Not since "The Joker's Wild", "The Last Laugh" or "Wild Cards", has there been a Joker story...
... with a title as obvious as this!
Coming in September: JOKER
(geeze...)
JOKER HC
Written by Brian Azzarello
Art by Lee Bermejo & Mick Gray
Cover by Lee Bermejo
In the all-new, hardcover original graphic novel JOKER, writer Brian Azzarello (100 BULLETS) and artist Lee Bermejo (HELLBLAZER covers) - the creative team behind the acclaimed miniseries LEX LUTHOR: MAN OF STEEL - show an even darker and more disturbing side to the most dangerous man in Gotham: The Joker.
After yet another stint in Arkham Asylum, The Joker finds “his city” divided among mobsters and costumed villains. Not content to settle for a piece of the pie, The Joker vows to take back the whole damn enchilada by any means necessary. Look for appearances by a slew of Gotham’s most wanted, including gritty takes on Two-Face, Riddler, Killer Croc, Penguin, Harley Quinn and even Batman!
Not since THE KILLING JOKE have you seen such a powerful tale of The Joker - you won’t want to miss this one!
I know I don't personally like the approach this artist is taking... the 'diseased' looking Joker. :P I understand the physical appearance-as-metaphor for personality thing, I do, but really, it's so cliche. The Joker as a dandy, finickity about his appearance, is far more in line with the narcissism of the character and also far less obvious. But I can cope with it for one story. Who knows, it might have some sexy moments.
What are peoples thoughts on the writer? I haven't read the Lex story, not particularly being a fan of the character, so I'm not sure how well he mastered that character.
It sounds intriguing; my primary concern is characterisation. Really, in look and theme, this sounds an awful lot like Dark Knight.
"Not since THE KILLING JOKE have you seen such a powerful tale of The Joker - you won’t want to miss this one!"
Well, of course they're going to say that, and it's such an exploitative trifle, coasting on the tails of a problematic book which is unfortunately treated like a sacred text. I love Killing Joke, don't get me wrong, but there have been numerous excellent Joker stories since, and it lagely rides on its reputation these days, rather than its actual merits.
"gritty" - buzz words like that make me shudder. I hope cramming the story full of rogues will not take precedence over the actual quality of the story, as it seems to in Loeb's case.
After reading the artist's highly misogynistic words in regards Harley (though I liked his approach to her as an addict) I am highly concerned over how that relationship will be depicted as well. If the writer's thoughts mirror the artist's, we've got two misogynists at the helm who may very well infuse the story with their own shallow, brutish approach to women and depict Joker in the same way, rather than as the complex sociopath he is.
But only Bernejo has made such remarks, so I'll hold out hope.
I'm at once quite excited about this and extremely apprehensive. Either way, I'll be hanging out for my copy!
(and sincerely hoping I'll be blown away...)
(I wonder if the simple, obvious title is designed to draw in the TDK crowd?)
Coming in September: JOKER
(geeze...)
JOKER HC
Written by Brian Azzarello
Art by Lee Bermejo & Mick Gray
Cover by Lee Bermejo
In the all-new, hardcover original graphic novel JOKER, writer Brian Azzarello (100 BULLETS) and artist Lee Bermejo (HELLBLAZER covers) - the creative team behind the acclaimed miniseries LEX LUTHOR: MAN OF STEEL - show an even darker and more disturbing side to the most dangerous man in Gotham: The Joker.
After yet another stint in Arkham Asylum, The Joker finds “his city” divided among mobsters and costumed villains. Not content to settle for a piece of the pie, The Joker vows to take back the whole damn enchilada by any means necessary. Look for appearances by a slew of Gotham’s most wanted, including gritty takes on Two-Face, Riddler, Killer Croc, Penguin, Harley Quinn and even Batman!
Not since THE KILLING JOKE have you seen such a powerful tale of The Joker - you won’t want to miss this one!
I know I don't personally like the approach this artist is taking... the 'diseased' looking Joker. :P I understand the physical appearance-as-metaphor for personality thing, I do, but really, it's so cliche. The Joker as a dandy, finickity about his appearance, is far more in line with the narcissism of the character and also far less obvious. But I can cope with it for one story. Who knows, it might have some sexy moments.
What are peoples thoughts on the writer? I haven't read the Lex story, not particularly being a fan of the character, so I'm not sure how well he mastered that character.
It sounds intriguing; my primary concern is characterisation. Really, in look and theme, this sounds an awful lot like Dark Knight.
"Not since THE KILLING JOKE have you seen such a powerful tale of The Joker - you won’t want to miss this one!"
Well, of course they're going to say that, and it's such an exploitative trifle, coasting on the tails of a problematic book which is unfortunately treated like a sacred text. I love Killing Joke, don't get me wrong, but there have been numerous excellent Joker stories since, and it lagely rides on its reputation these days, rather than its actual merits.
"gritty" - buzz words like that make me shudder. I hope cramming the story full of rogues will not take precedence over the actual quality of the story, as it seems to in Loeb's case.
After reading the artist's highly misogynistic words in regards Harley (though I liked his approach to her as an addict) I am highly concerned over how that relationship will be depicted as well. If the writer's thoughts mirror the artist's, we've got two misogynists at the helm who may very well infuse the story with their own shallow, brutish approach to women and depict Joker in the same way, rather than as the complex sociopath he is.
But only Bernejo has made such remarks, so I'll hold out hope.
I'm at once quite excited about this and extremely apprehensive. Either way, I'll be hanging out for my copy!
(and sincerely hoping I'll be blown away...)
(I wonder if the simple, obvious title is designed to draw in the TDK crowd?)