Sick Jokes

Most readers of the various Batman comics know that the last decade and a half has been harsh on the characters presented in the series. The most recent catastrophes that have occurred are the breaking of the Bat in the "Knightfall" saga and the destruction of Gotham in the recent "No Man's Land" story arc. It seems as if the more DC puts Batman through misery the more their books sell. The comic that started the whole trend of destroying everything dear to Batman was "Batman: The Killing Joke."

In "The Killing Joke" the main plot has Batman and Commissioner Gordon dealing with another escape from Arkham by the Joker. Both men have to sit and wait for the Joker to take action, not able to understand his mind enough to know what to expect. When he does act, though, it results in the paralysis of Barbara Gordon (Batgirl at the time) and the torture of the Commissioner.

The subplot of this story gives the Joker a new origin. In the pre-crisis DC universe (As well as Batman: The Animated Series) the Joker's original origin is Jack Napier, a small time player in Gotham's organized crime syndicate who was disfigured in a conflict with the Batman. Through various flashbacks in the story it is shown that this may not be true, at least in the post-crisis DC universe. We see the Joker before his accident as a poor man, struggling to make a name for himself as a comedian, with a wife who is expecting. When his comedy career starts to fail he turns to crime, hoping to make enough to get out of the Gotham slums and not have to go back to crime again. On the day that the heist is planned his wife and unborn child die in a one in a million household appliance accident, the two criminals he was planning to do the heist with force him to come along despite the loss of his wife, his is mistaken for the leader of the notorious "Red Hood Gang", and is left disfigured in the end. In other words, he had just one bad day.

The back of this book has the label "For Mature Readers Only" for good reason. Although there are a few spots of nudity (Both of the Gordon's butts, not much more) and the normal Batman violence what really makes this story disturbing is the story. The way that it is presented shows just how fragile our minds are. Reading this book brings on depression and forces the reader to think about their own emotions and those of others. The end of the story does bring one point of hope, though: The Joker's intentions of bringing the Commissioner to madness failed. Like in real life some people can be easily destroyed by the tragedies around them while others refuse to give in to the pain around them. Paul Dini summarized the philosophy behind the Batman series the best in "War on Crime" when he said, "It is not the moments of tragedy that define our lives so much as the choices we make to deal with them." This book is a perfect example of that, showing how three men must deal with their own tragedies.

The artwork in this book, drawn by Brian Bolland and colored by John Higgins, is some of the best out there. In most Batman comics the Joker looks odd but not as terrible as his personality. In this book, though, the reader is made sick just by looking at him in certain frames. Other frames, like Barbara's facial expression right before she is about to be shot, adds to the subdued feel of the book. Items in the background like the pile of baby dolls (Note: They never say that they're dolls. I just think of them as dolls so that I can sleep at night) in front of the Joker's throne in one scene make the book even more disturbing. After I read the book for the first time I flipped through it again and just looked at the background art to see what I missed.

The story presented in the book has a great impact on the Batman storyline. It explains why the original Batgirl is no longer in costume, sparks off the origin of Oracle, and gives the Joker a new, more depressing origin. One thing that should be noted about the Joker origin in this story, though, is that it is only a possible origin, not a definite one. Whether or not the origin is the real one, though, it brings the reader a whole new way of looking at the Joker's madness.

It goes without saying that I really enjoyed this book. It doesn't draw on any super powered villains, political icons, or current events like many Batman comics do. It is written in a way that makes it seem timeless in the Batman universe. If you want to pick up a good Batman comic I strongly suggest this, but only if you want a dose of philosophy rather than the normal fighting action. With a $4.95 price tag it is well worth the money.