Batman The Killing Joke

[Deffinition]

This is it!

The Big One!

View my thoughts as part of the canon retrospective below.

Batman The Killing Joke Graphic Novel Review By Deffinition

Cheers

[t hedge coke]

By coincidence, I was just reading the followup to this, with the Joker impersonator and Jim Gordon's ethical crisis around Batman 450. I dislike the oneshot, itself, but I do love when it's referenced in the form of Joker or that old amusement park making Jim's skin crawl.

From the off you are instantly hit with the realistic art of the book. The prestige panelling is similar to Watchmen, Alan Moore’s other famous work (that he hates), and it instantly grounds the book in a realistic, straightforward fashion. This is the polar opposite to Serious House On Serious Earth. The story seems methodical and planned from the very start which is an interesting take as with it being The Joker’s origin you would expect chaos to appear amongst the page layouts.

Since when has Alan Moore hated Watchmen? Since when was Morrison's Arkham Asylum not immaculately and carefully planned and methodical? Have you not seen that script?

I dislike that DC have retconned the paralysis for the New 52 as to me it is a character defining moment and I actually see it as empowering for disabled people. A chair does not limit them and look at all the good that Barbara went on to do. This moment was life defining for her and it didn’t hold her back. She rolls with the punches and takes it on.

It might be worth noting that Moore never thought it would last, at all, and had similarly had Black Canary shot and wounded simply to remove her for about ten pages.

[batnbreakfast]

By coincidence, I was just reading the followup to this, with the Joker impersonator and Jim Gordon's ethical crisis around Batman 450. I dislike the oneshot, itself, but I do love when it's referenced in the form of Joker or that old amusement park making Jim's skin crawl.

Please, tell me more!

Currently reading Ostrander' s Suicide Squad run which very slowly introduces us to Oracle.

[SicariiDC]

I just read Gotham Knights #54 which kinda shines more light on Joker's wife's death. I kinda prefer the mystery tho

[t hedge coke]

Please, tell me more!

Currently reading Ostrander' s Suicide Squad run which very slowly introduces us to Oracle.

Gordon's feeling his age and aged by how horrible Gotham crime is, and basically settles, for himself, that he'll kill the Joker. Only, there's two Jokers! And, one doesn't seem to remember shooting Barbara.

There's a neat twist on the Bruce/Batman dynamic, too, with one of the Jokers.

[Agent Z]

By coincidence, I was just reading the followup to this, with the Joker impersonator and Jim Gordon's ethical crisis around Batman 450. I dislike the oneshot, itself, but I do love when it's referenced in the form of Joker or that old amusement park making Jim's skin crawl.



Since when has Alan Moore hated Watchmen? Since when was Morrison's Arkham Asylum not immaculately and carefully planned and methodical? Have you not seen that script?




It might be worth noting that Moore never thought it would last, at all, and had similarly had Black Canary shot and wounded simply to remove her for about ten pages.

True the circumstances were unfortunate. But we did get a great character out of it and that's what people miss.

[batnbreakfast]

Gordon's feeling his age and aged by how horrible Gotham crime is, and basically settles, for himself, that he'll kill the Joker. Only, there's two Jokers! And, one doesn't seem to remember shooting Barbara.

There's a neat twist on the Bruce/Batman dynamic, too, with one of the Jokers.

It sounds really interesting but I don't like Wolfman's writing much. The little I've read of him. Will try to find the back issues for the story, though. Thanks.

[t hedge coke]

True the circumstances were unfortunate. But we did get a great character out of it and that's what people miss.

We didn't, though. We had great characters before it, and after it other people picked up the ball from a shoddy treatment of one and an okeh treatment of another and did great things with them.

Best I can say for TKJ is the Bolland art is pretty solid, they were right to soften up the display of Babs' wounding and torture, and the recoloring is pretty damn creepy stuff.

[Deffinition]

Interested in what people's take on Batman killing the joker is? Do you think he actually did it? Personally I do and kinda hope this ties into the rebirth 3 jokers thing.

[Carabas]

Interested in what people's take on Batman killing the joker is? Do you think he actually did it? Personally I do and kinda hope this ties into the rebirth 3 jokers thing.

It clearly didn't happen. Unles Batman killed him by ramming his arms into his chest cavity. This is not how you strangle someone, and this isn't Liefeld doing the art so proper anatomy and location of the throat applies.

[Deffinition]

It clearly didn't happen. Unles Batman killed him by ramming his arms into his chest cavity. This is not how you strangle someone, and this isn't Liefeld doing the art so proper anatomy and location of the throat applies.

Looooool Liefeld can't catch a break.

I never thought about it till Grant Morisson mentioned it on Fatman On Batman, saying that the joker's laughter clearly stops and that the killing joke was about Batman killing the joker but the joke being that DC never picked up on it (paraphrasing a bit here).

[JBatmanFan05]

I love Grant Morrison but he was dead wrong on KJ's ending IMHO. It's always been pretty clear to me that they share a laugh and Batman simply grabs Joker as the police arrive, all this after Gordon wanted Joker taken alive.

[Agent Z]

We didn't, though. We had great characters before it, and after it other people picked up the ball from a shoddy treatment of one and an okeh treatment of another and did great things with them.

Best I can say for TKJ is the Bolland art is pretty solid, they were right to soften up the display of Babs' wounding and torture, and the recoloring is pretty damn creepy stuff.

Really? The woman who formed the Birds of Prey, served with the Suicide Squad and mentored two Batgirls wasn't a great character?

[t hedge coke]

Really? The woman who formed the Birds of Prey, served with the Suicide Squad and mentored two Batgirls wasn't a great character?

What did I say?

"We had great characters before [The Killing Joke], and after it other people picked up the ball from a shoddy treatment of one and an okeh treatment of another and did great things with them."

We didn't get that character or that growth in TKJ.

We did not get that character or that growth from Bolland or Moore.

We did, however, get that great characterization and that great growth from "other people who picked up the ball from... shoddy treatment."

Unless you happen to know the issues of Suicide Squad or of Babs mentoring other Batgirls that were written by Moore or drawn by Bolland.

Which you don't. Because they don't exist.

[Agent Z]

What did I say?

"We had great characters before [The Killing Joke], and after it other people picked up the ball from a shoddy treatment of one and an okeh treatment of another and did great things with them."

We didn't get that character or that growth in TKJ.

We did not get that character or that growth from Bolland or Moore.

We did, however, get that great characterization and that great growth from "other people who picked up the ball from... shoddy treatment."

Unless you happen to know the issues of Suicide Squad or of Babs mentoring other Batgirls that were written by Moore or drawn by Bolland.

Which you don't. Because they don't exist.

Sorry. I misunderstood. You're right Moore didn't write Oracle. I also never meant to imply Barbara wasn't a good character before Killing Joke and I'm sorry if you took that from my post.