Even though The Flash didn’t reach the unrealistically lofty ambitions that some might have thought it would, it was at least an admirable and lively adventure to bring the DC Extended Universe to a close. It featured an action-heavy crossover between several landmark DC heroes, with Michael Keaton’s return as Batman the most noteworthy in the Flash’s supporting cast.
But regarding sheer strength, The Flash played with a sandbox of metahumans. Sasha Calle’s debut as Supergirl already shot her up the ranks, but the return of General Zod and a certain Amazonian Princess round out a powerful weight class of notable characters.
Note: The following article contains major spoilers for The Flash.
7. Batman (Michael Keaton)
Tim Burton and Michael Keaton’s capers are still some of the best Batman movies to watch today. And while undoubtedly well into this version of the character’s retirement years in The Flash‘s altered timeline, he was more than an asset to both Barrys and Supergirl.
A “simple” human compared to the DCEU’s many metahumans, his strengths lie in his resources, meticulous strategy, gadgets, and hand-to-hand combat in tight quarters. He was a key figure in getting the makeshift team of heroes as far in their fight with General Zod’s invading forces as they did, but that can only go so far. A veteran Dark Knight in a battle of attrition against warring Kryptonians, which pose a massive challenge even to the likes of Supergirl, speaks volumes of the wider cast’s strengths.
6. Batman (Ben Affleck)
Like the majority of the DCEU, Ben Affleck’s casting as the Dark Knight seems like squandered potential, but his brief appearance in The Flash at least gives this hero a peaceful close. The movie’s opening sequence in Gotham City was the only time audiences saw this Batman in action, but it was a solid showcase of his strengths.
He’s resourceful, quick-thinking, and acrobatic. Much of the same core assets for Affleck’s Batman carry over from Keaton’s iteration but with the benefit of relative youth. Granted, the DCEU’s Batman was modeled after Frank Miller’s battle-hardened vigilante from The Dark Knight Returns. But since this is Batman, after all, his 40s are still considered primetime for Caped Crusading.
5. Flash
The catalyst for this movie’s multiversal shenanigans, Barry Allen/Flash has a clear set of strengths shown throughout the movie. His blistering speed saved countless lives in the admittedly awkward scene with the collapsing hospital. It has its caveats, of course, like the unfathomably high amount of calories he needs to eat to keep up his strength.
Nonetheless, it’s an incredible metahuman-level boon to have in any situation, especially for someone who’s still human. Unlike Supergirl, Zod, or even Batman, the Flash doesn’t show much martial arts prowess and largely plays a support role to Kara Zor-El in the climactic fight against the General’s invasion.
4. Dark Flash
Revealed to be the future version of the second Barry Allen, this “Dark Flash” wields a dangerous power. He represents the fate of the second Barry as his desperation to save everyone and have his way grows, leading to an almost irreversible multiversal disaster.
As expected, the same general powers apply to this bleak variation of the Flash, but now with the added threat of the multiverse at his mercy. He’s spent decades deteriorating mentally and ruining timelines before his death. It’s a sort of circumstantial “power,” though, as his obsessive and unstable use of his abilities is what makes him so threatening.
3. Supergirl
Calle’s Supergirl was a welcome highlight in The Flash that, unfortunately, felt a bit underused. There was a great deal of potential in Kara Zor-El’s emotional backstory and motives. Even so, it didn’t take much for her to showcase her immense strength.
She was cruelly emaciated after being imprisoned and — presumably — experimented on in a Russian military facility, but after a solid dose of sunlight, Supergirl ran rampant on a crowd of enemies. However, those were simple humans using human weapons. Where Supergirl truly shined was when she demonstrated daunting power in her team-up bout against General Zod, nearly killing him in blind fury.
2. General Zod
But for all of Supergirl’s strengths, the return of Michael Shannon’s General Zod still tops her. The unforgiving, relentless conqueror is a force to be reckoned with thanks to his brutal mentality and formidable powers as an elder Kryptonian.
There’s no question that Supergirl put up an impressive fight in an extremely visceral battle, but Zod’s strength and experience ultimately won him the day. The latter is perhaps even more important, as Supergirl’s seething and uncontrollable rage made her careless. If this villain can push even Superman to his limits, there are few that can hope to match him.
1. Wonder Woman
Her role in The Flash was minimal, even more so than Ben Affleck’s Batman, but Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman is arguably the strongest being in-universe among the movie’s high-profile characters. The Princess of Themyscira boasts astonishing abilities, from her superhuman physical strength to flight and her iconic Lasso of Truth.
Contextually, her experience would make her more than a match for someone like Zod, as this Wonder Woman has been through the trials and tribulations of her solo movies and Zack Snyder’s Justice League. It’s a technicality given her limited role in The Flash, but her presence alone makes her strength impossible to ignore.
Andy Muschietti and DC Studios’ The Flash is now playing in theaters, with a streaming date on Max pending.
