This is the unforgettable event that forever changed Batman's world, adding a new element of darkness with its unflinching portrayal of The Joker's twisted psyche.
Writer Alan Moore, acclaimed author of WATCHMEN and V FOR VENDETTA, offers his take on the disturbing relationship between The Dark Knight and his greatest foe. The Clown Prince of Crime has never been more ruthless than in this brutal tale.
This special edition also includes a story written and exquisitely illustrated by Brian Bolland.
I hadn't read The Killing Joke for years and years before recently picking up the Absolute Edition for my collection, and... I'm kind of jaded by the fact that I spent $30 on this story. Maybe it's just that I'm coming off of reading Moore's Neonomicon, which I thought was a very smartly written story, but this is such an obvious, bland story. There are cool elements. The idea of Batman thinking about his eternal struggle with Joker. I do like Joker's humanization, not so much in his actual origin, but in the ending fight/monologue. I'm one of those people who really couldn't care less for the more modern approach to the Joker, where he becomes a monster under one's bed. That is never as terrifying or as interesting to me as simply a man dressed as a clown who schemes to murder and hurt people.
I mean, seriously, the reason this book is beloved comes down to its final pages. And that part of the book is very engaging. I really like the dynamic Moore presents between these two characters, and their relationship. It is an interesting take. If this book was a 10 page anthology story, if the bulk of what Joker had done and his origin were ripped from this story's contents, I would be fine with it.
The problem is the rest of the book. Joker's origin is kind of tired. Nothing about it stands out to me, and I think it's pretty bland. I guess because Joker is such a baroque character, Moore felt the best option was to do the exact opposite with his origin. It doesn't work for me.
Similarly, the current day plot failed me as well. Babs is shot and handicapped, and it feels like a means to an end. A prominent, glaring example of female characters as plot devices to motivate the male characters to do what the plot demands. This is tired now, and it was when Moore wrote it. Moore could've done a lot better. Joker's plan failing is treated as though, of course it would, which makes for a really motionless reading experience. And it's not just because I've read this book before and I know what happens in it. There's never a moment where it feels as though Joker will win. It all feels pre-determined, which is unsatisfying.
In the Absolute Edition, they include Moore's outrageously long script, and at the end of it, he does confirm that he thinks of this story as a Joker story, rather than a Batman one. I really wish he wrote it fully subverted as such. It never feels like Joker is actually the main character, despite his prominence, and that just heaps more onto the pile as to why this story feels so uncompelling to me.
Simply put, I know Moore is capable of much better writing and character deconstruction, and I am not impressed with something as mediocre and bland as Killing Joke truly is.
On the other side of things, the art is great. Specifically, the original version before Bolland tried to clean it up along with a lifeless recoloring. That's actually the whole reason I bought the Absolute Edition. I wanted the superior coloring, not available in any modern reprints. What they did to the colors in the newer editions pales in comparison. It's lifeless, and lord knows, the writing needs as much help as possible with keeping its own pulse.
© 2025
Great for its time and great when you are young and want a story with more weight but it hasn't aged well especially since like you said, Moore is capable of so much better and this seems to overshadow most of that better work. I see a lot of people parrot the, "If I am to have an origin, I'd prefer it be multiple choice," line a lot and it's like yeah I would too. This one is kind of lame. Also, it's not like Moore changed much other than giving him a family. Everything else was already established
I didn't mention it in my review, but I kind of don't like a Joker that isn't funny. And I can't tell if Moore is intentionally writing him unfunny outside of the flashbacks to coexist with the new origin. He should be funny, and mean, imo. The immediate string of book spine puns after he shot Babs almost works because the point in that scene is to pour salt in the wound for Gordon. But the rest of the time, he's really not living up to his name.
The joke at the end is good though. Again, separate the last 10 pages or so and you've got a killer story. It's not very funny, but it is clever enough, and it's lifted up by its relevance to Batman and Joker's characters in the story. Moore nailed the ending, but didn't have a story that was worthy of it. Unfortunately for us nay-sayers, the ending is what sticks with people the most.