WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Batman #111, on sale now from DC Comics.

Gotham City is nearly at the point of no return, as it tumbles perilously close to the Future State ruled over by the Magistrate. As Batman and his allies scramble to run damage control over the machinations of Simon Saint and Scarecrow, the mayor has made the executive decision to legalize the Magistrate, giving the private military force the authority necessary to arrest vigilantes in Gotham -- a power they've already abused in the span of a few hours.

But this decision, more than any other, is what has ultimately pushed Gotham so close to its dystopian future in Batman #111 by James Tynion IV, Jorge Jimenez, Tomeu Morey and Clayton Cowles.

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In the wake of a bombing, Mayor Nakano authorized Simon Saint to use his Magistrate Program to capture the alleged culprits: the Unsanity Collective. Little did Nakano know, it was Simon who was responsible for the bombings. He had been selling the idea of the Magistrate to Nakano for some time now, all the while working with Scarecrow to push the city into a state of distress so intense they would readily hand over executive powers to a private military force if it made them feel safe. And Nakano was the final key to ensuring the Magistrate's rise.

While the idea was tempting, Nakano was still someone who once worked as a police officer and felt that Gotham's citizens and officers could solve the problems facing their city. His entire platform was built on the notion that vigilantes like the Bat-Family only make the city worse. But as time passed and all his attempts to uphold his promises failed, Nakano became increasingly desperate to do something productive, even more so with the city's rising panic.

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When the city was bombed, Nakano had no choice but to authorize the Magistrate. And since Nakano had lost his partner in the last major attack, he had no desire to repeat history. The Magistrate was given leave to arrest anyone in a mask, starting with the Unsanity Collective. But in his desperation to keep Gotham City safe today, he may have just signed away its future.

Simon Saint planned all of this, including a long-term public working relationship with the Scarecrow. And even though that plan has flown out the window, the Magistrate still has legal authority in the city. And with Batman intervening to save the Unsanity Collective from a brutal attack, the city is more inclined to side with the Magistrate than their usual protector.

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Combined, this is the very situation that created Gotham's dystopian future, which was explored in DC's recent Future State event. The city had signed away its civil liberties in an attempt to ensure its future security. Years of attacks at the hands of supervillains had led to a build-up of fear and resentment. As much as Batman was dedicated to protecting them, these terrible events kept happening. Batman had become too reactive instead of proactive. And even though he inspired a legend, Batman was still one man; the Magistrate can inspire an army.

So now the city finds itself on the precipice of a major decision. Scarecrow has now untethered himself from the Magistrate's machinations as he intends to unleash his own fear state upon the city, the Magistrate holds power, but its command structure is rapidly disintegrating, and Batman has been captured. With things looking so dire and the bitterness the people feel still lingering, it won't take much more effort to push the city into the abyss as they trade freedom for peace of mind. And as Future State already revealed, that peace of mind doesn't last for long.

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