The Batman Who Laughs Turns a New Hero to the Dark Side

The Batman Who Laughs is one of the creepiest villains in recent memory for DC Comics. A [...]

The Batman Who Laughs is one of the creepiest villains in recent memory for DC Comics. A combination of both Batman and the Joker from an alternate reality, this monstrosity managed to continue to have a place in the world of Batman, Superman, and the Justice League thanks in part to how well received he's been with the comic book reading public. With a terrifying design and even more terrifying plans up his sleeves, this particular Batman has been attempting to carve his way into the crossover, "Year of the Villain" by adding some well known heroes to his ranks and may have just added another one into his growing army. Spoilers for The Infected: King Shazam #1 to follow...

In the recent Batman/Superman series, the "World's Finest" have been attempting to navigate the plans of the Batman Who Laughs as well as discover just which heroes in the world are "sleeper agents" under the Jokerized Batman's control. With the likes of Supergirl, Donna Troy, Blue Beetle, Hawkman, and Commissioner Gordon making up the scary villain's group, perhaps the most powerful among them has been the evil version of Captain Marvel, aka Shazam.

This week, DC Comics released a comic titled "The Infected: King Shazam" which saw young Billy Batson revelling in his new status quo, attempting to beat down any god that he can find within his universe. After defeating the likes of Rao and Atlus, it wasn't until he attempted to take down the Olympic God of War, Ares, that he ran into a bit of an issue. Billy of course ran into his sister, and fellow super powered being, of Mary Marvel. As Mary teamed up with Ares, her light hearted spirit and overflowing compassion unfortunately proved to be her greatest weakness.

With King Shazam begging for help while being pummeled by Mary, the infected Captain Marvel managed to get his sister to let down her guard just long enough to seemingly infect her with the same batarang that turned him.

Shazam
(Photo: DC Comics)

Though this issue was simply a One-Shot, the story will continue in both the ongoing series Batman/Superman, as well as the upcoming issue "Year of the Villain: Hell Arisen" which will bring the Batman Who Laughs into direct conflict with his current rival, Lex Luthor, who is attempting to drag the universe into a state of "Doom".

What do you think of the Batman Who Laughs' terrifying plan so far? Do you think any other heroes will be infected? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly on Twitter @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and Batmen Who Laugh!

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