[Week 13] Super Hero Stuff + The Killing Joke

So for this week I decided to read Hellboy! I specifically read Savage Dragon, Wake the Devil, and Conqueror Worm. I've never actually read Hellboy before, and had only seen the Del Toro movies a long, long time ago. The art style really is fantastic, and Hellboy's dry humor is really great. I also appreciate the violence against Nazis, as well as the general smattering of mythology that's in the series. Roger is probably one of my favorite characters in it, because he's just a gentle sort of character that is very human, despite "not really being human".

[In Class Stuff- Killing Joke]

1. What is your reaction to the text you just read?

I've never really read the Batman comics before, but it was interesting to see the Joker take this sort of persona in the comic, and for us to really understand what had happened to him. It's good to see that him and Batman are really similar, but just took different paths in reaction to having a 'bad day'. The art was really great too, and the ending being as ambiguous as it is is really interesting. I like seeing this side of the Joker, but the Lego Batman joker is still probably my favorite.

2. What connections did you make with the story? Discuss the elements of the story with which you were able to connect.

So I was able to make at least some sort of connection with the aspect of Batman being incredibly frustrated with just trying to talk to the Joker so they wouldn't end up killing each other. I can relate to this incredibly well, because I often get really frustrated when I know a problem can be solved simply by just talking to the person, but they don't want to talk or they keep avoiding being talked too, much like how the Joker is constantly on the run in the comic up until the end.  This sort of horrible frustration is so relatable in the comic, especially with the aggression that comes with it.

3. What changes would you make to adapt the story into another medium? What medium would you use? What changes would you make?

If I had to make this story into another medium, I would make it into a game, probably. I would have to change the story to have alternate endings, so it would not only have the ambiguous ones, but also probably endings that have more definitive endings. I would want the game to be based on different choices in order to access parts of the Joker's backstory, maybe even have the ability to change the outcome of certain things based on player choices.
It would just be fun to let people have a sort of 'choose your own adventure' experience with something like a comic story as important as Batman and Joker.