An Occasional Attempt to Read, Discuss and Review the Wonders of Comics By: John Rafferty, cranky old man, and Fan of All Things Comics
Batman #93 Their Dark Designs Part 8 (Joker War - 2)
Writer: James Tynion IV Artist: Guillem March and Javier Fernandez
‘He said I’m the funniest person he knows.
He’s said that to Batman, KID. I’ve heard him say that to an old nun who couldn’t talk anymore. He says a lot of stuff!
He’s the Joker! He Jokes!
-------------------------————————————————————
Punchline has gotten interesting. And a little fun.
And freaking hyper violent. Not fun violent, with cutesy giant mallets, like Harley... but HYPER VIOLENT, on a Punisher, or a FooKiller or a Prometheus level.
This story has taken an extremely ugly turn, on many levels.
We finally get the background of what the Designer promised the Five, and how he implemented it. Between the Assassins, and the intricate methodical plan for each of the Five, we see the design, and what should have been the endgame for each.
And then we see what happened. We see that the Designer didn’t take into account the time it would take for these separate plans to actually play through, nor did he take into account the evolution of the Batman.
Shift! The Underbroker and Selina Kyle, now entering her endgame, burgling cyber accounts for electronic funds, funds which will never go reported as stolen. It seems she has figured out a secret which is going to make her a very rich kitty.
Switch! Harley and Punchline, still throwing down, each looking for the edge necessary to take the killing point, right to the hilt. Harley, full of snark, and history with her ‘Puddin’, Punchline full of hate for Harley, because she was the brake on the Joker’s Clown Car, and Punchline, she wanted to cut the brakelines.
Swap! Back to Batman and the Designer, dueling, Batman finally spilling what he already knew... and...
SLAP! Nah, that’d be too easy...
We are eight issues into James Tynion IV’s run, rushing pell mell into Joker War, and I have to wonder, why was wveryone so hacked about Tom King’s run on this book? Tynion is laying the same trails of breadcrumbs, some big and shiny, that everyone can see, and some tiny, blending into the sand, so that they can only be found with an extensive search.
Tynion is a wonderful, edge of the seat, dramatic writer. He is also setting up many different plot lines, which are going to play into the ends of this storyWhat started as a fairly clear picture, now looks like Jackson Pollock had an accident on one of Dali’s more abstract abstractions. The picture is not in any discernible from the background, hell, it’s not discernible from the wall.
But, It will be. That is the beauty of Tynion ’s stories. The murkier they get, the clearer they become when you find the one breadcrumb that identifies the loaf.
And it is coming. In the pit of my stomach, I can feel it coming.
Guillem March and Javier Fernandez have rendered another amazing artwork. The action, the set pieces, are amazing.
There is one particular layout, it is a multi-panel fight scene between Harley and Punchline, and interwoven through the panels, in the white space, is a full page portrait of Punchline. The layout, and the artwork are beautifully rendered, and the entire concept is impressively executed.
Punchline is dominating, and that is ALL said right here.
With one issue to go before the what looks like 80 issues of Joker War, Tynion, March and Fernandez have decided it’s time to dump Nitro into the motors, and shred the roads, all the way to Issue #95.
Hopefully, everyone has fire suits, because it’s gonna get hot in here!
