Journey into a haunting past and future with Batmans biggest foe pulling the strings. Zdarsky pens an absolutely engaging tale, blending tension and terror. The art teams shine showing the many faces of evil with its vivid imagery. This will be one Batman story fans wont want to miss. Read Full Review

Camuncoli and Sorrentino deliver some beautifully detailed and stylish art throughout the issue. I love the contrast in the visual styles and how they complement each other. Read Full Review

Your enjoyment of Batman #142 will vary based on how well you know your Batman history. This issue jumps around a bit too much, and seems to require you to know Joker's history quite well, with little help along the way. Still, it's very interesting to see Zdarsky show how mentors had a hand in creating the greatest rivalry in all comics. This story changes how you'll think about Joker in a must-read story. Read Full Review

Batman #142 is an fascinating glimpse in to the mind of The Joker. Is he a reliable narrator? Perhaps not. But are we in for a wild ride? Absolutely. Zdarsky, Sorrentino and Camuncoli are a dynamite trio to explore this previously forbidden part of DC history. Read Full Review

Batman #142 acts as a highly effective setup for the next few weeks. We're given a new status quo for a dismal future whilst filling in some blanks from the past. Dubbed The Joker: Year One, it's certainly a bold entry into the main DC canon and continuity. Read Full Review

It does appear as though we learned a few things about the character that were never definitely defined over the years but appear to be now. Moreover, we learn of a mastermind who helped mold the Joker into who he has become. All together with the cliffhanger, as well as the fact that this comic comes out weekly this entire month, Zdarsky should be able to quickly write the ship and get us all to our destination before we hit an iceberg. Nevertheless, since Im reviewing THIS issue, Id have to say this was by far the worst issue of Zdarskys entire run to date. Read Full Review

Batman #141 puts Failsafe and Zur-En-Arrh on the backburner (again) to begin a completely unrelated story detailing the Joker's first year after his transformation juxtaposed with a tale in the future where old man Batman hunts the Joker after unleashing a deadly plague on Gotham. Zdarsky tries to do his best Frank Miller impersonation and mostly succeeds but falls short in the clarity department. Likewise, the art team does their best impressions of Frank Quitely, Liam Sharp, and Bill Sienkiewicz to present a visually appealing comic. Read Full Review

Zdarsky references 'Batman: Year One', 'The Killing Joke', 'Arkham Asylum', and more in a tale that seems designed to explain the unexplainable. Despite my reservations, it's working, and the ending is a gut-punch. Read Full Review

Batman #142 features part one of the "Joker: Year One storyline. While it's hard to tell how this will play out, the time jumps and recommended reading make one question the "year one initiative as one that's editorial driven. It's an interesting book but perhaps not the one that immediately comes to mind when you hear "year one. Read Full Review

Batman #142 is a mixed bag of two Joker-centric timelines that each hit on the opposite sides of the intrigue scale. The Joker: Year One story is just a blended-up smoothie of Joker stories we've gotten for over eight decades. Luckily, the DCeased-like possible future Joker creates interest about finding out what Chip Zdarsky has planned with this story arc. Its enough to buy into this Batman story that'll be told over the next three weeks. Read Full Review

Batman #142, kicking off the "The Joker Year One" arc, is part origin story, part retelling, and part attempt to reconcile current elements of the character's story in Chip Zdarsky's Batman with more definitive tales preceding it. But instead of making important connections between the Joker's past, present, and future, the issue over-explains unnecessary details about DC's most iconic villain and offers very little of substance. Read Full Review

Guiseppe Camuncoli (with inker Stefano Nesi) and Andrea Sorrentino handle the art for the various storylines. Their art is solid and distinct enough to signal the timeframe shifts. Alejandro Sanchez and Dave Stewart's color work is also very good. The main problem is this story feels so cluttered and aimless that The Joker: Year One feels like the perfect time to give this run of Batman a time-out. Read Full Review

What's clear from the opening of “Joker Year One” is that this is a story that has no reason to exist. Learning the details about how Joker met up with his old gang isn't interesting, and hearing his thoughts as he slowly becomes the Joker we know only takes away from the mystique of the man who went mad after one bad day. The adage about humor being like a frog rings true for Joker's past as well – dissecting it might give you more information, but it dies in the process. Read Full Review

Batman #142 brings the current story arc to a screeching halt to tell an out-of-left-field flashback Joker story. In doing so, the book burns all narrative momentum to deliver a hollow issue more interested in squaring continuity than telling a story. The switch in art, both within the issue and from the mainline artist, undercuts the atmosphere of the book in the pursuit of the past. With the coloring on display, the book removes a consistency and aesthetic that made it a compelling read paired with the bombastic art. If this issue is the best foot forward for the Joker: Year One story, then itll probably be best to take a break until the Zur plot resumes a few issues from now. Read Full Review

This is a bold storyline for Zdarsky to go down. I have really mixed feelings. I agree with other reviewers that seeing Joker’s origin diminishes one of the most interesting aspects of the character, but I also have to admire Zdarsky for taking such a big swing. I liked the references to Zero Year, and the future stuff reminded me a bit of Grant Morrison, which is always a plus.

That being said some of the writing fell a bit flat, and seeing the Joker say “I am chaos” just made me cringe. I also don’t think this is a story that needs to be told—by the end of it I may even feel that it shouldn’t have been told—but I always give Zdarsky the benefit of the doubt.

What are we doing? Why do we care? Two questions that will not be answered.

This was hard to follow as a stand-alone, fortunately I was behind on my books and I was able to pick this right back up and put it together.

Man, I don't know. For the most part, I've really enjoyed Zdarsky's work on this title. However, for whatever reason, this just didn't work for me all that well. I don't think it's a bad book, but it's not my favorite either. Aside from the odd placement of this storyline, I also found it, personally, a little hard to follow at times. Camuncoli had some pretty solid art, though. I liked looking at the pages Sorrentino did, but I also don't particularly understand their purpose. All things considered, this was definitely the weakest issue of Zdarsky's run thus far and I really hope this is just a minor bump in the road.

There is some really good stuff here. Art for example is amazing. But the writing can be confusing at times. And it's hard to get why this story is released now after Failsafe arc. I'm not sure how this is relevant? Or needed?

So, not a bad comic, but can be confusing one to enjoy.

We go from Batman Zur en Arrh to a joker story with 2 timelines?
Uh, ok. I want to ask why, but let's just roll with it. I don't really want a joker origin/year one. I think it'll be lame/weak. Just like I didn't need to know how Han Solo got his last name, I don't need this. If anything, just do the future story.

I smell another Zdarsky mess in the making, as his up-and-down yo-yo run on the book continues. Whenever he is telling a compelling storyline, he seems to interrupt it with interludes such as the multi-verse story, the execrable Gotham War, and now Joker: Year One, which suffers from underwhelming art in places and a very non-linear story. Can he ever just tell a complete, linear story with a beginning, middle, and end?! I’m very doubtful after over 20 months of Zur-En-Arh.

Zdarsky's Batman is simply not interesting anymore to me. This was convoluted and weird, I felt completely disconnected.

This is a terrible start. What in the world does Chip think he is doing? No one wants this. No one needs this lore. Leave the Joker alone. We should never solidify his origins, the unknown is what people love. Please don't ruin this.

this issue is literally the definition of a side quest. I was just re-reading Zero Year, and I wish Chip Zdarsky didnt have to tie this into Zero Year. What made Zero Year interesting was that we didnt know what happened to the Red Hood that Batman confronted during Ace Criminals. It was a mystery and up to air, and we can speculate it. Well now we know, and it's underwhelming.

Very confusing. Also unnecessary. I want a Joker who emerged fully formed from the vat, except maybe for that guy who trained him how to fight, which I always wondered about.

It’s going to be hard to judge this story as a whole until we see the entire plot unfold, but c’mon DC, what’s the need for this story? Let alone dropping it smack dab in the middle of another ongoing plot (Zur-En-Arrh aka Failsafe 2.0) that isn’t even that great itself. It’s a really jarring momentum killer that feels like a random event instead of part of a holistic story arc.

At least from this first part, the story isn’t even a true “Year One” story as the issue goes in and out of several timelines, including the present one with Batman’s POV. The parts that are told in the past come off more like half-handed retelling than thought-provoking or revelatory new beats.

The art in the issue was a big meh from me, especially considering we’re missing out on issues that could have been drawn by Jorge Jimenez. Hopefully things pick up some, but this initial entry in this now weekly narrative was a major bore. more

I guess I reject the premise of the story - that theJoker’s origin is important. I totally agree with Christopher Nolan, in that the Joker’s origin doesn’t matter. He just is. He comes from nowhere with an agenda that only makes sense to him.

Trying to explain his origin just ruins the mystery. It is like trying to explain the origins of the immortals in Highlander. They did it twice and it was a bad idea both times.

By explaining the Joker’s origin, he becomes normal, just another gimmick character. So this whole Joker Year One story just doesn’t work for me. Just a bad idea come to life.

Or I could be wrong.