BATMAN VOL. 3: DEATH OF THE FAMILY by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo
Collects Batman 13-17 Price: $24.99
Snyder and Capullo are back with a tale that will forever leave their fingerprints on the legacy of the Clown Prince of Crime. Before we go any further into this review, I feel that it's important to examine Joker's motivation in this story. Snyder gives us a very philosophical Joker that feels the need to expunge Batman's extended family of heroes from existence. According to him, Joker and the other rogues are Batman's true family and reason for being; characters like Robin, Nightwing, etc., make him soft. It's up to the jester to give the Bat-King the kingdom he rightfully deserves and return to the days of old. In other words, Batman and Joker together.... FOREVER!
This is a story that captures all of the intrinsic qualities of The Joker, albeit a more focused and meticulous incarnation. This is no "agent of chaos." Rather, a smile without mirth that cuts with the precision of the sharpest of scalpels. After giving the Dollmaker some skin and allowing him to remove his face, Joker returns a year later to reclaim his likeness from GCPD. From there he reattaches it with a leather strap and some hooks (imagine if Hannibal Lecter was the tenth member of Slipknot) and begins to put his plan into action. He starts by mimicking his original crimes, some of which hearken back to Batman #1 (1940), but puts more unpredictable and deadlier spins of them.
I was very pleased that the relationship, if you want to call it that, between Joker and Harley Quinn is brought to a close in the opening chapter. If we're to have a darker Joker, then he can't have any attachments. A percentage of the fanbase has long and erroneously labeled Harley as Joker's "girlfriend". If "cannon fodder" is your definition of girlfriend, then keep telling yourself that. Sure, I'll readily admit Harley has her place in Bat history, but I prefer a lonesome Joker. Not only does she come to the realization that this is no longer her beloved Mr. J, but we finally get the line "when did I ever say I found you beautiful?"
A definite highlight of this book is the capturing of the human side of Batman. His relationships with Jim Gordon and Alfred are put under the microscope in very satisfying ways. Seeing Bruce display his heartbreak while listening to The Joker's cassette tape was indeed a touching moment. However, you should pay attention to Bruce's deception of the sidekicks at the start of the story. It's a running theme in the book and comes full circle at the end.
Since I mentioned the cassette tape, now would be a good time to address Greg Capullo's art. He's deservedly a fan favorite for his detail and framing of a scene, but it's his subtleties that really got to me this time around. This is a book that requires multiple reads to catch every detail he's put in. You should probably pay attention to the flies.
My absolute favorite chapter of this collection has to be Batman #16. Batman's morality and capability are at their finest. Seeing him run a gauntlet of villains with laser-like precision in Arkham Asylum was a real treat. Arkham itself has been converted by Joker into a castle of sorts for his Bat-King; think of Camelot if it were brought to you by Clive Barker. I also found Joker's insulting of Two-Face to be pretty amusing.
This review treads into spoiler territory more than my usual reviews, but I'm still not going to give away the ending. I'm fully aware that this a collection of stories originally published up to a year ago, but I'm leaving something to the reader. I will say that I do appreciate the conclusion now more than I did when it was first published in Batman #17. While it is satisfying and I fully get "the joke", I just wish there were more impactful repercussions than the Bat Family not wanting to be around Bruce for a while. It's also still beyond my grasp as to why Joker would cut off his own face, but not somebody else's. Gripes aside, it's still a much better finale than the one given to Court/ City of Owls.
Also included are backups illustrated by Jock, Snyder's collaborator on The Black Mirror. Two of them are direct continuations of the main story of their respective issues, with the other two detailing how Joker got Riddler and Penguin to join in on his celebration at Arkham Asylum.
As for supplemental material, we are given a gallery of variant covers, concept sketches by Capullo, as well as his original pencils for select pages. What makes this collection a must own in hardcover format is the dust jacket. It's an acetate cover not unlike the die-cut covers produced last year of Joker's skin mask that peels back to reveal the musculature of his face!. I feel that this feature is something that won't be captured in paperback and is one of the biggest reasons why you should purchase this now before it disappears from store shelves.
Since last fall, people have made the claim that this belongs among the greatest Joker stories ever told in comic form. After re-reading it, I have to agree with them. Where would I rank it? The Killing Joke and The Man Who Laughs are probably above this, but I would have to rank it above Azzarello and Bermejo's Joker. I believe shorter tales like The Laughing Fish are in a different category. It's also worth noting that Snyder promises an eventual return of The Joker. His tease is that if this was a tale of Joker's display of love for Batman, imagine what a display of hatred will be. You have my attention, Scott.
Score: 9/10.