Joker: Last Laugh 00 - Secret Files and Origins

This again is not a Birds of Prey booklet, which means that the girls' adventures link into a large crossover, the Joker: Last Laugh (as I already aimed at last time).

A Clown at midnight.

This story is the essence of the booklet (the origin). The Slab (the super safe prison for the super evils) is somewhere in a sea island. Joker is guarded here too, who is taken for a brain CT scan. Doctors found that he is completely unrehabilitable, but they find something ...

Then it turns out that all is seen by Nightwing in Oracle's monitor room. That is a direct continuation of the previous Birds of Prey booklet. Barbara also arrives, and you can know that she thought good idea to nonstop observation of Joker. However, Dick persuades Barbara to date instead of watching Joker.

Of course, thus Oracle misses the essence. It turns out that Joker has an advanced brain tumor, and a smartass decides to let him in his last days among the other prisoners. Here, he becomes acquainted with some of them, including a shape-shifting guy, Chiller; Mr. Mind, Venusians brain-worm and his current host; Multi-Man who always resurrects with a new super ability after his death (just like the Ressurection Man). Joker finds out from them what kinds of chemicals which the guards spray in the air trying to keep control the prisoners’ super abilities. Thereafter, he is told that he won’t live at Christmas. He has some melancholy about it. But he does not lose his heart for a long time goes back to the diner and causes a break out a mass battery (by the most platitudinous way) which culminates in riots.

Well, Chuck Dixon's and Scott Beatty's story is quite uninteresting. The basic story itself will be six parts plus this Origin and Secret Files, and obviously is not enough content to be able to fill this. Of course it is suspected that it is full information bits which become important later, but even that is not too inspiring. Pete Woods' draws are simple and energetic, slightly caricaturisticly characters. I just do not like them, but that's my problem.

Touched

In a few paged story, Joker' victims and their relatives confess to two FBI agents what effected them Joker. You can hear Oracle, Harley Quinn hopelessly in love, and anonymous walk-on actors of course. It is recalled including the Killing Joke

and death of Robin (the second, Jason Todd) too.

The writer, Dan Curtis Johnson attempted to show that the Joker is not only dangerous because his evil deeds but primarily by his impact of other people's soul. He tries to be a bit arty and lyrical, but he is rather confused (but may be he is just too artistic for me). The drawer is one of my favorite J. H. Williams III but these draws are not fascinating me too much.

Worm Food

This story shows how the Venusians brain-worm gets in his current host. Whereas, Captain Marvel and his team defeated Mr. Mind (the brain-worm), they decide to be frozen him. This task is undertaken by a team member with moderate mental abilities, Francis. He gets the worm into his own refrigerator. Of course Mr. Mind escapes from here in minutes and he crawls in Francis's brain through his ear. At next morning, Francis prepares for a suicide attack under the influence of Mr. Mind. Mary Marvel appears immediately tears away the dynamics and throws out them through the window. Francis and Mr. Mind go in the SLAB. Obviously, they have to somehow explain the new host of Mr. Mind who has been defeated at the Shazam pages recently (?), but it's too little for even alibi. The perpetrator is Jerry Ordway, the drawer is Peter Krause (so-so).

Joker Fun Fact

It is a two-paged funny story about the producing of the Joker Venom by Jai Nitz and Amanda Conner.

Profile Pages

Here, Chuck Dixon and Scott Beatty present the characters who are relatively important in the story but they are not well-known.

Shilo Norman & Dina Bell

The good guys. Shilo is the security adviser of the SLAB, the student of escapologist Mister Miracle. Dina is U.S. marshal and has been featured in the girls' adventure in Apokolips. Both were included in the opening story just not doing anything worthwhile, so I didn't mention them (Shilo opposed to let Joker into the other prisoners and Dina agreed with him).

Black Mass

He has some gravitational superpower which will be very important in the future (and which I can not understand).

Multi-Man

He has already been mentioned.

Leather

She is some monster (and I think she wont been included in the whole story).

Meathead

His body is rotting flesh and his body parts are functioning independently.

Carnivora

She is scout of an alien invasion. She eats her defeated opponents.

Rancor

He is Nazi jerk. He will aide of Joker in the story.

Well, that's it. In my opinion, it is mere money pulling the whole book. Anyone who does not buy it, he thinks through the whole the story that he misses a very important essential thing in the beginning. Then he buys it reads it and realizes that he actually does not.

The original Hungarian blog post is here.