Perp Walk

[cyberghostface]

From Batman: The Brave and the Bold #13. This is by Jason Shawn Alexander and Rodney Barnes. 





The man surrenders and Batman takes him in. The man tells Batman he killed the Joker to set him free.

Comments

[beyondthefringe]

My thought is when you lose something that’s a huge, impactful part of your life, especially something toxic or abusive or otherwise trauma-inducing… the absence affects you just as much because you have this emptiness to fill and this sense of “what now?”

If Joker dies, and I mean dies in a way that is conclusive and undeniable and indisputable, Bruce would definitely be affected by the “hole” left in the Joker’s wake. And grief is a valid response in trying to process the loss. It’s not that he loved the Joker, but the Joker was part of what defined him and now he has to work through that.

And maybe Bruce does credit Joker as a catalyst for his constant need to improve, a motivating factor… there’d be complicated emotions. Like dealing with an abusive relative, or a strict authority figure, or even a toxic ex.

But I can’t see him being truly grateful or -ugh- tender at the end. More like relieved, but also sorrowful because he always dreamed of somehow, someday, rehabilitating the Joker as the uptime proof his crusade against crime and evil could succeed. The Joker’s death would be a major failure and blow to that dream. Kind of like if Harvey Dent died.