| Synopsis | - Despite what everyone else in Gotham City seems to think, they are living a lie; The Scarecrow's lie. Though Batman has been fortunate enough to see through the facade, his allies have fallen victim to one of the Scarecrows serums, and now work for him. After escaping Arkham Asylum with Poison Ivy's help, though, Batman was faced with the dilemma of cooperating, or watching his brainwashed companions die. With no real choice, Batman allowed himself to succumb to Crane's Fear Toxin, which seemingly gave the Scarecrow control over him as well. Of course, Crane's allies are not keen on working with one of their greatest enemies, and so Scarecrow gives them permission to kill him if they even suspect that he is hesitating to do as they command.
Having only recently taken an antidote for the Fear Toxin, though, Batman is not under Crane's control - but he must seem to be until he discovers how Crane is releasing his toxin into Gotham. That, however, could mean edging dangerously close to lines he doesn't want to cross. Scarecrow sends Batman out with Professor Pyg and Merry-Maker to perform experiments in fear. These experiments entail giving Gothamites the illusion of happiness during the day, and terrorizing them by night. The theory is that the contrast makes the fear more pure. The psychological repercussions, though, are severe, and could leave permanent scarring. On their first outing, Batman ensures that he administers a significant amount of the toxin by his own hand, to prove himself.
Within hours, Batman understands what Scarecrow is doing. Exposure to the fear gas while under the prolonged effects of the contentment toxin produces a specific change in the brain's chemistry, which fundamentally alters its production of noradrenaline, which - when extracted - is then used to create further toxins. Taking the lead, Batman had chosen twelve career criminals he'd never been able to keep behind bars as his subjects. Now, these men will be plagued for the rest of their lives by nightmares of him. Now that Scarecrow has had his fill of Gotham, he intends to spread his toxin to the entire state. Unseen by him, Batman slipped a counter-agent in among the extractions, and it may only be a short time before it reverses the toxin's impact after being mixed in.
Later, as the counter-agent mixes in with the blimps full of toxin, each reaction causes an explosion. The results are near-immediate, as Batman's own allies realize who they really are, and where they really are. Soon, they turn on their captors, and Batman expects they will come out of this with okay - if somewhat damaged. However, as Scarecrow is loaded into a van to go back to Arkham, he bursts out in a cloud of fear-gas, and mocks Batman's attempts to stop him, stabbing his claws into Batman's chest. As Jonathan Crane gleefully declares Gotham his, Batman watches from behind the glass of the man's padded cell, remarking that the contentment serum will go a long way to ensuring that inmates like Crane subdued - but it probably won't last, in Crane's case, anyway.
Some days later, Batman's patrol is interrupted by Catwoman, who begs to talk about their relationship. She explains that from the fragments she remembers of Crane's utopia, they were partners - and more. They were happy. Uncomfortably, Batman steels himself, responding that the Gotham they were in wasn't real - it altered her mind, and showed her what she wanted to see. Skeptically, she points out that he saw the same thing. Though it isn't true, Batman states firmly that the only thing he saw was a safe Gotham, and nothing else - and that's all he has time for. Despite her doubts, Batman moves on, leaving her alone on the rooftop.
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| abstract | - Batman se encuentra bajo control del Espantapájaros ya que luego que él y Hiedra Venenosa se encontraron con los miembros de la Batman Family influenciados con el nuevo gas del miedo, inevitablemente se vieron obligados a pelear pero el Espantapájaros lo amenazó con acabar con la vida de Gatubela sino dejaba de combatir. Batman se vió obligado a rendirse y a cambio recibió una descarga de la nueva toxina la cual lo sumergió en pesadillas brevemente ya que él se había vacunado con el antídoto previo a abandonar el Asilo Arkham, por lo que fingió estar bajo las ordenes del Espantapájaros. Más tarde esa noche Batman y su aliados fueron llevados hacia donde estaban el resto de los villanos, con la intensión de ver si el héroe estaba en su completo control por lo que le ordenaron cooperar junto con el Profesor Pyg y Merrymaker para recoger el "miedo" de las personas que thumb|left|348pxen ese momento se encontraban durmiendo. Pyg y Merrymaker intentaron ir a complejo de apartamentos pero Batman los llevó hacia diferentes direcciones donde participa activamente en la dosificación de inocentes con la toxina del miedo sin embargo esas personas eran en realidad criminales que nunca pudo encerrar por lo que ahora ellos tendrán pesadillas con Batman todas las noches. A medida que el trabajo continua el héroe se entera que el Espantapájaros ha estado extrayendo una forma pura del miedo de sus víctimas lo cual planea utilizar para crear una toxina del miedo mucho mas fuerte, y que planea extender por toda Ciudad Gótica con dirigibles. Sin embargo Batman engaña a Crane y termina entregándole varias ampollas con el antídoto que, al mezclarse con la toxina, genera una combustión que termina incinerando los dirigibles. Con el antídoto roseado en los aires la bruma que extendía a Gothtopia se disemina por lo que Gatubela, Batwoman, Batgirl y Talon se liberan del control mental lo que les permite acabar con el Espantapájaros y sus aliados con bastante rapidez. Crane es arrestado por el DPCG, pero él se libera gracias a un explosión de su gas y empala a Batman con sus garras, pero termina siendo una ilusión producto de propio suero. Posteriormente el Espantapájaros es encerrado en Arkham sufriendo alucinaciones aunque Batman sabe que eventualmente se recuperará y volverá a ser el mismo psicópata. Varios días después Gatubela se reúne con Batman para hablar sobre los momentos en que fueron compañeros y que todo parecía ser feliz, pero Batman rechaza esa idea ya que la seguridad de Ciudad Gótica esta por encima de todos sus deseos. Al marcharse él recibe un llamado Alfred Pennyworth informándole que Clayface ataca de nuevo, por lo que la noche del héroe continua. Categoría:Detective Comics (Volumen 2) Categoría:Batman: Gothtopia Categoría:Comic Categoría:The New 52
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