Jim Gordon gets some answers but leaves some questions open in the penultimate issue of this series, as the final fate of the Clown Prince of Crime remains a mystery in The Joker #14, written by James Tynion IV, penciled by Giuseppe Camuncoli, inked by Cam Smith, colored by Arif Prianto and lettered by Tom Napolitano.
In Detective Comics #1,059, we meet Deb Donovanâs daughter, ordinary citizens commit random crimes and somehow the Riddlerâs new look is even more hipster/pickup artist than his mutton-chop look in a story written by Mariko Tamaki & Nadia Shammas, penciled by Ivan Reis, inked by Danny Miki, colored by Brad Anderson and lettered by Ariana Maher. In the backup, Gotham Girl tries to settle into a normal life and is having some problems in a story written by Sina Grace, drawn by David Lapham, colored by Trish Mulvihill and lettered by Rob Leigh.
Bruce Wayne has an unwelcome hitchhiker in his brain, Terry McGinnis is searching for his fatherâs killer in all the wrong places and Dick Grayson lives up to his name in Batman: Beyond the White Knight #2, written and drawn by Sean Murphy, colored by Dave Stewart and lettered by AndWorld Design.
Matt Lazorwitz: So after last week, where we had only one book we reviewed, this week we have a solid three, plus Dark Knights of Steel and the next two parts of âShadow War.â That means we have way too much content. We are sort of just enjoying DKoS at this point, and weâll mention what âShadow Warâ is up to next week, with Batman, yes?
Will Nevin: I check in and out of DKoS â always seems like Tom Taylorâs Perfectly Fine brand of alternate worldbuilding. And youâll have to give me a reading order for âShadow War.â Goddamned crossovers.
This week, though? None of that bullshit.
Joker
Matt: One issue left, and I am going to miss this book. This issue was pretty exposition heavy, but we now have all the answers about A-Day, Bane and the Network. It all makes sense, but I did not expect the mostly forgotten New 52 Talon series to be an important story point, although one you fortunately didnât need to have read to get whatâs going on here.
Will: I didnât know Tynion goes back as far as New 52; learn something new every day, I reckon. (I do, however, remember his work on Batman Eternal.) So let me ask you this: This series was supposed to conclude with #14, correct? I think we had a super-stuffed final issue that was split in half, with this getting a little bit more exposition-y in the process. Sound about right?
Matt: Yes, I think you are correct, especially since the backup is clearly something that was commissioned separately from the rest of the Punchline serial. I think it might be a case of they were planning on those extra eight pages being enough, it turned out it was nowhere near enough, so they split it and got Alex Paknadel to write the closest thing to a good Punchline story ever written.
Will: What a week for backups and characters who normally suck, huh? I think the iffy bits of the art maybe speak to the time constraints (Joker look was not that strong, but it has the distinct disadvantage of following one of my favorite Jokers in the main story), but Paknadel sure does write the shit out of it. Creepy as all fuck.
Matt: Completely. We havenât talked about the backups before, because we havenât really enjoyed them, but this little eight pages of horror is well worth the read.
Meanwhile, in the main story, which remains great, we see Jim Gordon now more haunted than ever. The Joker absolutely feels like he has won, since Jim has had to compromise his code to get to this point, and while we donât know what became of Joker, well, Jim is in rough shape: on the outs with Barbara, questioned by the back-in-shape Detective Hallows (glad to see she has her arm back) and finding a Batman skulking in his apartment. This is the âheroâ at the end of a noir, looking back and wondering if he has sold his soul for the right reasons.
Will: That was excellent artistic work with Hallowsâ arm â the scars and sutures were gnarly, and the slight color difference was perfect. Thoughtful work for sure. And, really, thatâs been the story of Joker all along, hasnât it? Deep, moving and smart, and like you, Iâll miss this when itâs gone. (Itâs a foolâs errand to try to follow this story with a second volume, but best of luck to whoever is going to try.) I look forward to reading this for the show ⌠say this, Killing Joke (we gotta do it eventually, Matty Lazers) and another Gordon-centric story?
Matt: Oh, I think there might be a story or two I can think of that can work with that, yes indeed. I am going to avoid talking spoilers on this book as much as possible, because thereâs a lot here that should be read, but I want to talk about that scene on the train where Jim runs into some Joker fans. Thatâs the moment where, for me, I was sure Jim had done something that is going to haunt him, and I donât know if that is killing the Joker or not killing the Joker. And the narration over that, about the Jokerâs laughter in his head? Some of the seriesâ best.
Will: I know you noticed the subway stop, right?
Matt: Of course, because everything in Gotham is named after a creator!
âTec
Matt: OK, I need to talk about the thing that really got me in here: What the ever-loving hell is Eddie Nygma doing with that facial hair? I mean, I guess Iâm better with this than him bringing his gimp suit look from The Batman over into the main DCU, but stop trying so hard, Eddie!
Will: Itâs an improvement over mutton chops, at least? That mustache is a dead ringer for AEWâs The Butcher. My thing: Should we save the criminal law discussion on arson for the end notes or get it out of the way now?
Matt: Will, you know I love your criminal law discussions. Letâs do it.
Will: So Judge Donovan (guess who didnât immediately pick up on that name!) sentences the defendant to 25 years without the possibility of parole on a charge of arson in the second degree. That sentence struck me as a bit odd given the nature of the crime, so I did a little googling to refresh my memory on arson. The general idea is that arson in the first degree is the most serious (duh) because it involves setting fire to an occupied building, whereas second degree arson is setting fire to an unoccupied building and third degree arson is setting fire to land. (Also, this is just a general discussion of state criminal laws; YMMV. Furthermore, I am not barred, and I am for goddamned sure not your attorney, firestarter.)
So 25 years without parole sounds a bit stiff for setting fire to an unoccupied building, right? But thereâs a catch! Some states â like Oklahoma â also say that itâs arson in the second degree when a fire results from the manufacturing of a controlled substance. My unofficial conclusion? Our guyâs meth lab caught fire, and the judge is sticking it to him.
Also, fun fact: So long as youâre not doing it for the insurance money or any other ulterior motive, a possible defense to arson is that you wanted to burn down your own damn house for fun.
Matt: Huh. Good to know. Nothing as relaxing as recreational arson.
So obviously these plots are all intertwined. Riddler is somehow behind these ârandomâ crimes. Iâm just not sure what his angle is yet. And Iâm fine with that. A Riddler story is a puzzle, and we shouldnât have all the pieces in the first part (See any of our reviews of Joker Presents: A Puzzlebox).
But what sells me a lot on this issue are some of the small character moments. I love Deb Donovan, who is still her normal, profane and in-your-face self, even at her daughterâs hospital bedside. I like Bruce being kind of a goof when trying to interact normally; we donât get sweet and awkward Bruce often, but I like it. And the beat cop talking to Batman is kind of charming as well. And Ivan Reis, who is the prototype of modern DC house style, sells all this.
Will: This is probably Tamakiâs last arc before Ram V comes on, right? If so, I think sheâs gonna end her run with something special. Iâm excited for this here story, Brother Matt.
Matt: You are correct, and I agree with you on that. And you referenced it above, but this backup? Far and away the most interested I have ever been in Gotham Girl.
Will: I fuckinâ know, right? Love the new visual tweaks, and this feels like a really authentic voice of someone struggling with mental illness and the burden of responsibility.
Matt: This is a character who I have felt, from the beginning, had what I call âsurface depth.â Youâre supposed to buy into this character being important, having this deep history and important life, but they (or the creators) have never done anything to earn it except tell you, not show you, they are a real character. This here? This shows me there is more to Gotham Girl. And I am down for it.
White Knight
Matt: Wow. So ⌠wait. I am having a harder time than usual wrapping my brain around something. And I know entering the mind of SGM is a guaranteed trip to madness, but bear with me and see if my logic bears out.
Will: I donât want to, Matt, but weâre in this mess so deep, I might as well.
Matt: So, based on the ending of the previous volume, Murphy was coming back for volume 3 and he knew it. But did he really think he could pull off that volume without Joker and only afterward realized he needed him, so came up with this asinine Joker-in-Batmanâs-brain thing? Or was this actually something you think he had planned. Because this? This is dumb.
Will: Iâd say it was the dumbest thing in the whole series, but then I got to the last-page reveal in this issue. But, yeah, no reasonable creator would come up with such a dipshit contrivance when the easiest answer is ânot killing Joker.â But this is a guy who continues to prattle on about âelitesâ and âsuper criminals.â
Matt: Oh, do not get me started. And somehow picking on poor Dick Grayson, the most free-spirited member of the Bat family traditionally, and turning him full fascist? How the hell does that make any sense? Is this whole thing about SGM liking Jason Todd more, so he needs to tear Dick down? Cause thatâs the vibe Iâm starting to get here.
Will: We know the guy already hates the modern interpretation of Harley Quinn; those feelings could well extend to Dick as well. But, really, only a guy with brain worms could write this stuff. And only a couple of real fuckwits would read it voluntarily. You ever question your life choices, Matt?
Matt: More and more with every issue. I just remain singularly frustrated by how this book doesnât stand on its own at this point. Without a working knowledge of the Murphyverse, youâre completely lost, and without any knowledge of Batman Beyond, so many of the new characters are just paper thin; you have no reason to care about or revile Terry and Derek Powers if you donât care about them already. And that, my friend, is one of the worst sins of a superhero comic. Counting on nostalgia to carry the book. Boooooooooo.
Will: But at least Murphy has mastered his singular male facial expression: the screaming scowl. I will say one thing: His ages might finally make sense. In White Knight, Bruce has been Batman for âdecades.â In this issue, itâs said heâs in his 60s. Factor in a few years for jail time, and Iâll pronounce it close enough.
And thatâs the closest thing to a compliment Iâve ever had for this manâs work.
Bat-miscellany
- Since The Batman is now streaming, the BatChat podcast looks at one of the stories that inspired it, plus two other stories of Batmanâs origins and early years: Batman: Earth One, The Untold Legend of the Batman and Detective Comics #574.
- Am I going to read a letter from Murphy explaining why he made Jason Todd the first Robin? No, I will not.
- It was the practice of many rich and famous cheapskates to donate a house they intended to demolish to a local fire department for training purposes and then claim a tax deduction for the full value of a habitable home. What a scam.
- OK, I often complain about DC scheduling stuff poorly, but it was clever to release the complete collection of Tynionâs Talon series the same week as the Joker issue that ties into it.
Matt Lazorwitz read his first comic at the age of five. It was Who's Who in the DC Universe #2, featuring characters whose names begin with B, which explains so much about his Batman obsession. He writes about comics he loves, and co-hosts the creator interview podcast WMQ&A with Dan Grote.
Will Nevin loves bourbon and AP style and gets paid to teach one of those things. He is on Twitter far too often.
