章 448: Joker Transformation
Although Spider-Man respects Batman a lot, he doesn't agree with Batman's dad in the future video. He even pointed it out in front of Bruce Wayne: 'Mr. Wayne got the sequence of things wrong. People hate the rich when they lose their jobs or become homeless, unable to see hope. It's only then that they start hating the wealthy. It's not because they hate the rich that they lose their way, like a joker. Mr. Wayne is definitely not going to get the approval of most people with these words. I'm sorry if I offended you."
Peter Parker is successful now, but before becoming Spider-Man and being chosen as a player in the Quiz game, he was just an ordinary young man not well off.
So, he naturally understands the hardships of ordinary people in the lower levels of the city. He doesn't harbor resentment towards the rich because he had a wealthy friend since childhood. Spider-Man has always had a positive attitude, admiring his affluent friend but not envying or hating him.
However, Spider-Man still stands on the side of the vast ordinary people, unlike Thomas Wayne, who sees the lower class as clowns after gaining wealth. This is both a lofty and arrogant fallacy and a testament to the root cause of Gotham City's worsening condition.
Bruce Wayne glanced at Spider-Man, nodding, "You don't need to apologize. If it were my father, he wouldn't say such things and wouldn't be angry because of your 'offense.' Peter, you said it well. I also don't agree with the statements in the video."
Before becoming Batman, Bruce Wayne realized that his privileged background might blind him, so he disguised himself and experienced life at the social bottom after completing training with the League of Shadows. Only then did he truly understand the hardships of life.
Bruce Wayne is well aware that the words spoken by his parallel universe father in the video would surely provoke the resentment of most people and further anger the already 'transformed' Arthur!
In the video, Arthur lies on the sofa, smoking and shaking his leg, unable to stop laughing. Outside the video, Arthur is also laughing continuously.
"Hahaha, it's really funny. Doesn't Thomas Wayne look more like a stand-up comedian? I'm even thinking of changing my idol. Seriously, I admire him now."
"Mr Arthur, I suggest you control your emotions," Spider-Man kindly advises. "Considering only the Quiz game, if your emotions are too intense, it can affect your judgment during the quiz."
"What he needs most is a psychiatrist," Commissioner Gordon glances at Arthur, frowning, and says to Peter Parker, "Kid, you're doing well, but you're not a psychiatrist."
While they discuss, Arthur indeed goes to see a psychiatrist in the video. Smoking, with a strange smile, he recounts some trivial matters and thoughts:
"No one really notices me. In fact, I'm not sure if I really exist..."
But the female psychologist across the table maintains a stern face, seeming a bit impatient: "Arthur, I have some bad news to tell you."
Arthur slowly looks up, his gaze becoming sharp: "You didn't listen to what I said, did you? I feel like you've never really listened to me. Every week, you repeat the same question, 'Is work going well?' 'Any negative thoughts?' My head is full of negative thoughts, and you won't listen anyway. I said I'm not sure if I really exist in this lifetime! But now I'm sure... people are starting to notice me!"
As Arthur speaks, his expression is unusually serious. The psychologist doesn't understand what Arthur has experienced in the past few days. As viewers know, Arthur confesses to the subway shooting in the video.
As a killer, he is supported and sympathized with by the lower-class people, which gives Arthur a sense of meaning in life. Of course, this also marks his final transformation into the Joker.
The psychologist is unaware of all this, just frowning and saying, "They cut the budget, and we're closing next week. The city government has significantly cut the budget, including social welfare. This is our last meeting."
"Okay."
Arthur lowers his head, looking somewhat gloomy. He tries to smile but can't. Perhaps because this is the last counseling session, the female doctor doesn't use clichés this time. Instead, she says directly, "Listen, they don't care about people like you, Arthur. Of course, they don't care about people like me either."
Arthur smiles, curses softly, stubs out the cigarette, and with a hoarse voice, asks, "So who should I go to for medication? Who should I look for?"
"I'm sorry, Arthur," the female psychologist just shakes her head slightly.
She will soon be unemployed too, with no new job lined up. Where does she have the leisure to help Arthur?
As she just said, they don't care about people like Arthur, and they don't care about people like her. The more tragic aspect is that, whether it's her or Arthur, as people in the lower strata of society, they endure the oppression from above, but are also divided and opposed, deviating from their own stance...
Undoubtedly, the reduction of social welfare is another heavy blow to Arthur, who was already in a bad situation.
Outside the video, Commissioner Gordon murmurs, "Really, Gotham needs more than just an Arkham asylum. It needs these basic counseling rooms. These social welfare measures really shouldn't be cut!"
Seeing this, almost all viewers have equated Arthur with the Joker. Naturally, they consider this future video about Arthur as the birth of the Joker.
Thinking about the terrible crimes Joker later commits against society and innocent people, viewers are clamoring to kill Joker in the cradle. At the same time, some are starting to reflect on what went wrong, and where the problem lies that turned Arthur into Joker.
Such reflections are undoubtedly necessary because there are many people like Arthur in Gotham. After the subway shooting incident, the fact that the killer Arthur receives support from the common people can be seen.
If the ultimate problem is not identified, even if Arthur is killed, Gotham will undoubtedly still fall into chaos!
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