Writer: Matthew Rosenberg
Art: Carmine Di Giandomenico, Arif Prianto, and Tom Napolitano
Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $4.99
Release Date: December 6th, 2022
The Joker is dying and needs medical help…but where can the most wanted man in the United States get it? Let’s dive into The Joker: The Man Who Stopped Laughing #3 by Matthew Rosenberg and find out! However, to make matters worse, Jason Todd decides now to finally hunt and kill the Clown Prince of Crime?
If you’re interested in this comic, series, related trades, or any of the others mentioned, then simply click on the title/link to snag a copy through Amazon as you read The Joker: The Man Who Stopped Laughing #3 Review.
THE DISPATCH
The phrase of the day is “Shock Value”. Shock Value is used to promote some type of sharp, emotional reaction to a story. Well, that phrase summarizes this entire issue of The Joker: The Man Who Stopped Laughing #3. And, the emotions Rosenberg went for were horror-esque, murderous in nature, and used to drum up how truly psychotic the Joker is. From surviving icy bay water to open brain surgery without anesthesia and the wrong tools, Rosenberg’s ideas this week were not just centered around shock value, but redirected the story so much that I’m now uncertain about the direction of this tale.
You see, the focus of The Joker: The Man Who Stopped Laughing has been that we have at least two Clown Princes in two different places. And the assumption is that the one tried to kill the other and failed miserably. Rosenberg has centered himself on the one who awakens half-dead and tries to survive. Nevertheless, instead of this Joker trying to get answers and revenge, he’s been driven to fix his injuries killing everyone in his path along the way. Furthermore, readers get very little explanation of the other Joker and why we have these two especially after the events of Batman: Three Jokers.
Moreover, Redhood entered the picture last issue and also appears off his rocker. He’s been tied to this series more than the other Joker trying to set up a Kingpin-ship in another state across the country. But my point is that we are receiving extremely little about this Joker, how he attempted to murder the other Joker, and why. Furthermore, to any incredibly new fans of this story, we’re without an explanation as to why we have multiple Jokers in the first place. Therefore, they’re probably even more confused than anyone else. Granted, even the diehard DC Comics fan is a bit perplexed after the inner workings of Batman: Three and how they coincide with this story.
On a positive note, Rosenberg has provided a unique insight into the Gotham Joker. He’s brought some inner dialogue to the table for the character that not many writers showcase. What’s even more profound is that the Joker is a bit more levelheaded than people might think. Sure, his inner dialogue has some jokes but his thoughts are a bit more logical than you’d think. He explains some of his jokes and even delivers some profound quips. However, the psychosis of the character that stands out as the craziest is that his thoughts never turn to killing… it’s almost as if it just subconsciously happens.
ART
Do you know what really adds to the shock value of a comic? Gore. And Carmine Di Giandomenico lays it all out in this week’s The Joker: The Man Who Stopped Laughing #3. Di Giandomenico gets violent and bloody to raise the stakes showcasing Joker with multiple bullet wounds, guns jammed in his throat, and closet brain surgeries to escalate the mood of this issue rather quickly. Now, the detail with Joker’s face was a bit confusing at times and cluttered with a ton of linework to emphasize his lacerations and scars. So, the close-up panels focusing specifically on the Joker’s face could have been a bit more refined. However, it was the art team overall that provided the severe graphic appeal that one would suspect in a Joker comic.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The Joker: The Man Who Stopped Laughing #3 stalls out this week focusing more on the Gotham Joker getting on the mend than the actual plot threads involving how or why this is happening. We learn very little more about the other Joker, receive one heck of a bloody display, and get some far-fetched story beats in order to get the Gotham Joker’s injuries repaired. I mean really… a homeless-looking man walks in from the street and you allow him to walk into the hospital and push around dead bodies to make room for other patients? A doctor trusts this? And where’s security? This seems like absolute nonsense to drive the story forward. And while I’m on the topic of nonsense, can we please draw our attention to the fact that Punchline is on the Legion of Doom? Really? And with all this pure insanity unleashed in Gotham, where’s Batman?
Fans, if I’m being honest, The Joker: The Man Who Stopped Laughing #1 was wild and interesting. Instantly, Rosenberg hooked me with some powerful plot threads that I wanted to see played out. And ever since, it’s almost as if none of them have been explored. Whatever happened to a comic gradually revealing hints and clues as to how and why the events in the story are happening? However, that is not the case in this week’s The Joker: The Man Who Stopped Laughing #3. The intent was to physically repair the Joker and shock the audience with his psychotic blood bath along the way. And thus overall, readers get little answers (if any), artistic shock value, and far-fetched notions that make The Joker: The Man Who Stopped Laughing #3 skippable. You could probably jump from issue two to four and not miss a bit. And if that’s the case, what does that say about the current issue? Let me know what you think, have a great week, and God Bless!