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Exclusive preview of new Batman comic's "biggest, cruelest, most twisted" story

Published 1:18 PM ET, Mon February 11, 2013
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"Batman" #17, due out Wednesday, February 13, wraps up "Death of the Family," a months-long story arc in all of the "Batman"-related comic books, in which The Joker has gone after Batman by threatening and capturing his friends and allies, members of his Bat-"family." Writer Scott Snyder unleashes a climactic bombshell, a final confrontation between The Joker and the Dark Knight. (DC Comics is owned by Time Warner, which owns CNN.) The title of the story echoes 1988's "A Death in the Family," which told the story of The Joker's brutal murder of the second Robin, Jason Todd. The following exclusive look at the first few pages of the story contains spoilers, as well as artwork which some might find disturbing.
The last we saw of Batman, he was placed in an electric chair by The Joker and the power was switched on. This story begins as an unconscious Batman awakens in the Batcave. greg capullo/dc comics
Joker's grotesque new look -- in which his face has been removed and then reattached -- was first seen in 2011's "Detective Comics" #1. greg capullo/dc comics
The Joker has been terrorizing Batman and his friends in multiple issues of DC Comics since October. Here, he's kidnapped many of Batman's costumed allies: Robin, Batgirl, Red Robin, Nightwing (the original Robin) and the resurrected Jason Todd, aka the Red Hood. greg capullo/dc comics
Snyder told CNN that this issue is when the story comes "crashing down." greg capullo/dc comics
The Joker has imagined himself as a "king's" (that is, Batman's) jester, but he's not too fond of the king's "court" of allies. greg capullo/dc comics
We've seen The Joker carry around a covered dish, but we don't know what's inside. greg capullo/dc comics
Snyder called this the "biggest, cruelest, most twisted story" they could tell involving The Joker. greg capullo/dc comics