Everyone
loves Batman. We all love to thrill at his adventures, his gadgets, his gizmos,
his Batmobile, and even his love interests. But what we really love and what we
really find ourselves drawn to is not just our protagonist, Bruce Wayne, aka
Batman but his rogue's gallery. And, we always go back to one member of his rogue’s
gallery, the Joker. I admit that I am a fan of the character of the Joker. This
does not mean that I love or want to emulate this character or want to be him but
I do enjoy watching his exploits on film, in comic books, and particularly any
medium not because I like what he does to innocent people but because he
is arguably one of the best antagonist to a protagonist in any particular medium.
The Joker famously said at the end of Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight”
that he could not kill Batman because “[he] completes me.” This can be said is
true for any particular Joker, whether the campy “Batman ‘66” version or a dark
and gritty Joker, such as in “The Dark Knight.”
However,
a lot has been said recently about the current film coming out this week “Joker.”
A film that has been continuously discussed for its seeming disturbing portrayal
of a possibly relatable Joker. There are many other articles and YouTube videos
by quality reporters and influencers on this and similar subjects. For me, I
want to discuss why a “Joker” movie is even possible. What makes the character
so watchable that we are even at this point?
In
short, it is because, whether it is the campy version or the gritty version,
the Joker is someone who is the same side of the coin of Batman: an individual
who, seemingly started out with moral fiber, but whose moral fiber bent or
broke enough to form a new identity of self and to unleash it upon the world.
For Bruce Wayne, it was the loss of his parents, his desire to fight injustice
that lead to the world that killed his parents, but also to make sure no one
else feels the pain that he felt that night in Gotham.
For
Joker, the antithesis to the Batman, we believe started with the same moral
fiber, even though we cannot assuredly say so. We just believe he started out
like us, a standard “normal” person because we all believe we all started from
the same point. In the comics, Joker famously said he preferred his origin to be
multiple choice. Whether you choose to believe he is someone who started as a
desperate man (such as in amazing book “The Killing Joke”) or a corrupted man
who fell into some chemicals (“Batman,” directed by Tim Burton), or just a man
who wanted to watch the world burn (Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight”).
Tomorrow night, many of us will be going to see “Joker” and to see another “origin” story, but for me, going into it, it can also be a reminder of what any person
can become, at their worst. Just look around the internet, and you can find trolls
who just want to troll on people just because, white supremacists who feel a
race war is coming, or even those who believe the “lame stream media” or a “deep
state” is out to get them.
But,
to circle us back to our original discussion: what makes the Joker such an indelible
character in popular culture that people can enjoy the character, wear shirts
of him on them, read books starring him, and even go see a movie about him,
such as “Joker”? It is because the character is a reminder of the monster we
could all become, even if he is entertaining, but do not. This is why he is fascinating, why Batman cannot
ever kill him and takes him back to Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane:
because Batman sees someone who he could also have become but did not.
Also,
a psychopathic murderous clown makes a really good character for a story too. Hence the merchandising!
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