Answering the Question: Why didn’t Joker just shoot Ivy?
I’ve noticed a reoccurring question circulating around about the new Harley Quinn episode, and that is the question as to why Joker didn’t just pull the trigger on Ivy. It was made plain as daylight from the moment these two characters were in the same room that there is a mutual dislike between them, so what held him back? People like to idolize the Joker, so I understand the resentment about him not just hesitating, but looking genuinely scared for a moment. However, there are three very good reasons that it would have been a bad idea to pull the trigger.
The first, and probably smallest, reason is that even if Ivy died, he has no guarantee that the plants surrounding him won’t attack. Ivy might control them, but Frank’s already proved that they can have a semblance of consciousness. It would be embarrassing to shoot her and then just get torn to shreds; one won’t go down without the other.
The second reason is that Ivy can dodge, block, or avoid the shot by some other means. She’s ready and waiting with absolute confidence, and that unwavering glare is enough to make anyone second guess themselves. It’s a proven fact of psychology that coming up against that, even if a bluff, will cause a natural self-doubt. For all he knows, there could be a vine at the ready the moment a muscle in his hand twitches. And if his shot doesn’t land, Ivy won’t hold back from killing him, nor would anyone blame her. Joker gets off easy because Batman refuses to kill, but other villains don’t have such high morals. And yeah, when it comes down to it, Ivy is the most powerful person in the room right then.
The third and most likely reason is that killing Ivy over his breakup with Harley would make him look really bad in front of the rouges. Killing Harley is one thing; that is personal and she already ruing the party. Ivy, however, is another matter entirely. For all intents and purposes, she’s on level ground with the legion and holds a lot of respect among the rouges gallery. Killing her over what is presumed to be petty relationship squabbles would be really, really bad for his reputation. If Joker pulls the trigger, he breaks any mutual trust with the others. No one will want to work with him if they think he might turn around and kill them without a second glance or viable reason. (And if you are thinking, at this point, that this would just cement Jokers dominance through fear, bear in mind that if these villains live in fear of someone, that someone has to go.) In short, Joker doesn’t have a good enough reason to kill Ivy, but that doesn’t mean he won’t try to get back at her in some other way. He’ll probably start carrying weed killer around with him.
All in all, Joker’s discomfort was justified. His craziness, unpredictability, lack of conscious, and cruelty are what make him such a terrifyingly dangerous villain. But at the end of the day, he is without superpowers. If he faces off unprepared with someone who does, he’s gonna look bad. And his reputation means a lot to the Joker. So weather you want to interpret Jokers moment of fear as fear of Ivy or fear of looking bad is up to you, but I personally saw it as being afraid of Ivy. Let me know what you all think: Should he have pulled the trigger?
Till Next Time,
RainStorm