The Joker

For as much as I love the madness that was the comics of the 1990s, I cannot even imagine how incredible it must have been to be a comic-loving kid (or weird comic loving adult) in the 1950/60s period known as The Silver Age. Within this gallery, I've put together only the smallest of fractions of some of the entertaining, out-of-context fun that Batman's 75 years of non-stop published stories have afforded us. Try your best to make sense of them.

You know what's weird about the Joker? I mean, yes, there are a lot of things that are weird about the Joker that are kind of inherent in the fact that he's a murderous clown who primarily exists to fight against a millionaire who dresses like Dracula and drives a rocket car. Beyond that, though, there's one thing that always sticks out: That dude is obsessed with his own head. He has a cane where the handle is shaped like his own head, he once lived in a house that was shaped like his own head, he used to drive a car that was shaped like his own head, and his most well-known criminal plot involves making fish look like... well, you get the idea. Even when you stack that up against Batman, whose branding is always 100% on point, that's pretty extreme. And yet, you rarely see that reflected in his associated merchandise.

Jared Leto is the second name on the poster for Suicide Squad. The only actor billed above him is Will Smith; Leto is listed ahead of actors like Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, and Viola Davis, who, unlike the Joker, are all actual members of the Suicide Squad. Despite Leto’s billing, though, and despite the large amount of publicity surrounding his unusual version of the character (not to mention his unusual preparations to play the role, which included sending disgusting “gifts” to his colleagues), Leto has very little screen time in the final film.

DC Comics’ big summer event one-shot DC Universe: Rebirth #1 goes on sale this week, and the internet is abuzz with news, reveals and spoilers concerning one of the biggest comics of the year. The one-shot by Geoff Johns, Ethan Van Sciver, Gary Frank and Ivan Reis sees the return of familiar faces from inside and outside the DC Universe, and DC is already publicizing those revelations in the press, so we’ve rounded up the biggest developments from this blockbuster story from DC-approved sources like USA Today, IGN and CBR, for those readers who want the full rundown. If you don't want to be spoiled for any of the events of DC Universe: Rebirth #1 before the book comes out on Wednesday, go learn about some other comics you could be reading instead. Spoilers for the future of the DC Universe follow.

Ever since he made his debut in 1940's Batman #1, the Joker has been the arch-criminal among arch-criminals, the one villain who can truly lay claim to being Batman's nemesis. As a result, he's made quite a few appearances across other media, serving as the antagonist in movies, television, and even a handful of video games. Now, with Jared Leto set to take the role with a new interpretation rooted in questionable tattoos and on-set method-acting antics, it's time for us to finally sit down and figure out where we stand. For that, we turn to you, dear reader, as we ask that you cast your vote to tell us which mass media Joker performance is the undisputed best!

Today is, of course, April Fool's Day, which means that there's a pretty good chance that you're going to be spending a good amount of time dodging "pranks" that are really just lies masquerading as good-natured shenanigans. If that's the case, and you're looking for something to read while you try to dodge all the mischief in the air, then I have some good news. Comixology is celebrating the day with a big sale featuring that most Aprilest of Fools, the Joker.

If you watched the DC Comics panel at last weekend's WonderCon in Los Angeles, then you saw the reveals of all the titles and most of the creative teams for the company's upcoming "Rebirth" event. Mixed in with those, though, was one more announcement about DC's upcoming plans: When Justice League #50 hits shelves next month as the climax to "The Darkseid War," Geoff Johns and Jason Fabok are planning to give the Joker a "real identity" that will presumably go beyond just being Gotham City's most notoriously murderous clown. It's a bold move, especially since it's happening in the company's flagship team book rather than in a solo Batman title. In the days since the panel, the news has got a whole lot of people --- myself included --- talking about the possibilities of what we're going to see in April. If the Joker's not just the Joker, then who is he?

Welcome to The Issue, where we look at some of the strangest, most interesting and most distinctive single issue comic stories ever to grace the medium. You know the ones; silent issues, sideways issues, backwards issues... and issues that make you ask questions like 'When does a comic book stop being a comic book?' Batman #663 is 22 pages of words and pictures --- the former courtesy of Grant Morrison, just a few issues into his landmark run on the title, the latter by digital artist John Van Fleet --- but the two elements are mixed into something that's closer to an illustrated storybook. Look at any given page, and you'll be faced with as many words as an average issue of traditional comics, interspersed with Van Fleet's posed CG characters resembling a gritty reimagining of '90s animated series ReBoot.

While rumoured for several months, it has been officially confirmed via CBR that Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill will both return to their iconic roles as Batman and The Joker in DC’s latest animated feature, an adaptation of Alan Moore and Brian Bolland’s The Killing Joke. Hamill also unveiled the first look at the film’s animation style on Twitter, which seems to eschew an adaptation of Brian Bolland’s art in favour of the more generic style that has become popular with DC’s animated division. Tara Strong reprises her role as Barbara Gordon from Batman: The Animated Series, and Ray Wise will voice Commissioner James Gordon.

Anyone following FOX’s Gotham (those brave souls) well-remembers the proto-Batman series’ quick introduction of almost-Joker figure Jerome, before Season 2 seemingly put a cap on the character in the most eye-rolling setup possible. Well, get ready to stretch that grin once more, as Ben McKenzie hints we’ve not seen the last of Cameron Monaghan’s cackling madman.