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BATMAN: LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #65-68 NOVEMBER 1994 - FEBRUARY 1995 BY JOHN MARC DEMATTEIS, JOE STATON, STEVE MITCHELL AND DIGITAL CHAMELEON

SYNOPSIS (FROM DC DATABASE)

On a bright sunny February Saturday in the neighborhood of Park Ridge, the citizens of Gotham City are treated to a passing parade. The people are especially into a clown doing his tricks and gags as his fumbles his juggling balls on the ground. Oblivious to the spectators is that the clown is the Joker and the fumbled balls are explosives. The destruction leaves four dead and seventeen injured. Later that night, after foiling a robbery, Batman is on the scene investigating.

Knowing that the Batman is on his trail, the Joker, posing as a cab driver, kidnaps Councilwoman Elizabeth Kenner, who has been working late that night. He takes her to the Comedia Theater, where he subjects her to various comedic acts of the 1920's and 1930's. After seeing that the councilwoman is not laughing, he violently beats her.

Joker makes his presence known, mimicking the Bat Signal with a Joker Signal. Batman easily takes him down only to see that it's not him but a small time hood named Frank Maguire. Maguire gives Batman a map upstate to where Joker has Kenner. Joker's tactics begin to further furiate Batman. Batman takes his chopper upstate to a cabin in the woods, where Joker is holding Kenner at gunpoint. Without warning, Joker shoots Kenner, but it's just a blow up doll, as he had released her hours ago in the cold woods. Before Batman can take him down, Joker escapes via a trap door. Batman suddenly realizes from a clue that Joker gave him that the cabin is wired with explosives. Before he can act, Batman is caught in the explosion, leaving him half dead and half unmasked. Joker doesn't buy it, and demands Batman to get up. With no movement at all from Batman, Joker finally accepts that he's dead and dumps his body into a river and with a somewhat sad feeling watches as he floats away.

Joker returns to the Comedia Theater in Gotham and accepts that fact that since there is no more Batman, there is no need to continue with his run as the Joker. He blows up the theater and contemplates getting a job and doing something about his skin condition. Back upstate, two kids run to Dr. Lynn Eagles house and tell her they found a near dead man lying beside the river.

Three weeks have passed since the Joker kidnapped Councilwoman Elizabeth Kenner. Jim Gordon is in his office watching the news. Reports of a brutally beaten and strangled body being fished out of Gotham Bay are followed by Kenner making comments about Captain Gordon, taking him to task about not apprehending the Joker as well as the unknown fate of Batman. While looking at a picture of Joker on the Batcomputer, Alfred also wonders if indeed Joker killed him.

Joker has been living in an apartment in Park Ridge, the very same site as his bombing, since his last encounter with Batman. He has deluded himself into inventing a generic name for himself, Joseph Kerr, and that he just moved to Gotham City from someplace he cannot seem to remember. He has himself believe that he just lost his parents, his apartment paid for by an inheritance from their deaths, supposedly has a job working for an accounting firm, and is taking medication for his skin condition, living life as an average every day guy. He immediately bumps into a pretty young woman from across the hall named Rebecca Brown and the two are instantly attracted to one another.

Weeks pass and Alfred still wonders if indeed Batman is dead, while Gordon continues to hear Kenner's harsh comments towards him and Batman's fate as well as keeping the faith by having the Bat Signal lit. Joseph and Rebecca have become a happy couple who enjoy the same things such as old comedic reels and radio shows from the 1930's and 1940's. However, kinks start to appear in the sanity of Joseph as he suffers from horrible nightmares and comes across various links to his former life as Joker.

The body in the bay is identified as Dr. Elias Bruckner; a plastic surgeon who specialized in new faces for criminals. His being seen for the last time with the Joker right after the Comedia Theater was destroyed further fuels rumors of Joker still being at large in the city as well as Batman being dead. On the television news, tension between Gordon and Kenner become white hot, while Alfred tries his best to tend to the manor. Jospeh is watching this same newscast which causes him to become angry, almost hitting Rebecca in the process. He is able to stop himself from going through with it but runs out of the apartment and into the elevator, giving in a little to his former persona. Gordon finally turns off the Bat Signal one night.

More weeks pass and Rebecca wakes up to a room of flowers and a happy Joseph, who proposes marriage to her. An ecstatic Rebecca accepts his proposal. Unable to sleep Alfred descends down into the cave when suddenly a familiar voice calls his name. He turns to see Batman who proclaims his return.

Joseph and Rebecca find themselves outside the dilapidated Comedia Theater with Joseph telling her how he loved the place as a kid. Rebecca doesn't get it as she was told he just moved to the city less than a year ago. Joseph plays it off as a harmless josh. Batman begins again on his search for Joker nearby while various flashbacks of his missing time come to his mind. He recalls how Dr. Lynn Eagles, from the upstate little town of Accord, did emergency surgery on him for his various life threatening injuries. She comes to call Bruce "Lazarus" during his time there.

Batman appears to Jim Gordon in his office and assures him that he will find Joker and bring him to justice, while hiding his apparent ache from his still recuperating body. Batman confronts Dorothy Bruckner, the widow of recently deceased Dr. Elias Bruckner. A alcoholic and failed plastic surgeon, Dr. Bruckner, catered to criminals wanting new faces. Batman easily deduces from Dorothy's reaction that this is enough to confirm that Joker hired him to do something about his skin condition and killed him when the job was done.

Flashbacks take Bruce back to his down time in Accord. Bruce asks why Lynn would take him in like this, to which she replies that simple intuition says that he is a good man. The idyllic quiet life in Accord makes Bruce think of possibly giving up Batman, and finding peace within himself in such a town. Lynn tells Bruce that she once moved to Gotham City for a few months but eventually returned to Accord because she hated the big city scene. Bruce likewise tells her vague truths about his life in the city.

In the cave, Batman is still retraining his body to act as it once did, when it hits him. Councilwoman Elizabeth Kenner's comments that Joker made her watch old comedic films, spurs Batman to cross-check rentals of such films at local video stores. Seeing the name of Joseph Kerr makes Batman wonder why Joker would be so obvious in this deception.

In a flashback in Accord one night. Lynn confesses to Bruce that she did indeed love Gotham City, but one night she came upon an intruder in her apartment, held her at gunpoint, and proceeded to rape her. The tragedy led her back to Accord to heal. After a few years she returned to the city to spend the day there. On the way back to her hotel however she was confronted by a man with a knife. She reveals that this time she was saved by Batman, and that was the reason why she helped Bruce the whole time, and returns his costume him. Upon hearing this, Bruce returns to Gotham City.

Batman comes upon Joseph and Rebecca's apartment and sees a picture of them. Joseph's innocent look casts doubt in Batman that he is Joker. The super, Mikey Sansonia, tells Batman that Joseph and Rebecca went on vacation in Pennsylvania weeks ago and that they are to be married. This solidifies for Batman that this is a just a deception by Joker to throw him off the trail. In another part of town however, Joker reappears.

During a harsh thunderstorm in Gotham City, Batman comes face to face with Joker, who himself is once again holding Councilwoman Elizabeth Kenner hostage. This time Joker called the cops himself and demanded that Batman meet him upon a city rooftop. With a knife to Kenner's throat, Joker tries to blast Batman with a trick violin. Batman is able to get out of the way in time. Joker makes off in a one man jet pack. Batman uses his Batarang to grab onto him, but Joker cuts the line and heads out to sea.

A flashback shows Joseph Kerr and Rebecca Brown in a quaint little cottage in rural Pennsylvania. Joseph is so happy about Rebecca's acceptance of marriage that he keeps asking her over and over again. His happiness seems almost like lunacy to Rebecca. Once again he brushes it off as a harmless josh. The couple decide to go for a walk in the rain when they come upon a small brook. Joseph has a map that shows a footbridge somewhere, but when he goes to look for it some newspaper, he sees Batman's picture with the story proclaiming his return. Joseph proclaims his love for Rebeccca again, but asks her to stay put while he goes to look for the footbridge. Out of her sight, Joseph jumps into the small river which washes him downstream. When he comes out of the water, the Joker persona has once again taking him over completely.

Present day, Joker now has Kenner on a boat, speaking to her as if they are lovers going on a honeymoon. Batman catches up to them in his own makeshift ski-boat. Joker proclaims that Batman will not take him down and will not take Rebecca away from him also, a statement that confuses himself. Batman tells Joker to give Kenner up onto a police helicopter circling the sea. At first he refuses, but suddenly sees Rebecca's face instead for a split second and finally gives her to the chopper. Joker has his boat wired to explode in thirty seconds and proceeds to split with his jet pack, but Batman grabs onto him. Unfortunately for both men, the jet pack runs out of gas, and the two are caught in the explosion. Batman is able to grab an unconscious Joker as well as a helicopter ladder, which takes them to safety.

Joseph Kerr is proclaimed missing and presumed dead with no body having ever been found, leaving Rebecca sad and grieving for the love of her life, Joker is locked up in Arkham Asylum, and in the small town of Accord, Dr. Lynn Eagles receives a thank you in the form of flowers from Batman.

REVIEW

This is a strange tale. As all Legends of the Dark Knight stories, they may or may not be canon, even at that time. I could see this story happening, but the fact that Accord or Doctor Eagle were never mentioned again, it makes me think it wasn’t. In any case, it doesn’t really matter. (Please let me know in the comments if some other writer ever used these characters again).

As a standalone story, it’s a bit too slow. Perhaps my problem is with the art that doesn’t allow me to feel in that place with the characters. As a result, I cannot really relate to the characters that much (it also doesn’t help that the three female characters are almost identical).

The one thing I think is really interesting about this story is how Batman thinks, and how a sane Joker would think. The moment Batman realizes where the Joker is he feels disappointed, but he is really afraid. In a way, both characters went through a death and resurrection ordeal in this story, but both come back as the same person they were before (so there is no character transformation). Perhaps the one thing that had a lasting effect in Batman, was Doctor Eagle and that “trip to his happy childhood” (let’s assume that is still happening in his mind in 1995).

I wouldn’t really recommend this story unless you like seeing the Joker as a regular person (for two issues).

I give this story a score of 6.

#joe staton #steve mitchell #joker #dc comics #comics #review #batman80 #batman #1994 #1995 #modern age #batman legends of the dark knight #legends of the dark knight

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