Maximum Joker
If there’s an upper limit to the amount of the Clown Prince we can handle, we might be approaching it.
If I’m going to write an entire article about The Joker, it’s worth starting with an admission at the start: I am not a fan of the character. There are some versions I like, of course, many of which are unfortunately from adaptations instead of comics. 13 In the comics, he only works for me in extremely select scenarios, most recently in Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo’s Black Label series Batman: Last Knight on Earth and perhaps most appropriately in Infinite Crisis, a title he only appeared in for a total of two pages. 14 My ideal version of the character is as an agent of chaos rather than a co-lead of sorts, which means The Joker can act as a barrier to entry for me at times rather than as a lure.
Now, I know I am the exception here. The character is outrageously popular. I even will admit that I understand why the character is popular. I’m just saying that, by and large, the character doesn’t work for me.
That’s made the past couple years pretty tough for this Joker non-fan, because the Clown Prince of Crime has become damn near inescapable as of late. Just think of the recent headliners as examples.
Three Jokers.
The “Joker War” arc of Batman.
Todd Phillips’ 2019 “Joker” film.
The character being added whole cloth to the Justice League movie in the upcoming The Snyder Cut version.
We live in a society that hasn’t just seen The Joker headline Oscar-winning films, Twitter-trending trailers, 15 and the highest selling comics of the year, but appear in other titles like Joker: Killer Smile and Joker/Harley: Criminal Sanity, HBO Max’s Harley Quinn, and enough merch and Halloween costumes to clothe the world several times over. You could look at the pop culture and comic landscape and be forgiven for thinking that DC’s true Trinity isn’t Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman, but Batman, The Joker and Batman again for good measure. 16
With this deluge of Joker-ness in the world, I’ve been wondering recently whether there’s an upper limit to the character’s popularity. Is there a maximum level of Joker the world can handle? Or is the passion for Gotham’s most famous and eternally popular villain something that can’t be governed by rational thought or the very idea of limits?
With the character’s new solo series – only his second ever, incredibly! – launching today from writer James Tynion IV and artist Guillem March, it felt like the right time to endeavor to answer these questions. Let’s take the temperature in the room and try and find out, as we attempt to better understand whether this Joker boom is paying dividends or if a ceiling is being reached – and then some.
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Namely, Mark Hamill in Batman: The Animated Series, Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight, and Alan Tudyk in HBO Max’s Harley Quinn.↩
Sort of, at least.↩
True story: after I finished the first draft of this I went on Twitter and Joker was the top trending topic. What for? I don’t know! I clicked on it and, true to Twitter’s fashion, could not determine the reason.↩
Here’s a fascinating thing I learned: when you compare those four characters in Google Trends, Batman towers over the rest, but Joker typically finishes higher than the other two. Now, some of that is other uses of the word beefing it up, but that’s surprising!↩
I was surprised to learn that Criminal Sanity #1 had higher orders than Killer Smile, especially with the creative team on the latter. But hey, that Harley love is real! Also: these numbers all come from Comichron.↩
And when you peruse end of the year sales numbers from varying shops who publish those kinds of things.↩
Worth noting: these estimates in DC’s post-Diamond era are pretty noisy, especially when comparing to pre-pandemic orders. Consider most of the data interpretation an educated guesstimate, which is why there are no charts involved with all of this.↩
Most shops suggest that the divide between what earns Twitter buzz and what actually sells is monumental.↩
This is something I’ve been hearing from shops coming off Future State. There’s a bit of ambivalence related to these new formats, especially given the mixed response to Future State as a whole. I’m less skeptical. I think this is related to something new entering the fray. My guess is if the quality is there, the format will connect.↩
He also admits, “I’m still stocking the book, so what do I know?”↩
I know! I know!↩
Just kidding I would love to eat an entire package of Reese’s eggs right now.↩
Namely, Mark Hamill in Batman: The Animated Series, Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight, and Alan Tudyk in HBO Max’s Harley Quinn.↩
Sort of, at least.↩
True story: after I finished the first draft of this I went on Twitter and Joker was the top trending topic. What for? I don’t know! I clicked on it and, true to Twitter’s fashion, could not determine the reason.↩
Here’s a fascinating thing I learned: when you compare those four characters in Google Trends, Batman towers over the rest, but Joker typically finishes higher than the other two. Now, some of that is other uses of the word beefing it up, but that’s surprising!↩