The DC Universe is home to some of the most powerful comic book characters ever created With the likes of Superman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern especially, it is evident that some top DC heroes can pack an incredibly powerful punch. However, one character that many may not expect to be as powerful, is actually none other than The Flash.
Over the years, The Flash has demonstrated some of the most incredible feats, accomplishing things so impossible that it is hard to not see him as DC’s most powerful character. With the ability to work so many situations to his advantage, it is good to know that the Flash is on the side of good. To look at some of his most impressive displays of power, here is our list of 10 times The Flash proved he is the most powerful character in the DC Universe.
10 Can Alter Time
On several occasions, Barry Allen has traveled back in time, only to alter the past in some form, For as often as this happens, one would think that The Flash and other speedsters would learn to not play with things like time in such a manner.
However, no matter how irresponsible altering time can be, it is still an incredible display of power. With this ability, Barry has encountered dinosaurs, witnessed the future, and stopped certain events from ever happening. Since he can travel to virtually any moment in time and alter it to his benefit, The Flash has one of the most powerful abilities in all of comics.
9 Can Vibrate into Other Earths
Barry Allen can not only vibrate through solid objects, but also vibrate himself into alternate Earths. If he holds his vibrational frequency in just the right way, The Flash can actually transport himself to another Earth.
While this may not seem like much in terms of superpowers, Barry can use this ability to gather new resources, assemble allies, or simply just reconvene. With any number of possibilities at his disposal, The Flash can easily manipulate just about any situation to his advantage.
8 Regularly Defeats People Faster than Himself
Being the fastest man alive certainly comes with its perks from time to time. If Barry’s speed didn’t make him powerful enough, several other individuals within the DC Universe have shown him up in terms of speed.
For example, Eobard Thawne regularly reappears faster than ever, only for Barry to emerge even faster by the end of the arc. Since he only gets faster overtime, it is apparent that The Flash also grows more powerful. Potentially, The Flash could become one of the most powerful DC characters in general, aside from just being one of the most powerful heroes.
7 Faster Than Superman
Going up against Superman in any form or fashion is no easy feat. Likewise, emerging victorious is even harder. However, Barry has had no issues leaving the Man of Steel behind in the past. As of The Flash: Rebirth by Geoff Johns, The Flash has been the definitive Fastest Man Alive.
Though Superman is still incredibly fast, any speed related task comes much easier to the likes of Barry Allen or Wally West. If beating Superman doesn’t prove how powerful you are, nothing else will.
6 Ran Himself to Death
In one of Barry’s finest moments, he actually ran himself to death, sacrificing himself for all of humanity and saving the entire universe. During the massive Crisis On Infinite Earths event, Barry famously ran himself out of existence in order to save everyone else.
His sacrifice remained part of his legacy for years, even going beyond Barry’s official return. Likewise, Barry wasn’t nearly as powerful then as he has since become. Considering how he was still able to accomplish such a feat only provides further proof that he is one of DC’s most powerful characters.
5 Flash War
During the recent Flash War storyline, Barry Allen and Wally West ended up racing each other following an emotional breakdown from Wally. Though Wally actually proved to be faster than Barry in this case, the two versions of the Flash still successfully managed to break time itself.
After traveling so fast for so long and time travelling way more often than they should have, the two characters broke time to the point where time travel was impossible. It is then explained that continuing to go at such extreme speeds could eventually break time further causing it to collapse in on itself. Knowing that The Flash has the power to literally break time should he desire is an incredibly scary thought that further demonstrates just how impactful he can be on the DC Universe.
4 Flashpoint
In one of Barry’s most famous blunders, he went back in time to prevent his mother’s death from ever occurring. The result caused a change that drastically altered the DC universe, leading to an incredibly dark take on many characters. Barry’s mistake had led to a near apocalypse as a result of the feud between Wonder Woman and Aquaman. However, Barry was thankfully able to restore the timeline after spending only a few days trapped in the “Flashpoint.”
In repairing everything though, Barry actually fused several different continuities together, resulting in several Vertigo and Wildstorm comics characters ending up in the main DC Universe. This restoration would actually come to create the New 52 continuity, which is later discovered to also have been altered by none other than Dr. Manhattan. For scale, Barry is so powerful that he literally created a separate universe.
3 Heroes in Crisis
The biggest twist from the recent Heroes in Crisis event revealed that none other than Wally West had murdered the patients at Sanctuary. By the end of the series, it is revealed that Wally lost control of his abilities for only a brief moment. However, that loss of control resulted in a massive burst of Speed Force energy that still managed to kill an incredible number of heroes.
While this feat was Wally’s over Barry’s, it is explained that all speedsters are under the constant pressure of retaining the Speed Force within them. Because of this fact, Barry could just as easily accomplish what Wally did. Knowing that The Flash could instantly take the lives of anyone close enough is an incredibly horrifying thought to think about, but still makes for an incredible display of power.
2 Created the Speed Force
Easily one of Barry’s biggest accomplishments is in creating the Speed Force itself. Also from The Flash: Rebirth, Geoff Johns revealed that Barry Allen actually used his abilities from the Speed Force to create the Speed Force.
In a weird, twisted paradox of sorts, the two were always destined to be a part of each other so that time itself could be created. Since the Speed Force is the thing that actually moves time forward (according to the science of the DCU), this means that Barry actually created the concept of time and is the reason there is a past, present and future, making for one of the most incredible displays of power in comic history.
1 Ran Himself Back to Life
After everything seemed hopeless towards the end of Final Crisis, barry allen actually made his triumphant return from the dead. After the Black Racer was chasing Barry in the past, Barry ran so fast that he ended up in the present, thus saving his own life.
At this point, Barry began adjusting to the years he had lost, working his way back up to one of the most powerful men on the planet. However, for everything Barry has accomplished, literally outrunning death is one of the more powerful things he has managed to pull off over the years.