Whats the explanation for Batman laughing w/ the Joker at the end of The Killing Joke

[varsity_club]

Sorry to ask everybody here, but what is the explanation for Batman laughing with the Joker at the end of the Killing Joke? I just reread this book since it first came out back in 1988. I'm not sure why Alan Moore would have that kind of ending, I don't understand his interpretation of Batman laughing at the end of the book. As a reader of Batman, I don't think Batman would laugh with the Joker at the end of a story. Does anyone here have a theory on why Batman was laughing at the end of the Killing Joke?

[TheGoshDarnBatman]

I've always loved the concept, even though I don't fully subscribe to it, that Bats is just as crazy as his rogues are. So I see it as Batman resigning himself to the insanity of the situation and trying cope with it through humor the same way Joker does.

[kenoyer130]

Sorry to ask everybody here, but what is the explanation for Batman laughing with the Joker at the end of the Killing Joke? I just reread this book since it first came out back in 1988. I'm not sure why Alan Moore would have that kind of ending, I don't understand his interpretation of Batman laughing at the end of the book. As a reader of Batman, I don't think Batman would laugh with the Joker at the end of a story. Does anyone here have a theory on why Batman was laughing at the end of the Killing Joke?

You have to look at the joke that was told. From memory it was something like "Two lunatics are escaping from the asylum at night by the roof. They are trapped and can not get across to a roof across the way. The first lunatic suggests he shines the light across the gap and they run across the light beam. The second lunatic refuses and when asked why says the first lunatic will turn the light off when he is half way across.".

The two lunatics are batman and the joker, two crazy people who are joined together in their insanity. While it is off character for Batman to laugh, it does fit the tone of the story. It almost comes off as a meta joke by Alan Moore at the relationship the joker and Batman share.

Also, if I remember correctly Batman had offered to try and cure the Joker and the Joker is refusing his offer. The offer is the beam of light across the roof and the Joker is afraid Batman will turn it off before the Joker can be cured.

[mex4173]

To avoid killing the Joker, or breaking down and crying in front of him. He's just overcome with raw emotion.


Or Batman is a ****ing nutjob as much as his rogues are. Either or.

[Green Griffin]

To avoid killing the Joker, or breaking down and crying in front of him. He's just overcome with raw emotion.


Or Batman is a ****ing nutjob as much as his rogues are. Either or.

i think we have a winner here.

[dupersuper]

He had had a bit of a day, and the joke kinda' hit the nail on the head.

[Cardinal!]

The ending still kind of bugs me. It is very OOC for Batman, and to this day it still hampers an otherwise great story, meta-commentary or not. I can't remember whether this question was addressed in-story or not. I do remember in a later Barbara Gordon short story from either Batman Chronicles or the '90s Showcase series that flashes back to Babs' recovery, she, understandably, blows up at Bruce about the whole "yukking it up with the dude who shot her" thing (she had "heard" about it from one of the cops at the scene or something). I can't remember if Bruce defended himself to her or not.

[direction9]

Sorry to ask everybody here, but what is the explanation for Batman laughing with the Joker at the end of the Killing Joke? I just reread this book since it first came out back in 1988. I'm not sure why Alan Moore would have that kind of ending, I don't understand his interpretation of Batman laughing at the end of the book. As a reader of Batman, I don't think Batman would laugh with the Joker at the end of a story. Does anyone here have a theory on why Batman was laughing at the end of the Killing Joke?

i mean you aren't even going to make an attempt to grapple with it or what? what's your take.
sorry more content other than "i don't understand" plz

[direction9]

The ending still kind of bugs me. It is very OOC for Batman, and to this day it still hampers an otherwise great story, meta-commentary or not. I can't remember whether this question was addressed in-story or not. I do remember in a later Barbara Gordon short story from either Batman Chronicles or the '90s Showcase series that flashes back to Babs' recovery, she, understandably, blows up at Bruce about the whole "yukking it up with the dude who shot her" thing (she had "heard" about it from one of the cops at the scene or something). I can't remember if Bruce defended himself to her or not.

you guys actually want to read about a batman who doesn't get this joke?
how anti hh

[PsychoGoatee]

The ending still kind of bugs me. It is very OOC for Batman, and to this day it still hampers an otherwise great story, meta-commentary or not. I can't remember whether this question was addressed in-story or not. I do remember in a later Barbara Gordon short story from either Batman Chronicles or the '90s Showcase series that flashes back to Babs' recovery, she, understandably, blows up at Bruce about the whole "yukking it up with the dude who shot her" thing (she had "heard" about it from one of the cops at the scene or something). I can't remember if Bruce defended himself to her or not.

Wow that's bad. I mean, I appreciate continuity and referencing past stories such as The Killing Joke, but that is just very hamfisted sounding, and ill advised.

I will say I've always enjoyed that ending to Killing Joke, and I've never thought of it as out-of-character. Batman is certainly an eccentric guy, he doesn't have to be portrayed as a stoic archetype who reacts the same way in every story.

His life is freakin' crazy, his neverending relationship with the evil murderous Joker is insane, it's understandable in a moment of exaustion and whatever else he'd just laugh about how messed up everything is. Sure, it might be considered an inappropriate response, but I think we've all had an inappropriate response somewhere.

Plus, isn't it kind of worth noting that he's laughing while also strangling Joker at the same time? I haven't read that issue you mentioned where Babs blows up at Bruce about the laughing (man that sounds poor), but he could be like... hey, did you know I was throttling the life out of that guy at the same time? Not exactly the same as "yukking it up with him".

[Shimarenda]

The ending still kind of bugs me. It is very OOC for Batman, and to this day it still hampers an otherwise great story, meta-commentary or not. I can't remember whether this question was addressed in-story or not. I do remember in a later Barbara Gordon short story from either Batman Chronicles or the '90s Showcase series that flashes back to Babs' recovery, she, understandably, blows up at Bruce about the whole "yukking it up with the dude who shot her" thing (she had "heard" about it from one of the cops at the scene or something). I can't remember if Bruce defended himself to her or not.

Batman Chronicles #5. The story is titled "Oracle: Year One." Barbara in the hospital gets angry at Batman and twists the knife by asking if she was the joke. If I recall correctly, he leaves without replying. Since I dislike the Dark Age Batjerk in general and "The Killing Joke" in particular, it was a good moment for me. After all, the story cast her as just another casualty of Batman's sick relationship with the Joker.

[David Walton]

I'm not a fan of the concept. I get what Moore was going for, but I don't buy the premise that Batman is as insane as the Joker, or that he's part of the problem.

The Joker is a serial killer with no conscience whatsoever. You can't really blame Batman for trying to stop or cure him through whatever means he has at his disposal.

But at the end of the day, only the Joker is responsible for the Joker's behavior. Batman isn't enabling him. He's proven time and time again that he's the only guy who can stop him. And yes, you could say that the Joker feeds off that dynamic, but what's the alternative? Don't stop him?

That would be the crazy option.

[TZDEKA]

I don't know if I totally see that as the message. It very well could be, lord knows Moore oftentimes doesn't seem fond of Batman, but I interpreted it a little differently. I saw it as showing that the Joker didn't really have a leg to stand on when it came to the point he was trying to make, because even though Batman and Joker had a bad day that led to them adopting extreme personas, those extreme personas were in the service of totally opposite viewpoints. Both had a moment where they felt the world didn't make sense, but look at the conclusion they came to from that. The Joker decided he would make himself the living embodiment of the world that doesn't make sense and that he'd try and prove to everyone else that it didn't even if he had to directly intervene to do so. Batman, on the other hand, decided that he'd make the world make sense, try and fight for the justice he felt was lacking, and strive so that no one else would have a moment where the world "didn't make sense". That's why they're so similar and so different, both are extreme reactions to an unjust world, but Batman's approach is heroic and altruistic while Joker's path was cruel and uncaring just as he perceived the world to be. And that's why Batman disproves the Joker's ranting in his own way and tries to rehabilitate him after all that: he knows that you don't need to react the way the Joker did.

It's possible that Moore did mean it at the base level, "both are crazy" sort of way, but personally I feel what I said above might be what he was going for.

[David Walton]

I like your take, TZDEKA, and I hope you're right.

If that's the case, though, the average CBR poster seems to have missed the point, because 'they're both insane' comes up again and again.

I much prefer "Going Sane" to TKJ.

[TZDEKA]

Well, I think there is an element of "they're both insane" because Moore thinks anyone without powers who dresses up in a costume has to be a nut, but I also think there's more to it than that, as I detailed above.