Review of Batman: The Killing Joke (2016) by Ian G — 16 Sep 2016

Another entry in to the DC animated universe which Bruce Timm supervises which tackles the famous or infamous Killing Joke story depending which comic book geek you speak to, and also covers possibly the definitive backstory to the famous character of the Joker, going from his life as a failed comedian, to a criminal hood to the clown prince of crime during an altercation with the Batman.

Its great to hear as always Kevin Conroy and Harm Hamill as their definitive voice roles as they play off each other extremely well, particularly during Hamil's monologuing about preffering his life before the accident as multiple choice as it keeps the vigilante on his toes.

Also the fact that it cover the infamous moment of the Joker maiming Barbara Gordon that she is no longer able to walk was something that stayed within continuity for ages and led her to become Oracle was cool and chilling to see on the small screen finally.

The biggest con for the piece is the tacked on intro to get the audience more involved with Batgirls character (mainly for the newbies who might not be as familar by this point) considering put against the main throughline you can tell it is considerably weaker that the rest of the story and doesn't provide a lot of layers although it finally confirms what Timm long had been hinting at that Batman and girl had a physical relationship at one point.

Outside of that, it defintely has some of the stronger moments for the animated films, but the added on material brings it down to merely average.