One bad day. That’s all Joker said it would take. One bad day, and anyone could be him. And though Batman has done his best to deny it and to fight it, somewhere in the back of his mind, he knows there’s a kernel of truth to his archenemy’s words. And as we’ve learned from Scott Snyder’s and Greg Capullo’s epic ongoing Dark Nights: Metal event, those kernels of fear in Bruce’s mind have manifested into fully-fledged monsters out to claim our world for their own.

In Dark Nights: The Batman Who Laughs #1, we finally discover the origin of the evil Batman army’s ringleader. After the jump, check out Comics Beat’s exclusive preview of the issue where we experience the sheer tragedy behind this Bruce’s one bad day.

Writer: James Tynion IV Artist: Riley Rossmo Colorist: Ivan Plascencia Letterer: Tom Napolitano As the events of DARK NIGHTS: METAL rock the DC Universe, the creatures of the Dark Multiverse stand ready to invade our world! How can the World’s Greatest Heroes stop a horde of deadly beings that appear to be powerful nightmare versions of familiar figures? Find out in these special tie-in issues!