Overall he’s more good than bad, but he does what needs to be done - he’s not afraid of getting his hands dirty. In ways that heroes like Superman prefer not to know about.
Batman is a good guy, and should remain so. Come what may, and regardless of the level of violence he’s willing to use against the Joker or any other adversary (up to and maybe including deadly force), Batman still won’t kill the innocent or rob banks, and will do his utmost to protect the people of Gotham City. He wears black, he’s got issues, he can be a little scary, and he might bend, ignore or break the law as seems necessary to him, but he’s no villain.
As to the new Joker… meh. From what I’ve seen, I’m not wowed. I expect he’ll look better up on the big screen.
Beetleguese!
Beetleguese!
Beetleguese!
Though capa’s link was spoiler-riffic, I can’t wait to see that. And in IMAX too, even though it’s $4 more or something absurd like that.
Eh.
For what they’re going for, it works. It’s absolutely a creepy spin on the Joker, and I have zero doubt that Heath Ledger will pull it off very well.
But this take looks like it basically jettisons everything that I actually like about the Joker: his impeccable style (the Joker never looks slovenly - he’s as image-obsessed as Batman) and a manner that’s manic and, in its own perverse and terrifying way, playful.
I had a lot of issues with Begins but enjoyed it overall. I’m expecting the same from this one.
Until this thread, I never knew anyone hated the Jack Nicholson’s Joker and Michael Keaton’s Batman.
I’m still reeling. Give me a few.
I didn’t hate Nicholson’s portrayal, although he did seem more like a mean old uncle than a Gotham supervillain. I won’t judge Ledger until I see his take on it, but this was their chance at a clean sheet portrayal of Joker and while I expected them to go the dark and gritty route, I still wish he could be portrayed as he was in the comics and cartoons. I think Heath Ledger is tall enough (at 6’1", that’s taller than Nicholson), but they should have gotten somebody closer to 6’5" with broad shoulders and very angular facial features. Heath doesn’t have any of that.
shy guy was right too. Joker would never “let himself go”. He was always the best-dressed villain at the party.
Nicholson’s Joker is my favorite thing about Burton’s Batman, but I agree that it’s debatable how much his character really had to do with the Joker (although that’s still better than Keaton’s Batman, who has absolutely nothing to do with Batman).
My favorite non-comic book Jokers are Caesar Romero and Mark Hammil.
Everything about the Joker in the first few seasons of Batman: TAS was completely, 100% perfect. Better that perfect, actually, with the addition of Harley Quinn. The episode where the random guy owes the Joker a favor is my favorite Joker story ever, in any medium.
I will say, though, that I prefer Alan Moore’s Joker analogue Jack-a-Dandy to the Joker himself.
FWIW, I think this vcersion fo the Joker is the “best dressed guy at the party.” But in this case, the party is a pack of homocidal killers and robbers. In the comics, the Joker dresses with an insane flair among well-cut mobsters. Here, he dresses to look like the biggest freak in the circus. Same principle, different method. Plus, thile his getup here is odd, they might have had a much hard time making his weirdly-colored but otherwise standard suit look, well, not stupid.