The Justice League might be one of the greatest fighting forces in the DC Universe, but they’ve had their share of heartbreaks over the years. While the team has opened its ranks to many, that extension has occasionally been repaid with betrayal, sometimes by the most unexpected of allies.
It’s always unfortunate when a villain attacks and gets the best of the League. But when the team is double-crossed or otherwise hurt by those they trust, it hurts the League so much worse. From new recruits to founding members, discover the 15 biggest betrayals the Justice League has ever suffered from.
15 Future State’s Mysterious Traitor
DC’s Future State event showed a possible glimpse into the future of the DCU and revealed that the original incarnation of the Justice League had been disbanded after a devastating attack. According to Superman Jon Kent, the team was fractured after a traitor used the information and secrets they’d gathered as a League member to destroy the team. While the traitor’s identity was never revealed, their actions led to many lives being lost as well as the team splitting up for good.
14 Red Tornado’s Evil Programming
Red Tornado was created by the super-intelligent villain T.O. Morrow, and as such, has programmed the android to attack the League multiple times. The core of Red Tornado is a hero, but he’s unwittingly found himself the pawn of evil villains like Morrow or Construct. Tornado is usually reconstructed and given another chance, but numerous times has he endangered the League thanks to his programming.
13 Aquaman Chooses Atlantis over the League
Arthur Curry has always been a man of two worlds but he had to choose one in the “Throne of Atlantis” storyline. When Ocean Master came to attack the surface, Arthur knew the only way he could get his brother to listen was with a show of strength. Aquaman begins a brawl with his Justice League allies and gets the best of nearly all his teammates. It wasn’t a serious betrayal, but one that his teammates severely disagreed with.
12 Wonder Woman’s Betrayal to Save the League
Classic Justice League mainstay Wonder Woman betrayed her teammates, but only in an attempt to save them. In JLA: A League of One, Diana discovers a prophecy of the League falling at the hands of a dragon named Karfang, To avoid the fate coming true, Diana subdues the League one by one and takes on Karfang by herself. Though Diana wins, she is chewed out by her teammates for doing such a dangerous stunt and not trusting her friends.
11 Rocket Red 7 Revealed to be a Manhunter
Justice League International was one of the most fondly remembered incarnations of the premier superhero team, but even they weren’t above being betrayed by one of their own. In Justice League International #9, Russian representative Rocket Red #7 reveals himself to be a Manhunter, a powerful and lethal android. Rocket Red #7 tried to convince his teammates to join the invading army, but he failed and was destroyed not too long after.
10 Geo-Force Working for Deathstroke
Geo-Force’s sister, Tara Markov infamously betrayed the Teen Titans during the “Judas Contract” storyline. But Brion also worked for the villainous Deathstroke, this time in an attempt to bring down the League. Deathstroke gave Brion intense new powers, helping the hero worm his way into the Justice League. However, unlike his sister, Geo-Force came clean about betrayal and tried to make amends, though he ultimately left the League to rejoin the Outsiders.
9 Steve Trevor Leads a League to Destroy Another One
Steve Trevor isn’t exactly a Justice League member, but he did make a serious move against the team, including his love interest, Wonder Woman. Steve was contracted to lead Amanda Waller’s government-backed Justice League of America to replace the non-affiliated League. Steve even took his team to war, though the invasion of the Crime Syndicate became a more pressing issue. What’s truly awful is that Steve thought Waller’s JLA was a bad idea, but joined it anyway.
8 Triumph Turns on the League
The superhero Triumph was a founding member of the League but was ultimately forgotten due to an aberration in the timestream. When Triumph returned, however, he felt betrayed that his allies had forgotten about him. He made a dark deal to try and restore the timeline and regain his status as an icon, but all he did was manage to hurt his former teammates and earn punishment delivered directly from the Spectre.
7 Martian Manhunter Turns out to be a Spy
Despite being a founding member of the team, Martian Manhunter had to keep his guard up when he first arrived on Earth. JLA: Year One revealed that before he decided to join up with his friends, he secretly surveilled the heroes, observing them without their knowledge. It’s understandable as J’onn was quite paranoid about making Earth his home, but it’s still a revelation that caused friction within his team.
6 Atomica Infiltrates the League for the Crime Syndicate
The New 52 introduced a number of heroes, including a new incarnation of the Atom, aka Rhonda Pienda. However, Rhonda was actually a triple agent. Not only was she secretly working for Waller’s Justice League of America and the standard Justice League, but Justice League #23 revealed her true allegiance was to Earth-3’s Crime Syndicate of America. Her subterfuge helped pave the way for the villains’ attempt to conquer the world in Forever Evil.
5 Green Lantern Becomes Parallax
Few heroes fell as hard as Hal Jordan did when he became the villainous Parallax. The Green Lantern went mad with grief after his home of Coast City was destroyed by Mongul and Cyborg Superman. The intense stress allowed for Jordan to be possessed by the feat entity Parallax, turning the Lantern into one of the most powerful villains in the DCU. While he was eventually absolved of his crimes, Batman vehemently objected to the idea of letting Green Lantern back on the Justice League.
4 Jean Loring Kills Sue Dibny
Jean Loring isn’t a hero, but she put the Justice League through hell when she accidentally killed Sue Dibny, the wife of Elongated Man. Wanting to rekindle her relationship with the Atom, Jean attempted to give Sue a stroke, convincing herself that this would ultimately bring Ray Palmer back to her. All it did was kill Sue and kickstart the events of Identity Crisis and put Jean on the path to becoming the villain Eclipso.
3 Maxwell Lord Murders Blue Beetle
Maxwell Lord was always a contentious figure in League history, but he took things to a new level with his most infamous murder. In Countdown to Infinite Crisis, Blue Beetle Ted Kord discovers that Lord is gathering information on the metahumans of the world to keep them under control. When Lord offers Blue Beetle a chance to join him, the hero defiantly refuses, causing Lord to shoot Kord in the head.
2 Batman Nearly Gets the League Killed in “Tower of Babel”
Batman has always prided himself on being prepared for any eventuality, but his contingencies nearly got his teammates killed in the “Tower of Babel” storyline. Ra’s al Ghul gets a hold of the Dark Knight’s plans and slowly begins to use them on the League. While the team managed to overcome the event, it led to a serious distrust in Bruce and nearly resulted in his permanent expulsion.
1 The Justice League Mindwipes Batman
Possibly the worst betrayal in League history came from Identity Crisis. It was revealed that the Justice League had erased Batman’s memories after he caught them mindwiping Doctor Light after he had sexually assaulted Sue Dibny. Other betrayals usually involve one person violating the trust of the team. But here, it was the League that failed one of their own by violating one of its members and pretending like it never happened.
The Justice League has been through a lot of harrowing events, and these 15 betrayals stand out as some of their most shocking backstabbings.
