The Complete Set with Variant Covers
DC Studios' imprint that brings adult-oriented cinematic experiences that fall into Elsewords-like storytelling is called BLACK LABEL, and it launched back in 2019 with director Todd Phillips incredible origin story, JOKER, starring Joaquin Phoenix. Black Label films, of course, were named after the DC Comics' own Black Label imprint, and it's only appropriate that writer GEOFF JOHNS and artist JASON FABOK's 2020 limited series THREE JOKERS also premiered under the same adult-focused banner.
Following up on Johns' earlier DC Rebirth and his Doomsday Clock maxi-series, in which he teases that three distinct "Jokers" may exist in the DC Universe -- The Criminal, The Clown, and The Comedian -- Three Jokers, published in 2020, unites the trio against the three Bat-Family members they've most affected: BATMAN, BATGIRL and the RED HOOD. Spoiler alert here: In the end, only one Joker is left standing, and it's this Joker that reflects the current Joker of DC continuity.
But Elseworlds-like storytelling isn't the same as full-on Elseworlds storytelling, and the determination as to whether Black Label publications are part of DC canon or not remains somewhat blurred. This concern has played heavily into the flagship Batman series storyline written by CHIP ZDARSKY, whose run to-date has consistently drawn inspiration from Three Jokers and informed Zdarsky's current story-arc, Joker: Year One, itself a three-issue character study of Batman's most infamous foe.
Being part of the definitive DC canon, Zdarsky's Year One resolves the questions left lingering from Three Jokers in sound fashion, while also leaving fans with considerable new insight into The Joker, his abilities and his relationship The Dark Knight. For any fan of DC's Clown Prince of Crime, Three Jokers and the current Batman series from Zdarsky are each Must-Read material; if read together, they provide an incredible new lens for one of DC Comics' greatest creations.
DC Studios' sequel to Joker, entitled Joker: Folie a Deux, hits theaters October 4th, 2024.