“Do you know how I got these scars?” It was hard not to start by quoting the Joker by Heath Ledger, who from this point of view embodied the elusive essence of the character, especially from the point of view of his origins.
In fact, there is no precise official origin of the Joker: this is the beauty of the character. That is, the continuous change of how he became Batman’s nemesis, who he was before the pale laughing face, what his real name was.
Several authors they tried their hand at the origins of the Joker: just think of the very famous The Killing Joke by Alan Moore, which told the story of how a simple failed comedian became a criminal madman of that caliber.
And Joker has had so many names between cinema, comics and TV series: Joseph Kerr, Jack Napier, Jack White, Arthur Fleck up to one of the last, Jack Oswald White, seen in Flashpoint Beyond and the story of the three Jokers.
But right here lies the beauty of the mystery, the same as the scars mentioned several times (and in different ways). The dark Knight: Joker has no origins and he has them all. He doesn’t have a name, so he could be anyone, a person who is just one bad day away from becoming criminally insane.
And this ability to continually reinvent a character who represents the risk of a society collapsing is what has made it enormous and the Joker is forever immortal. The Joker’s origins are also told again in Batman The Brave and the Bold.
And what is your favorite origin of the Joker? In fact, what do you think is his real name? Tell us what you think in the comments, we’ll leave you with the Batman Day special volumes.
