The Killing Joke (2-4)

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

I was both horrified and intrigued the entire time. Like, I didn't want to see what was happening but at the same time I wanted to know how it ended. If the hero would save the day. But in the end nobody wins.

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

It made me pretty uncomfortable. When you're reading comics about fantasy characters in capes saving the day, it doesn't feel serious, it doesn't feel REAL. But there were so many elements in "The Killing Joke" that are scary real. Things that can happen in real life. Elements that HAVE happened in real life. I felt a mix of horror and sympathy for the Joker, sympathy for the desparation that led to who he is, and horror for what he's become.

3. What changes would you make to adapt this story into another medium? What medium would you choose; what changes would you make?

I don't think there's anything that can be changed. It's a very well-known story, and presenting it in anonther format may not be able to do the story justice in the same way. I don't know what I would change, it's not the kind of story that's easy to alter.

4. In what ways does this story differ from the typical expectations the reader might have for a superhero story?

As mentioned prior, I grew up reading comics and watching shows with the good guy coming in and saving the day. There were the good guys and the bad guys, you knew who was who and who you were meant to root for. I was a straight forward story, from beginning to end. In "The Killing Joke", the hero's moral's are tested, stretched to the point of snapping, and in the end leaves the result up in the air. Did they snap? Or did moral win out? Throughout the whole thing you don't know who to root for. Initially you root for Batman to find the Joker and put a stop to his mad plan. But as the story progresses and we learn more about the Joker, you feel pity for him. Losing his wife and child, and then his mind not long after. There's no clear right or wrong in this comic, and I feel that's part of what makes it unique.