DCAU Review: "Two Timer" by Paul Dini and Ty Templeton (1995)

[about_faces]

This has to be the single most depressingly tragic tale in all of DCAU canon. It's also, not coincidentally, one of the greatest. But I'd be lying if I said that it was one of my favorites, or that I looked forward to posting about it here.

Comments

[mothy_van_cleer]

One would think that the guards could've just taken Harvey gently by the shoulder and kept escorting him down the hallway, rather than let him strike up a conversation with the one man who could most effectively undermine his therapy. I don't care if job turnover and on-site fatalities are absurdly high, Arkham still needs more stringent hiring practices.

For the longest time, I took it to just mean that he did it for no other reason than he was bored and that it was fun, which of course would be typical Joker.

Well, now I have to post this. I hope you're happy.

[ext_768836]

Well, I am! :)

[about_faces]

Ditto! Now I'm wondering if that was meant to be a reference instead of (or in addition to) a pun!

[barcavolio]

You know, I was really happy that America hadn't elected Mitty and then I read this and I'm fucking CRYING D: I mean, I already knew the story but it hurts.

I especially don't like the "He's not Harvey, Batman" implying that there ISN'T actually an innocent there worth saving.

I actually read this as "Two-Face is not Harvey"; i.e. they have completely separated and integration is no longer an option because Two-Face is no longer angry!repressed!Harvey, but a fully-fledged personality of his own. Batman can no longer predict with that half of Harvey, because for all extents and purposes it isn't Harvey. Not saying this is what's going on, just that this is what Dick might mean.

That's not the portrait of a guy who's looking for an excuse to go on a rampage. That's a man who is desperately trying to get better, and to fight against demons both internal and external while holding onto the two people left in his life who were still supporting him.I completely agree, and I think it's interesting that while he's furious, he's very

[about_faces]

I actually read this as "Two-Face is not Harvey"...

Oh duh, I think you're right. Dang. Times like this I really need an image of Rorscach going "Hurm. Obvious, in retrospect."

Still, rereading those lines, I feel like this echoes what Dick said years later in Nightwing: The Great Leap, about how he only sees one face, scarred all over. As much as I don't like Dick's views of Harvey, he does play the valuable role of being the only one who fully accepts the existence Two-Face without being burdened by hope or compassion for Harvey. Considering how much of a monster Two-Face can be, Robin's role is crucial. But man, it's that "Told ya" that really sticks in my craw.

I can't help but wonder if part of his therapy was trying to reconcile his anger and his original personality...Maybe so, and once again, I'm wondering how these treatments might have helped pave the way for the Judge

[mothy_van_cleer]

But man, it's that "Told ya" that really sticks in my craw.

Look at Dick petulantly glaring at Bruce during that whole hostage crisis. "Oh, my legal guardian is being pistol-whipped by the dangerous and unpredictable split personality consuming his former best friend? Whatever. He totally deserved it for not even taking me out for ice cream today." Don't pretend you care about him more than Harvey does if you're willing to abandon him so quickly, ya smug fuckin' asshole.

Tim not trusting Harvey's innate goodness, though, is actually something I can forgive in the context of the story. Because, you know, apparently Harvey really was addicted to evil like it was heroin or something. Certainly not James Robinson's failing as a writer, am I right?

[about_faces]

Look at Dick petulantly glaring at Bruce during that whole hostage crisis.

Oh god, you're right. The little jerk was just waiting for his "Told ya." Well, I suppose he's allowed, considering that he's spent all night and day in Harvey's "care," but still...

Well, Tim can also be forgiven if we take the interpretation of FTF that Batman was an asshole and unreliable narrator who didn't give Tim the full story, so there's that too.

[abqreviews]

>influenced and/or influenced The Dark Knight.

When I saw TDK, the love triangle immediately made me think back to this story, and I figured that some variation on it was going to happen. I figured that Rachael would live, be drawn back to Bruce for whatever reason (Which would have been sooo trite), then Joker would tell Harvey that "Wayne's an inside man, and he payed me to do this to get you out of the way" or something.

I know you have problems with TDK, but I'm honestly glad that's not how it turned out.

[about_faces]

While I'm glad that they didn't go that route either, it would have been a more solid motive for going on a rampage than what he had in the actual film, which essentially amounted to "Huh, I will now apparently listen to the Joker for some reason."

In either case, they both have the same fundamental flaw that Harvey and Rachel's integral love story had all the chemical spark, character depth, and dramatic impact of a turnip.

[lego_joker]

Is it a sign of my immaturity that I still couldn't tell when a fictional couple "clicks" when my life depends on it? Every on-screen/page romance pretty much looks and sounds the same to me.

[about_faces]

It's not necessarily immature, no. Maybe it just comes with experience, either by being in a relationship or seeing how others work for so long than you start seeing how the give and take works.

That said, I don't think that's the only reason why every on-screen/page romance would look the same to you, since far too many writers--even those in relationships and marriages themselves--don't know how the fuck to write a relationship to save their lives.

[psychopathicus]

I think you posted this already over at scans_daily, didn't you? I'm pretty sure I've already commented on it over there.
In any case, barcavollo has already covered most of what I was planning to say - the whole "Two-Face is not Harvey" thing. What I will say, though, is that I find it really frustrating how easy it would be for Grace, Bruce or Dick to pop the bubble and snap him out of it. You don't have to go into the whole 'Harvey, it's not what it looks like; we're just friends' thing; obviously he's not going to listen to that. Just tell him who took the photo. I mean, really, that is the single most glaring flaw in the Joker's sick little scheme - he got his girlfriend, the lady who dresses up like a jester and fights Batman, the lady who used to be a prominent Arkham psychologist, in short, the one person in Gotham who is obviously working for him if she gets caught - he got her to take the photo. Moreover, she got caught at it and fought with Bats in public, in front of dozens of people, including Grace and (as far as

[about_faces]

I don't believe that I posted this story at scans_daily. Maybe I did? No, I think that was someone else. Cyberghostface, maybe. I posted a couple of the Joker pages in a big Joker essay I wrote on s_d back in the day, but that's it, to the best of my recollection.

Just tell him who took the photo.

Fucking hell, seriously! You're absolutely right! That should do it right there!

There is no way on earth that an ex-lawyer like Harvey would ignore - could ignore - evidence like that if it was presented to him, especially considering that he knows full well that the Joker is more than capable of such an insidious deed.Well, there is one way, and that's if this is entirely the Big Bad Harv side--the raging, irrational overgrown child--in control. But based on what we see here, I'm not sure that idea could even hold water. I agree, his lawyer self should have been engaged enough to consider the evidence

[psychopathicus]

It's my personal theory, as I think I've mentioned before, that 'Big Bad Harv' no longer actually exists, that he was subsumed into the Two-Face personality by the shock of the acid scarring. (The main evidence for this would be that Harv has no particular obsession with duality; that came later, after his 'host' was bifurcated.) As such, yeah, I don't think 'Harv has taken over, and he ain't listening' would really work. Two-Face may be brutal and irrational at times, but he's not stupid, and in just about every continuity, he hates the Joker - just hearing that the Clown Prince might have been pulling his chain should be enough to get his attention.
I think the key to writing Harvey is to portray him as someone who is teetering on the thin edge of being beyond hope - he's just barely managing to hold onto his good side and allow it some influence over his truly twisted dark side. That's kind of a tricky balancing act, and I'm guessing that a number of writers just go 'screw it' and portray him as having already gone over the

[napoleoncheese]

The artwork in this story is so good, I'm sad the art for the followup is so... mediocre. Even Burchett's inks couldn't save the last few issues of B&RA, graphically speaking. And when he left, my God... Issue 18, a Joker and Harley story, has the worst artwork I've ever seen in a DCAU style book.

[lego_joker]

Huh. I've read that issue a dozen times, and I've never noticed it before.

Maybe that's just another sign of just how strong Templeton's script was. Guy's probably the most underrated Joker writer of all time.

[about_faces]

Yeah, the artwork for the followup is SERIOUSLY lacking. I so wish Burchett had just taken over the penciling duties as well, like he did with Gotham Adventures. It breaks my heart that the quarter story I'll be posting next in this series is drawn in such a subpar manner, since it really is one of my very favorite Two-Face stories.

But yes, the artwork here was amazing. I love Templeton's art anyway, especially his covers, but I think Burchett's inks add something to them that's just perfect.