Batman’s unexpected death at the hands of the Joker shakes the foundations of the DC Universe

Few DC Comics opening events have left readers as baffled as this one. The Joker killed Batman. So, no detours. This is not a dream, nor an alternate reality, nor an editorial gimmick to attract attention. In DC KO —the new saga written by Scott Snyder with art of Javi Fernandez-, Him Clown Prince of Crime He manages to achieve what seemed unthinkable: destroy the Dark Knight and open the door to an unprecedented cosmic war.

The new DC Comics event

The comic begins with an atmosphere of absolute tension: Darkseid on resuscitation and advances, destroying all resistance, traveling back in time to eliminate any threat before it arises. The tyrant of Apokolips found an energy source in a Earth corrupted by Omega energythe same force that fuels his power. Faced with such a threat, the Justice League must do the unthinkable: use that same energy to deal with it.

But there’s a problem: Omega energy cannot be shared. Only those who master conquest and control can channel it. Here’s how cosmic tournament at the center of the event, a fight to decide who among the heroes is worthy of this title King Omega.

The approach is reminiscent of classic sagas such as Crisis on Infinite Earths or Dark Nights: Metalbut with a brutal twist: this time, the heroes They don’t fight together to save the multiversebut decide who has the power to do it alone.

Before the tournament begins, the League decides to neutralize their enemies to avoid chaos while they are away. However, the bad guys don’t stand still: They discover the plan and decide to participate in the carnage. This is when the Jokertaking advantage of Batman’s distraction, he shoots him with a bazooka and removes it from the equation in a scene as unexpected as it is brutal.

The impossible victim

The Joker killing Batman is nothing new in comic book mythology, but yes, the context is. This time there are no puzzles, no moral dilemmas, no attempts to provoke the hero. He kills him because he can, because the council has changed and the rules no longer matter.

On a narrative level, this death serves to demonstrate that the event will not follow the usual rules. In Snyder’s words during the presentation of the issue: “We wanted the reader to understand from the first page that no one is safe”.

But the coup also works on a symbolic level. It’s been said this way for decades The Joker would never kill Batman because it would destroy the game between the two, that eternal dance that defines them. Even in stories like Becoming sanethe villain returns sane after believing he has killed his enemy. This time there is no going back.

A new dark order

With Batman off the board, the Justice League it is destabilized. Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash and the others must decide if they continue the plan or if they seek revenge. Meanwhile, Darkseid advances unstoppably and the villains, now without the Dark Knight’s control, they begin to claim their place in the tournament.

Snyder described DC KO AS “a mix between Mortal Kombat and Final Crisis”with fights that will not only decide the fate of the universe, but also who deserves absolute power. And if this first issue has clarified anything, it is this No one is safe, not even DC’s most untouchable icons.

Snyder’s riskiest bet

The screenwriter of Batman: Death Metal Yes No justice plays once again with the limits of the superhero myth. Together with the explosive art of Javi Fernández, it creates a story dark, epic and brutally funnywhere classic characters face their most primitive side: the desire for power.

Batman’s death works not only as a narrative stimulus, but also as a declaration of intent: DC KO he wants to break the mold and rewrite the balance of power of the DC Universe.

And if the first issue began with the Joker killing Batman with a bazooka… better get ready, because what’s about to come promises to be a real cosmic massacre.