Reading through this Joker series has been a slog so far. The one thing that has been keeping me going is this Knight Terrors book. Why? Because the idea 0f the Joker’s worst nightmare being a 9-5 desk job sounds brilliant!
But how does Rosenberg execute this idea? I had high expectations for this book. Does he live up to them? Let’s take a look!
A Good Idea Done Gone Wrong
The story starts off well. Joker’s living nightmare begins with Batman not only dying, but dying in quite an anti-climactic way (slipping off a wet roof). Once again, we’re golden here, this WOULD be the Joker’s worst nightmare. However, after this setup, everything else about the book seems to fall apart.
I think one of the big reasons the execution of this story doesn’t work at all is that Rosenberg is writing it as if he were doing one of his back ups. As I’ve said in previous reviews, those back ups have been some of the worst parts of the book. Not only does Joker appear with Gaggy Gagsworthy here as he has been appearing in most of the back ups, but he also talks in the same subdued, small voice that he has used in those previous stories. It’s like he’s a little man in a big nonsensical world who occasionally reacts to it all with a burst of violence.
That’s not the Joker. In all of his incarnations, the Joker has a much bigger personality than that. Joker should be absolutely devastated with Batman’s death. Instead, his reaction is more of a “hoo hum, what do I do now,” kind of thing.
What Could Have Been…
When he finally does get to his 9-5 job, it’s just filled with mundane conversation after mundane conversation, with again, the occasional outbreak of violence from the Joker. Consequently, it turns out that reading through a bunch of boring work conversations makes for a boring comic book read.
It’s a real shame; the premise here is still brilliant! Had this been written by someone like Paul Dini in his prime, who was a master at dark comedy, this probably would’ve been a Joker classic. Also, brightly colored artwork probably would’ve been a better fit for the story, as was used in the cover. The writer could’ve turned this comic’s scenario into a parody of The Office or Office Space, but with the Joker as the protagonist. Instead, Stefano Raffaele portrays everything as being constantly shrouded in darkness. None of this comic is fun as the cover or premise would suggest. I thought it would be interesting to have just one Knight Terrors book that was funny. It would’ve been a fitting irony since we are seeing the nightmares of the Joker.
Recommend if…
- You want to read all of the Knight Terrors books.
Overall
Ultimately, this book is a bust. Mathew Rosenberg came up with an awesome premise, and the cover made it look promising. The actual story is just dour, unfunny, and overly-long, however. I don’t see a good reason why people should pick up this book.
Score: 4.5/10
Disclaimer: DC Comics provided Batman News a copy of this comic for the purposes of this review.
