In last week’s issue, BATMAN ETERNAL #50 came to a jaw-dropping conclusion when Cluemaster, aka Arthur Brown, stepped out of the shadows and revealed himself to be the mastermind behind every step of Gotham’s demise.

But, in this week’s BATMAN ETERNAL #51, we learn how complex an evil master plan can be.

As the penultimate issue of this year-long weekly series opens, we see how hopeless it is for Batman. He’s tied up, weak from his most recent battles, and hasn’t slept in over 36 hours. Remember way back to BATMAN ETERNAL #1’s opening page: “Your allies have been slaughtered. Your city is burning to the ground. I have taken everything from you, piece by piece. Watch, Bruce… Watch as you lose everything.”

Yes, that was Cluemaster speaking.

We feel a glimmer of hope when Bruce heroically breaks free of his chains, but that hope is quickly crushed when Cluemaster gets the upper hand and it’s only a matter of seconds before he pulls the trigger to end Batman’s life.

But, right before the gun goes off, a shadowy figure appears behind Arthur and...

You have to check it out!! We can’t spoil this! It turns out that Cluemaster isn’t the brains behind the operation after all!

See below as the mastermind behind Gotham’s descent into madness is revealed to be…

…Lincoln March, still claiming to be Thomas Wayne, Jr.

With Bruce so battered, how will he beat March? We know he has to, but what will become of Gotham if he doesn’t? Sound off in the comments below.

BATMAN ETERNAL #51, written by James Tynion IV and Scott Snyder and illustrated by Alvaro Martinez Bueno, is available in stores now.