10 Most Heartbreaking Moments In The DC Animated Universe

6. The Black Mercy - Justice League Unlimited

Alan Moore and David Gibbons' For the Man Who Has Everything is one of the greatest Superman stories ever told. Turns out it also makes for a pretty great episode of Justice League Unlimited!

Adapted for the DCAU by J.M. DeMatteis and Dan Riba, this particular adaptation is the only one where Moore has given his blessing for his name to be credited. That should go some way in illustrating just how great an episode it is, and especially in how it translated the emotional weight of the comic from the page to the screen.

The story takes place on Superman's birthday. Batman and Wonder Woman go to the Fortress of Solitude with gifts of their own, only to discover that the Man of Steel is in the thrall of an alien plant, known as the Black Mercy. The parasitic life form provides its host with their dream reality, and for Kal-El, this happens to be a life on Krypton, where he has a wife and child.

As Batman and Wonder Woman work to sever the plant from Supes, Mongul announces himself and a fight ensues. The disruption causes Kal to slowly snap out of the reality, but doing so means letting go of his wife and child. We may know it's all fake, but to Supes it feels as real as ever, and the end result is truly heartbreaking.