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Why does Ledger?s Joker have to resemble the modern comic version?  I don?t see the logic in how that makes Ledger any lesser of a portrayal.

He doesn't have to but with so much of the Nolan franchise's inspiration coming from comics published in the last twenty or so years, it's odd (but not in any way a dealbreaker) that Joker doesn't harmonize with them.

This Joker is based off Batman #1

Superficially, yes.  The problem is that the B#1 Joker played for profit.  He had no problem sowing chaos if it would serve his penchant for murder and robbery, but he was not in any way out to chaos just for the fun of it.  He played for profit and to settle personal grudges.

Ledger was the Joker through and through, and stole every scene he appeared in. Personally, the superior Joker has come along, Nicholson is now second dog in the film stakes. Many agree with me as well.

Many people also loved Talladega Nights.

The comic book could be said to be Nicholson, and as a result not as effective. Ledger in comparison could be said to be the graphic novel version.

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[LOVED]

This was my very first... and what a way to start!  Tim Drake was still in training to be the new Robin, the storyline gripped my little 9-year old mind right from the word "go" and, man, I LOVED Breyfogle's art.  He remains my all-time fave Batman artist.

I might never have picked up the comics but my mom paid a visit to a friend she went to school with and I started talking with his kid, who was about a year older than me and was an absolute comics junkie.  He brought me up to speed on Batman comics lore and I ended up buy this issue of Detective later that night when my mom and I went to the mall.

Things were never really the same after that.


Strange to think that this one's the also-ran.  It's a strong story, but it's weakened by my having absolutely no clue what was going on (being, as it was, the latter chapter of a multi-part storyline) and the, in my opinion, sub-standard art stylings of Jim Aparo.  Breyfogle's style just seemed cooler to me.  These days, I dig on Aparo but nothing touches Breyfogle's Batman for my money.  Still, this arc clearly had a lot of emotional weight for Batman, Gordon and the Joker and it gave the Batman comics a mystique with all these big events (Barbara's paralysis, Jason Todd's death, etc) that were referred to but never really elaborated on and which I knew next to nothing about.

I will say though that this cover still forms my basic perception of the Joker.  When I hear the name, this image is what I think of.  Maniacally laughing as he indiscriminately shoots a machine gun at whatever tickles his fancy at any given moment.  The insanity is right there in his eyes.  Perfect.

Strange to think that these two oft-overlooked issues formed the basis of my Batman comics obsession.

Assuming Batman's various Ages correspond to Superman's, you could basically call Silver Age Batman the goofy 50's and 60's version.  The duly-deputized smiling sci-fi adventurer.  Some people dig that but it ain't my thing.

Bronze Age would be, I'd guess, the beginning of the O'Neil era leading up through just before TDKR came out.  This would be the darker, more serious Batman.  The hairy-chested love god, I believe Grant Morrison called that period of the character.

Then, obviously, you get into the Modern Age with TDKR, Year One, Death in the Family, Killing Joke, Arkham Asylum, Knightfall and so forth.

Of late, Post-Infinite Crisis, a good bit of the DCU (is the "U" even appropriate anymore?) has shifted back to being closer to the Bronze Age.  In my estimation, that's not a good thing because it's more or less repeating what's already come before.  The creative bankruptcy of the Superman comics these past few years ought to be proof enough of that (although the newer issues the past year or so show promise).

Hope that helps.

^ What he said.

Oy, this is why I don't like realism in superhero movies.

Face to Face for me.  It PERFECTLY captured a few of BR's themes and even had that meowing strings motif for Catwoman playing in the background.  Plus, the video has Siouxsie Sioux laying around in skintight PVC.  What's not to like?

So wait a second, this isn't an actual "expanded" release?  It's the original soundtrack that's been hacked up?  I was expecting this to be like that unreleased, expanded Superman Returns score that had basically everything you heard in the movie.

Assuming such a thing exists and assuming I actually did go to Google and paste in that search, this is the track listing I might have come up with. 

01 - Stranger
02 - That's More Like It
03 - No Limits
04 - Mob Meet
05 - Why So Serious
06 - Hong Kong
07 - Where Is Harvey Dent
08 - Fingerprints
09 - Officer Down
10 - I Am The Batman
11 - Hit Me!
12 - One Rule
13 - Phone Call
14 - Chaos
15 - Introduce A Little Anarchy
16 - Two Face's Hunt
17 - Social Experiment
18 - Last Laugh
19 - A Little Push
20 - Morallity Of Chance
21 - The Dark Knight
22 - End Credits

[is]

The money was fake. It's in the comic adaption and the novel. You can't just disregard those. That's that. There's simply no escaping that.

Sorry, no.  I don't.  I don't even know if that part was even filmed.  It's not included in the movie so those things shouldn't count... unless, of course, we're supposed to believe, all evidence to the contrary aside, Knox somehow wound up covered in Batman's cape at the end of the movie.

Heath locking himself away was pure dedication. For you to say his version was nothing at all to do with the comics is an ultimate cop out. You just don't want it to be, and to keep justifying Nicholson. Get real.

The Joker in modern comics does not behave the way Ledger's Joker did.  That's not open to debate, it's fact.  The comic book Joker has far greater resonance with Nicholson's portrayal.  This too is fact.  And like I said, my ego isn't at stake here.  If a superior portrayal of the Joker comes along (which I think BTAS in large part is better) I'm ready, willing and able to label it as such... but Ledger's simply isn't.  When it comes to live action, Nicholson's Joker is still top dog.  His character is the Joker; Ledger's character was Hannibal Lecter in makeup.  Ledger did a fantastic job and stole almost every scene he was in but he was the Joker pretty much in name only.

There is no maybe or maybe not. It is. Ledger one-upped Nicholson. Symbolically, Nicholson throws away fake money, Ledger burns real money.

I don't think anything in the movie actually says the cashmoneymoolah was fake.  It's in the comic adaptation and maybe the novelization but the movie suggests nothing more than legit cash.

In terms of enjoying the two Jokers, it is Ledger hands down for me. He locked himself in his room for a month and delivered a layered, fascinatingly dangerous performance.

Which wasn't anything to do with the comics.  There's simply no escaping that.