With the start of this issue going forward, we'd be back to doing stories out of consecutive order. We could jump around in the timeline of the Arkham-verse. And I know one of the things that I wanted to further expand upon and Rocksteady was interested in, was the backstory of the feud between Joker and Penguin, hinted at in the game. They both control large gangs in their own section of town in Arkham City, and a rivalry was formed. And now was the opportunity to flesh out how that started.
I kind of think it's a bit of a lopsided rivalry. Penguin has a pure disdain for the Joker after he was humiliated by him in the Iceberg Lounge years ago. And he's sort of taken it upon himself to go after the Joker and his clowns in the city whenever possible. I think Joker is amused by this, which is why the degree of his attacks can range between gags (throwing pies) to deathly serious (acid wine). That's what makes the Joker so unconventional and dangerous. You never know how much of a threat he'll become in the moment. I think some fans were expecting some type of huge battle between the two in this story. And we'll see more attacks from both sides in future installments. But I kind of like the idea that Joker is more playful when it comes to the Penguin, and not as serious as he can be if he really wanted to.
It's weird to think back how long ago this was written. I remember visiting the Burbank offices to see and play Arkham City a month before it was released. And at that time I was already in the process of writing this script. I remember because an idea came to me while playing the game and seeing Penguin's shark "Tiny" for the first time. I thought it might be fun to show a smaller baby version of the shark for this story in the flashback to the Iceberg Lounge (we already had seals and penguins in an enclosure, and thought it would be fun to have a baby shark in an aquarium as a nice foreshadow to its appearance in the game). Sadly it never made it into the art. A lot of ideas get left on the cutting room floor in the process to get the work in on time, whether intentional or not. Would've been fun to see though.
I kind of think it's a bit of a lopsided rivalry. Penguin has a pure disdain for the Joker after he was humiliated by him in the Iceberg Lounge years ago. And he's sort of taken it upon himself to go after the Joker and his clowns in the city whenever possible. I think Joker is amused by this, which is why the degree of his attacks can range between gags (throwing pies) to deathly serious (acid wine). That's what makes the Joker so unconventional and dangerous. You never know how much of a threat he'll become in the moment. I think some fans were expecting some type of huge battle between the two in this story. And we'll see more attacks from both sides in future installments. But I kind of like the idea that Joker is more playful when it comes to the Penguin, and not as serious as he can be if he really wanted to.
It's weird to think back how long ago this was written. I remember visiting the Burbank offices to see and play Arkham City a month before it was released. And at that time I was already in the process of writing this script. I remember because an idea came to me while playing the game and seeing Penguin's shark "Tiny" for the first time. I thought it might be fun to show a smaller baby version of the shark for this story in the flashback to the Iceberg Lounge (we already had seals and penguins in an enclosure, and thought it would be fun to have a baby shark in an aquarium as a nice foreshadow to its appearance in the game). Sadly it never made it into the art. A lot of ideas get left on the cutting room floor in the process to get the work in on time, whether intentional or not. Would've been fun to see though.
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| Simon Colby art (left) / Alex Ross design (right) |
What was intentional was Joker's tuxedoed appearance at the Iceberg Lounge in the flashback, owing an influence nod to Alex Ross' famous cover. I thought for Joker to make an appearance at a public event and not draw too much attention (although keeping the green hair gives it away), he would dress the part in formal wear and even put on normal flesh makeup to cover up his white skin. Harley's design was all artist Simon Coleby's doing. I think I mentioned to put her in some kind of red dress, but I'm glad he kept the domino mask on her. Gives her an almost masquerade ball look to her appearance.
I think we're all caught up now for the print released issues. I'll try to keep this a regular thing when each new issue hits the stores, to give a little running commentary. And of course, any questions or comments you have on these specific issues, feel free to comment below and I'll reply back. Thanks!
I think we're all caught up now for the print released issues. I'll try to keep this a regular thing when each new issue hits the stores, to give a little running commentary. And of course, any questions or comments you have on these specific issues, feel free to comment below and I'll reply back. Thanks!
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