Following in the footsteps of films such as Batman: Under the Red Hood, Batman: Year One, and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns - Part 1 and 2, the trend will continue with Batman: The Killing Joke!
While those films may not be perfect and the same kind of review could go to the other adaptations for Superman arcs and Justice League stories, one thing's for sure: they capture the spirit of the original work and present it in a way that is easier to digest for people who may not be too keen to pick up the actual books.
Even if you're unfamiliar with The Killing Joke, if you've played the Arkham games or you've watched Tim Burton's Batman film or paid attention to pretty much anything Batman-related since the story originally came out in 1988, you definitely know bits and pieces of it.
The Killing Joke was written by Alan Moore and is about the backstory of The Joker (or at least, one of them, as it has never been confirmed). The man who may or may not be named Jack Napier attempts to prove that all it takes to make a monster like himself is "one bad day" of tragedy to happen to someone and they'll snap. He tries to illustrate this to Batman and Commissioner Gordon while doing some of the most horrible things imaginable, including paralyzing Barbara Gordon (aka Batgirl).
This comic is the reason the Oracle character exists. It's the reason why the Red Hood is such an integral part of Jason Todd's story. It's quite possibly even the comic where Batman KILLS The Joker. Whaaaaat? Yeah, you heard me.
Mark Hamill, whom many (myself included) consider to be the voice of The Joker, has said numerous times in the past that he wanted to do an adaptation of The Killing Joke and it would definitely seem as though he would be involved in this, although that hasn't been confirmed. Imagine if both he and Kevin Conroy are able to do this together, especially with someone like Bryan Cranston returning to voice Jim Gordon and maybe even Melissa Gilbert or Tara Strong to return as Batgirl!
Also announced for 2016 were the titles Batman: Bad Blood and Justice League vs. Titans, which could all be cool in their own right, but come on, that's small news compared to The Killing Joke!
Are you as pumped about this as I am? Who would be your perfect cast for the different roles in this film? Tell us what's on your mind by leaving a comment below!
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