It is a cyclical story, which starts as it ends (or so it seems) with a confrontation between Batman and The Joker. The Bat strides into Arkham Asylum on a mission of peace, almost begging the Joker to stop this war between them before one ends up killing the other. Bolland's attention to detail in the art is already clear in the sign on the Arkham receptionist's desk (what a strange job that must be) - 'You don't have to be mad to work here, but it helps...' Perhaps this is Harleen Quinzel before the medical degree and the failed career as a therapist? We also see a glance back at Harvey Dent from Gordan - a look of regret perhaps?
It soon transpires that Joker has escaped the revolving door of Arkham once more and is purchasing an old carnival plot from an estate agent. Does he not read the papers?
We get our first flashback to a black and white pre-Joker - a fantastic transition where the panels are perfectly mirrored to signal that this is The Joker (or one of his multiple choice origins at least). We see a down on his luck comedian, a pregnant wife and a struggle for money - all of which will culminate in Joker's 'one bad day'.
This idea of 'one bad day' being all it takes for someone to go mad runs through this story. The Joker's plot is to make Jim Gordon suffer that 'one bad day' to prove that he (The Joker) is just like everyone else. With this version of his origin, he and Batman are more closely linked than ever before. Each of them has his 'one bad day', that eventually sends them on their individual paths of criminal and crime fighter. It's nice to have a bit of ambiguity though, with The Joker himself stating that he prefers his last to be 'multiple choice'.
Regardless of his origins, The Joker is gleefully vile throughout. He appears at Gordon's house in an iconic scene, Barbara Gordon opening the door to a gun. He taunts the Gordon family, making jokes about torn jackets and holes in spines (displaying an eerie knowledge of Barbara's life) before leaving with Jim and some revealing photographs. All the pieces are in place for him to break Gordon and prove his point.
Bolland and Moore work with a fantastic synergy here that so few creators seem to manage. The writing is excellent - Joker's various quips are clever and snappy, Batman's dialogue shows his desperation to escape from the fate he sees for the pair of them. Bolland's art is full of excellent details, which reveal new intricacies even after several readings. And of course there are the repeated images of the reaction to Joker, the gun, the repetition of actions from the past.
The Killing Joke, quite aptly, ends with a joke about two insane people. The ending itself is quite ambiguous, with Batman and The Joker sharing a laugh before their laughter is abruptly cut short. Recently Grant Morrison claimed this was because Batman kills Joker - the ultimate punch line to their relationships over the years. I think that they go back to the start of the cycle - Joker in the Asylum and Batman waiting for him to escape.
The impact this story had is long lasting also; Batgirl can no longer fight crime and eventually becomes Oracle. The Joker's terrorising of the Gordon family takes it's first step here - and this is not the first time (not the last) that the clown prince of crime will leave such a lasting impression on the bat family.
Next up - The Cult
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