It’s a question that has become more and more relevant as time has wound on for the Dark Knight and his fiendish nemesis The Joker: “why doesn’t Batman just end it?” Certainly, as the character of the Clown Prince of Crime has gone through the decades, it has become a more relevant idea as social mores have changed. In the recent Black Label miniseries Batman: Three Jokers #2, writer Geoff Johns continues his fundamentalist approach to the character of The Joker by showcasing the aftermath of one possible Joker’s demise at the hands of a Batman ally, the Red Hood. And, true to the character, Johns demonstrates a depth to this struggle seldom explored in the continuity.

A literary character of iconic proportions, Joker is the diametric opposite of the heroic Batman. Partly this is from the symmetry he shares with the origin of Batman, being a blindly indiscriminate murderer who thrives on chaos and suffering, as well as a philosophical opposite as has been explored in the latter half of The Joker’s 80-year lifespan. What Batman seeks is justice, the preservation of his city, while The Joker seeks to destroy the peace of Gotham no matter the cost. What’s more, from a utilitarian viewpoint, they’re also pitted against each other: if Batman manages to save one person from The Joker, that is his victory of justice, yes. But, if through his psychologically destructive abuse Joker manages to turn one person into somebody like himself through “one bad day” as famously discussed in The Killing Joke by Alan Moore and Brian Bolland, he’ll create a catalyst to cause exponentially more death and suffering, as is his stated goal. Logically speaking, at some point if he cannot be cured or kept separated from society, it only makes sense from a pragmatic view to end this.

Related: Forget Batman: DC's THREE JOKERS #1 Sells 300,000 Copies

This question takes center stage when, in the aftermath of Jason Todd’s murder of a possible Joker (given there are apparently three), as Barbara Gordon, Batgirl, and Batman discuss Jason’s apparent crime. Bruce tells Barbara that there’s nothing they can do, as, being the only witness, she would be forced to unmask if Jason were arrested in order to give testimony, and beyond that, Jason is suffering, and has not healed from this suffering as well as Barbara has. The answer, therefore, if drawn out, is that The Joker as well is a person who is suffering, and Batman is interested in relieving this suffering rather than trying to add only more brutality to the world.

This question as to whether or not this is a sensible point of view is brought up immediately after. Batgirl and Batman track down Jason, having been captured by the two remaining Jokers at an abandoned swimming pool, where dozens and dozens of “jokerized” victims lie near death. These victims then attack Batman and initiate their own suicides by calling the Batmobile through a remote they’d grabbed on Batman’s belt, leaving few survivors. While Jason ended up assaulting one of these victims, Bruce and Barbara do their best to see these individuals as what they were: victims of a dangerous criminal and not responsible for their actions due to psychological trauma.

This raises another issue: Johns has introduced the idea that, for all of Batman’s career, there have actually been not one, but three Jokers working together. Of the three Jokers, Johns has delineated them as The Clown, The Comedian, and The Criminal, which correspond roughly to the three likely overarching motivational factors behind someone of The Joker’s fantastical criminality. The Clown, now deceased, would perform cruel acts because they are, in a twisted sense, funny. It is amusing to him when people “fall for gags” like being squirted with acid from his lapel carnation, or succumb to razor-sharp playing cards. The Comedian on the other hand would commit crimes in order to “make a point,” as if his crimes themselves are an ironic social commentary that’s only funny to him. And finally, The Criminal would be more in line with the traditional “force of chaos” that The Joker represents: the clown aspect is simply a gimmick, a symbol he uses like Batman, and he actually commits crimes because that is how he attains wealth, power and privilege. He is an anarchist, and it is his desire to wreak havoc throughout Gotham because that is how he flourishes; by sowing fear and confusion. (Interestingly, the now murdered “Clown” would probably be considered the most deranged under this criteria).

The point is that for each person this symbolic archetypical monster harms or destroys, in his wake is left broken and traumatized people who must work through the wounds of its malice for the rest of their lives potentially. Johns literally portrays this as a swimming pool full of homicidal, suicidal victims of drugging and torture who spontaneously attack, huddle in fear, laugh and weep all at once and seemingly at random. The Joker is not so much a man, but a brainwashed cult that worships absurdist violence due to its undeniable ability to manipulate their lives.

While Jason does not pity these people when he encounters them, Batman and Batgirl do. This is because Jason sees the thing he despises the most in these people: himself. It is the same reason why Batman wants to believe he can save these people and why he will not ever kill The Joker. The reason why should be clear… those innocent people in that pool, that is what The Joker is potentially: someone who does not want to be the way he is. Someone who wants to be saved but simultaneously believes he cannot be. Just like Jason.

This also raises the specter of a more positive idea: imagine if Batman could reform The Joker, truly. Imagine if this monster could somehow be made to understand the error of his ways and never hurt another person again. Perhaps it wouldn’t excuse the crimes he’d committed, but perhaps it would prove that no one is ever too far gone. An idealist message if there ever was one.

Only time will tell what Johns and artists Jason Fabok and Brad Anderson have to say about it, but Batman: Three Jokers #2 is on sale now wherever comic books are sold.

Next: Three Jokers Artist Reveals Prankster, Criminal, and Comedian Variants