Devil's Advocate
Some of the comments in this thread prompted me to make this post. I'd been planning it for a while, but now I have an excuse.
So: without further Ado... How the Batman handles things when the Joker winds up on Death row.
Context: The USPS releases a series of stamps commemorating the great commedians. The Joker's not on them. Then it turns out that many of the stamps are poisoned with joker venom. And the joker goes on a rampage demanding to know why he didn't get a commemorative stamp. Batman takes him down. While the detectives grill the Joker about the stamps, they call in the assistant district attourney. The Joker's lawyer suggests the insanity plea, but wants to get a plea going, just in case there are more stamps floating about. The Joker wonders why everyone keeps asking him about stamps.
Looks like there are more stamps... because more people start dropping. The A. DA talks with bullock and montoya, says they probably haven't got a shot at getting this one, but what the heck. No deals. The Joker's going to trial. The stamps have been recalled, The victims' families give teary interviews... and someone starts sending ransom letters to Gotham City, demanding money or else more people die.
(17 pages of build up just to get to the scans... It's a pretty complex plot for a comic.)
I love Gordon's commentary.
The trial is a total circus. Even more than Michael Jackson's was.
Unimportant things happen. Batman meets with Gordon...
And now for the turning point of the trial:
Batman chases thin leads... and he needs to call in some help to pare down some possibilities.
The joker throws a fit, the entire time claiming he's innocent, and they have to physically restrain him.
The sentence is announced: Death. The Joker's gonna die... and Bats isn't happy.
The extortionists fail to get money from the city. Batman meets with Gordon again. This is where things start to get good.
I'm very convinced that there's a very LARGE part of Bruce that really want to be wrong. He WANTS the joker to be behind this. But he can't just blithely accept it. In everyone's rush to believe that the Joker is behind this there's a REAL killer out there.... one who can't be allowed to get away with it.
More stuff happens. The Joker kind of wishes that more than one person thought he was innocent... and I confess, this next scan's only here because it's Batman being awesome.
Painful beat downs ensue.
Joker gets sent to death row in Blackgate.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why Tim deserves to be Robin. Above and beyond anything else, Tim might not know why, but he knows *WHY*.
Batman and Robin try tracking down more leads... to little avail.
Lots of stuff happens. None of it totally critical... well some is, but I feel like glossing. Read the book already!
The extortionist is found. He was one of Joker's old henches.
More stuff happens. Ok I admit it. the next page is only here for the punchline.
Yup. it's here for the gag... I can't help myself ok?
Batman finds the real killer... And yes... this page is here for the joke too.
The real killer confesses. Stuff happens... We all know the Joker lives... But seriously... read the book for this bit. It's good.
This wrap up though really summarizes Batman. It's about justice. Not short cuts. Devotion to an ideal is often painful, and rarely rewarding... but it's important.
Posted to scans_daily,b_wayne_daily,and my journal.
So: without further Ado... How the Batman handles things when the Joker winds up on Death row.
Context: The USPS releases a series of stamps commemorating the great commedians. The Joker's not on them. Then it turns out that many of the stamps are poisoned with joker venom. And the joker goes on a rampage demanding to know why he didn't get a commemorative stamp. Batman takes him down. While the detectives grill the Joker about the stamps, they call in the assistant district attourney. The Joker's lawyer suggests the insanity plea, but wants to get a plea going, just in case there are more stamps floating about. The Joker wonders why everyone keeps asking him about stamps.
Looks like there are more stamps... because more people start dropping. The A. DA talks with bullock and montoya, says they probably haven't got a shot at getting this one, but what the heck. No deals. The Joker's going to trial. The stamps have been recalled, The victims' families give teary interviews... and someone starts sending ransom letters to Gotham City, demanding money or else more people die.
(17 pages of build up just to get to the scans... It's a pretty complex plot for a comic.)
I love Gordon's commentary.
The trial is a total circus. Even more than Michael Jackson's was.
Unimportant things happen. Batman meets with Gordon...
And now for the turning point of the trial:
Batman chases thin leads... and he needs to call in some help to pare down some possibilities.
The joker throws a fit, the entire time claiming he's innocent, and they have to physically restrain him.
The sentence is announced: Death. The Joker's gonna die... and Bats isn't happy.
The extortionists fail to get money from the city. Batman meets with Gordon again. This is where things start to get good.
I'm very convinced that there's a very LARGE part of Bruce that really want to be wrong. He WANTS the joker to be behind this. But he can't just blithely accept it. In everyone's rush to believe that the Joker is behind this there's a REAL killer out there.... one who can't be allowed to get away with it.
More stuff happens. The Joker kind of wishes that more than one person thought he was innocent... and I confess, this next scan's only here because it's Batman being awesome.
Painful beat downs ensue.
Joker gets sent to death row in Blackgate.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why Tim deserves to be Robin. Above and beyond anything else, Tim might not know why, but he knows *WHY*.
Batman and Robin try tracking down more leads... to little avail.
Lots of stuff happens. None of it totally critical... well some is, but I feel like glossing. Read the book already!
The extortionist is found. He was one of Joker's old henches.
More stuff happens. Ok I admit it. the next page is only here for the punchline.
Yup. it's here for the gag... I can't help myself ok?
Batman finds the real killer... And yes... this page is here for the joke too.
The real killer confesses. Stuff happens... We all know the Joker lives... But seriously... read the book for this bit. It's good.
This wrap up though really summarizes Batman. It's about justice. Not short cuts. Devotion to an ideal is often painful, and rarely rewarding... but it's important.
Posted to scans_daily,b_wayne_daily,and my journal.