Rogue Analysis #1: The Joker
,“Madness is the emergency exit. You can just step outside, and close the door on all those dreadful things that happened. You can lock them away…forever." -The JokerThe Joker. What can be said about the Clown Prince of Crime that hasn't ben said a million times already? Was it really wise to start with the Ace of Knaves? I mean, we all know he's great, and arguably one of the biggest villains in Pop-Culture history. If there were a Mount Rushmore of the greatest fictional villains of all time, I'm 99.99 percent that the Joker would be on there. Well, alright. I won't make this review too long, because you all know the deal with this guy. ,Debuting in Batman #1, back in the spring of 1940, created by Bill Finger, Bob Kane, and Jerry Robinson, the Joker would make his first appearance fighting the dynamic duo, and by performing some of the biggest heists of the period, and leaving behind one of his biggest calling cards, murdering his victims with a smile. Not just on his own ghastly face, but leaving them with an equally frightening grin. Not to mention that the method of announcing the deaths of certain victims via radio, or tv has been referenced many times over the years. Not just from me, but from The Dark Knight, Batman: The Animated Series, Batman: The Man Who Laughs, and more. ,Having been defeated at the end of his first appearance, the writers decided to kill him off in his second debut. This would of course not be a reality. For the Joker would return from the dead numerous times. over the years. Dethroning the already outdated Dr. Death as Batman's recurring foe, and cementing himself as the Dark Knight's archenemy. So much so that he would not only become one of the most recurring rogues to appear in comics, and has some of the greatest stories in comics under his belt. Such as, , A Death in the Family, which gave us one of the most shocking moments in comic book history, the death of Jason Todd, the second Robin, and they don't shy away from it that much either. You see the poor kid get his face beat in by a crowbar. ,Joker's Five Way Revenge, the Joker's debut in the bronze age of Batman, and bringing him back to his murderous roots.,Joker's Millions, which would be adapted into one of Joker's best episodes in the DCAU.,The laughing Fish. Also greatly adapted in TAS. On a side note, I tried to get a picture of the comic book page, but the darn computer wouldn't allow it. Different file types and all. So I had to settle for this beautiful pieces based on the episode. My apologies. ,His very first appearance in the previously mentioned Batman #1 back in 1940, ,Batman: White Knight, which is said to be a really great Joker tale in the modern age of comics. I haven't read this one, but I've heard a lot of good things about it. ,Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, which is not only a fantastic Joker story, but also a great tale of Batman, and Arkham Asylum as a whole. A comic so legendary it inspired the Arkhamverse. Before Rocksteady went to hell with Suicide Squad. But that's a whole can of worms I wish not to open here. ,Finally, we have what is said to be the greatest Joker story of all time. The crowning jewel of the Clown's history, and is said by so many people to be the true origin of the Joker. I give you, none other than, The Killing Joke. And those eight stories are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the Joker. There are so many great tales with this character that it is insane. Most of them have been really good, but I'm certain that there are a few stinkers out there in the world. ,Like this one. All Star Batman and Robin The Boy Wonder. I...I'd rather not talk about this one. The sooner we forget this abomination existed, the better. But I digress, it isn't just having great comic stories which makes the character stand tall. It also has regard in some of the best adaptations of any comic character out there. Some notable actors include,,Caesar Romero, who captured the goofy, and silly nature of the 60's Joker,,The darker, more menacing, and admittedly funny portrayal by the great Jack Nicholson from Tim Burton's Batman.,and of course, the legendary Heath Ledger who gave it his all to portray the mad clown in a more realistic Gotham City, but keeping true to the core of the character from the golden age. Though there are other portrayals of the Harlequin of Hate, it is these three who are held in high regard as some of the best portrayals in history. Accompanied by one other legend, who had been portraying the Joker for decades. ,Mark Hamill's Joker. Said to by many, including myself, as the greatest portrayal of the Joker. A man who has put his heart and soul into the character and has given his voice to the character on many occasions, and has brought about the best portrayals of the Mad Menace of Gotham City of all time. Now, As you may have already guessed it, I love the Joker. In my opinion, he is the definitive arch nemesis of the Dark Knight, and is the perfect example of being one's yin to the other yang. He is the antithesis of Batman who stands for order and justice, while Joker stands for chaos and anarchy. and in my eyes, he will NEVER be dethroned in this lifetime or the next. With that said, even as a hardcore Joker fan, I must admit that he is overused. I mean I get it, he is one of DC's greatest creations, but even legends need to take a breather. Now, I'm not saying you have to completely kick him to the curb like Beware the Batman did, but just be kept in the sidelines for a few stories for the time being is more than enough. Also, please stop using for so may overarching stories please? We haver so many other villains that you can do that with, just stop going to Joker as a safe option. ,That is one thing I praise Matt Reeves for. He knew that many of us were just Jokered out by now, and just had him as a cameo and a deleted scene. I do hope they keep it this way with The Batman 2, and ultimately use him for the third Batman film of that series. It also comes to no surprise that I am also not fond of every single adaptation of Joker, or some stories in his library. ,I am not a huge fan of the New 52 stories of Joker, especially when they decided to cut off his face. I've tried to read those stories in the past, but I just cant get over the stupid decision of having him get skinned, and wearing it again as it rots away. Now, I now he got a new face later on, but this whole ordeal just left a sour taste in my mouth. ,Then, we got this. Why? Just why? What was going through David Ayer's mind when he looked at this?! What could have possessed him to stare at this abomination and say that it was okay?! And for what? It was to make him a "current gangster?!" No! Joker was fine as he was!! He didn't need to be a "current gangster"! On top of that, the acting from Jared Leto is just awful! That voice, that laugh! No! Just no! By the time he reappeared in Zack Snyder's Justice League, it was too late for me to like him, and it's a shame! I saw a bit of acting from Jared and heard his crazy laughter as just another character, and I could see the Joker from it! What happened with this?! Just what were they thinking?! Now, I know there are fans of this take, but I'm sorry. To me, this is bottom of the barrel. Not just for Joker portrayals, but comic book adaptations as a whole. I will give Leto's Joker credit that it is better than Halle Berry's Catwoman, or Arnold Schwarzenegger's Mr. Freeze, but that's not saying much.,His old look from the first Injustice Game was fine as it was. Why would they change it into this?! This feels like a hipster cosplaying as Joker. ,Thank God, for MK11. ,As for Kevin Michael Richardson's take on the Joker from the Matsudaverse, love the characterization, well most of it anyway, not too crazy about the design. It's just too manic, even for Joker standards. With that said, I really do like this Joker, aside from the look as previous said. One of my favorite episodes from The Batman, was the episode Two of a Kind, where the show debuts Harley Quinn to that universe. It was funny, had a Joker that somewhat cared about Harley to a certain degree, and didn't feel awkward like Suicide Squad(2017), and not to mention it was written by the legendary Paul Dini. But in conclusion, this Joker's pretty good. Not quite my all timers, but he's on my list. ,I can't say the same for the Joaquin Phoenix Joker. I'll try my very best to not step on too many toes, because I know a lot of people like this take. But to me, this isn't Joker. He's just some poor fool who has serious mental issues way before becoming Joker, he doesn't really have the same beats that make Joker who he is until maybe the end of the film where he starts the riots. But even then, he starts that stuff completely by accident. I'm also not a huge fan of making him as sympathetic as he is in the film. Now I'm not saying that the Joker can't be sympathetic, that is one of the reasons why I love The Killing Joke so much. The problem I at least have is that they make him too sympathetic. I also am not a fan of that design. Im sorry, but this is far from THE Joker. It could work if it was an outfit for like a Joker fanatic, or a henchman. But it's not Joker himself. Also, Arthur Fleck? Why? What invokes Arthur when you look at the Joker? Jack makes sense, seeing as it still fits into the card aspect of the Joker playing card since Jack is one of the higher cards in every deck. Jerome and Jeremiah at least elude to Joker's creator Jerry Robinson, but when I think Arthur in the Batman universe, I think of Cluemaster. But let's go back to the design for a moment. I don't like how they made him wear red, the opposite color of what the Joker is known for(which even Leto got right by wearing shades of purple or violet articles in his outfits.) the red painted on nose, and the blue eyebrows are not in my taste, and I'm not a fan of how they were leading on that his laugh was more of a brain condition, or something like that. It's been a while since I saw the film, so my memory on the details are more than likely wrong. What's worse for me is that it's implied that Arthur wasn't the one committing the crimes, but inserted himself into the story at the end of the film. Then, what was the point? But if you like the film, then you like the film. You're not doing anything wrong, and to be fair, there some good aspects about the film. Such as Murray Franklin for example, which I have used for my own telling of the Joker from my own universe. Everyone has their own tastes, and the film just isn't in my pallet. Now, I could go on and on about other ordeals that haven't really been apart of Joker's best years, such as the Joker from the poorly received video game Batman: Dark Tomorrow, Brent Spiner's awkward portrayal in the Young justice animated series, which admittedly got a better redesign from the one you see, but it wasn't enough t really call it a good Joker, and then we get Kevin Pollak. Yeah, I don't know what they were thinking with this one. ,Overall, what I'm trying to say, is that even the Joker is not without his flaws. From the comics, to films, to cartoons, an video games. But from the good, the bad and the ugly, this character stands all.,In conclusion, the Joker has stood the test of time and is labeled in being one of the greatest villains in fictional history. A character many of us just love to hate, or just love to love, depending on the version you see. Now, do any of these problems I have subtract my feeling for this character, oh goodness no! There is too much good with him that the bad is mostly glossed over. Just because I like said, there is always going to be fans of certain portrayals, and some who don't like them. Joker is such an iconic character, that there is something for everyone. You could love the gritty anarchist version, you could love the goofy prankster version, you could love the failed comedian version, or just some other version of the character. The fact is that this rogue has truly earned his place one way or another as a high ranking villain in fiction, and I do not ever see Batman truly be the same without the Clown Prince of Crime to cause such trouble for Gotham, but all of comics as a whole. For after all, Joker said it best, and it works so well on both sides of the same coin these two eternal foes find themselves on. "Without Batman, crime has no punchline." Mark Hamill, The Man who killed Batman. Final rating: 10 out of 10!
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