Batman: The Killing Joke
| Batman: The Killing Joke | |
|---|---|
 Cover to Batman: The Killing Joke. Art by Brian Bolland. |
|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Format | One-shot |
| Genre | Superhero |
| Publication date | March 1988 |
| Number of issues | 1 |
| Main character(s) | Batman The Joker James Gordon Barbara Gordon |
| Creative team | |
| Writer(s) | Alan Moore |
| Artist(s) | Brian Bolland |
| Letterer(s) | Richard Starkings |
| Colorist(s) | John Higgins (original) Brian Bolland (Deluxe Edition) |
| Creator(s) | Alan Moore Brian Bolland John Higgins |
| Editor(s) | Dennis O'Neil |
| Collected editions | |
| Batman: The Killing Joke | ISBN 0930289455 |
| DC Universe: The Stories of Alan Moore | ISBN 1401209270 |
| Batman: The Killing Joke - 20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition | ISBN 9781401216672 |
Batman: The Killing Joke is an influential one-shot superhero graphic novel written by Alan Moore and drawn by Brian Bolland. First published by DC Comics in 1988, it has remained in print since then, and has also been reprinted as part of the DC Universe: The Stories of Alan Moore-trade paperback.
The story would affect the mainstream Batman continuity in that it features the shooting and crippling of Barbara Gordon (a.k.a. Batgirl) by the Joker, an event which laid the groundwork for her to develop the identity of Oracle, an expert computer hacker and a vital source of information for Batman and other superheroes.
In 2008 DC Comics reprinted the story in a deluxe hardcover edition.[1] This Deluxe Edition features new coloring by Brian Bolland, meant to illustrate his original intentions for the book, with more somber, realistic, and subdued colors than the intensely-colored original.
Contents |
[edit] Plot summary
The plot revolves around a largely psychological battle between Batman and his longtime foe the Joker, who has escaped from Arkham Asylum. The Joker intends to drive Gotham City Police Commissioner James Gordon insane to prove that the most upstanding citizen can go mad after having "one bad day". Along the way, the Joker has flashbacks to his early life, gradually explaining his possible origin.
The man who will become the Joker, an unnamed engineer, quits his job at a chemical company to become a stand-up comedian, only to fail miserably. Desperate to support his pregnant wife, Jeannie, he agrees to guide two criminals through the plant so that they can rob the card company next door. During the planning, the police inform him that his wife has died in a household accident involving an electric baby-bottle heater. Grief-stricken, the engineer tries to withdraw from the plan, but the criminals strong-arm him into keeping his commitment to them.
At the plant, the criminals make him don a special mask to become the infamous Red Hood. Unknown to the engineer, the criminals plan to use this disguise to implicate any accomplice as the mastermind and to divert attention from themselves. Once inside, they almost immediately blunder into security personnel, and a violent shootout and chase ensue. The criminals are gunned down and the engineer finds himself confronted by Batman, who is investigating the disturbance.
Panicked, the engineer deliberately jumps into the chemical plant's waste pound lock to escape Batman and is swept through a pipe leading to the outside. Once outside, he discovers, to his horror, that the chemicals have permanently bleached his skin chalk white, stained his lips ruby red and dyed his hair bright green. This revelation, compounding the man's misfortunes of that one day, drives him completely insane and marks the birth of the Joker.
In the present day, the Joker kidnaps Gordon, shoots and paralyzes his daughter Barbara (a.k.a. Batgirl), and imprisons him in a run-down amusement park. His henchmen then strip Gordon naked and cage him in the park's freak show. He chains Gordon to one of the park's rides and cruelly forces him to view giant pictures of his wounded daughter in various states of undress. Once Gordon has run the maddening gauntlet, the Joker ridicules him as an example of "the average man", a naïve weakling doomed to insanity.
Batman arrives to save Gordon, and the Joker retreats into the funhouse. Gordon's sanity remains intact despite the ordeal, and he insists that Batman capture the Joker "by the book" in order to "show him that our way works." Batman enters the funhouse and faces the Joker's traps while the Joker desperately tries to persuade his old foe that the world is inherently insane and thus not worth fighting for. Batman responds to the Joker's arguments by pointing out that Gordon has survived everything the Joker had to throw at him, suggesting that it was the Joker himself who was flawed rather than him being an example of what every man would do in his situation. He tracks down the Joker and subdues him. Batman then attempts to reach out to him to give up crime and put a stop to their years-long war; otherwise, the two will be eternally locked on a course that will one day result in a fight to the death between them.
The Joker declines, however, ruefully saying "It's too late for that...far too late." He then tells Batman a joke that was started earlier in the comic, to express his desires and fears in the form of a story about two criminals. When the joke is finished, Batman's stoic exterior breaks down as he approaches the Joker and the two laugh together. Their shadows converge as the police sirens approach.
[edit] The Joke
The Joker's joke:
"See, there were these two guys in a lunatic asylum... and one night, one night they decide they don't like living in an asylum any more. They decide they're going to escape! So, like, they get up onto the roof, and there, just across this narrow gap, they see the rooftops of the town, stretching away in the moon light... stretching away to freedom. Now, the first guy, he jumps right across with no problem. But his friend, his friend didn't dare make the leap. Y'see... Y'see, he's afraid of falling. So then, the first guy has an idea... He says 'Hey! I have my flashlight with me! I'll shine it across the gap between the buildings. You can walk along the beam and join me!' B-but the second guy just shakes his head. He suh-says... He says 'Wh-what do you think I am? Crazy? You'd turn it off when I was half way across!'"
[edit] Themes
The exploration of the Joker's origin and the hopelessness that belies his "evil clown" persona is affected[clarification needed] toward adding more depth to the character. Note however that this background story may not be the authentic telling of the Joker's origin, as the villain himself admits to harboring conflicting memories about his past.
Another theme explores the possibility that Batman is just as insane as the criminals he faces, but manifests insanity in a different way. In an interview, Moore summarized the theme: "Psychologically Batman and the Joker are mirror images of each other."[2]
Says critic Geoff Klock: "Both Batman and the Joker are creations of a random and tragic 'one bad day.' Batman spends his life forging meaning from the random tragedy, whereas the Joker reflects the absurdity of 'life, and all its random injustice.'"[3]
The Joker has the underlying motive of illustrating the inherent insanity of Batman's mission: dressing up as a bat to fight criminals ("You had a bad day once, am I right?... Why else would you dress up like a flying rat?"). Only when Batman renders the Joker helpless and his extended assistance is rejected does the Dark Knight come to appreciate the madman's aim, reacting just as the Joker would: laughing hysterically.
The Joker also serves as an unreliable narrator. He admits to his own uncertainty, as he has disparate memories of the single event ("Sometimes I remember it one way, sometimes another... If I'm going to have a past, I prefer it to be multiple choice!"), accentuating the comic's depiction of "a world unraveling toward relentless urban violence and moral nihilism..."[4]
[edit] Critical reception and legacy
Although a one-shot, The Killing Joke had an extraordinary impact on the DC Universe. Most significantly, Barbara Gordon's paralysis ended her career as Batgirl and eventually led to her role as Oracle in the Birds of Prey series and other DC Universe appearances. (Birds of Prey was also adapted into a TV series of the same title which incorporated Killing Joke elements into its continuity.) This event, along with a Batman storyline that takes place shortly after The Killing Joke involving the Joker murdering Robin (Jason Todd), Batman: A Death in the Family, leads Batman's obsession to the Clown Prince of Crime to a personal level.
Hilary Goldstein of IGN Comics praised The Killing Joke, calling it "easily the greatest Joker story ever told", and adding that "Moore's rhythmic dialogue and Bolland's organic art create a unique story often mimicked but never matched."[5] IGN declared The Killing Joke the third-greatest Batman graphic novel, after The Dark Knight Returns and Batman: Year One.[6]
James Donnelly of Pop Syndicate called The Killing Joke "one of the greatest comics of the 20th century, period."[7] Aaron Albert of About.com characterized "Moore's writing [as] spot on" and praised Bolland's artwork, calling it "realistic and downright creepy in a few sections."[8] Van Jensen of ComicMix said, "Each time [I read The Killing Joke] I'm amazed all over again at how Alan Moore and Brian Bolland teamed to pack such intensity, ferocity and humanity into those pages.[9] B.L. Wooldridge of Batman in Comics called the graphic novel "an incredible story, with Moore at his best and awe-inspiring art by painter Brian Bolland."[10]
Andy Shaw of Grovel had a more lukewarm response to The Killing Joke, saying that though "wonderfully executed", it "suffer[s] from its reliance on the rules of the superhero story."[11] Seb Patrick of Den of Geek also had a mixed response, calling The Killing Joke "one of the most revered and influential Batman stories ever written and arguably the definitive Joker story", but added that it's "not at the level of [Alan Moore's] true masterpieces [such as] Watchmen, V for Vendetta, [and] The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen."[12]
Despite the popularity of the story, Moore himself would later find much fault with it, calling it "clumsy, misjudged, and [devoid of] real human importance". Moore, trying to present far more relatable, human characters, found that Batman and the Joker were just presented as characters[13] and said, "I don't think [The Killing Joke]'s a very good book. It's not saying anything very interesting."[14]
In his introduction to the story in the DC Universe: The Stories of Alan Moore trade paperback, Brian Bolland disputes the widely held belief that the story started as a Batman annual story and ended up as a prestige-format book. Bolland recalls that the idea for a one-off Batman story focusing on the Joker—with Batman more of an incidental character—was his. Bolland says that in 1984, DC editor Dick Giordano told him he could do any project for DC he wanted, and Bolland requested to do a Batman/Joker prestige book with Moore as writer. Bolland has also expressed dissatisfaction with the final book, and regrets that its impending schedule for release meant he could not color the book himself (John Higgins was the colorist). Bolland says that "the end result wasn't quite what I'd hoped. I don't think it rates with some of the highlights of Alan's career."[15] March 2008 saw the release of the artwork as Bolland intended it: the twentieth anniversary hardcover edition of The Killing Joke is completely recolored by Bolland himself.
The book made The New York Times Best Seller list in May 2009.[16]
[edit] Influence in other media
Tim Burton claimed that The Killing Joke influenced his film adaptation of Batman: "I was never a giant comic book fan, but I've always loved the image of Batman and The Joker. The reason I've never been a comic book fan - and I think it started when I was a child - is because I could never tell which box I was supposed to read. I don't know if it was dyslexia or whatever, but that's why I loved The Killing Joke, because for the first time I could tell which one to read. It's my favorite. It's the first comic I've ever loved. And the success of those graphic novels made our ideas more acceptable."[17]
Before Sunsoft's game Batman appeared on the NES, it had all different cut-scenes than the ones in the released version. Some of the pictures in the removed cut-scenes are a direct translation of panels in Batman: The Killing Joke.[citation needed]
In the first season's finale of The Batman, episode 13, "The Clayface of Tragedy", the Joker uses similar tactics/themes to drive Ethan Bennett (Clayface) mad, like he did to Gordon in the graphic novel. It's all about having one bad day.
Director Christopher Nolan has mentioned that The Killing Joke served as an influence for the version of the Joker appearing in The Dark Knight. Heath Ledger, who played the Joker, stated in an interview that he was given a copy of The Killing Joke as reference for the role.[18] The film lifted the concept of the Joker trying to drive a well-regarded person insane- in this case succeeding in driving Harvey Dent over the edge after killing his fiance, Rachel Dawes, and causing serious damage to his face-, as well as the Joker's inconsistent "origin stories". The Joker claims that the scars on his face that form his 'smile' in the film were caused by child abuse or self-mutilation at different points in the film.
The design of the novel's Joker is used in the videogame Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe for the same character.
2009's Batman: Arkham Asylum game for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows adapted a post-The Killing Joke timeline, in that Barbara Gordon feeds Batman information via his cowl along the way under her 'Oracle' alias. Several notable references to the story are also made in the game. The Joker's makeshift throne made of mannequins at the end of the game is almost identical to the one contained in the novel. During the game, it is revealed that the Joker had been using e-mail under the alias "Jack White", which Batman identifies as "one of Joker's oldest aliases". The Joker even personally makes a knowing reference to the story: "So, there are these two guys in a lunatic asylum...say, have I told you that one before?"
"201", the 201st episode of South Park, involves an extended homage and parody of the section of the book in the carnival, with Scott Tenorman filling the Joker's role and Eric Cartman standing in for Commissioner Gordon. The scene recreates several panels and instances very strongly, as well as the color palette of the book.
In the DC Animated Original Movie, Batman: Under the Red Hood, Jason Todd confronts Batman about his reasons for not killing the Joker despite the "friends he's crippled", indicating that an event similar to the one in The Killing Joke has happened. Also, it's said that there were many Red Hoods (small time-robbers, etc.), and a flashback of the Red Hood falling in the chemicals is shown.
[edit] Influence on the Joker's origin
The Killing Joke had a predecessor in explaining the origin of the Joker. Moore's rendition uses elements of the 1951 story "The Mystery of the Red Hood" (Detective Comics #168), which established the concept of the Joker originally having been a thief known only as the Red Hood, and whose real name was unknown. The tragic and human elements of the character's story, coupled with his barbaric crimes as the Joker, portray the character as more of a three-dimensional (if seemingly irredeemable) human being. Quoting Mark Voger: The Killing Joke "provid[ed] the Joker with a sympathetic back story as it presented some of the villain's most vile offenses."[19]
Much of the Joker's story from The Killing Joke is also confirmed in 2004's "Pushback" (Batman: Gotham Knights #50-55; reprinted with #66 as Batman: Hush Returns [ISBN 1401209009]), where the events are observed and reported by an impartial third party: Edward Nigma, better known as the Riddler. Nigma recounts that the Joker's pregnant wife was kidnapped and murdered by the criminals in order to force his compliance. In this version, the pre-accident Joker is called "Jack". The story was poorly received by fans and critics, and no stories since have verified these new details.
The Joker's transformation is used by Tim Burton for his Batman. The Joker's real name is "Jack Napier", and he was the killer who kills Batman's parents.
[edit] "No Joke"
In 2007, Geoff Johns wrote a companion story to The Killing Joke entitled "No Joke" for Booster Gold.
In the story, Booster Gold is charged by Rip Hunter to go back in time and save Barbara. Booster arrives at the carnival shortly after the Joker has rounded up the freaks, only to be attacked by them. He manages to escape (after the Joker torments him), but arrives too late to save Barbara. Catching the Joker in the middle of taking photos of the shot Barbara (after having struck down Commissioner Gordon), Booster attacks the Joker in a rage, only for the Joker to gain the upper hand, snapping several photos of Booster as well. Rip removes Booster moments before he is killed, but Booster demands to be sent back again. Booster fails several times until Rip reveals that Booster cannot save Barbara, that the Joker had to paralyze her, as it would ensure Barbara became Oracle.
It is revealed that Batman kept the photos of Barbara and Booster, and had been waiting until Booster reached the correct age before confronting him. The Dark Knight thanks the hero for trying to stop the Joker and offered him his friendship. Eventually, Dick Grayson, who becomes his mentor's successor as Batman, would also learn about this and offering his as well.
[edit] "Ladies' Night"
In 2010, writer J. Michael Straczynski and artist Cliff Chiang collaborated on a one-shot story called "Ladies' Night", which was published in the anthology series The Brave and the Bold. The story is set a short time before The Killing Joke, and deals with Zatanna and Wonder Woman struggling to come to terms with the impending attack on Barbara after Zatanna has a precognitive dream about it. Like "No Joke", the story heavily implies that the heroines cannot alter Barbara's fate, despite their desire to do so. The story also implies that Wonder Woman served as the inspiration for Barbara Gordon's eventual codename of Oracle.
Due to the nature of the stories told in The Brave and the Bold, it is unclear whether or not the story is currently considered canon.
[edit] Reprints
- The story is collected in DC Universe: The Stories of Alan Moore.
[edit] Deluxe edition
In March 2008, a deluxe hardcover version of the book was released, featuring recoloring of the book by Brian Bolland. The new colors featured black-and-white flashbacks, as opposed to Higgins's colors, along with one or two items per panel colored in pink or red, up until the helmet of the Red Hood is revealed. In addition to recoloring the pages, Bolland also altered some facial expressions and added minor artwork.[1] Also included is a colored version of Bolland's "An Innocent Guy" (originally published in Batman Black and White), an introduction by Tim Sale, and an epilogue by Bolland.
Critical reaction to the new coloring has been mixed. Aaron Albert of About.com said that "the washed-out tones of the flashback sections help to make the transitions between the sections more fluid" and that "the first reveal of the Joker after his transformation has more impact."[8] Van Jensen of ComicMix said that "the new colors really do improve the book, giving it a subtlety and grimness not present in the original."[9]
James Donnelly of Pop Syndicate said that the original version "is outdone by Bolland’s recoloring", which he said "gives the comic a more timeless quality."[7] Seb Patrick of Den of Geek had a lukewarm reaction, calling the recoloring of the flashbacks "superb" but commented that "some of the [other] changes seem to have less of a point—increasing definition for the sake of it, but giving the book too much of a present-day feel rather than looking like it was printed in the 1980s."[12]
A comparison of the original coloring and the deluxe hardcover edition coloring can be found here.[20]
The deluxe edition also makes a change to the front cover: where the original edition's speech bubble had the Joker saying "SMILE", with no punctuation, the newer cover italicizes it and adds an exclamation point: "SMILE!"
[edit] References
- ^ a b Batman: The Killing Joke, deluxe ed. (New York: DC Comics, 2008).
- ^ Alan Moore, "Alan Moore Interview", interview with Brad Stone, Comic Book Resources October 22, 2001. Retrieved on June 28, 2008.
- ^ Geoff Kluck, How to Read Superhero Comics and Why (New York: Continuum, 2002) 52-53. ISBN 0826414192.
- ^ David Leverenz, "The Last Real Man in America: From Natty Bumppo to Batman", The "American Literary History" Reader, ed. Gordon Hutner (New York: Oxford UP, 1995) 276. ISBN 0195095049.
- ^ Batman: The Killing Joke Review, IGN, May 24, 2005
- ^ The 25 Greatest Batman Graphic Novels, IGN, June 13, 2005
- ^ a b James Donnelly (March 21, 2008). "Batman: The Killing Joke Deluxe 20th Anniversary Edition". Pop Syndicate. Archived from the original on April 4, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080404022717/http://www.popsyndicate.com/site/story/batman_the_killing_joke_deluxe_20th_anniversary_edition/.
- ^ a b Batman: The Killing Joke Deluxe Edition Review, Aaron Albert, About.com
- ^ a b Review: Batman: The Killing Joke Deluxe Edition, Van Jensen, ComicMix, March 29, 2008
- ^ A Review of "THE KILLING JOKE", Batman in Comics
- ^ Batman: The Killing Joke review, Grovel
- ^ a b Title, Seb Patrick, Den of Geek, 28 April 2008
- ^ George Khoury, ed., The Extraordinary Works of Alan Moore (Raleigh: TwoMorrows, 2003) 123. ISBN 1893905241.
- ^ Alan Moore interview, Blather.net
- ^ Brian Bolland, "On Batman: Brian Bolland Recalls The Killing Joke," DC Universe: The Stories of Alan Moore (New York: DC Comics, 2006) 256. ISBN 1401209270.
- ^ "Graphic Books Best Seller List: May 16" New York Times; George Gene Gustines. May 22, 2009
- ^ Tim Burton, Burton on Burton, revised ed. (London: Faber and Faber, 2006) 71. ISBN 0571229263.
- ^ Daniel Robert Epstein (2006-11-07). "Heath Ledger Talks Joker". Newsarama. http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=90305. Retrieved 2006-11-08.
- ^ Mark Voger, The Dark Age: Grim, Great and Gimmicky Post-Modern Comics (Raleigh: TwoMorrows, 2006) 33. ISBN 1893905535.
- ^ "Killing Joke Remastered". PopCultureShock. 2008-03-20. http://www.popcultureshock.com/killing-joke-remastered-13/43466/. Retrieved 2010-06-17.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
