Absolute Batman, by Scott Snyder and Nick Dragotta, has been giving readers Batman like they never imagined before. The sixth issue, the end of “The Zoo” story arc, takes that promise and kicks it ...

He probably hears the sound of Alfred's neck breaking in his nightmares. As heartbreaking as that was, Joker had a different thought. He looked at that moment as a wasted death. Trauma is a weapon.

While it turns out later that Alfred used this as a ruse to invite the Joker to try and eke out revenge on the villain, it does also serve as a justification for why the Clown Prince of Crime ends ...