The Evolution of The Joker

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  • Опубликовано: 4 июл 2024
  • Recommended reading:
    The Killing Joke: amzn.to/32Nm2Lj
    The Joker: A Celebration of 75 Years: amzn.to/30mEoky
    Batman: A Death in the Family: amzn.to/30la61u
    Batman: Death of the Family: amzn.to/2Lv3xFv
    Batman: The Man Who Laughs: amzn.to/2Q8rR4o
    Batman: Mad Love: amzn.to/2O48yGW
    Batman: White Knight: amzn.to/2O48B5A
    The Joker is one of the most iconic villains in comic books. This video explains the history of his creation and discusses the writers and artists who made significant contributions to his history. From Bob Kane, Bill Finger, and Jerry Robinson to Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo many have written the Joker and he's been different things in different eras: from a gangster to a prankster.
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Комментарии • 717

  • @eljamaicano1
    @eljamaicano1 4 года назад +1210

    “Oh hey you caught me living in a society, talking about society let’s talk about the joker”

    • @JungoFunko
      @JungoFunko 4 года назад +1

      lmao

    • @JamesW6179
      @JamesW6179 4 года назад +28

      George Costanza as the Joker? I can see it.

    • @LARKXHIN
      @LARKXHIN 4 года назад +18

      Ok, I WISH this has been the intro lmao

    • @Targisvear
      @Targisvear 4 года назад +6

      High Society, hence Down Town Abbey Comics Makes sense.

    • @ghazzter
      @ghazzter 4 года назад +12

      Take look at this society

  • @paulattardo3024
    @paulattardo3024 4 года назад +492

    Best comic book related show on RUclips, by far.

    • @arnumorales
      @arnumorales 4 года назад +8

      Agreed

    • @phatmantv
      @phatmantv 4 года назад +11

      Top 5 : Comicstorian/
      Blerd w/o fear/Comic Tropes/Comics Explained/NewSage.

    • @nick.19
      @nick.19 4 года назад +1

      Facts.

    • @shayZero
      @shayZero 2 года назад

      Really is

    • @jonathankruger2899
      @jonathankruger2899 2 года назад +1

      I absolutely LOVE The Imaginary Axis. Probably my absolute favorite fiction RUclips channel. This is by far my favorite comic history channel though.

  • @Norvo82
    @Norvo82 4 года назад +252

    The last time I was this early, Bob Kane hadn't even ripped off Bill Finger yet!

    • @joshdoek
      @joshdoek 4 года назад +22

      But still enough time to rip off The Shadow.

    • @gigly1990
      @gigly1990 4 года назад +3

      😂😂😂😂😂

    • @VicEntity
      @VicEntity 4 года назад +2

      Daaamnnnn

  • @LARKXHIN
    @LARKXHIN 4 года назад +160

    "He calls it a BONER." ok I knew that but I still burst out laughing in public.

    • @houseofmmm
      @houseofmmm 4 года назад +5

      I laughed so hard lol

    • @Xehanort10
      @Xehanort10 3 года назад +8

      "Laugh at my boner will they? I'll show them how many boners The Joker can make."

    • @user-pq6mr6op3p
      @user-pq6mr6op3p 2 года назад

      Immature kids....SMH

    • @tootbender6935
      @tootbender6935 2 года назад +3

      "I can see it in your eyes, the anger, the frustration, *the hints of repressed sexual tension, * oh hang on! Is that just when you see me? OooOOOOoooh!"
      -Joker, Batman Arkham City.

    • @ВиноградФиолетовый2008
      @ВиноградФиолетовый2008 3 месяца назад

      Lore reasons?

  • @cha5
    @cha5 4 года назад +248

    I remember back in the late 1990’s the first and only time that I met Jerry Robinson at the San Diego Comic-Con,
    I had a passion for meeting Golden Age comic book artists and getting their autographs on my GA back issues (which I still have today) and I brought down a bunch of early Detective Comics, Batman’s and World’s Finest to get him to sign,
    Neil Gaiman was having a signing that same day and I remember seeing a massive line of people waiting for him and pretty much nobody going to Jerry’s table and he was sitting at an empty table with nobody there and the Gaiman line was going right by his table with nobody even giving him the time of day. (this really annoyed me at the time that one of the most iconic Batman artists of all time and the co-creator of the Joker as well of Robin and Alfred and a large chunk of Batman’s rogues gallery being completely bypassed by everyone just then,) anyways he was kind enough to sign my books and I talked to him a bit and I asked him some questions about the Joker’s creation and other things and if the old Coney Island funny face logo had any role in the creation of the Joker back in 1940,
    He denied that and stated that Conrad Viedt’s The Man Who Laughs movie was the main inspiration behind the Joker’s creation.
    I always remember that Jerry Robinson was really a nice sweet man and one of the most accessible and kindest comics creators that I’ve ever met and I wish that I could have brought a camcorder with me that day to have caught that conversation I had with him then.

    • @bryanjturner21
      @bryanjturner21 4 года назад +8

      Why didn't you educate those Plebs in the Gaiman line?

    • @prajwaljayaraj5887
      @prajwaljayaraj5887 4 года назад +2

      How heartwarming

    • @antona.8659
      @antona.8659 4 года назад +12

      Not a lot of people knew about Jerry's involment in Joker's creation. Kane made sure that his name will be the first and the last people see in the credits.

    • @bradenhogan2
      @bradenhogan2 4 года назад +21

      Jerry Robinson created almost everything about Joker that makes him Joker. He was taking a writing class and had the idea that such a serious character as Batman should have a humorous villain to balance him out. He was inspired by playing cards around the house and worked all night on designing him and thinking about his personality. When he told Bill Finger his idea, Finger showed him an image of Veidt in Man Who Laughs. It was agreed that Finger, being a more experienced writer, should write the Joker’s stories. So Joker was co-created by Jerry Robinson and Bill Finger, and it is not evident that Bob Kane made any creative decisions on Joker, aside from co-illustrating the first stories with Robinson. It’s a shame Robinson doesn’t get as much credit as he should for the one monumental thing he did in his life, creating one of if not the best villain of all time. Neil Gaiman is an amazing writer and deserving of such a huge line, but I’d have chosen Robinson as well

    • @adfnow6270
      @adfnow6270 4 года назад +7

      But, there's a simple version that gets ignored because it's not that mysterious. First off, I think Jerry Robinson is great and he was there since day one and deserves complete respect. Bob Kane was an egotistical jerk, no argument. BUT..
      Bob Kane was thinking of a clown villain..that's about it. No name or visual. Bill Finger had access to a pic or two of the silent movie 'the man who laughs'. He hadn't seen the movie, but he had read a pulp magazine containing a villain named The Grinning Ghoul. He wouldn't use the phrase "rip-off" ,but instead say "take-off"..
      Conversations between the three creators and all three viewing Bills pic reference ended will Jerry sketching a playing card combining Bill's 'man who laughs' idea with Bob's clown villain into a playing card Joker, giving him a name the Joker. Bill said great!
      " But don't give him the actual jester suit from the card" giving him basically normal formal wear for the 1930's just purple.
      I've read as many available accounts from all 3 available and believe this version 100 percent.
      Bob stayed pissed at Jerry to the end. Bill would say , well it was Bob's idea first , meaning a new villain. Jerry remembered his card and would refer to it as his original sketch with the playing card element giving the character the name Joker. They should all three be proud, but it kinda like 3 musicians writing a song and trying to remember who did what years later 🙂

  • @unstoppableExodia
    @unstoppableExodia 4 года назад +68

    Woohoo my fan art inspired by Greg Land's lazy tracing technique got exhibited at 19:07. What an honor. I had a lot of fun composing that piece.

  • @jasongarrett768
    @jasongarrett768 4 года назад +45

    Damn, this was my first time seeing a young Dennis O’Neil. He looks like a long-suffering poet on the verge of either forming The Cure or suddenly directing a bleak award winning Swedish film in the 60’s.

  • @MiloKuroshiro
    @MiloKuroshiro 4 года назад +344

    Nooo I don't like the more zoomed out camera
    My illusion is broken

    • @rosendomunoz3872
      @rosendomunoz3872 4 года назад +44

      the fact that there are edges to that wall blew my mind

    • @thevintagetoykid320
      @thevintagetoykid320 4 года назад +6

      I believe that backdrop is located at the bottom of his basement staircase.

    • @naplockblubba5369
      @naplockblubba5369 4 года назад +4

      cursed_backdrop

  • @antonydrossos5719
    @antonydrossos5719 4 года назад +23

    9:25 Wanna bet that was THE ONE TIME Batman forgot to bring his Shark Repellent?

  • @gsr1861
    @gsr1861 3 года назад +15

    I'm 70 years old and this is like going back to school! VERY well done.

  • @ninjaworshipper
    @ninjaworshipper 4 года назад +113

    Batman Beyond Return Of The Joker is honestly fkn awesome

    • @ronaldfrechette2045
      @ronaldfrechette2045 4 года назад +7

      Agreed. Glad someone said it. Frankly, the whole 90s animated series and associated films were great.

    • @tayojones9460
      @tayojones9460 4 года назад

      True.

    • @JimmyCee123
      @JimmyCee123 4 года назад +1

      Hey nice icon!

    • @architeuthis3476
      @architeuthis3476 4 года назад +7

      Joker's last words being "that's not funny" is perfect!

    • @kwameadu0075
      @kwameadu0075 4 года назад +2

      @@ronaldfrechette2045 And the other shows in that universe were great as well.

  • @tentringer4065
    @tentringer4065 4 года назад +227

    I would read a Downton Abbey Incredible Hulk crossover comic. Hulk smash the class system!

    • @1bridge11
      @1bridge11 4 года назад +11

      The Hulk is a communist?

    • @lhfirex
      @lhfirex 4 года назад +20

      @@1bridge11 There's always Red Hulk for that.

    • @1bridge11
      @1bridge11 4 года назад +2

      @@lhfirex LOL. Yeah, that's right.

    • @DrGrizzley
      @DrGrizzley 4 года назад +3

      Dude... that comment deserves multiple upvotes. You just made my wife and i both burst out laughing.

    • @1bridge11
      @1bridge11 4 года назад +2

      @@DrGrizzley Thank you very much. I'm here all week.

  • @Jim-Mc
    @Jim-Mc 4 года назад +43

    Best Joker story is the animated series episode "Joker's Favor." 🃏 Random family guy road rages at a bad driver cursing him, only to find he's been raging at the Joker. The Joker quickly turns the tables and chases him, finally agreeing not to kill him under the condition he will owe the Joker a favor. It's fantastic and gets at the precocious but terrifying nature of the Joker

    • @amy-ql5wo
      @amy-ql5wo 2 года назад +2

      I too love that episode. Just perfect. It's great to see how an ordinary citizen reacts to The Joker.

    • @rudyando
      @rudyando 2 года назад +1

      I just introduced Batman the animated series to my daughter's this Christmas. They are 4 and 9 and seemed to enjoy the show - I'm eager to rewatch that one.

  • @ronaldfrechette2045
    @ronaldfrechette2045 4 года назад +34

    I really liked the heavily implied backstory in Mask of the Phantasm

    • @SonofSethoitae
      @SonofSethoitae 3 года назад +10

      It's all but outright stated in MotP

  • @jamesdent9057
    @jamesdent9057 4 года назад +131

    You’re one of the most underrated channels on RUclips. Keep it up dude!

  • @TheMicBartz
    @TheMicBartz 4 года назад +31

    "Joker" by Brian Azzarello and Lee Bermejo. It is set in it's own continuity, and features a day in the life of the Joker through the eyes of one of his henchman. Fascinating read, amazing art!

  • @Xehanort10
    @Xehanort10 3 года назад +8

    15:08 They also did it in The Dark Knight Returns having Joker go catatonic after Bruce retired as Batman and only snapping out of it when Bruce put the cape and cowl back on.

  • @neighborhoodvillain8992
    @neighborhoodvillain8992 4 года назад +64

    Great video but Hugo Strange is actually the first recurring Batman villain, not Joker. He even existed before the first Batman Series.

    • @Tabish29
      @Tabish29 3 года назад +8

      Wat about Dr Death?

    • @sarge1408
      @sarge1408 2 года назад +3

      Fuck Doctor Death

    • @ALIEN-DUDE
      @ALIEN-DUDE 2 года назад

      He's a villain though, not a supervillain 😎🤔

    • @lavabite
      @lavabite 2 года назад

      Hugo strange was killed off after his second appearance, he wasn't reoccurring untill he was brought back in the 70s

  • @lerquian1970
    @lerquian1970 4 года назад +84

    The new Joker looks promising...
    Tommy Wiseau really added to the character.

    • @nicholastosoni707
      @nicholastosoni707 4 года назад +14

      "I not goin' to kill you...I just hurrrrrt you vairr' bahdly!"

    • @DerPafferfish
      @DerPafferfish 4 года назад +12

      Anyway, Bruce, how's your sexlife?

    • @Antractica
      @Antractica 4 года назад +1

      Ah, ha ha ha....

    • @zadalmelik011
      @zadalmelik011 3 года назад +3

      "Oh, Hi Bruce!"

  • @julianking4793
    @julianking4793 4 года назад +23

    A masterclass in how to be light, entertaining and interesting.

  • @elizabethtangora4353
    @elizabethtangora4353 4 года назад +27

    A big thumbs-up for featuring my all-time favorite Joker storyline at 9:55, when he challenged Batman to a surfing contest.

  • @scottfree2248
    @scottfree2248 4 года назад +12

    The Joker is truly timeless. His design is Archetypal. The perfect embodiment of chaos and insanity. A visage that is familiar and funny, yet horribly twisted. It's amazing to think that this brilliant character debuted perfectly formed in his first appearance! Maybe Bob Kane, Jerry Robinson, and Bill Finger unknowingly pulled the original Joker out of the collective unconscious that fuels our dreams and shadows our nightmares.

    • @scottfree2248
      @scottfree2248 4 года назад

      Logan Waltz I understand. If you look at the context of when the Joker first appears in 1940 evil killer clowns were not very common in Comics or literature. Fear of clowns and evil clowns are everywhere in popular culture now. I do think that the Joker is overused and like other Batman villains like Scarecrow alot more.

  • @yeshuabhatti6248
    @yeshuabhatti6248 4 года назад +149

    8:05 - 8:35 I love how Chris ignores Suicide Squad joker

    • @JakobKaine_BrickJAK
      @JakobKaine_BrickJAK 4 года назад +16

      because that wasn't Joker. Even Roger Stoneburner was a better Joker than Leto.

    • @blackphoenix77
      @blackphoenix77 4 года назад +13

      He deserves to be ignored

    • @kostajovanovic3711
      @kostajovanovic3711 4 года назад +2

      Good

    • @exquisitecorpse__
      @exquisitecorpse__ 4 года назад +2

      That's for the Best.

    • @thebombsauce
      @thebombsauce 4 года назад +5

      They were just trying badly to transition joker to a more modern set of fears. He was supposed to be more of a modern gangster and I think they will probably keep trying to push that angle with face tats and things.

  • @CaptainAmerica930
    @CaptainAmerica930 4 года назад +15

    2:34 The guy playing The Man Who Laughs looks scary as hell.
    The modern interpretations of the Joker do not scare me.
    But that guy does. Even though he's not the Joker.

    • @SonofSethoitae
      @SonofSethoitae 4 года назад +4

      The weirdest thing is that The Man Who Laughs isn't even a horror movie. Gwynplaine is a tragic character in a romantic melodrama.
      Also, while this isn't strictly relevant, the same guy (Conrad Veidt) played Major Strasser in Casablanca.

    • @d36williams
      @d36williams 4 года назад +1

      In the movie and the novel he's not scary, he's a sympathetic hero who finds love despite his disfigurement.

  • @nickangelo116
    @nickangelo116 4 года назад +33

    This guy knows his stuff and does his research. He doesn't cease to educate me. This is a great channel. I've probably hit like every video I've watched on this channel.

  • @herogohome4445
    @herogohome4445 4 года назад +12

    Joker's Five-Way Revenge came out when I was first really getting into comics, and it's still my favorite Joker story. One aspect of Joker's origin that I've never seen anyone else mention, partly because I don't think it was brought up by any of the original creators, was what served as the inspiration for the plot of the first Joker story and therefore had a huge influence on the Joker's character over the years. I discuss this in a video on my channel titled "Batman/Joker: Same Guy?"

  • @jordannino1836
    @jordannino1836 4 года назад +65

    The best comic reviewer on the best comic villain.
    This is a wonderful day.

    • @nilus2k
      @nilus2k 4 года назад +2

      This isn’t about Doctor Octopus!! :)

    • @mrboerger1620
      @mrboerger1620 4 года назад

      I know Ash won the Pokemon league

    • @tayojones9460
      @tayojones9460 4 года назад

      Ash won the league? It's the end of the world!!!

  • @blackphoenix77
    @blackphoenix77 4 года назад +133

    To be honest, my favorite Joker is the sillier one who doesn't kill people all that often, like the version from Batman the Animated Series.

    • @tanuki01
      @tanuki01 4 года назад +51

      Black Phoenix I too like when he’s unpredictable. You don’t know if it’s gonna be a stupid prank, a sly con, or a blood bath

    • @coreylineberry8557
      @coreylineberry8557 4 года назад +15

      Edwin Latorre Personally my favorite incarnation is from the Arkham games... Up until he roids out by the end of Asylum.

    • @ianbyrne465
      @ianbyrne465 4 года назад +2

      He's more chaotic, which is good for his character I feel

    • @-Teague-
      @-Teague- 3 года назад

      Same

    • @theleonpasta7336
      @theleonpasta7336 3 года назад +17

      I think the Joker works perfectly in the middle. Make him too serious or too silly and he's not really the Joker anymore. Serious Joker and Silly Joker can and do work (Dark Knight, 60's Batman) but being in the middle is where he really shines.

  • @GeekGamerGui
    @GeekGamerGui 4 года назад +5

    I like the Joker from the Telltale game "Batman: The Ennemy Within" in which he attempts to become a hero for Gotham and Batman's sidekick for a short period of time.

  • @joshdoek
    @joshdoek 4 года назад +56

    *tilts thick horn rim glasses*
    A slight correction concerning the Killing Joke: his wife in the story is not sick, she's pregnant. It's then said that she is killed in an electrical accident involving a baby bottle warmer.

    • @KhayJayArt
      @KhayJayArt 4 года назад +4

      Nerd

    • @mittelz5976
      @mittelz5976 4 года назад +12

      I was actually a bit confused at that. To my mind, the downright silly way of dying by a faulty baby bottle warmer must have really kicked the joker, when he was at his lowest. The death of his wife is basically a one sentence gag, a bad punchline. Which is how he prefers to kill people in most itterations.

    • @rm9308
      @rm9308 4 года назад +1

      @@mittelz5976 Is Joker telling you how his wife died?

  • @kokukatsuragi3754
    @kokukatsuragi3754 4 года назад +4

    Five way revenge was scary as hell.

  • @jpav35
    @jpav35 4 года назад +3

    I can smell those musty old comic pages through my computer screen. So good.

  • @Bonzulac
    @Bonzulac 4 года назад +4

    "Conrad Veeedt." When it comes to mispronouncing names with utter composure and confidence, you never disappoint.

  • @Ac0ustics0ul
    @Ac0ustics0ul 4 года назад +14

    I've always enjoyed comics, but I'm not an enthusiast by any means... yet, I still find myself watching your show all the time, you do a great job

  • @GandalfofROCK
    @GandalfofROCK 4 года назад +5

    No matter how crappy my life is this guy always makes me smile.

  • @raffierutomo8948
    @raffierutomo8948 4 года назад +151

    I missed the time when the worst thing joker did was call out boners

    • @lostuser1094
      @lostuser1094 4 года назад +28

      Raffier Utomo I’LL SHOW THEM. I’LL SHOW THEM ALL. THE JOKER’S BONER SHALL THE GREATEST IN THE LAND.

    • @TheMaxxAwesome
      @TheMaxxAwesome 4 года назад +8

      Chris made a huge boner by not focusing on that single issue.

    • @liamroberson440
      @liamroberson440 4 года назад +10

      Raffier Utomo I’LL SHOW THEM HOW MANY BONERS THE JOKER CAN MAKE!

    • @davidgraham8299
      @davidgraham8299 4 года назад +2

      That sounds so wrong 😅

  • @iamdeath4193
    @iamdeath4193 4 года назад +18

    Actually Hugo Strange was Batman's first recurring villain.

    • @ComicTropes
      @ComicTropes  4 года назад +10

      I Am Death He appeared in the same issue but Joker was in 2 stories in that issue plus the next issue so I’m giving it to Joker.

    • @iamdeath4193
      @iamdeath4193 4 года назад +8

      Comic Tropes Hugo Strange debuted in Detective Comics #36 in February of 1940 whereas Joker debuted in Batman #1 in April 1940. Hugo Strange also was in Batman #1 with Joker. Hugo Strange was already in the previous Detective Comics before Joker and appeared again in the same issue as Joker. I think it's only fair that Hugo Strange was Batman's first recurring villain.

    • @randallflagg3700
      @randallflagg3700 4 года назад +5

      Actually, Doctor Death was Batman's first recurring villain. He a great design in "Zero Year: Dark City" and "House of Hush".

    • @210SAi
      @210SAi 3 года назад +1

      @@randallflagg3700 Dr Death was a great wrestler

  • @Kikilang60
    @Kikilang60 4 года назад +6

    I have to say, your channel is incredible. It goes way beyond just a comic channel.

  • @Pacman8907
    @Pacman8907 4 года назад +6

    Dear comic tropes,
    I recently started a new career and a perk of my job is. I can listen to whatever I want. I've really enjoyed watching every episode of Comic tropes, from your Stan Lee episode to the marv wolfman, and others. I continue to look forward to your episodes!
    My favorite quote of yours is from the Nintendo game boy episode "imagine working at your job for twenty years, and throwing it all away by taking a dump on your desk and getting fired, just to go home and brag about it to your pet rat." comedic gold; my co workers were wondering what made me laugh for like 20 minutes. Thank you

  • @BlueTomorrows
    @BlueTomorrows 4 года назад +201

    80s: Joker was created be being thrown into a vat of acid
    2019: Joker was created by being thrown into society

    • @ridhosamudro2199
      @ridhosamudro2199 4 года назад +27

      Acid is toxic, thus the society is figuratively toxic in this case.


      BOTTOM TEXT

    • @ChaseDaOrk3767
      @ChaseDaOrk3767 4 года назад +12

      @@ridhosamudro2199 What if Veronica friend zoned him?

    • @tanuki01
      @tanuki01 4 года назад +3

      Chase Tosh makes sense. Just like the Joker, the friend zone is fictional

    • @Bitzy
      @Bitzy 4 года назад +5

      Monotech2.0
      ok

    • @Bitzy
      @Bitzy 4 года назад +4

      thrown into a vat of society

  • @oldmanlogan9616
    @oldmanlogan9616 4 года назад +2

    I really like the episode of " Batman the Brave and the Bold" in which Batman goes to Earth 3, in which heroes are villains and villains are heros, and Batman becomes friends with the heroic version of Joker, the Red Hood.

  • @vincentfranklin17
    @vincentfranklin17 3 года назад +3

    The Joker War is one of the best storylines with the character, in my humble opinion.

  • @TinSoulTheFirst
    @TinSoulTheFirst Год назад +1

    "It features Batman fighting a shark", as a kid I got the "Greatest Joker Stories" out from the library regularly and that was one of my favourites.

  • @BWS2K
    @BWS2K 4 года назад +5

    Batman's character is heavily influenced by his childhood and past, his inner fears and his dual nature. Joker, a his nemesis, has an enigmatic and dubious past and nature, which is why they play off each other so well. Lovely video, as always!

  • @sonicmario64
    @sonicmario64 2 года назад +3

    Some people like the Joker when he's portrayed as being a homicidal criminal while other people like the Joker whenever he's protrayed as being a comical prankster. To me, I actually like the Joker whenever he's a unique combination of the two such as in the 1989 "Batman" movie as well as in "Batman: The Animated Series".

  • @Mikeanglo
    @Mikeanglo 4 года назад +5

    The artwork in Arkham Asylum absolutely freaks me out.

  • @Belgand
    @Belgand 4 года назад +3

    Agreed. The best treatment of The Joker has no backstory nor can he be "cured" or exist independently of Batman. Giving him any sort of humanization like that or alternative simply weakens the character. He isn't a person in any conventional sense, not even an insane one. He's a force of nature. Something that just *is*. Aside from serving his own characterization so well it provides an important contrast to Batman for whom identity is such a powerful element. More than most heroes, Batman is defined primarily by his backstory. By his continued decision to be Batman and the question of whether Bruce Wayne is the real mask he wears.

  • @RobertJW
    @RobertJW 3 года назад +3

    Joker’s Asylum had two stories that always stood out to me very strongly.
    The Joker’s own story is amazing in that series, of course.
    But the other one that gets me is the Two-Face story, and Joker’s framing device for that book. God, I honestly love it.

  • @hellishhybrid1839
    @hellishhybrid1839 4 года назад +3

    The direction they've taken the Joker recently is 2edgy4me.

  • @DunnoJustLuckyIGuess
    @DunnoJustLuckyIGuess 4 года назад +8

    Big ups for mentioning Bill Finger at the start instead of at the end as an afterthought! I love this channel, keep up the great work buddy.

  • @Sam-nk6hk
    @Sam-nk6hk 24 дня назад +1

    I loved the insight into Joker's character from Return of The Joker, the Batman Beyond movie. Remembering Bruce's advise that "Joker likes to talk", Terry thinks, "Hey, I like to talk too". Joker cant handle a trash-talking joke-telling Batman and completely loses his cool! I feel like there's a lot at work there thematically, psychologically, and just in terms of the character dynamic between Joker and Batman.

  • @Atlas-hl1zo
    @Atlas-hl1zo 4 года назад +11

    Wasn't Dr. Death the first recurring Batman villain with Hugo Strange being second and Joker being tied with Catwoman for third recurring villains?

    • @Captain_MonsterFart
      @Captain_MonsterFart 4 года назад

      That is a great version of the Joker. Whenever I read comics, that's the voice in my head for him.

  • @shoddyworkmanship4934
    @shoddyworkmanship4934 4 года назад +4

    I'm glad you pointed out that Joker represents chaos and Batman represents order. For me that is the key part of their dynamic.

    • @shoddyworkmanship4934
      @shoddyworkmanship4934 4 года назад

      @sokratis konomi I don't know about that. Robbing banks to get rich seems rational. There are villains that go by their own rigid moral code, like Dr. Doom for instance. I don't think chaos is necessarily evil, and furthermore evil as a concept is flimsy. It seems important to the Joker that he is doing the unexpected, and his game seems to be to test Batman to see if he can find the logic within (what seems) to be chaos. I don't know - personally that is why I think the dynamic between Batman and Joker works so well. What other villain can you think of that wants the hero to kill him, just so he would break his own code?

    • @shoddyworkmanship4934
      @shoddyworkmanship4934 4 года назад

      @sokratis konomi Point taken. I suppose the chaos/order paradigm is something I probably see more of than is really there because I enjoy the idea. Having said that, this broad symbolism has been touched on enough (both directly and sub-textually) that our host of Comic Tropes made mention of it himself.
      I can't find the exact quote, but I remember Joker once saying something like, "Every time I break free from the box Batman's put me in, he just draws a bigger box around me." He was speaking about how he tries to "think outside the box", but Batman can see through all the twists and turns of Joker's logic, making the Joker ordinary and predictable - the recipe for an unfunny joke (since jokes depend on creative logic and the surprise that creative logic creates).

  • @jeffreya1678
    @jeffreya1678 3 года назад +1

    Back in the early/mid 90s, there were a couple Batman / Punisher crossovers, one from DC staff and one from Marvel. I don't remember which one it was, but in one of them, Jigsaw (a Punisher villain) travels to Gotham as he's in some sort of weapons selling business with the Joker. Punisher tracks Jigsaw to Gotham, and Batman's watching both Jigsaw and Punisher as he doesn't consider Punisher to be much more than another villain.
    Long story short, all four (Batman, Punisher, Joker, Jigsaw) get into a shoot out in a warehouse, and it includes some great one on one dialogue between the Joker and the Punisher, with the Joker taunting Punisher non-stop. Right about when the Punisher finally corners Joker and is about to kill him, Batman intervenes and tells the Joker to run for it. What makes this so great is that there's an entire page, with nine panels, showing the Joker's reaction as he finally realizes that the Punisher's threats to kill him weren't hyperbole or empty.
    It's a bit of an interesting twist, as it seems to imply the Joker's very aware that Batman will never cross the line and kill him, and that he thinks all other heroes are simply unwilling or unable to kill him as well. But it also lands perfectly as you (the reader) now realize the Joker this whole time has been hilariously taunting what he thinks is an empty threat and, when he realizes the truth, he reacts as if the Punisher is truly insane compared to himself and Batman.

  • @arootube
    @arootube 4 года назад +4

    I've never really been a fan of takes where Joker "goes sane". He has an insatiable zeal for wanton chaos and I don't see losing his opposition as an end to that desire.

  • @matthinton19
    @matthinton19 4 года назад +3

    I consider Scott snyder the definitive joker smart, dangerous and absolutely terrifying. But two great stories are the main who laughs which is another introduction for him and the one where he kidnaps Robin in and drives him around town

  • @iconoclast137
    @iconoclast137 4 года назад +1

    you're a rare example of someone who made me hit the subscribe button less than halfway into the first video i've seen from you

  • @vin-cc9nk
    @vin-cc9nk 4 года назад +2

    LOL the joker trying to collect royalties from fish with his face is actually hilarious, I could see a story like that being done in the present day as some kind of critique of the absurdity of copyright laws and how corporations exploit them

  • @phillipthethird3424
    @phillipthethird3424 4 года назад +13

    everything you said about the joker's personality reminds me of Heath's ledgers joker, but I still think Hamill is the definition of the joker :)

    • @Changetheling
      @Changetheling 4 года назад +3

      Mark Hamill's Joker is the one I use to measure everyone elses'.
      His work on Arkham Trilogy goes beyond incredible.
      While the other Jokers captured great facets
      (other than Romero's who is is God-tier),
      Hamill simply pulls off the ESSENCE of Joker.

    • @sbyrstall
      @sbyrstall 4 года назад

      @@Changetheling in ERB of Joker vs. Pennywise, Pennywise zinged him with not being able to escape Ceaser Romero's mustache. LOL

  • @tanglycrescent6433
    @tanglycrescent6433 2 года назад +1

    I love this channel! Got me back into comics after years.

  • @pierluigizappala1157
    @pierluigizappala1157 4 года назад +3

    Loved the video, surprised you didn’t mention “joker” by Brian Azzarello and Lee Bermejo, is one of the best joker stories to balance the different personas of the character, he is all at once a joke spitting gangster and a insane serial killer.

  • @graphosxp
    @graphosxp 4 года назад +1

    Thanks for all the hard work you put into these videos!

  • @nw8488
    @nw8488 2 года назад +1

    i just have to thank you for all the work you do. anytime i think of something that i'm curious about related to comic history and i google it, you are always the result i trust most. thanks!

  • @BobGeis
    @BobGeis 4 года назад +1

    Really good stuff. Thanks for creating this.

  • @HiddenInTheTruth
    @HiddenInTheTruth 4 года назад +1

    Snyder's "Endgame" was also a good look at the relationship between Batman and Joker, a nice followup to "Death of the Family"
    in my opinion.
    Though one note on this video: the Batman Newspaper comic was actually _not_ successful as far as i've read. While Superman had a very well received run in papers, Batman was only carried by a few papers and only a couple for it's full first run. I recently was gifted 2 omnibus collections reprinting the original Newspaper dailies for both Batman and Superman which included some fascinating background information on the process behind making the two series.
    At any rate, excellent video.

  • @shermanium7834
    @shermanium7834 4 года назад +1

    this is the best comic channel on YT!

  • @stefanfilipovits21
    @stefanfilipovits21 4 года назад +18

    Joker: lovers and Madmen is a REALLY great origin story for joker that in my opinion doesn’t get its due.

    • @stefanfilipovits21
      @stefanfilipovits21 4 года назад +4

      Mad Mario definitely do if u get a chance. It’s written by Michael Green with pencils by Denys Cowan, inks by John Floyd, color by Travis Lanham, and letters by Ken Lopez. As far as joker origins go it’s like a mix between Killing Joke and the origin from Mask Of The Phantasm. Criminally underrated imo.

    • @difficultbastard
      @difficultbastard 4 года назад +4

      Now this is what makes comments great _people mentioning things I've never even heard of, so now I have something to look forward to finding.

    • @stefanfilipovits21
      @stefanfilipovits21 4 года назад +1

      difficultbastard definitely check it out if you can. It’s killing joke meets mask of the phantasm meets Batman ‘89 meets sin city. I really enjoy it and can’t recommend it enough.

    • @architeuthis3476
      @architeuthis3476 4 года назад +1

      Huh, I hadn't heard of that one before. I'll have to check it out. Thanks!

    • @stefanfilipovits21
      @stefanfilipovits21 4 года назад +2

      Archi Teuthis anytime! Definitely give it a shot. It’s not as iconic as Killing Joke but as far as Joker origins and psychology it might be my favorite. I think the pre-Joker in Lovers & Madmen is EXACTLY what the Joker would be like before his acid bath. It’s Batman ‘89 meets Mask of The Phantasm meets Killing Joke. It also reminds me a little of The Man Who Killed Batman from BTAS in that the jokers life before or without Batman is boring, pointless, and unfulfilled. You’ll see what I mean when you read it. But yeah, it’s an interesting take and definitely one of my favorite joker stories.

  • @johntrek187
    @johntrek187 2 года назад

    I love your channel. It gives off a real comic book store vibe. Look and sound...

  • @DrGrizzley
    @DrGrizzley 4 года назад +5

    Pity you didn't have more time to get into the Arkham Asylum comic. I think it's one of the greatest graphic novels ever. It's disturbing, thoughtful, and oddly beautiful in it's representations of the insanity/sanity in Batman's world.

  • @McMuguets
    @McMuguets 4 года назад +2

    I'd love to watch something like this but regarding Dr.Doom. Awesome work, as always!

  • @TurntechGallows
    @TurntechGallows 4 года назад +1

    Thanks for another amazing video! Hope things are well.

  • @aSongFromTheSixties
    @aSongFromTheSixties 2 года назад

    Just discovered this channel! Great stuff man!

  • @wandersonoliveira263
    @wandersonoliveira263 4 года назад +44

    What about Frank Miller's Joker in the Dark Knight Returns?

    • @AscendtionArc
      @AscendtionArc 4 года назад +8

      or the 3 Jokers.

    • @RighteousBrother
      @RighteousBrother 4 года назад +12

      Yeah, really enjoy Chris's videos, but no mention of The Dark Knight does seem like a bit of an oversight.

    • @nilus2k
      @nilus2k 4 года назад +5

      RighteousBrother. For how influential TDK is, it’s out of the actual continuity and I don’t think Millers take on Joker carries over as much as his Batman did.

    • @oldmanlogan9616
      @oldmanlogan9616 4 года назад +4

      @@nilus2k the going sane storyline that he talks about in the video has a idea similar to the one Miller uses, of Joker stopping being himself after Batman vanishing.

    • @wandersonoliveira263
      @wandersonoliveira263 4 года назад +10

      @@nilus2k SPOILERS from DKR(Maybe someone didn't read it yet) Actually, the third issue really dives in their relationship, pointing that in a world without Batman, the Joker has no reason to go on. When Batman is back, so is Joker. And at the end, when Batman is about to cross his line and finally end his nemesis, he is not capable of doing it. And Joker is so crazy he breaks his own neck to blame Batman for murder and haunt him for something he didn't have the guts to do, even though Joker had taken so much from him. And it has all the hints that Joker loves Batman and treats their relationship like a deturped romance. And remember: This is really the first time in comics that their dinamic was so sploitted. I think it has a lot about Joker in DKR.

  • @lunarmodule6419
    @lunarmodule6419 4 года назад +1

    Man you make my sundays! Love your vids. Thank you 😃

  • @Thebabybadass101
    @Thebabybadass101 4 года назад +2

    Chris I love that you mentioned a serious house on serious earth very underrated book

  • @doclouis4236
    @doclouis4236 3 года назад +2

    I'd like to see a video about the Green Goblin some day.

  • @allenson3553
    @allenson3553 4 года назад +3

    My favorite Joker story isn't actually about Joker (well, sort of!). It's a story in Batman: Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader. For me, it's probably my favorite Joker story because of the plot twist.

  • @JakeStephensMrJakeStephens
    @JakeStephensMrJakeStephens 4 года назад

    Always great snagging one of your vids on a Sunday. :)

  • @geekynerd7346
    @geekynerd7346 4 года назад +1

    Steve Englehart was a much bigger influence than you suggested. He was the first writer to portray the Joker an insane criminal with no apparent motivation for his crimes. Previous writers had portrayed the Joker as a dangerous member of the underworld, but Englehart’s Joker made him a truly sinister figure.
    By the way, Steve Englehart’s 8 issue run on Detective Comics 467-476 might make a good subject for an episode. This short run completely changed how Batman and his foes were perceived

  • @patario
    @patario 4 года назад

    Amazing video - love the channel!

  • @ianfinrir8724
    @ianfinrir8724 8 месяцев назад +1

    I love the Joker Fish story soley because it shows how insane the Joker is. He's told time and time again that you can't copyright/trademark a natural resource and he just doesn't get it (He could, however open his own fish farm and sell the mutated fish himself)

  • @yadro
    @yadro 4 года назад +2

    I just loved when in Knightfall, Batman, affected by Scarecrow's gas, gave Joker a really nice beating for what happed to Robin 2.

  • @DrThrustbone
    @DrThrustbone 4 года назад

    doing great, keep it up! love this channel!

  • @YAMISOOLD2009
    @YAMISOOLD2009 9 месяцев назад

    This video is great. You just educated me on a character I thought I knew better than I actually did! Thank you!

  • @vollsticks
    @vollsticks 4 года назад

    Based Dick Sprang. Incredible. I remember buying The Greatest Joker Stories Ever Told (title?), maybe '88, '89, 1990, possibly (I bought the entire run of Elektra Assassin at the same time for TEN POUNDS so that maybe dates it more accurately?)? It had that great Brian Bolland cover with the laughing fish from the eponymous Marshall Rogers-drawn story included in the tome, the "Five-Way Revenge" comic too ...lots of Dick Sprang in there (likewise in the contemporaneous volume "The Greatest Batman Stories Ever Told"), I remember the "Joker's Utility Belt" story very well and still have that collection of stories somewhere...typing this five minutes into your video (I really should watch 'em FIRST before commenting!) so apologies if I mention anything you went over, which I'm preddy sure you will Chris! I remember catching hell from my parents for phoning the "Save Jason Todd" number...from the UK! Ooops...Ah, the folly of youth. I never liked Jason Todd much tbh but I didn't want the kid to die! :(
    Interesting to hear about all the later Joker stories I missed, long after I quit cape comics...nice little precis, Chris! good work. Oh I did read the one-off just called The JOker, I think, it was Ed Brubaker (I think?) and the artist who went on to draw The Rorschach comics from the Watchmen sequel/prequels...
    I really wanna read "Pow-Wow Smith, Indian Lawman", tbh

  • @sdm47
    @sdm47 2 года назад

    Okay so I went looking for your video on the bat cave only to realize that there isn’t one
    You’re so good with all these other videos and the bat cave is so iconic I was 100% certain that you would’ve done something like that by now

  • @davidbreen6335
    @davidbreen6335 Год назад +2

    The most important incarnation of the Joker, in my opinion. The Joker from The Dark Knight Returns.

    • @KenMasters.
      @KenMasters. 9 месяцев назад

      You mean the most important live-action Joker?

  • @CCaptinnemo
    @CCaptinnemo 4 года назад +2

    You deserve way more subs.

  • @davidhanson4909
    @davidhanson4909 4 года назад +3

    "The Further Adventures of The Joker" (Martin H. Greenberg, ed.) is a pretty good anthology of Joker tales by genre authors. A standout is "Definitive Therapy" by F. Paul Wilson, which may or may not have been an influence on Heath Ledger's interpretation (opinions vary). That story used to be available here on youtube (audio reading), but it's well worth looking up in any case.

  • @morriscolautti9822
    @morriscolautti9822 4 года назад +1

    What a fantastic episode!
    Keep up the great work.
    I may have to go and upgrade my Patreon level.
    Take a trip to Australia when you can. You will not be disappointed.
    Cheers man!

  • @GorositoTV
    @GorositoTV 4 года назад +1

    Great video!

  • @Dr.Vinny05
    @Dr.Vinny05 3 года назад +1

    These are great to watch while drawing

  • @flip1sba
    @flip1sba 3 года назад +2

    That is what I like about Batman, it is arguably more realistic. Both Batman and Joker don't have any superpowers but Joker's brutality speaks for itself and he will go down as THE GREATEST FICTIONAL VILLAIN EVER CREATED!

  • @RikoJAmado
    @RikoJAmado 2 года назад +1

    "Oy, oy, oy mate! You did not just tease a "Downton Abbey" comics and then never bring it up again."

  • @wiiagent
    @wiiagent 3 года назад

    loved this video man

  • @KenMasters.
    @KenMasters. 9 месяцев назад +1

    Fun Fact:
    The Joker started off as a rip-off character to not only Gwynplaine from The Man Who Laughs, but also Dr. Charles "Grim Joker" Dolson from The Shadow Volume 29.

  • @trelard
    @trelard 4 года назад +1

    One of the things I love about the character is the fact we don't know his true origin as he's told a few stories about it.

  • @ryanweston6182
    @ryanweston6182 4 года назад

    Oh man Reign of Emperor Joker is an amazing story. Is there any way to do a video on that storyline? Great video as always. Thank you

  • @anti-duhringbattalion4801
    @anti-duhringbattalion4801 3 месяца назад

    This is an excellent show. I know very little about comic books but this show is opening my mind to this really fascinating genre.

  • @meyes5671
    @meyes5671 4 года назад +1

    It's amazing how consistent he's stayed since the beginning