing Terry's mom and dad, all to give Terry the motivation he needs to become the next Batman. Even more NightmareFuel when you learn the Phantasm was ordered to kill Terry's parents so Terry could experience the same pain that Bruce did and take up the mantle, and was real close to doing so.
214** Also a rare case of EvenEvilHasStandards being invoked to avert NightmareFuel. The Phantasm is willing to murder unsuspecting strangers but, when it comes right down to it, can't bring herself to traumatize an eight-year-old for life.
215*** It could also go even further than that: Andrea, having been close to Bruce years ago, couldn’t stomach the idea of putting another child through the same fate, knowing full well what it could lead to.
216
217[[AC:3x05 -- Flash and Substance]]
218* While he's PlayedForLaughs and is rendered sympathetic as a victim of mental illness, the Trickster is by no means a HarmlessVillain. If you actually listen to his scheme to kill Flash, it may come with silly choices such as fake vomit and grease, but it includes killing Flash by having him do a SlipperySkid into a wall of metal spikes and having him buried in the fake vomit while he's still alive... and then finishing with an EverythingExplodesEnding. When the heroes corner him in the bar later, he pulls out a weird gun that shoots out acid corrosive enough to instantly destroy a pool table. While his "tricks" may look silly and his motivations sympathetically drawn from mental health problems, he's still just as violently dangerous as the Joker and should not be taken lightly.
219
220[[AC:3x09 -- Grudge Match]]
221* A rather small one, but the Justice League women being brainwashed and pitted against each other. Huntress and Black Canary manage to free Shayera and Vixen from their MindControl pretty easily, but then Roulette pits all four women against Wonder Woman who is able to almost match Superman in terms of power. [[OhCrap Their reaction]] [[JustifiedTrope is entirely justified]]. During a rather brutal fight, a few of the League girls come frighteningly close to a bloody death. Hawkgirl almost smashing Vixen's head with her mace, for example.
222** Also, the way Wonder Woman overpowers all four Leaguers and takes absolutely everything they throw at her like it's nothing. Then there's the way she's about to kill the badly-battered Shayera and Vixen by crushing their skulls together.
223** More terrifying is the fact that she was completely unaware of what she was doing and would never have remembered it had she been able to follow through.
224
225[[AC:3x12 -- Alive!]]
226* Tala's screams as she's being used up in Luthor's attempt to revive Brainiac. The showrunners even admitted ''they'' were unsettled by this, even ''after'' having toned it down considerably from the original recordings.
227** Immediately before this, when Tala begs Luthor to spare her for betraying him to Grodd, she tells him she's "a sick person." When she realizes he planned on using her up even ''before'' she betrayed him, he coldly replies, "I'm a sick person, too."
228*** And she ends up releasing Darkseid, ''endangering Earth and the Universe'', [[WomanScorned just to screw Luthor out of reuniting with Brainiac and for spurning her.]]
229* Grodd getting spaced in this episode was pretty disturbing, as well.
230* Killer Frost kills half of the Legion of Doom, ON SCREEN. Just to get back in Luthor's favor.
231** Okay, she doesn't KILL them per say, but we know they're finished.
232* Metron's cryptic warning to Luthor comes out of nowhere. Luthor's ambitions have gone too far that an outside force had to intervene to give reality one last chance.
233
234[[AC:3x13 -- Destroyer]]
235* The portrayal of Darkseid in the Franchise/DCAnimatedUniverse is often seen as the definitive portrayal of his character (outside of comics), and for good reason: He is a ''terrifying'' character. Not just because he's the only one who can take Superman at his full power, but because he is ''relentlessly'' evil. Other villains had reasons that you could like them; at least Lex Luthor was suave, and at least Joker had a happy attitude and comic timing. Darkseid is not that kind of villain: He is [[KnightOfCerebus the absolute evil]].
236** To give a sense of how terrible Darkseid is, he is the only villain that [[ThouShaltNotKill Superman]] actively tries and '''wants''' to kill.
237*** [[PhysicalGod Which is easier said than done]]: Darkseid is not only able to take Superman [[TheGlovesComeOff when he's unrestrained]], but is the ''only'' main villain to have ''[[CurbStompBattle curb-stomped]] [[ShowyInvincibleHero Superman!]]'' Not only merciless and somber evil, but ''nigh-unstoppable''.
238** Darkseid describes what he's going to do to Superman while he's writhing on the ground in pain from the [[AgonyBeam Agony Matrix]]. Then he pulls out a Kryptonite knife and tells Superman he's going to carve out his heart and place it on a pike as a trophy.
239[[/folder]]
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