10 Most Disturbing Moments In All 9 Seasons Of The Flash

The Flash had some truly disturbing moments in its 9-year run as part of DC’s Arrowverse. A roster of exceptional villains, including both lower-stakes “villains of the week” and some terrifying Big Bads, has led to spectacularly dark scenes. Although known for its lightheartedness and camp, the show’s incorporation of comic-accurate storylines and concepts is particularly what made its darker, weirder, and scarier moments shine.

Death in the Arrowverse may be far from final, but The Flash doesn’t need permanent deaths to deliver some deeply traumatic experiences for its characters. The Flash holds up because of its emotional stakes and the juxtaposition between its vibrant tone and darkest moments. Most of these high-stakes, disturbing moments in the series are much less about the end of a character’s life than the mark it will leave on the heroes.

Related

10 Most Brutal Deaths In All 9 Seasons Of The Flash

As the Arrowverse’s longest series, Grant Gustin’s The Flash featured many deaths over its nine seasons, and some of them were particularly brutal.

10 Rag Doll Kidnaps The Flash

Season 5, Episode 5

While any appearance by Rag Doll (Troy James) over the seasons of The Flash can count as disturbing, there is something especially unsettling about the character’s first-ever appearance in the season 5 episode “All Doll’d Up.” The metahuman is something out of a horror movie, with his creepy mask and powers of contortion accompanied, to make it even creepier, by a crinkling sound with every uncanny movement. Add to this a sneak attack on the very protagonist of the show to get a recipe for nightmares.

The scene of Barry’s (Grant Gustin) kidnapping bears all the hallmarks of horror. The audience hears Rag Doll before seeing him, while a jumpy Barry remains unaware, taken by surprise. The scene is a masterclass in building tension and is certainly among the scariest on the show.

9 Mitch Romero Explodes From Dark Matter

Season 6, Episode 3

Mitch Romero’s (Shawn Stewart) end in The Flash was a moment of unexpected gore. The former arms dealer turned undead being literally explodes in a rage fueled by dark matter, his remains spewing all over The Flash and Frost (Danielle Panabaker). Viewers might expect such a shocking demise on a purposely violent, R-rated show like The Boys, but here it comes as a definite shock.

Part of what makes this explosion is certainly the gore, but there is also the fact that it was the heroes who decided to inject Romero with enough dark matter to destroy him. Of course, Romero being closer to a zombie than a human being factors into the ethical considerations in this scene, as does the fact that he broke out of the Pipeline and couldn’t be stopped otherwise. Nevertheless, the sheer violence of the scene and, perhaps, how unexpected it is, marks this as one of the more disturbing moments in The Flash.

8 Reverse Flash Kills Cisco

Season 1, Episode 15

While Cisco’s (Carlos Valdes) death in season 1 is reversed by the end of the episode, it is one of the most impactful moments on the show. Upon discovering that the man he believed to be Harrison Wells (Tom Cavanagh) was someone much more sinister, he is killed by the Reverse Flash in the original timeline. The moment is emotionally charged as Cisco processes the betrayal he is experiencing as his once-mentor coldly phases his hand through Cisco’s heart, ending his life.

This moment is particularly dark due to the weight of Wells’ betrayal and unmovable callousness as Cisco pleads for mercy. The final twist of the knife is the Reverse Flash’s proclamation that Cisco has been like a son to him. This murder was undone by time travel, but it remains disturbingly dark nonetheless.

7 Iris Confronts Cicada

Season 5, Episode 13

The season 5 villain had a tragic backstory and a blind hatred for metahumans, predisposing him to a great deal of darkness and violence. Iris’ (Candice Patton) confrontation with Cicada (Chris Klein) stands out as an underrated moment on the show where the stakes were through the roof. The tension in the scene gives way to a mismatched fight as Iris escapes the meta with no superpowers of her own.

The confrontation is a refreshing moment where Iris uses her reporting skills to aid Team Flash, finding out Cicada’s residence. The scene is legitimately frightening, rife with tension as Iris attempts to lie her way out of being caught breaking into the home of the season’s Big Bad. The audience is lulled into a false sense of security when it seems Iris will get away with it, only to witness a terrifying sequence where Iris has only her wits to rely on against the metahuman she just angered. She may get away, but the scene is definitely one of the show’s underrated and genuinely scary moments.

6 Caitlin Is Kidnapped By Gorilla Grodd

Season 2, Episode 7

The concept of an ape gaining self-awareness and turning violent is not unique to The Flash, but it is handled powerfully in the season 2 episode “Gorilla Warfare.” Caitlin, having always been kind to the newly superpowered Grodd, becomes a target as the gorilla seeks someone to help him achieve his goals. Kidnapped by Grodd, she wakes in an unfamiliar location and hears a guttural, spine-chilling “Caitlin.”

The moment captures Caitlin’s palpable fear, and Grodd surges around the room with the blur of his limbs before leaping in front of her in a literal jump-scare. The characters’ unique relationship, however, is where the true uneasiness of the scene rests. The mix of fear and sympathy and the reversal of roles as Caitlin becomes the one in captivity; these are what make for a truly disturbing dynamic.

5 Bloodwork Turns Wally Against The Flash

Season 9, Episode 9

Bloodwork (Sendhil Ramamurthy) has always been one of the most visually unnerving villains in The Flash, with dark veins like cracks on his face and body. However, the way he operates in season 9’s “It’s My Party And I’ll Die If I Want To” is what takes his villainy to the next level. Wally West’s Kid Flash has always been a hero, so to have him deliver a death blow to his former mentor, The Flash, is a horrifying achievement.

Related

The Flash: The Best Character In Each Season

The Flash has many great characters, and one character always seems to stand out every season. Fans usually love these specific characters as well.

The episode gets dark earlier in the episode when Wally is forced to confront his past in nightmarish visions. When Bloodwork talks him into joining him, the hero falls. This, perhaps, is the key to why this moment is so significant; the notion that heroes can be made to commit unforgivable acts is uncomfortable to confront. If The Flash hadn’t gotten resurrected, Wally would have lived with the guilt for the rest of his life. Conversely, Barry had to watch someone he loved turn against him and be the one to kill him.

4 Nora Gets Erased From Existence

Season 5, Episode 22

Nora’s (Jessica Parker Kennedy) decision to refuse corruption from the Negative Speed Force and consequent erasure from existence is one of the saddest moments in The Flash. After getting the chance to build a relationship with the father she never knew and rebuild a relationship with her mother, the speedster fades out of existence after a heartwrenching goodbye. The pain in Iris’ voice as she insists there must be another option seals the scene among the darkest on the show.

In her time on The Flash, Nora West-Allen was a welcome addition to Team Flash. The spunky speedster provides a new dynamic for Barry and Iris as they navigate parenting the adult daughter they just met. By the time Nora must be erased from the timeline, the three have built the bonds of a real family, making Nora’s loss visceral. There is little darker than the main characters losing their child; even though it is later revealed that Nora will exist in the future, this moment is full of unmatched pain.

3 Zoom Breaks The Flash’s Back

Season 2, Episode 6

Hunter Zolomon’s alter ego Zoom (Teddy Sears) is undoubtedly one of the scariest villains in The Flash, especially before his true face is revealed. The Flash is dealt a devastating blow in his very first confrontation with Zoom, instantly marking the latter as a tough villain and raising the stakes for the rest of the season. Zoom pulverizes The Flash with ease, dislocating his spine and temporarily paralyzing him.

Related

All The Flash Seasons, Ranked Worst To Best

The Flash is the Arrowverse’s longest series, with Grant Gustin leading nine seasons as Barry Allen; however, some seasons were better than others.

Not one to leave it at that, Zoom drags his nemesis’ battered body to the Central City police station, sending the message that The Flash’s days of protecting the city are over. This is a psychological blow to an entire city. This moment of complete weakness for The Flash, limply dragged by his opponent like a rag doll, is truly difficult to watch.

2 The Thinker Drugs Marlize

Season 4, Multiple Episodes

Marlize Devoe (Kim Engerlbrecht), wife and partner in crime to her husband, The Thinker (Neil Sandilands), uncovers the horrifying reality of her relationship in the season 4 episode “Null and Annoyed.” Her unwavering loyalty to The Thinker, it appears, is the result of several memory wipes. Each time she would get close to the truth, the cycle would begin again.

The Thinker’s abuse of his wife is uncomfortably realistic, in spite of metahuman powers and comic book tropes. This sinister portrayal of violence is nauseating. In spite of any agency, Marlize displays in her own villainy, her helplessness in this situation is beyond chilling.

1 Savitar Kills H.R. Wells Disguised As Iris

Season 3, Episodes 22 & 23

Savitar (Grant Gustin) is one of the most disturbing villains in The Flash, simply because he is, in fact, a version of Barry Allen. The scene where he apparently stabs Iris is especially dark for this reason; there exists a version of the man Iris loves who would kill her, and there is nothing Team Flash can do to prevent it. Further heightening the emotional stakes, the scene is intercut with a video of Iris saying her wedding vows before her body falls into Barry’s arms.

The scene is horrifying enough when the twist reveals the body Barry is clutching does not belong to Iris at all, but to H.R. Wells using his transmogrifier. This ultimate sacrifice is an absolute rollercoaster of emotions. From horror at Iris’ apparent death to relief at her survival to fresh horror as H.R. loses his life, this is one of the hardest hitting sequences in The Flash.