Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker offers a fresh take of the classic character.
After several films with mixed results, the DC cinematic universe looks like it might just get the last laugh.
Today, Warner Bros. released the first trailer for “Joker,” the new standalone film for the clown-prince of crime. The film is set to be released on Oct. 4 this year, but you can watch the trailer now:
The character
Thankfully, Joaquin Phoenix appears to be giving the Joker his own unique identity. He isn’t copying Jack Nicholson or Heath Ledger’s characters. He is also not taking something completely out-of-left-field like Jared Leto.
This Joker has an element of tragedy to his character, coupled with the growing negativity oozing from Gotham City.
For the first time since Tim Burton’s 1989 film “Batman,” the Joker will be getting a backstory on the silver screen. His true identity in this film will be a failing comedian named Arthur Fleck.
Fans may be turned off by adding a backstory to the character (shrouding him in mystery is the usual treatment). However, the Joker himself gave a bit of insight into his character in the graphic novel “Batman: The Killing Joke.”
“Sometimes I remember it one way, sometimes another. If I’m going to have a past, I prefer it to be multiple choice.”
Basically, you should accept the film as one interpretation of how the Joker went mad, rather than the universal truth.
The story
The beginning of the movie looks like it’s gonna be pretty bleak for the Joker. From being harassed at work to being beaten on the subway, it’s not hard to see why the harlequin eventually takes his rage out on Gotham.
Along with beatings from criminals of Gotham, we get several other ideas of what might lead to Joker’s breaking point.
A scene featuring Joker washing his mother’s hair in a bath shows that he has a very close relationship with her. His mother doesn’t appear to be the only woman in his life, as Joker also has a female therapist and a female friend/love-interest.
In one iteration of the Joker, a contributing factor to his insanity was the untimely death of his wife. Though the trailer doesn’t hint at an ill fate for the women in Joker’s life, one bad day for them might be the straw that broke the camel’s back.
As Joker said in “Killing Joke,” “All it takes is one bad day to reduce the sanest man alive to lunacy. That’s how far the world is from where I am. Just one bad day.”
Along with seeing a therapist, Joker appears to make an attempt to maintain his sanity. In one shot, we can see Joker walking towards Arkham Asylum.
The asylum is infamous for making the criminally insane even more insane. If you don’t believe us, there are several video games about the asylum’s impact on Gotham. We love them so much that the games topped our list for the best superhero games ever.
We didn’t get to see any footage of the Joker committing crimes. We did get a hint to the fact that the Joker will attract a following. This is shown in one scene where several Gotham citizens parade the streets in clown masks.
DC has recently struggled with dark storytelling. The dark tones the writers hope to capture have not fit the plot or characters in the films. The Rotten Tomatoes scores for “Suicide Squad” and “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice” are evidence of that.
We hope that “Joker” finds the balance that DC has been hoping to capture. The trailer has shown that Joaquin Phoenix definitely has the ability to command the screen in every shot. We just hope that the writers make the story into the circus the Joker deserves.
It should come as no surprise to anyone that superhero movies are the hottest thing in pop culture today. They routinely crush the box office and characters like Iron Man and Thanos have become modern icons. Many fans understandably have wanted to get into the comics that spawned these characters, but don’t exactly know where to start. This guide will show you what to do based on which comics you want to read and how you want to read them.
First, we’ll start with how you want to read them.
Where to start with print comics
If you prefer flipping through the pages of a comic to swiping on a screen, you have a few options. Your first option is to read trade paperbacks.
A trade paperback is a collection of comics that usually make up a single story arc. If you’re looking to read a specific story (e.g. “The Infinity Gauntlet” or “The Dark Knight Returns”), buying these trade paperbacks is often significantly easier and cheaper than hunting down individual issues of the story.
Trade paperbacks also often include issues of multiple series to fill out a story (for example, the “Civil War” trade includes issues of Avengers and Amazing Spider-Man, among others). For newer comic fans, buying trades is the easiest way to read famous stories without worrying about buying individual issues or reading them in a specific order. You can buy these either at book/comic stores or online, but in our experience, it’s usually cheaper to buy these at comic stores.
The other most common option is to subscribe to your favorite series at your local comic book store. Most stores offer some sort of discount if you subscribe to a monthly/weekly comic, and you can generally pick up new issues on Wednesdays. This is the best way to continuously keep up on a specific series, as you’ll get new issues right when they come out. Plus, it’s always important to support your local comic book store!
The upside to reading comics digitally is convenience. You can read them on your phone, tablet, or computer, making it easy to bring them on the go without hauling a stack of books.
If you’re looking to read mainstream superhero comics, both DC and Marvel have digital comics subscriptions that are well worth the money. For $10 a month, Marvel Unlimited gives you access to nearly every Marvel comic released since the 1960s.
The app is very well organized by different stories, writers, and characters, allowing you to browse the massive catalog with ease. Unfortunately, you can’t read newer issues of current series when they come out (though you can buy the issue separately), but all comics are uploaded to the service a few months after they release. The service is basically everything you could want as a Marvel comic fan.
If you’re looking more broadly, the ComiXology app offers basically any modern comic you could possibly want. The service has both Marvel and DC comics, in addition to thousands of non-superhero comics from other publishers, and you can buy new issues as soon as they come out. They also have a paid subscription service called ComiXology Unlimited that gives you access to thousands of comics from a wide variety of publishers. If you’re more focused on keeping up with current series as opposed to diving into the backlog, you should use ComiXology over Marvel Unlimited.
Decades of continuity can make diving into comic books a confusing and daunting task. Fortunately, with the popularity of their movies Marvel and DC have made efforts to streamline their titles and give new readers a clean starting point. Here are some titles to check out from each publisher.
Marvel
Last year, Marvel launched its Fresh Start line. Fresh Start renumbered a bunch of Marvel’s most popular comics at #1, giving new readers a clear jumping on point. If you’re a movie fan looking to start reading, WE recommend choosing from these comic lines. Some of the comics that were renumbered include:
Avengers
Black Panther
Captain America
Captain Marvel
Deadpool
Guardians of the Galaxy
Immortal Hulk
Miles Morales: Spider-Man
Thor
Tony Stark: Iron Man
Uncanny X-Men
Venom
Most of the confusing or convoluted storylines that were present in these comics have been reworked to bring in the casual crowd, so don’t worry about jumping into some massive story that’s partway through. With Marvel Unlimited, you should be able to read most of these comics up until their current issues.
DC
DC is known for its massive universal reboots every so often, and they had arguably their most successful one in 2016’s DC Rebirth. The relaunch combined the modern sensibilities of the controversial New 52 relaunch with DC’s storied legacy to get the best of both worlds. For new readers, we recommend choosing from your favorite character’s Rebirth comic. Popular characters that got a new series in Rebirth include:
Aquaman
Batman
Cyborg
Doom Patrol
Flash
Green Arrow
Green Lantern
Harley Quinn
Justice League
Shazam
Suicide Squad
Superman
Wonder Woman
DC has done a nice job of balancing keeping their heroes familiar and introducing fresh elements to their stories. Rebirth is a great place to start for both new and returning readers.
Did this guide answer your questions? What comics are you most interested in? Let us know!
Discover the games that truly make you feel like you’ve got superpowers.
Licensed games are always a mixed bag. There are so many beloved characters and franchises that would make for excellent and creative games. Unfortunately, these games are often plagued by publisher interference and strict deadlines that hinder the developer’s ability to make a fun game that respects the source material. Superhero games are notorious for falling victim to this. With so many iconic heroes and inventive superpowers, you would think there’d be plenty of amazing superhero games, but unfortunately, the genre is home to many infamous duds like Superman 64.
You’ll believe a man can fly
Despite all of this, there are some diamonds in the rough. Last summer, Insomniac’s Spider-Man breathed life into the superhero genre by giving players an expansive city, an original story, breathtaking movement options, and plenty of fan service. Because Spider-Man PS4 came out so recently and would be such an obvious pick, we decided to look further back at some games that truly stand out as superhuman.
5 best superhero games of all time
5. Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction
In the comics, the Hulk is a character study on the depths of human rage, fear, and loneliness, showcasing the struggle between a man’s cerebral and primal urges. While this has made for plenty of beloved Hulk comics throughout the years, while in video game form the Hulk should be about one thing and one thing only: smashing. The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction understands this perfectly, giving the player a huge, interactive playground to destroy. The game was developed by Radical Entertainment, who would go on to develop the similar Prototype series.
Players take control of the Hulk, who has access to dozens of upgradeable special moves, including the Weaponization system. The weaponization system allows the Hulk to transform environmental objects into useful weapons, such as ripping a car in half to use as boxing gloves, using a streetlight as a javelin, or surfing on a bus. The Hulk’s movements have a sense of weight and momentum to them. As the Hulk builds up speed and dashes forward, he will automatically destroy enemies and objects he crashes into without slowing down, truly giving players the feeling of controlling an unstoppable monster. Unlike previous Hulk games, Ultimate Destruction is open world, and the Hulk can rampage through two distinct levels, the badlands and the city, each with their own unique enemies, destroyable objects, and secrets to discover.
4. Spider-Man 2
Spider-Man PS4 owes everything to this classic. Based off of the hit movie, Spider-Man 2 laid down the formula for open-world superhero games. Unlike the first Spider-Man movie game, Spider-Man 2 allowed players to freely explore New York City. At the time, such vast worlds were very uncommon in games, especially for licensed titles. The world was chock full of side missions, including infamous quests like retrieving balloons for children or delivering pizzas while that hilarious music played.
Even with its fleshed-out world and memorable missions, the most memorable part of the game is the web-swinging. Previous Spider-Man games had Spidey shooting out webs into the sky and swinging on nothing, at most able to alternate between a few different speeds. Spider-Man 2 completely revamped the web-swinging system, and the player must now shoot actual buildings and objects to swing. As the player swings toward an object, they feel a real sense of momentum as Spider-Man speeds closer towards the ground, ending as the hero detaches from the web into an explosive jump. The system had a learning curve, but a high skill ceiling and a surprising amount of depth. Even today, Spider-Man 2’s web-swinging is considered one of gaming’s best movement systems.
Back in the ’90s, Capcom dominated arcades with their star fighting game franchises like Street Fighter and Street Fighter Alpha. Eventually, they ended up getting the Marvel license, creating fighting game classics like X-Men: Children of the Atom and Marvel Super Heroes. Later on, someone at Capcom had the brilliant idea to mash these two megahit game series together, and Marvel vs Capcom was born. In addition to all of your Capcom favorites like Ryu and Mega Man, the MvC games featured a colorful cast of Marvel heroes both iconic (Spider-Man, Wolverine, Captain America) and hilariously obscure (Shuma-Gorath, Marrow, and at the time, Rocket Racoon).
The series took the versus gameplay popularized by X-Men COTA and dialed it up to 11. Players could select teams of three characters from a gigantic roster, customizing their assist attacks to form the best synergy they could. Combos in MvC games are infamously flashy, often lasting a long time and involving multiple characters and explosive super moves. The Marvel vs Capcom games are an absolute must play for anyone who enjoys fighting games, Marvel, or fast-paced, flashy games overall.
Back in the early 2000s, Raven Software’s X-Men Legends series was a critical and commercial hit. The game combined Diablo-style dungeon crawling and loot with an enormous roster of heroes, each with customizable powers, attributes, and costumes. Marvel: Ultimate Alliance kept this style of gameplay while expanding the storyline and roster to encompass the entire Marvel Universe. Playable characters include the Avengers, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, and solo heroes like the Deadpool, Silver Surfer, Blade, and Daredevil.
The story is incredibly expansive, including treks to Atlantis, Asgard, and even Hell. Tough choices abound, as your decisions are often surprisingly morally grey and have you choosing who lives and who dies. These decisions alter the course of the story and the ending you receive. As you progress through the game, you face off against iconic Marvel baddies like Dr. Doom, Ultron, Loki, and even Galactus. Dialogue and story events with these villains change depending on which heroes you choose for your team. For example, Captain America laments having to fight a brainwashed Winter Soldier, and Bullseye taunts Elektra, reminding her that he murdered her in the past.
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance is the perfect evolution of the X-Men Legends series, and is one of the finest RPG experiences of its era. Stay on the lookout for Ultimate Alliance 3, which was recently announced as an exclusive for the Nintendo Switch.
Stan Lee masterclass: How to create a good villain
Obviously, we can’t make a list of top superhero games without mentioning the Arkham series. When Arkham Asylum was released in 2009, critics were blown away by the gripping storyline, chilling atmosphere, and detective-based gameplay. The Arkham games were the first Batman games that really tried to encompass the whole scope of Batman’s character: his sharp detective mind, his relationships with his enemies, and his brutal combat prowess.
In the Arkham games, Batman has access to a wide variety of gadgets that aid him in both puzzle-solving and combat. The developers did a fantastic job combing through Batman’s history for gadgets, as they included everything from his iconic Batarangs to his explosive gel. In addition to his gadgets, Batman can also use his Detective Vision, highlighting interactable objects and secrets. Speaking of secrets, every game in the series is full of secrets to collect, with most secrets either fleshing out the world (Riddler trophies) or providing fan service (Batman Beyond suit).
Batman’s famous rogues’ gallery makes for some extremely memorable boss fights. The fight against Mr. Freeze in Arkham City is a methodic and tense fight that has Batman using his environment and gadgets to get the upper hand. Most notably, the Scarecrow fight in Arkham Asylum is creative and fourth-wall breaking, as it brilliantly leads the player to believe that their game is glitching out. These fights not only serve as creative gameplay segments but as character studies into the minds of Batman’s most iconic villains, showcasing the passion and lore knowledge of the development team.
The Arkham series’ combat system is easily the most influential of the last decade. So many games use “Arkham combat” nowadays because the system is so simple, yet fluid and stylish. Basically, as Batman attacks a group of enemies he automatically locks on to them and pummels them as you press the attack button. When an enemy telegraphs an attack, Batman can press the counter button to quickly dodge and strike back. If done correctly, every combat sequence should function as one continuous, free-flowing combo. While the system isn’t nearly as nuanced as a game like Devil May Cry or Bayonetta, it is accessible and flashy, focusing more on the flow of combat rather than tight button combinations.
The Arkham series is a true labor of love to one of the greatest superheroes of all time, and perfectly displays what happens when licenses are given to developers who are given ample resources and respect and love the source material.
Any superhero games we missed? Which ones are your favorites? Let us know!
After several films with mixed results, the DC cinematic universe looks like it might just get the last laugh.
Fans may be turned off by adding a backstory to the character (shrouding him in mystery is the usual treatment). However, the Joker himself gave a bit of insight into his character in the graphic novel “Batman: The Killing Joke.”
The beginning of the movie looks like it’s gonna be pretty bleak for the Joker. From being harassed at work to being beaten on the subway, it’s not hard to see why the harlequin eventually takes his rage out on Gotham.
The asylum is infamous for making the criminally insane even more insane. If you don’t believe us, there are several video games about the asylum’s impact on Gotham. We love them so much that the games topped our list for the best superhero games ever. 
DC has recently struggled with dark storytelling. The dark tones the writers hope to capture have not fit the plot or characters in the films. The Rotten Tomatoes scores for “Suicide Squad” and “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice” are evidence of that.
