BATMAN #40 Preview/Discussion (Endgame finale)

[jules]

The finale of "Endgame" is here! Batman risks everything against The Joker! Who will laugh last?

Full preview here.

Just read it. And now I think I need to read it again.

I'm still processing what I think of it, but

spoilers:

I was mightily amused to see that though other aspects of this issue and Divergence/post-Convergence have leaked like a sieve, DC still managed to keep one major secret up their sleeves. Well done. And if some of the other leaks were allowed to lay a trail away from this one, well played as well. I only started to wonder a couple of panels before the reveal, though in hindsight Batman got very acrobatic fron the point he let Bane boost him towards the dinosaur. I think I'm going with "we didn't recover a body" (or bodies) as my general reaction. As for the eventual return to the status quo, I wonder what the restorative properties of that piece of Joker's ear might be? And the last of the dionesium did look awfully reminiscent of a lazurus pit.

end of spoilers

[Blargers]

Long time reader first time poster here since the forum revamp.
But this issue... When can we post actual spoilers? Because I'm still shaking from reading it. That was insane, and the most brutal Batman/Joker fight ever. The ending... Man..
Can I say that whenever the status quo is restored, that I hope that DC keeps the Joker knowing Batman is Bruce as canon? I bet they won't though..
I will miss Snyder's Joker. I know some people didn't like how he wrote him but I love it.

[InformationGeek]

...

Well I liked it. Not exactly sure what the heck I was looking at in the final page mind you, but hey, I enjoyed it.

[LP22]

Yeah. I keep trying to figure out what that last page was all about too.

Just my Thought here but I Think the armor of a knight Thrown in the trash Symbolizes batman the dark knight being dead and Finished(until Everything will return to normal by next year)

[jdmorris1124]

Just my Thought here but I Think the armor of a knight Thrown in the trash Symbolizes batman the dark knight being dead and Finished(until Everything will return to normal by next year)

I'm glad I'm not the only one who was confused by this. I was trying to figure out the symbolism and kept looking for something bat related in the trash. I like this theory.

[Mate]

Yeah. I keep trying to figure out what that last page was all about too.

It's the armor that was in the theater when Batman fought Jokerized-Superman. He told the story of that thing but I don't remember and I'm too lazy to go back and check ha

[ibmats]

It's the armor that was in the theater when Batman fought Jokerized-Superman. He told the story of that thing but I don't remember and I'm too lazy to go back and check ha

Indeed. It's Apollo's costume from Orestes. Deus ex machina and all that.

[Baggie_Saiyan]

Yup this was awesome!!!!!!!! Well worth the 2 month wait!

[charliehustle415]

The end also reminded me of the Tunnel of Love scene in DKR

[JBatmanFan05]

This article interpreted it as Bruce not being dead:
http://insidepulse.com/2015/04/29/dc...-divergence-1/

[Billy Batson]

Hehe
http://moonheadpress.blogspot.com/20...-deal.html?m=1

[bat1987]

I still figure Bruce & Joker are alive and the toys will go back in the toybox, so...it's just a matter of when that happens (and how...which may involve some metahuman or magic stuff!), I figure.

According to Snyder it happens around issue #50 for Bruce at least.

[Fededm97]

It's the armor that was in the theater when Batman fought Jokerized-Superman. He told the story of that thing but I don't remember and I'm too lazy to go back and check ha

The story you are looking for is the very first speech in the Endgame arc. Bruce tells how after Zero Year he put money on builiding again the Royal Theater, and they builded the stage with (and I quote directly from the comic) "A special harness for the theater. They were doing Orestes and (...) at the end of the play, there was a Deus ex machina. A moment then a god, Apollo, descends from the sky to save the characters from destruction."
Then, the whole story, and on the last pages, when Superman appears, Bruce says "See, but the truth is, when gods do come down, it's terrifying, because you never know what they're going to do"

That's the story with direct quotes. Now my interpretation(s).
- "When gods come down it's terrifying", as Snyder and Capullo said (read CBR interview), we (or at least me) finally got what we wished for, a end to the characters tenure, even though Bruce will be alive in one year from now, I can always look back at this story, read "I'm just going to rest here a little while with my friend" and feel a satisfaction inside, the same thing with The Killing Joke and The Dark Knight Returns, but in another way, another type of satisfaction, really weird to try to explain it. And, we got it, but yes, it was terrifying, the whole lead up to this moment, the last bloody battle, and knowing that at the end, they die, terrifying
- The armor at the end, in the garbage, represents that the God (Batman, obviously) finally came down... there's not much more for me to explain about this, he is finally a human, a real human, one who dies, one who is at the same level as every other human in the world.
- Finally, if the guy in the crutches is Bruce (kind of a homage to TDKRises), who the hell is the kid? Duke? But again, the truth is, I don't care, I will just wait for the next arc and see it for myself.

I really loved this issue, but at the same time I understand why people hated it and hate Snyder. I give it a 10/10.

[SpideyZERO]

That was awesome. Truly a fitting end for the Batman and Joker conflict. Of course they will be back, but the final fight will serve as one of my favorite Batman ending ever.

I love that Snyder is referencing back to elements in his past runs, such as the sphere camera back in Zero Year and the arc ending with an "HA" just like Death of The Family. Also, nice Dick move there, ha.

Overall, one of the best arc from Snyder and team. Great start and great finish. Looking forward to Robo Bat next.

[SpideyZERO]

Also note that Endgame ended with a 'HA' just like Death of The Family, though it represents a different type of laughter.