How to Write: Batman

How to Write: Joker [Tier: A]

I'm sure that plenty of you wanted to see this part. The relationship between Batman and Joker is one of(if not the best) the best hero/villain dynamic in history, and it's seriously complex to unpack. So, just like with Batman, prepare for an attempt to try and explain everything that makes up Joker.

First of all, I do believe there are questions to be answered about the character. This is an opinion I have, that I think you might want to pay attention to. Joker does not 'love' Batman, not I that way people think of. Joker is not homosexual. This sounds like you'd want to stop reading, but please just hear me out. In some interpretations, Batman and Joker have a homosexual relationship. In others, they just acknowledge that they complete each other. While people have made decent stories with both sides, ask yourself this: does Joker loving Batman make this dynamic less unique? We have seen the trope of 'hero likes the villain' plenty of times, and there's nothing wrong with that trope, but a big reason we know Batman the Joker's dynamic so well is because it is not a trope. It's not a copy to something previously made. It was something new. So, in my opinion, try not to make it seem like they are in a relationship. Here's how their dynamic should work(in my opinion): the Joker understands that Batman completes him and is the only one who understands his insanity. Batman also knows that the Joker is everything he wants to be but knows he can't for the good of others. Batman also notices that Joker does completely understand him, and it ticks him off. Batman recognizes the undeniable evil that is Joker and wants to stop him. He hates the Joker to the point of where he will beat the ever-loving heck out of him, but he can't kill him no matter what he does. If he kills the Joker, he becomes the Joker. As I've said before, Batman could easily be dragged down into insanity, to Joker's level, I he finally gave in and killed. Make sure to make that choice hard for when he deals with Joker. Why foes Joker torment him so much? My interpretation would be that it's because he wants to share his worldview with Batman. Speaking of which, what is Joker's worldview? Does he do all this for fun or there a reason behind it? Actually, it's both. Joker sees all the corruption in the world today(e.g. world wars, poverty, other serious issues that haven't quite yet been fixed), and instead of trying to help them get better he believes that the world is already lost. In his sense, he decides that this world will tear itself apart, that there really isn't a point to any of this suffering, so he might as well do whatever the heck he wants. This is where Batman and Joker branch off; both had a 'bad day' and realized the world was very corrupted and twisted, almost hopeless. Here, Batman chose to respond I rage in order to angle that rage at the unjust and evil. However, the downside to this is that Batman didn't move past what made him angry in the first place causing him to keep living a revenge fantasy trying to save a hopeless city while not able to calm down and truly help himself. He ends up sacrificing to just maybe save a city. Joker, on the other hand, went down the path of just accepting the hopelessness of the situation and deciding to join in the fun. He chose to respond by laughing, encouraging the joke. The joke is the world itself, how part of it thinks crime will solve their problems and the remainder thinks justice will solve their problems. He thinks neither will, so he might as well join in. But eventually, Joker realizes he didn't join in. He's the only one who gets the joke. That's why Joker cares so much about Batman. He's so close to laughing beside him. He's the only one that gets it! However, he's denying I. Joker puts Batman through the this torture with the hopes thag one day Batman will finally see the funny side. Even if it means he dies in the process, he won't laugh alone. That was a lot to take in, so I apologize if you are confused. Let's talk about simpler character traits for the Joker now.

The Joker is very sadistic. He thinks it's Hilario to cause people pain. Remember when he killed Jason Todd? For those of you who do not, he beat the teenager within the inch of his life with a crowbar, than blew him to smithereens! What about with Barbara Gordon, who he shot through the spine? Not to mention how he laughs as he's being destroyed by Batman, and we aren't even going to speak about what he does to Harley Quinn(at least, not yet). He takes joy in the suffering of others. Yet, there is one person he doesn't seem to kill. Batman. There are versions of him that do actively try to kill the Dark Knight, but I'm going to explain the version of him I think is best and most unique and exciting. Joker won't kill Batman because they understand each other so well, he's so close to laughing, Joker can't just kill him. It would leave him with no purpose. A clown without a show, a joke without a punchline. He needs Batman, and he knows it. No matter what they put each other through, they can't kill one another. Joker can't kill the one person who understands him, and Batman can't kill at all because he would end up like Joker. This creates the 'Revolving Door Cycle' of the two. Batman sends Joker to Arlham Asylum. Joker breaks out and kills a lot of people. Batman stops him and sends him back to Arkham. It's like a constant battle, a constant show with consequences for everyone except those two.

I know I said a bunch of stuff about Joker needing someone to understand him, but let's get something straight; Joker is NOT a sympathetic character. Even he knows it. Joker is probably the most evil villain in DC Comics. Joker lives to destroy and harm others around him, even his girlfriend that would suffer and endure all sorts of torture for him. Batman doesn't try to help Joker anymore because he knows it too. Joker will never go back. There is no fixing Joker. He will always be a piece of evil, murderous, corrupted filth out to hurt everyone he comes across. So i would advise you kn no making him sympathetic, at least not for the most part. Make sure, above all things, that you don't make him so SYMPATHETIC that he's no longer really a VILLAIN. It's okay for your story to include why Joker does things to some extent, but it's very important that your audience can still tell and believe that he is the villain of the story.

That being said, Joker can't and shouldn't be fully understood. Something else that makes Joker unique is that he poses lots of questions that are mostly up to interpretation. Have you ever seen all the videos you can find online with ties such as: "Is Joker really ----?" "How ---- is Joker?" or "Why did Joker ----?" People obsess over answering questions like these because the anonymity of Joker's inner workings intrigues them. Skme examples of questions people can ask(that might be more for your story) are the Joker's true origin story, whether or not he actually loves Harley Quinn, or even if he is really insane. These topics all have points on both sides. Joker has told us honest krigin several times, but he expresses that he likes to keep his backstory 'multiple choice' as each telling of his origin is different and he seems to not actually remember his own true origin. Sure, he does torture Harley and do unspeakable things to her, but he puts Batman through horrible things too. What if the abuse Harley receives is just Joker's way of trying to get her to see things how he does? Depending on the version of Joker you read(or watch), Joker can be completely insane or sane, and he has qualities of both. He usually sees what others don't see, and is known to have great insight as well. Yet, he's also so insane that his mind is incredibly difficult to read and even Batman can't analyze or predict any of his movements. Joker's mind is an equal rival to Batman's, and his unpredictability makes it impossible for Batman to anticipate his next move.

One last thing to unpack with the Joker is that he is a showman. Have you ever wondered why, if he is so clever, does he always lose in the end and get sent back to Arkham? Maybe it's just because the hero must win in the end. Or maybe, just maybe, Joker doesn't see things that way. Unlike villains like Clayface or Riddler, beating Batman isn't necessarily how Joker wins. Joker sees his fkghts with Batman as games or comedian shows with Gotham as their audiences. Even when he loses, he wins. He proves his point. In fact, my personal opinion is that he often lets himself 'lose' to Batman because the show is over. He's entertained, he's laughed, he's ruined and killed people, and he's brought Batman closer to sharing his point of view. It's the final curtain, and it's final time to measure his success with a nice comfy seat in a dangerous prison with a barely functioning telly and a few broken bones from Batman's latest outburst to see how his audience reacted. He doesn't do subtle. Joker is all about bringing the greatest schemes. When he commits crimes, he wants Batman to know it was him. There's no point in winning, to him, if no one is there to cheer or cry because of his triumph. Most of the time, i think he loses and os captured by choice. He is known to be more agile than Batman, and is also Batman's intellectual equal. On top of that, Joker's insanity makes him so unpredictable in a fight that even Batman can't anticipate him. Knowing this, it's hard to believe that Joker is really helpless against Batman's onslaught every time. It's more likrly he allows it to prove his point further and see how far he can push Batman.

I know that was a lot to take in, like when I discussed Batman. But don't worry, once you can remember these few key details you could write Joker into the outstanding villain he is today! And don't be too scared to add your own little twist on things too! Joker is a difficult villain to write, no doubt about that. But if you get overwhelmed, just remember that Joker doesn't have to be the focus of, or even be a part of, every Batman story.