Tear Jerker / Injustice 2

"Why'd you keep it?"

As a Moments subpage, all spoilers are unmarked as per policy. You Have Been Warned.

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The Comic

• When you hear Superman, who is now locked up in a special prison, says that Metropolis is gone, Lois is gone, their child is gone and Batman turned his back on him and despite everything he did you can't help but to feel sorry for him.
  • Then he brings up to Bruce that he's also all alone in the world now in terms of people who can understand him since Alfred is dead and all of his Robins are gone with Damian being locked up, Dick and Jason being dead, and Tim being missing (presumably because Superman didn't let him out of the Phantom Zone).
  • There is a cruel irony in Clark's words to his former friend that Batman is a scared kid still trying to stop two bullets because, as everyone saw in the first game prequel comic, Superman's road to his current position started after he failed to keep two heartbeats coming from one person going.
• Life wasn't kind to Alt!Green Arrow. The details are fuzzy, but he started off a billionaire...
  Green Arrow: Then everything went wrong. Everyone I loved died. And now my only asset is a small cabin.
• Ra's manipulating Harley into helping him by using her young daughter to prevent Harley from killing herself through an Explosive Leash.
  • Despite her misplaced sense of responsibility, Ra's calling her out for helping the Joker ruin Superman's life, the death of Lois and her unborn child and destroy Metropolis clearly causes her to feel bad about what she did and how things turned out. Harley thought that Superman would find a way to stop the Joker, and save Lois and their unborn child, and was genuinely horrified that he didn't.
• Issue #8 revealed that Damian Used to Be a Sweet Kid despite being raised as an assassin, since his first day in action by himself had him not only fighting criminals but helping civilians without expecting any monetary reward from them. He had so much potential before everything went to Hell...
  • Rewatch Bonus: The $5 Damian reluctantly accepted from the lady is one of Bruce's treasured keepsakes in the beginning of the issue, kept under glass.
  • Issue #8 also shows just how lost Bruce is without Alfred. He doesn't know what's in the refrigerator, for instance.
• Booster Gold warning his old friend Ted Kord that he's tried and failed three times to stop the grim fate approaching him, and assuring him that he'll be there at the end.
• Dex-Starr's backstory.
  "I find one who hurt you. I kill. I good kitty."
• In issue #11, Kara's escape from Krypton is just as heartbreaking in the comic as it is in the game. In #12, we finally get to see her dealing with the loss.
  Kara: My... my planet. Krypton. I was destroyed. I saw it. I couldn't look away. I watched my world end.
• Animal Man's reason for joining Ra's Al Ghul in #18.
  • How he describes finding a dying animal and being forced to Mercy Kill it.
  Animal Man: 10 years ago, I was in Cameroon. I was trying to stop a man intent on killing the last West African Rhino. Not for food. Not for vengeance. Just for sport. I was too late. The butcher had taken his horn. And a poorly aimed bullet was slowly, agonizingly, taking his life. I bonded with him, and borrowed his power. He'd wandered for a year, maybe more, calling with no answer. I sat with it...as it left. It was a giant, but it felt so small. Not because it was dying and afraid. But because it was the last. And it had been so completely alone in the world.
  • To make matters even worse, the West African Rhino is based off the real-life Western Black Rhino. Can you guess what happened to the last members of this subspecies?
  • Even in a universe where superheroes exist, entire species of animals are being hunted to extinction by poachers, rainforests are being chopped down, and oceans are being poisoned, in exactly the same way as in the real world.
• Alfred is resurrected with the Lazarus Pits... but he's been gone for so long he's brain-dead. And we discover this because Damian is spoon-feeding him and acting so kind to him that his "sister" is pretty surprised to see this part of him.
  • One could wonder if Alfred could be brought back to life after a long time after his death why no one thought of bringing back Lois.
    • Even if Lois was brought back, Superman is too far gone and it wouldn't stop him.
• As of issue 22, Pamela and Harleen seem to be still in love. However, we know that it won't last long. Something bad happened between them...
• Issue 23, all animals preserved by Ra's in his sanctuary are killed by El Diablo's explosion provoked by Blue Beetle. They were all the last of their species...
  • What poaching and pollution deliberately started, Blue Beetle, a young, innocent superhero, accidentally finished.
  • As a result, Batman, out of anger, demands that Jaime goes home and doesn’t use his powers again. Jaime’s response?
  Blue Beetle: I’m sorry…
• Issue 34: It seems like Dex-Starr's origin story will be heartbreaking no matter what universe. Whereas his owner was killed by some house robber in the original DC comics, in this universe the family that took him in was brutally murdered by AMAZO on Ra's al Ghul's orders. In one hand, its less brutal than his original backstory since in this universe, Plastic Man is willing to take him after his owner's death in but is forced by Batman to leave Dex behind, whereas in the original, the poor kitty was abused by strangers following his abandonment. On the other hand, Dex still tries to defend his family and attack AMAZO, only to be pushed aside effortlessly by the android, and is later shown grieving over his owner's remains. Had Plas managed to take care of him, he likely wouldn't have drawn a Red Ring to him.
• Issue 35: When it seemed that Alfred has been fully recovered after being brought back to life, its shown that Came Back Wrong is still in effect. He is bedridden all the time and suffers from memory loss', having forgotten that Dick Grayson died a long time ago and grieves with tears on his face upon being reminded of it.
• The turning point in Wonder Woman's backstory as seen in the Annual: Diana finds out Steve Trevor, the man she loves, is in reality a Nazi spy who got close to her as part of a plan to steal the Lasso of Hestia, and killed one of her Amazon sisters while trying to get away. Tearfully she asks him Was It All a Lie?, to which he replies that he did love her, but he loved his homeland moreso. Stoically, she kills him for what he's done and locks that part of herself away. Even knowing what she is, it's sad to see her in such pain (and certainly explains why she is what she is).
• Issue 36:
  • It's revealed that Jonathan and Martha Kent have taken up residence in the Fortress of Solitude because they were exiled from Smallville and had their farm burned down simply because they found and raised an innocent baby that turned into an alien tyrant, which they couldn't have predicted.
  • When the heroes are invited in, Martha says Harley is not welcome and she is left outside in the cold. This is heartbreaking for both parties, since the shadow of Harley's previous crimes, will hang over her head even after she had repented and reformed, while the Kents can't be blamed either, since their daughter-in-law and unborn grandchild were killed with Harley's help and this tragedy turned their son into a monster, which led to their own exile from their homes.
  • Pa Kent calls out Batman for not being there for Clark to comfort him after his tragedy, and Batman agrees. He is genuinely regretful that he didn't handle things better.
    Batman: I'm sorry, Mr. Kent. I tried to do what I felt was best. But I failed him.
    Pa Kent: (looking away) We all did.
    • No one tried to go comfort Superman as he was grieving alone in the fortress after the tragedy that fell on him: not Batman, not the Kents, not the Justice League. The only one who went to the fortress was Superboy, and all he did was give him harsh words for killing the Joker. All he could hear before and after that were the voices of people suffering and dying all over the world. On top of that, the last word his wife told him was to go and save the world. So not a single one of them is free from blame for what and how bad things turned out. It seems everyone who heard Pa Kent knew they really failed Clark, as all of them looked guilty when he said it.
  • Martha then tries to comfort Bruce:
    Martha: You kept Clark alive, didn't you? That's why he's in prison and not executed. You haven't given up on him.
    (Martha puts a reassuring hand on Bruce's.)
    Batman: ... I'm honestly not sure.
• After six years of being trapped in the Phantom Zone most of the Titans are finally free only for Zodd to sneak behind them and kill Robin (Tim).
• Issue 38 reveals that Batman retrieved a sample from the fear gas mixed with Kryptonite the Joker used on Superman, but admits that he could never bring himself to use it on Clark, not after what it made him do.
• Issue 55: Hal Jordan becomes a Red Lantern. What was it that gave him enough rage in his heart to become one? What or who did he hate enough to obtain so much rage? Himself.
• Issue 56 when Ms. Kent talk to Superboy, who was worried since he had the heart of Zod inside him,about if evil could be transferred via organs then she breaks down crying and say that Clark heart was never evil it just could not take what happened.
• Issue 64: Sinestro's death. Even after all the things he’s done, he dies proving that even he can be redeemed. In his final moments, he decides to reveal the truth about what happened to his wife to his daughter, telling her that he’s responsible for her suicide, and apologizes for not being a better man. The real clincher? His ring transfers to his daughter.
• In the second annual when Ms. Kent visit Clark and they hug it's visible how much she is hurt to see where her only son has ended up.
  • The flashback shows a better time between Clark and Bruce. Even those who have read the first game prequel comic will wonder how did it reach this point.
  • Batman visiting Clark and finally telling him that he is sorry about what happened to Lois, as well as admitting that he should have been a better friend to Clark after her death.
    • As Batman is leaving, Clark is sitting and crying at the mention of his wife.
  • The cover itself shows a comparison between the past and present. It's really heartbreaking.

The Game

• The opening intro dialogue between Batman and Superman which perfectly explains Superman's Start of Darkness.
  Batman: You shouldn't have killed the Joker.
  Superman: (sadly) I did it for Lois.
  Batman: It's not what she would have wanted.
• Jay Garrick also joins in trying to sympathize with the Man of Steel, hoping for the latter's redemption.
  Jay Garrick: A hero shouldn't take extreme measures.
  Superman: (sadly) I did it for Lois.
  Jay Garrick: The race for redemption starts here.
• The dialogue between Supergirl and Superman, while often having a Deadpan Snarker or Broken Pedestal vibe, sometimes emphasizes the "broken" part and how tragic the situation is, Supergirl really not wanting to fight her cousin.
  Supergirl: Kal, you need to stop!
  Superman: You're going to turn on me, too?
  Supergirl: I'm gonna save you from yourself...

  Supergirl: Stop right there!
  Superman: You can't stop me.
  Supergirl: I'm gonna save you from yourself...

  Supergirl: I don't want to hurt you.
  Superman: Stop pleading and fight.
  • It's clear that Superman doesn't want to fight her either. When he knocks her out after a fight if you take his side at the end, he appears sorrowful and apologizes to her before he turns to Batman.
• Most media, particularly the Arkham Games, have portrayed Gotham's criminals, especially those in Arkham, as all irredeemable monsters. It's still heart-wrenching to see all these people walking blindly to their deaths, just because someone in power has deemed them all monsters. One of the inmates grabs a doctor as a hostage in panic, not to escape, but simply to find out where they're going. He's saved from being incinerated by Superman by Batman's arrival, but Superman promised Damian they would finish the job later.
• This dialogue between Batman and Robin (Damian Wayne, who killed Dick Grayson by accident and hasn't been forgiven) is just COLD BLOODED:
  Batman: I don't have time for this, Damian.
  Robin: A good father would make time.
  Batman: A better son would deserve it.

  Robin: I didn't murder Dick, Bruce!
  Batman: No, your temper did, Damian!
  Robin: It was an accident!

  Batman: You're blind to what you've become.
  Robin: I'm doing what needs to be done.
  Batman: To protect Earth or your ego?
  • On a similar note, a clash quote between Batman and Wonder Woman implies that Batman has completely given up on his son. When Diana tells him that "Damian despises you," Batman nonchalantly replies "You can have him."
• The scene in the story trailer of Superman holding a dead Lois along with a sonogram of their dead child and hearing the sound of its last heartbeat, before releasing a Death Wail when he realises they're gone forever. It's a sad reminder of the fact that as cruel as he has come in enforcing order Superman is still a man grieving his family.
  • This leads to an expression of solidarity from Atrocitus in-game.
    Atrocitus: That same rage created me.
  • And also to a dark re-imagining of his famous "No More Holding Back" Speech.
    Superman: I used to be afraid. Afraid my powers would make people fear me. Afraid who I'd hurt if I wasn't careful every second of every day. I spent my entire life holding back. My fear cost me Lois. That's why I don't hold back anymore!
    (Supergirl looks at him sadly.)
• Superman's origin story is already bad enough. Supergirl's turns it up to eleven. Kal at least was an infant when Krypton was destroyed; Kara was a young woman when she saw Brainiac kill her people and destroy her planet. Her parents sacrificed themselves to save her, and the only other survivor (as far as she knows) is her baby cousin. Then, after spending decades apparently in stasis, she finally reaches Earth to find that her baby cousin became a hero, turned bad and set up a dictatorship, and was overthrown and locked away by a planet that fears him more than anything else (and when he breaks out and tries to take over again, he makes it clear that she can either help him or be dealt with like he has done with many other threats to the Regime). Oh, and the monster who destroyed Krypton has come for her new home too.
  • Upon arriving on Earth, Supergirl was lied to by Diana and Black Adam about who Superman was, what he had done, and why he was imprisoned. She makes it clear, once she finds out what the Regime stood for, that she would have no part in it and fight against it with all her Kryptonian might. Seeing her baby cousin has truly become a monster is heartbreaking, but even worse when you consider that Kara's mother told her to protect baby Kal-El, to teach him the ways and history of Krypton and the House of El. Kara clearly takes upon herself some of the blame for who Injustice!Superman became, feeling that she failed him by not being there for him.
• Supergirl tries to persuade Superman to become a Hope Bringer again, only for him to retort that "Hope isn't enough to save people!" Superman became what he is today because he couldn't save Lois, their child, or Metropolis. Evidently, the wounds have not healed...
• There's something painful about how many heroes attempt to appeal to Clark, because they all used to respect the man who was once a Nice Guy and The Cape, it may fall on deaf ears, but it really highlights how much people used to look up to the Kryptonian, even Bruce.
• This exchange:
  Green Arrow: You're much broodier than my Batman.
  Batman: Do you know how many friends I've lost?
  Green Arrow: (guiltily) ...Right, not funny.
• In the first "Shattered Alliances" trailer, Superman gives Supergirl the With Me or Against Me ultimatum. Kara's expression of heartbreak mirrors the audience's.
• This exchange between Flash and Reverse-Flash, which highlights the permanent damage the Joker has done to history by nuking Metropolis.
  Reverse-Flash: I ran a long way from the future to hurt you, Barry...but this timeline? It's all wrong...
  Flash: So go back to your own time, "Reverse-Flash"...
  Reverse-Flash: [kicks Flash violently] YOU THINK I HAVEN'T TRIED?! Your Regime buddies killed one of my ancestors, and now I'm stuck in a paradox! I can never go home... but at least I can hurt YOU!
  • What makes it a bit saddening is that despite his desperate efforts to go back to his timeline, Reverse-Flash is clearly torn up by the fact that he can never go back home.
• The final conversation before they fight for the last time between Batman and Superman.
  Superman: Fighting on the same side, it felt like old times. But I guess we both knew it would end this way.
  Batman: Do you remember that night? When you told me Lois was pregnant?
  Superman: You knew. Even before I said anything.
  Batman: That was a good memory.
  Superman: From another lifetime.
  Batman: ...I miss the people we were then.
  Superman: ...Me too.
  • What makes it even worse is that after coming within an inch of redemption, Superman decides to immediately follow this conversation by sucker punching Batman. It just drives home how far gone the Injustice version of Clark is.
• After the other heroes leave the meeting table, Batman and Superman are left at opposite ends of the table. We get this exchange:
  Superman: Why'd you keep it?
  Batman: Keep what?
  (Superman pulls off the cover, revealing the old Justice League table, with a large crack dividing it in two)
  Batman: Hm. Forgot that was there.
  • Just goes to show that all these people (except for Supergirl) used to be friends and comrades. Even after doing an Enemy Mine against Brainiac, it's still clear that both Bats and Supes still don't get along.
  • And just when you thought that Batman and Superman (and by extension, both sides of the Justice League) have patched up their differences despite their mutual animosity, you're proven spectacularly wrong as immediately after Brainiac's defeat, both of them start to squabble over what to do with him, with the Man of Steel arguing that psychopathic monsters like Brainiac, the Joker, and Gorilla Grodd deserve to die, while the Dark Knight states that even if they kill the Coluan, he thinks they're not sure if they even can reverse what's been done without Brainiac and that acting too hastily could cause them to lose more cities. Even though both Superman and Batman want to heal and patch up old wounds, their competing ideologies make it clear it's not going to happen overnight and will them take a long time to fix.
    • They're not given that time. They immediately come to blows, battle lines are drawn, and the final stage of the game is a Justice League Civil War.
  • The various scenes clearly show how the Joker has left a legacy of cynicism and bitterness post-Metropolis. Posthumously, not only did he create a wedge between friends who were once inseparable Heterosexual Life-Partners and paragons of justice into bitter Arch-Enemies, his actions also caused the once-mighty Justice League to split into two opposing camps, all due to a clash of ideas on traditional heroics and solving crime. To make matters worse, Doctor Fate notes that the havoc Joker unleashed has caused the Lords of Order to decree that humanity is only capable of only chaos and back Brainiac's schemes, and have warned that if Batman and Superman keep on fighting, then they themselves will support an even worse threat than Brainiac.
• After Harley is run through with a sword by Wonder Woman, Kara goes to speak to Superman about what happened. At first, she thinks that Superman is every bit as upset about Wonder Woman's actions as Kara herself. But when Superman makes it clear that he completely approves of Harley being executed, if not the timing, the heartbreak in Kara's face is plain as day. And made even worse by her next few words:
  Kara: Everywhere I go, people are afraid of this! (touches the S-Shield on Superman's chest) Now I know why.
  • Watch Kara's reaction when Superman angrily declares that humans have slaughtered each other for millennia and that he finally stopped that violence. She's gotten over her initial shock and the devastated horror etched into face is heartbreaking. If you look carefully you can ever see her shaking her head slightly as if not believing this is happening.
• The fact that Superman could not save all of the captured cities including Coast City. Hal, ever the Determinator, urges Superman to keep trying, but Superman can only apologize.
• When Superman is apparently killed by Brainiac's ship, Supergirl is seen sitting quietly at the edge of the crater left behind. When Batman and his allies arrive, she believes that Batman thinks this is the best thing to happen during Brainiac's destruction of Earth. Batman tells her that she couldn't possibly be further from the truth.
  Supergirl: I couldn't find his body. Can't hear his heartbeat. I was supposed to protect him. From this. From you. And now he's gone. I'm sure that's the best news you've heard all day.
  Batman: I'll miss him, too.
  [Beat]
  Supergirl: You mean that?
  Batman: He was a good friend once. I trusted him with my life. But the Joker got to him... and I wasn't there to stop it. I've lost my friend Clark. And... I've missed him ever since.
• In one intro, the Flash pleads for Captain Cold to stop, pointing out that all the murders won't bring his deceased sister back. Cold nods and replies with a quiet and heartbreaking "I know, Barry" as opposed to the Berserk Button her death usually is for him, showing how he's still just a deeply grieving big brother underneath the grumpy, bitter exterior.
• Though Batman's ending finishes the game on a cautiously optimistic tone, Kara is utterly heartbroken. She's witnessed her family's symbol, meant to inspire hope, be warped into a symbol of fear and terror associated with a brutal totalitarian regime. Worse, all of it happened and she was completely powerless to stop it, locked in stasis while Superman tarnished the House of El, possibly irreparably. And even worse, the reason Superman did everything he did could have been avoided if she had been there to help him. She feels she failed both her cousin and her family.
• Grid. Amidst his general dismissal of the cast, there are a few intros that showcase his desire to achieve emotion:
  Grid: Your wife's disease is tragic.
  Mr. Freeze: What do you know of my pain?
  Grid: That I would give anything to feel it.
• Some of Red Hood's dialogue makes it pretty clear that he's still quite bitter about his death, even calling out the fans who sealed his fate after depleting an opponent's first energy bar:
  Red Hood: Should I kill you? Let's take a vote!
• Right before Kara and Damian fight the later says that Superman was more of a father than Batman could ever be. Damian said this in the first game right in the face of his father and now we ask and wonder again if a tyrant Superman is more of a father than a good Batman then what kind of a father he would have been if he didn't lose his wife and unborn child and remained one of the good guys.
• In Batman's ending, when he apologies to Kara, she asks for what and he replies with this:
  Batman: I couldn't save him.
• Let's just say 80% of Mr. Freeze's intro dialogue counts at this, but this dialogue with Grid takes the cake due to some excellent voice work on the part of Jim Pirri. Freeze genuinely sounds like he's a few seconds away from breaking into tears.
  Mr. Freeze: I envy your lack of emotion.
  Grid: Why is that worthy of jealousy?
  Mr. Freeze: You cannot feel pain.
• In a fight against Reverse-Flash, Bizarro will tell him that he wants to "crush you, save Lois!" Reverse-Flash will harshly reply, "Oh, it's way too late for that." It's sad that somewhere in Bizarro's cloned brain, he has memories of Lois.
  • If a clone has memories of Lois then what of the original, who was deceived into killing her, heard her and their unborn child's last heartbeats and held her body in the destroyed Metropolis?
  • Much of Bizzaro's intro dialogue hints that, unlike Clark, he genuinely wants to be a heroic figure like Superman used to be. Sadly, his backwards way of talking coupled with his childish personality means that he's either ridiculed or taken to be a threat. The damage done to the reputation of Kryptonians only makes people even more suspicious of him. And even worse, this world's Lex Luthor, the closest he would have had to a father figure, was killed by the real Superman. It's hard to not feel sorry for the poor guy.
• No matter how many times Damian says that Nightwing's death was an accident no one is willing to listen to, nor believe him, his father least of all. From his voice alone, one can tell how much this hurts him. It's especially bad because it really was an accident.
• Starfire's ending has her reminiscing on happier times with the Titans but now feels incredibly lonely without them. Raven is now serving Trigon (which would explain her sudden disappearance after the first game), Cyborg is working for Superman in the Regime, Beast Boy has gone missing and presumed dead, and of course Dick died. Turns into a heartwarming moment when she finds new friends in Blue Beetle, Supergirl and Jason Rusch (one half of Firestorm).
  • Because of the lineup of the original Titans resembling the animated series in 2003, this ending plays out like one of the episodes in the show, "How Long is Forever", where Starfire is flung into the future and the Titans have split up, only it's sadder here because all of the members, save for Starfire, are either irredeemable, dead, or missing... and this isn't because of her being missing and her team split apart, these whole events transpire when Starfire was in the present timeline (albeit getting sent into the Phantom Zone), 'finding a portal to undo the past' will never be an option.
  • A match between Starfire and Cyborg will have her asking Cyborg if they want to share some pizza after she wins. After seeing the ending of her Arcade story, it gives some tragic subtext to their banter. This also gives a tragic spin for Cyborg's otherwise heartwarming ending: He might have found himself a way to redeem himself, but Starfire would probably never accept him again.
    • Another starts off with Cyborg suggesting a friendly match, only for Starfire to call him out for joining the Regime. Given his response, he may be too far gone in the Regime to the point where their relationship may already be beyond repair.
  • If Starfire faces Red Hood, they will sometimes mention Dick Grayson and how much Kori misses him. From the way Jason's speech tone changes when Dick is mentioned, you can tell even Jason is affected by his adopted brother's death.
  • Even for those who enjoyed the newer Titans incarnation, it will sting some of its fans. In there, Starfire was being the Cool Big Sis of Damian Wayne as he developed into a true Titan. In here... no way that's going to happen since Damian's accidental murder of Dick, combined with him betraying his father for Superman, would give Starfire real reasons to hate him.
    • Driven home in one of her mid-match victory lines against Damian:
  Starfire: You took him from me!
  • Starfire calls Dick "My Star-Crossed Soulmate" in her ladder ending. That should drive home the depths of her pain for even the most casual DC fan.
• The look on Harley's face and how stunned and hurt she sounds when she finds out that Poison Ivy is working with the Society. It would've gotten worse when Ivy hit her with pheromones later in the story to mind-control her and then kill her, but Harley was under influence of the pheromones before she even knew something was happening to her. Catwoman is clearly not okay with what Harley's second past lover is doing to her and even Cyborg doesn't particularly love what he's seeing.
  • In an intro between Harley and Ivy, the former tearfully tells the latter that she's breaking her heart. What's worse is Ivy's response:
  Poison Ivy: I'll break more than that.
  • It all comes to a head in this clash quote between Catwoman and Harley (concerning Harley's offer to create a new group including the 2 of them, Katherine Kane, and Barbara Gordon).
  Catwoman: What about Ivy?!
  Harley Quinn: (under her breath) Red's a lost cause.
  • It doubles as a bit of Nightmare Fuel just by the way she says it and the deadly look in her eyes, but notice that she still calls her Red. She's clearly still upset over Ivy's backstabbing.
  • Gets even worse when you think about Harley's love life in general. Her first known boyfriend, the Joker himself, was physically and psychologically abusive, even going so far as to try and kill her multiple times, and then ended up getting Superman's hand run through his chest. Then her first known girlfriend, heavily implied to have disappeared for a while, is revealed to now be her enemy and then tries to kill her. Twice! Somebody give this woman a hug!
  • It doesn't stop there. The prequel comics reveal that Ivy once actually reciprocated Harley's feelings for her. This means that Harley used to have a partner who loved her as much as she loved them, and now she's gone.
• This exchange between Starfire and Black Manta:
  Starfire: You hide a wounded heart.
  Black Manta: I buried my heart with my father.
  Starfire: Vengeance cannot bring him back.
• At the beginning of Black Adam's arcade ending, He returns to Kahndaq, only to find it devastated, and holds Isis' dead body. Adam may be a villain, but he genuinely cared about his wife and people.
• The Flash's intro dialogue against Scarecrow shows that even a Badass Boast can become this:
  The Flash: I've got nothing left to fear!
  Scarecrow: What makes you say that?
  The Flash: Because I've lost everything else.
• Raiden expresses quite a bit of sorrow over the fate of Liu Kang in a few intros, showing he still hasn't got over losing his beloved pupil.
  Reverse Flash: There's blood on your conscience.
  Raiden: The death of Liu Kang haunts me still.
  Reverse Flash: That's why you don't have a future.

  Atrocitus: The pain of loss burns you.
  Raiden: The death of Liu Kang haunts me still.
  Atrocitus: Direct your anger inwards.
  • He also is surprisingly perceptive on Batman's internal pain and takes the moment to call out Damian for his ungrateful attitude.
  Raiden: You bring Batman nothing but sorrow.
  Robin: You say that like it's a bad thing.
  Raiden: It burdens his already troubled soul.
• Raiden's ending, where despite his best efforts, Kent Nelson dies of his wounds in Black Canary's arms. Fortunately, he manages to turn this around by forming Justice League Dark to protect the planet from the Lords of Order in his memory.
• Even if you aren't the biggest fan of Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, the intro dialogues Raiden and Superman have are pretty depressing when you realize that they cannot be friends anymore.
  Raiden: When we last met, I respected you.
  Superman: Are you going to turn on me, too?
  Raiden: I will act as needed to save your realm.

  Superman: You're leaving Earth. Now.
  Raiden: We were allies on Apokolips, Superman.
  Superman: Here, we're not.
• Firestorm's Arcade ending: he/they kill(s) Brainiac by destroying his ship, which also destroys all of the cities aboard it. Overwhelmed by grief at this tragedy, the two halves of Firestorm give up on being a superhero, though this becomes bittersweet as despite the tragedy, they are still ready to answer Batman's call when he needs them.
• Atrocitus' Arcade ending is similar: in killing Brainiac, he destroys all of Brainiac's collection, murdering billions of innocent souls. Though an accident, this is a crime so horrible that his own Red Ringbearers turn on him in fury. Thankfully, it then veers into Heartwarming.
• June Moone's presence in this game, she's visibly scared in gameplay and in most intros. She either desperately asks other combatants for help or to kill her. In intros with Brainiac, Scarecrow, and Joker, she's on the verge of tears as she begs for Enchantress to take over, as she is utterly terrified of fighting them; while with Dr. Fate, she's actually hopeful. The way Enchantress cruelly mistreats her is also a little tear jerking.
  Doctor Fate: Two voices in one mind.
  Enchantress: (smug) I'll silence June's conscience soon enough.
  Doctor Fate: Demons must be slain!
  • Enchantress' ending, as Nightmare Fuel inducing as it is, is pretty tear jerking. Brainiac mistakenly attempts to absorb Enchantress' power, and both are presumed dead. June is seemingly free and describes her new normal and happy life, including getting her job back and having a date, but her happiness is cut short when Enchantress takes over her again, and makes plans to conquer the multiverses. June screaming as she loses control again makes the entire ending even sadder for her.
• In several of Starfire's intro quotes with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, she admits that (Dick) Grayson would have enjoyed their company and respected their talents wistfully.
• All the clash quotes and intros that bring up Shazam's murder by Superman.
  Blue Beetle: Is there any line you won't cross?
  Superman: I don't hurt children.
  Blue Beetle: Didn't stop you with Shazam.

  Black Adam: Shazam's death shouldn't have fazed you.
  The Flash: Killing children is never okay!
  Black Adam: He was sacrificed for the greater good.

  Superman: Only criminals need to fear me
  Batman: Shazam and Green Arrow were criminals?
  Superman: Casualties of War

  Flash: How can you not have regrets, Victor?
  Cyborg: Because I know we did the right thing.
  Flash: Two words: Billy Batson.
• For any Flash fans, the exchanges between Flash and Captain Cold, since there was at least a Villain Respect for each other at worst, and now it's all gone because of The Regime, one that Flash realized was monstrous.
  Captain Cold: I'm going to kill you Flash.
  Flash: We've always been civil, Snart.
  Captain Cold: The Regime changed that.
  
  Flash: You have to move on, Snart.
  Captain Cold: Too late. My heart's frozen.
  Flash: (pleading) Let it go.
  
  Flash: Murdering people won't bring Lisa back!
  Captain Cold: (softly) I know, Barry.
  Flash: I can't let you give up on yourself!
• Then there's Leonard noting Kara looks exactly like Lisa — but the "S" on her chest makes him unable to call her a friend.
• Bane's ladder ending has him defeat all the heroes and release all the imprisoned criminals, declaring "No more prisons! No more guards! No more Regime!" This, however, results in a Surprisingly Realistic Outcome as he notes that all of the Worthy Opponents who could have challenged him are now dead and there's nothing left to do — which leads him to realize that being Lonely at the Top is the true prison in of itself.
• The Atom attempts to sympathize with Mr. Freeze by calling him out on his technology, which could have been used to save than hurt people. The tone on the Atom's voice is clearly a saddened one.
  The Atom: Your technology could help millions!
  Mr. Freeze: What good is it if I cannot save Nora?
  The Atom: You lost more than your wife, Dr. Fries.
• Jay Garrick also feels sympathetic for Mr. Freeze and his love for Nora, and this intro can hit just as hard.
  Jay Garrick: No one doubts your love for Nora.
  Mr. Freeze: Then why do you block my path?
  Jay Garrick: Because pain is no excuse for criminality!
• Ditto for Jay's love for Joan, whom he lost.
  Mr. Freeze: If you'd lost Joan, you'd know my pain.
  Jay Garrick: I can't say I disagree, friend.
  Mr. Freeze: Then do not stand there in smug judgment!
• Mr. Freeze and Starfire have several tragic intros, with Starfire attempting to stop Freeze's crusade to save Nora since the Tamaranean also lost her friends.
  Mr. Freeze: I will freeze the world to save Nora.
  Starfire: I lost the man I loved the most.
  Mr. Freeze: Then do not judge my frozen heart.
  
  Starfire: How can you justify what you've done?
  Mr. Freeze: I will stop at nothing to save my wife!
  Starfire: (genuinely saddened) You’re not the only one who lost people!
  
  Mr. Freeze: My gun will freeze you in your tracks.
  Starfire: Forget this hateful crusade.
  Mr. Freeze: I will gladly trade your life for Nora's.
  
  Starfire: Dick Grayson believed there was good in you.
  Mr. Freeze: I will stop at nothing to save my wife!
  Starfire: Then you need to surrender.
• John Stewart's intro with Mr. Freeze is sad enough given Freeze's despair.
  John Stewart: Why not use your genius for good?
  Mr. Freeze: I did. And this is where it got me.
  John Stewart: You shouldn't give up hope so easily.
• The Flash tries reasoning with Freeze's actions, and calls him out on them.
  Flash: You don't believe people can change?
  Mr. Freeze: I did. And this is where it got me.
  Flash: I can't let you give up on yourself!
• The Flash also attempts to let Mr. Freeze's tragedy of Nora go and move on.
  Flash: How can you not have regrets, Victor?
  Mr. Freeze: What I do, I do for Nora.
  Flash: (pleading) Let it go.
• Black Lightning also knows what it's like to lose someone, even calling Mr. Freeze's education wasted for research on how to save Nora.
  Black Lightning: You've wasted your education.
  Mr. Freeze: All I want is to finish my research.
  Black Lightning: Knowledge should help, not harm.
• Starfire's intro against Damian Wayne (Robin) hits really hard considering what happened to Dick was actually just a tragic accident.
  Robin: You're burning the wrong bridges.
  Starfire: I want NONE with Dick Grayson's killer!
  Robin: It was an accident!
• The Flash (Barry Allen)'s intro against Jay Garrick as a speedster seeking redemption and atonement for his time with the Regime:
  Jay: Fallen short of our ideals, Barry.
  Barry: I only hope they'll forgive me.
  Jay: The race for redemption starts here.

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