Batman: The Killing Joke (Deluxe Hardcover Edition)

is an influential one-shot graphic novel written by Alan Moore (of fame), drawn by Brian Bolland, featuring the superhero and title character Batman and his archenemy the Joker, and published by DC Comics in 1988. The story would affect the mainstream Batman continuity in that it features (spoiler alert!--but of course you know this already) the shooting and crippling of Barbara Gordon by the Joker, an event which would lead her to adopt the role and identity of Oracle, a vital source of information for Batman and other superheroes. The plot revolves around a largely psychological battle between Batman and the Joker, who has escaped from Arkham Asylum. The Joker intends to drive Gotham City Police Commissioner James Gordon insane to prove that the most upstanding citizen can go mad after having "one bad day". Along the way, the Joker has flashbacks to his early life, gradually explaining his possible origins--possible because he himself is unsure: "If I'm going to have a past, I prefer it to be multiple choice!" It is a tale of insanity and human perseverance, one of the darkest ever in the entire Batman mythos. This insanity is further explored in the subtext that Batman may be just as insane as the criminals and super-villains he faces, only manifesting it in a different manner. Alan Moore sums it best: "Psychologically Batman and the Joker are mirror images of each other." And such dichotomy between Batman and the Joker is never more creatively explored, either in words or in pictures--or both--than in . This scan is of the Deluxe Hardcover Edition that DC Comics reprinted in 2008 featuring new coloring by Brian Bolland, meant to illustrate his original intentions for the book, with more somber, realistic, and subdued colors than the intensely-colored original. The re-coloring featured black-and-white flashbacks, as opposed to original colorist John Higgins's colors, along with one or two items per panel colored in pink or red, up until the helmet of the Red Hood is revealed. In addition to recoloring the pages, Bolland also altered some facial expressions and added minor artwork. Also included is a colored version of Bolland's "An Innocent Guy" (originally published in Batman Black and White), an introduction by Tim Sale, and an epilogue by Bolland. The deluxe edition also makes changes to the front cover: (1) where the original edition's speech bubble had the Joker saying "SMILE", with no punctuation, the newer cover italicizes it and adds an exclamation point: "SMILE!"; and (2) adding a blurb from noted director and filmmaker Tim Burton (he directed the 1988 film, ) at the upper left corner. This is a continuation of an ongoing effort to post--and present--the superhero Batman in a coherent manner, in the present canon and in the main continuity of DC Comics' Multiverse. An effort that is admittedly and ultimately crippled by the fact that almost all of my own digital copies were irretrievably lost as a result storing them in poor-quality recordable media, and that I had to make do with what I can get from wherever and whatever is available at the moment. Anyhow, since I have already established Batman's development from his accepted origins in to that initial wrap-up of sorts in (see links below), it's time to fully get acquainted with the character commonly described as Batman's greatest foe, in the one-shot that only Alan Moore, one of the greatest and finest comics writers of all time, could write, superbly aided in the telling by artist Brian Bolland. More reviews and other editorial rhapsodies on this graphic novel may be found @http://www.amazon.com/Batman-Killing-Joke-Alan-Moore/dp/1401216676.

See, there were these two guys in a lunatic asylum... and one night, one night they decide they don't like living in an asylum any more. They decide they're going to escape! So, like, they get up onto the roof, and there, just across this narrow gap, they see the rooftops of the town, stretching away in the moon light... stretching away to freedom. Now, the first guy, he jumps right across with no problem. But his friend, his friend didn't dare make the leap. Y'see... Y'see, he's afraid of falling. So then, the first guy has an idea... He says "Hey! I have my flashlight with me! I'll shine it across the gap between the buildings. You can walk along the beam and join me!" B-but the second guy just shakes his head. He suh-says... He says "Wh-what do you think I am? Crazy? You'd turn it off when I was half way across! --

Hilary Goldstein of IGN Comics praised , calling it "easily the greatest Joker story ever told", and adding that "Moore's rhythmic dialogue and Bolland's organic art create a unique story often mimicked but never matched." IGN declared the third-greatest Batman graphic novel, after and . James Donnelly of Pop Syndicate called "one of the greatest comics of the 20th century, period." --

Visit my blog often for regular and complete comic book series updates.