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A review by mysteriousmre
Batman: Three Jokers by Geoff Johns
3.0
2.5/5 To me Three Jokers is the definition of a mixed bag. On one hand, you have the amazing artwork of Jason Fabok and compelling exploration of the various traumas the Batfamily has suffered. On the other, the book doesn't fully explore its premise (and its the main reason people bought the book, myself included). There is a good story in here, I just don't think Geoff Johns needed 3 Jokers in order to tell it.
This is a story is about both the mental and physical scars we have. I love Johns' contrasted comparison between Batgirl (Barbara Gordon) and Red Hood (Jason Todd). They both suffered hugely traumatic events at the hands of The Joker, and Johns did a good job showing not only how the same person can affect people in different ways, but also highlighted just how difficult it is to recover from something traumatic in isolation. Batman is wrong about Barbara and Jason. Barbara wasn't inherently better or stronger than Jason. She had the love and support from her father, her therapists, and tons of other people during and after her recovery. Jason had no one. And the people who should have cared *glares at Batman* didn't lift a finger, inflicting another form of trauma on Jason: abandonment. And now, on top of the chronic pain Jason suffers from, he has some serious emotional needs that are crippling the few relationships he does have in this book. I wish this story had a sequel or something to follow up on Jason's recovery, and that we could see him either start to recover or start taking the first steps towards recovery. All we get in this story is some unrequited simping for Barbara, which is a dangerous and unhealthy place to start a romantic relationship (and a relationship I'm not fond of, even back when they teased the idea all the way back in Batman Eternal).
And now let's talk about the 3 elephants in the room. The Criminal, The Clown, and The Comedian are not given enough time in this story to all sound or act distinct enough from each other, and their plan to "make a better Joker" is just plain stupid. I think Johns realized this, because he has one of the Jokers mock the idea as the end, but it doesn't at all redeem the plot.
If I can compliment Johns' take(s) on Joker at all, it's that I like his retcon that Joker was an abusive person before he became The Joker. I've always been fond of Scott Snyder's Joker from Zero Year, who was already a deranged anarchist loooong before he took that fateful dive into a vat of chemicals. While I don't think Johns had that version of the character in mind, his addition to Joker's backstory fits really well with that take on the character.
If you ask me, Three Jokers was not worth the 5 years of waiting it took to get this book. It does have some good stuff in it, but it's not the product they pitched all those years ago. It gets a recommendation from me, but with the caveat that you probably shouldn't buy this at full price.
This is a story is about both the mental and physical scars we have. I love Johns' contrasted comparison between Batgirl (Barbara Gordon) and Red Hood (Jason Todd). They both suffered hugely traumatic events at the hands of The Joker, and Johns did a good job showing not only how the same person can affect people in different ways, but also highlighted just how difficult it is to recover from something traumatic in isolation. Batman is wrong about Barbara and Jason. Barbara wasn't inherently better or stronger than Jason. She had the love and support from her father, her therapists, and tons of other people during and after her recovery. Jason had no one. And the people who should have cared *glares at Batman* didn't lift a finger, inflicting another form of trauma on Jason: abandonment. And now, on top of the chronic pain Jason suffers from, he has some serious emotional needs that are crippling the few relationships he does have in this book. I wish this story had a sequel or something to follow up on Jason's recovery, and that we could see him either start to recover or start taking the first steps towards recovery. All we get in this story is some unrequited simping for Barbara, which is a dangerous and unhealthy place to start a romantic relationship (and a relationship I'm not fond of, even back when they teased the idea all the way back in Batman Eternal).
And now let's talk about the 3 elephants in the room. The Criminal, The Clown, and The Comedian are not given enough time in this story to all sound or act distinct enough from each other, and their plan to "make a better Joker" is just plain stupid. I think Johns realized this, because he has one of the Jokers mock the idea as the end, but it doesn't at all redeem the plot.
If I can compliment Johns' take(s) on Joker at all, it's that I like his retcon that Joker was an abusive person before he became The Joker. I've always been fond of Scott Snyder's Joker from Zero Year, who was already a deranged anarchist loooong before he took that fateful dive into a vat of chemicals. While I don't think Johns had that version of the character in mind, his addition to Joker's backstory fits really well with that take on the character.
If you ask me, Three Jokers was not worth the 5 years of waiting it took to get this book. It does have some good stuff in it, but it's not the product they pitched all those years ago. It gets a recommendation from me, but with the caveat that you probably shouldn't buy this at full price.