10 Times Alfred Pennyworth Utterly DESTROYED Batman
4. The Batman's Grave - Alfred Rebuts Bruce's Questionable Logic In A Murder Investigation
The Batman's Grave is a fantastic mini-series that involves Bruce attempting to solve a string of murders, imagining the last moments of the victims' lives as he does so.
The Alfred of this story is growing increasingly worried that Bruce's path will very shortly put him into the empty gravesite next to those of his parents, which Alfred tends to once per week.
As a result, Alfred is more prickly than usual, which manifests itself in one exchange that critiques not only Bruce's image of himself as Gotham's sole saviour but also the Gotham City PD.
Bruce is defending his carriage of this murder case, which, realistically, should be a police investigation, by explaining to Alfred that Commissioner Jim Gordon is working with an overstretched police force, many of whom are either criminals themselves or in league with criminals, and that Gordon doesn't need another complicated matter on his plate.
Alfred rebuts this by sarcastically complimenting Bruce on allowing Gordon to get 15 minutes of privacy in the bathroom, and further adds that if Bruce took over the amount of illegal beatings the Gotham PD lays out during they day he could probably allow Gordon to take a vacation.
It's at once a reminder of Bruce's place in the underbelly of Gotham and the fact that underbelly sometimes doesn't deserve protecting.