Barkley said:
Harvey Dent was Jokers end-game, to corrupt the "White Knight" of Gotham. He succeeded. Sure Batman minimized the damage of that by taking the blame for Harvey's murders, but in doing so also hung up his cape. Joker knew he was going to be caught at the end of Dark Knight, by the end he was simply a distraction so Harvey could prove his point, that anyone can fall to chaos and insanity, even Gotham's "Shining Example", Harvey Dent. It's not a clear cut victory for either, but Joker didn't really lose. |
He succeeded in corrupting Dent, but not Batman. DK recycled the old trope of corrupting the hero and, in Batman's case, making him kill. The mercy he extends Joker at the end is indicative of the Joker's failure. The point is made more clear by the Joker's ferry plan failing, much to his dismay, as that represents the Joker's inability to corrupt the common man.
