Batman: The Killing Joke (6th printing)

By Matt Spencer What does one say about Alan Moore and Brian Bollands THE KILLING JOKE that hasnt been said Recently its come back under the comic-book-reading-publics scrutiny due to a certain recent internet crap-storm over a certain controversial comic-book cover relating to one of its key plot points. Ill get that out of the way by saying that the huffy indignation over the books extreme content is misplaced, as are shoe-horned dialogues over all-too-real social issues, and its relation to/depiction of real-life horrors. As to what happens to Barbara.I can see those associations, for sure, though that particular grimmest, ugliest interpretation is largely read-into-matters, with little if anything in the presented images and text to support the argument that thats what happened. If you keep up with this sort of thing, you know what I mean. The grim proceedings remain disturbing, though nowhere near as graphic or over-the-line as you might have been led to believe. Taken on its own terms as a work of storytelling, the problem with THE KILLING JOKE now isnt (mostly) in the work itself, but how in the years since, more importance and gravity have been thrown on its slender back than it was ever meant to hold. Someone reading it for the first time now, following its reputation, could easily be left going, HuhAs a brief 80s superhero/supervillain/psychological-horror comic, it holds up well, a graphic-novella, maybe the length of two individual issues. The story is simple but effective: The Joker makes it crueler and more personal than ever for Batman, Batgirl, and Gordon, in the name of proving the point of his deranged, nihilistic world view, intercut with flashbacks of the Jokers tragic origins (Christopher Nolan clearly yanked a lot of ideas straight from this, fleshed them out and refined them for his and Heath Ledgers take on the Joker in the film THE DARK KNIGHT). The artwork is holds up best of all -- stunning and haunting in places -- as harrowing and macabre. At the time, the presentation and the grim, extreme themes dealt with were groundbreaking for a mainstream comic, introducing a lot of ideas and approaches no one had seen before, revitalizing a getting-tired era. Compared to whats become common-place since, not to mention meatier, similarly acclaimed, groundbreaking works of the same day, its just not as fresh or shocking as it used to be. In some places, it now feels, if anything, a tad quaint. How the writing does/doesnt hold up: virtually everything to do with exploring the Jokers character-arc/outlook on life, and how his maniacal plan unfolds before the reader, remains pretty brilliant. Some of his wicked monologues belong in the audition-books of aspiring actors trying out for villain roles. Its the heroes side of things where it now feels thin, underdeveloped, and ultimately unconvincing. The un-fleshed-out briefness of the work is part of the problem, though really, this is a story where the bad guy is the true protagonist, who the author is clearly most fascinated by/invested in, and his hearts just nor really in it with the good guys. I dont for a minute buy Gordons demand of We have to show him that our way works! or Batmans final attempts to reason with the Joker. Even complaints of Barbara/Batgirl being reduced to a woman-in-refrigerator" victim-plot-device (the one caveat Ill grant the recent detractors) might have been fixed were her traumatic experience and its aftermath given just a bit more breathing room. One senses Moore was hampered on this end both by length-restriction and DC editorial policies of the day regarding the handling of their most lucrative characters, so they come off a bit like morose self-parody.More would go on to explore some of these ideas with more freedom in WATCHMEN. So yeah, THE KILLING JOKE, still worth a read for Batman/Joker fans, to be sure, though whether youre picking it up for the first time or nostalgically revisiting it, I recommend subduing your expectations. by ron:Cool Joker imagery someone else says:Brian Bollands best work Top of Alan Moores best chart Though colouring is distracting. 6th printing

Product Info

Publisher: DC

Year: 1988

Type: Used

Binding: Softcover

Seller Info

Flyingelfbooks

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Country: United States