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Batman: Three Jokers - A three-issue DC Black Label miniseries (#1 out now!) [Tag spoilers!]

Deleted member 11370

Member
Oct 27, 2017
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Update: DC Comics posted a trailer, because these days we have trailers for comic books!

​



What is Batman: Three Jokers?
Batman: Three Jokers is the latest miniseries by Geoff Johns and Jason Fabok, spinning out of Justice League: The Darkseid War (2016). In that arc, Batman was able to get hold of New God Metron's Mobius Chair, an item of impossible power that grant nigh-unlimited knowledge to the owner... provided they can deal with it! Batman asks two simple questions: Who killed his parents (Joe Chill, duh) and what the true identity of the Joker is. The answer may shock you!

3069014-1%20jl%2042.jpg


So, who is the Joker, really?
Well... that's where things get complicated. Apparently, he's not a person, but rather three.

3069192-3%20rebirth.jpg


As pictured above, you can see the classic Man Who Laughs inspired Joker, the Brian Bolland Killing Joke Joker and the modern New 52/Rebirth Joker. For the final product, the three Jokers are:

batman-three-jokers-2032401.jpg


The Criminal - The Comedian - The Clown​

  1. The Criminal is the Golden Age cold, calculating Joker. He doesn't smile or laugh. He's a criminal mastermind.
  2. The Comedian is the current-day Joker. Violent, sadistic, apparently aimless. He's the type of Joker we've been having since The Killing Joke.
  3. The Clown is the Silver Age Joker. Loud, bombastic, loves to use practical gags. You're in for a hell of a callback in this issue!


Is this in-continuity? Do I need to know anything before jumping in?
Yes and no. It's in continuity, but not necessarily placed anywhere in particular. It's self-contained and you can pick it without knowing anything about the current state of the DCU. As for background reading, knowing who Barbara Gordon (Batgirl) and Jason Todd (Robin II/Red Hood) are is enough, since the first issue explains very well why this story is so personal to them.

If you want to know a bit more about the background for this series and how it came to be, GamesRadar posted an interview with artist Jason Fabok last week.

Have you picked up #1? What did you think of it? Please, be mindful of spoilers! Use spoiler tags! :)
 
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Slayven

Slayven

Never read a comic in his life
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Oct 25, 2017
93,042
What happened to the Joker being a primordial virus?
 
Yerffej

Yerffej

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Oct 25, 2017
23,496
Bats: Alfred we need to differentiate this chair from all the others in the manner well above the cave. How do ?

Alfred: Sir, we don-

Bats: Giant fucking bat ears you old bastard, I've got it! Big enough to impale a man on!

Alfred: sigh


I'd rather focus on what's really important here if you don't mind.
 
BlackGoku03

BlackGoku03

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Oct 25, 2017
7,271
I think I'm going to read it once it's finished like I should have for Doomsday Clock.

It'll probably be three months before the next one is ready.
 
Ruisu

Ruisu

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So they're only seriously addressing this now? I mean, it's cool that it's getting it's own mini series or whatever so people can pick it up easily unlike doomsday clock, but, fuck, sometimes these plots in comics move so slowly.
 
WhateverItTakes

WhateverItTakes

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Oct 25, 2017
6,324
Card decks come with 2 Jokers- one of them is a phony!

Or they'll do something like 'Batman was the 4th Joker'.

I'm probably down to read tbf but getting issues ordered to your home in the UK never seems straightforward. I've pondered a lot on how the funny haha Joke man gels with the psychotic modern incarnations so it'll be cool to see that explored.
 
Manu

Manu

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Oct 27, 2017
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I always wondered why he didn't asked the chair again right away.

"What's the Joker's name?"
"There are three Jokers."
"Oh. What are their names, then?"

But no, we had to wait four years.
 
OP
OP

Deleted member 11370

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Oct 27, 2017
5,494
BlackGoku03 said:
I think I'm going to read it once it's finished like I should have for Doomsday Clock.

It'll probably be three months before the next one is ready.
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Hopefully that's not the case. DC Comics is soliciting Black Label series only when they are mostly finished, to avoid long delays.

Ruisu said:
So they're only seriously addressing this now? I mean, it's cool that it's getting it's own mini series or whatever so people can pick it up easily unlike doomsday clock, but, fuck, sometimes these plots in comics move so slowly.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

To be fair, they are doing away with the references to Darkseid War. This story starts from a clean slate: Batman doesn't know anything about there being three Jokers when the story starts.
 
flaxknuckles

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Oct 25, 2017
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Great issue.

I did think it was weird Batman didn't say anything when Jason fed a dude to a shark. It was cool to see a Jason who, while not trying to kill everybody, isn't gonna hold back when he finds it necessary.
 
BWoog

BWoog

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Oct 27, 2017
38,264
It kind of seems obvious:

There's only one Joker, and the "Three" are just fractures of his own mind. The "Joker" that Jason killed is just someone the real one brainwashed or something.[/spoiler[
 
Mezentine

Mezentine

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Oct 25, 2017
9,969
Oh they didn't address this yet? I thought this was an interesting idea when I heard about it, standalone + Geoff means I'm interested
 
BlackGoku03

BlackGoku03

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Oct 25, 2017
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Joey Ravn said:
Hopefully that's not the case. DC Comics is soliciting Black Label series only when they are mostly finished, to avoid long delays.



To be fair, they are doing away with the references to Darkseid War. This story starts from a clean slate: Batman doesn't know anything about there being three Jokers when the story starts.
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admiraltaftbar said:
Supposedly the hardcover release is out in November so you own't have that long to wait
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Thank God. Maybe I will read them as they come out then.

Thanks! Been looking forward to this for years.
 
MechaMarmaset

MechaMarmaset

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Nov 20, 2017
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Ruisu said:
So they're only seriously addressing this now? I mean, it's cool that it's getting it's own mini series or whatever so people can pick it up easily unlike doomsday clock, but, fuck, sometimes these plots in comics move so slowly.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

That was my reaction. I quit reading comics when this shit happened 4 years ago and they're just now addressing it?
 
Mr. Poolman

Mr. Poolman

The Fallen
Oct 27, 2017
6,976
I'm so tired of the Joker, now imagine 3 of them...

I bet this will end with some dumb thing like Jason Todd becoming the Joker or some nonsense.
 
VeryBerryPunch

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Oct 25, 2017
1,394
Manu said:
I always wondered why he didn't asked the chair again right away.

"What's the Joker's name?"
"There are three Jokers."
"Oh. What are their names, then?"

But no, we had to wait four years.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
I assumed he was told three different names there and realized there are three Joker's.

I'm just going off of what's in the op though
 
Joni

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Standalone means I might bother reading this one. I want to know what happens.
 
Wanderer5

Wanderer5

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Oct 25, 2017
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Can't wait for the sequel with the Three Batmen Who LMAO.

Outside of the weird in continuity or not thing, I thought the first issue was solid and the art is beautiful looking. Also personal bat light needs to be a thing everywhere now.
 
Lonestar

Lonestar

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Oct 25, 2017
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They're finally getting around to this? Wasn't that revelation years ago, before Doomsday Clock?
 
Freddy=Legend

Freddy=Legend

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Oct 29, 2017
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So, which of these Joker's is the one who cut his damn face off & how did he get his face back on if it's one of these?
 
StrikeJP

StrikeJP

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Oct 31, 2017
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I enjoyed the first issue. Really loved how Joker got into Red Hood's head. Some good lines there.

That being said, not sure I'm going to buy into this whole 3-Jokers thing, Johns has his work cut out for him to make me buy into it.
 
Luigi87

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Freddy=Legend said:
So, which of these Joker's is the one who cut his damn face off & how did he get his face back on if it's one of these?
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In regards to his getting his face back
From what I remember, basically a pit similar to a Lazarus pit regenerated his body, so effectively he grew a new face.
 
OP
OP

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Freddy=Legend said:
So, which of these Joker's is the one who cut his damn face off & how did he get his face back on if it's one of these?
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

My theory:

None of these particular Jokers. It's mentioned in the first issue by Batgirl that he has changed his MO several times, and the way they all talk about their "strengths" makes me think that each different incarnation of The Joker is his own different person. Somehow. Maybe cloning, maybe chemicals, but somehow. There's also the fact that each issue has a ton of different variant covers, each one depicting a different "stage" of the Joker:

fuoeidvelic51.png


It's issues 1, 2 and 3, vertically. You could also argue that each issue is focused on a different Joker, and the variants are different "aspects" of that same Joker. But in issue 3 you have The Clown as the main cover and The Killing Joke Joker as variant "G"... and in the first issue, they are standing side-by-side. TKJ Joker is meant to be The Comedian (the Joker from the main cover of issue #1).
 
Garlador

Garlador

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Oct 30, 2017
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Sometimes, comics move so slowly that I barely remember that "oh yeah, this is a thing".

Other times, I pick up a book after a few years and find out a character died, came back to life, and then died, and came back to life AGAIN since I last checked in on them.
 

Deleted member 6173

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Good for Jason Todd though. I also wonder if the Joker in charge is taking orders from someone else. Maybe the designer?
 
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