Persona 5 Strikers is a worthy sequel to Persona 5, and fans will be delighted with it. With a very good combat system that tries to mix the musou genre with the characteristic contributions of the Persona saga to the battles and a good story, perhaps it is too irregular in some sections to become a round game, but it certainly will not disappoint.
Fusing the rich game world of Persona with real-time combat, Omega Force and P-Studio have created a new Persona of their own and it is a worthy addition to a classic franchise.
Persona 5 Strikers not only continues the story of Persona 5 wonderfully, but also works very well as a stand-alone game. It is much more than just another Warriors clone and becomes an action RPG that every fan of the series should definitely check out. The story is not comparable to the level of a Persona 5, but the attention to detail and the fun summer trip across Japan make this game a great holiday with dear friends - and prisons.
Persona 5 Strikers is essential gaming this year. The virtue this title carries is for everyone, not just the JRPG enthusiast. an opportunity to portray our favourite group of rascals for one final bow-out. [...] a spectacular sequel
It's early yet to tell whether or not that tried and true formula will overstay its welcome, but Persona 5 Strikers is looking real good so far, as an Omega Force brawler and as a Persona game. It's a bold claim for sure, but it already grabbed me with the promise of more Persona.
Strikers captures the affable singularity of Persona 5 while shifting its perspective from a turn-based slow burn to an action-focused escapade. At the same time, Strikers' devotion to its source material succeeds in keeping the player active and invested amid the turbulence of its strained support structure. It's a summer vacation masquerading as a sequel, and that seems to suit the Phantom Thieves just fine.
Koei Tecmo has somehow crafted not only a genuine sequel to Persona 5, the JRPG, but the team has managed to equal it. Or – if action combat is your thing – perhaps even exceed it. That is no mean feat.
Fast paced Musou battles combined with the typical Persona 5 elements take you on a wild, stylish ride. Perfect for everyone who found P5 too lengthy. Strikers is cool, fast, and a little shambolic.
While Persona 5 Strikers disappointingly removes the mainline series' social links, it carries over enough familiar elements to feel like a true successor
If you loved Persona 5 and wanted to spend more time with Joker and the Phantom Thieves, Persona 5 Strikers is almost everything you could wish for. It’s a fun, zany and heartfelt waltz through the Persona Universe.
Blending an engaging and often thought-provoking narrative with combat that flirts with both strategy and chaos but always remains fun, Persona 5 Strikers is quite simply one of the best action RPGs I’ve ever played.
Persona 5's RPG elements thrive in action-based combat, and while the story may not hit hard, the Phantom Thieves haven't forgotten what they're about.
Persona 5 Strikers is a magnificent sequel that manages to feel familiar and different at the same time, without forgetting to thrill with its story while offering a pleasant playable change in line with the Action RPG.
Persona 5 Strikers is a fantastic sequel to one of the best JRPGs of all time. It's less of a Warriors game and more of an action RPG with fun, fluid combat, great characters, and an excellent story and soundtrack.
If you liked Persona 5 (is there anyone who didn't?), Strikers should be a no-brainer choice. The gameplay isn't exactly our cup of tea, but the story is so interesting, the characters are so lovable and it just looks SO cool, that you would be mad if you didn't accept the Phantoms Thieves calling card.
Persona 5 Strikers is a slick and stylish spin-off that manages to successfully combine a surprisingly strong story with some satisfying Musou-inspired hack-and-slash action. There are a few issues here and there, with some necessary grinding at points, slight difficulty imbalances and a camera that can be a bit of a pain during busy battles but, overall, this is a thoroughly entertaining action RPG that comes highly recommended.
Persona 5 Strikers may live in the shadow of its lauded game of origin, but with a source that good it’s not such a terrible place to be. Thanks to the Warriors inspired gameplay and vacation theme, all wrapped up in that signature style, it’s the best series spin off since Persona 4 Arena.
Despite that I can't deny how much fun I had with the gameplay, and I'm probably going to end up replaying it on PC for the chance to enjoy it in surround sound (another feature the Switch version weirdly lacks). For as much as the story disappointed me it just wouldn't be true to say I don't like Persona 5 Strikers. I like it a lot, and I felt really happy with it when I finally finished it. It's a game that I want to recommend, but that recommendation has to come with a big caveat: if you're a Persona fan that loves the Phantom Thieves but you're just not interested in the gameplay, it may be more worth your time to just play Persona 5 again.
I don’t think anyone expected Persona 5 Strikers to be as fleshed out as it is. There's a massive full game here with well over 50 hours of content for you to experience. Further, it's a way to reunite with a cast that you’ve probably already spent just as long with, if not more. The action-RPG systems make for a surprisingly fun and addictive gameloop that isn't overshadowed by the mainline entries and it still offers more than enough unique elements that differentiate it from a Musou title.
The Phantom Thieves arrive on PC in a more streamlined form than the main Persona series, but an equally engaging one that's as stylish as it is action packed.
Persona 5 Strikers takes what's special about the Persona franchise and meshes it with what makes the musuo genre special. Despite some hiccups, Persona 5 Strikers offers up something special: It's equally accessible to newcomers as well as established fans, showcasing all the style of the franchise in all its glory.
Playing Persona 5 Strikers is like being blessed with a reunion special of a beloved series that ended years ago. It feels different, perhaps through a new lens or just more timely, but the characters you grew to cherish are all back for one last, terrific adventure. Omega Force's influence is clear, but the game walks a confident line between the traditional Persona format and a musou spin-off. If you're a fan, do yourself a favour and don't sleep on this – Strikers is one hell of a road trip that deserves to be considered a proper sequel.
Persona 5 Strikers is a fantastic follow up to a beloved JRPG, carving out its own identity with an excellent action-based combat system. It presents the perfect excuse to hang out with the Phantom Thieves one last time, and does a great job of building upon the established characters and themes of its predecessor. While we doubt that Strikers will be remembered anywhere near as fondly as Persona 5, the game goes beyond expectations to provide a classy companion piece. A must-buy for existing fans.
Atlus and Omega Force have ensured that as much as possible of what made Persona 5 so beloved has been transported here and put into an appreciably tight package. Spending extra time with the Phantom Thieves and travelling with them across Japan is a much needed positive experience and well worth it.
Still, Persona 5 Strikers nails the atmosphere perfectly and doesn’t make it feel like you have to review everything beforehand. It succinctly lets you know that the areas you’ll explore are larger and you may have to do a little more research to prepare, but your team has your back. Granted, it is something that will be best enjoyed and appreciated by those who know and love these characters.
A surprisingly polished and experimental game for developer Omega Force, Persona 5 Strikers is overall fairly solid but is hampered with clunky pacing and a lackluster plot.
Persona 5 Strikers is an excellent welcome back party for the franchise. It takes a formula that is proven to work and takes it to a new place by adding a whole new combat system that allows you to play as the whole team, rather than the main character we're all used to. This said, and although Persona 5 Strikers is excellent in its own right, there's enough that's been stripped back to make this game work that it can't reach the lofty heights of the original.
Persona 5 Strikers is a fun sequel that builds off the first year of the Phantom Thieves and might be the kind of action-packed sequel that only true fans of the original Persona 5 will desire for.
Persona 5 Strikers delivers the meaningful story, relateable characters, and complex mechanics fans expect from mainline games but switches the gameplay up to focus on action over time management.
I expected Persona 5 Strikers to be like Hyrule Warriors and got a genuine Persona sequel. It might be thinner on content than the 100-hour behemoth it is based on, but it's still plenty of fun to play. The combat system takes some getting used to, but otherwise, it's like slipping on a comfy pair of well-worn slippers. I welcome the chance to revisit the world of Persona 5, and Strikers is a wonderful send-off to the Phantom Thieves.
Alright you lovely lot of people, story time. A little bit of back round on myself. I am 37 years young. Introverted as hell, but it hasn't stopped me from accomplishing a lot in my life. I enjoy history, classic cinema/music, literature and I've always preferred the company of a select few over a crowd of people, as people friggin' drain me with inane nonsense a majority of the time. Yet, I've always believed in being there for people, no matter what. Your family, your friends, total strangers if the case arises. That's what being a human being is. Treat others how you would like to be treated and all that jazz. I also know, that nobody is perfect, and everyone has their struggles, especially now. Now onto the relationship that made me go monk again. Since 2018 I've been taking care of my elderly grandmother who suffered from dementia, that we didn't know she had at the time but suspected. I was working odd jobs on the side while I could and helping my grandfather as he owns a company that he still works for to this day at 80+. He has always been an inspiration to me and I only hope I could be half the man he is at his age. During this time, taking care of my grandmothefather I would mainly do it alone, because I was the single guy (by choice ) with nothing else better to do. And I didn't mind. I enjoy the company of the elderly since they seem to appreciate the simpler things in life, such as life itself, once they start getting older. During this time I would spend most of my day making sure my grandmother was okay. She had her routines. She enjoyed swimming at 80+ going into a hot tub religiously for longer than she should. And enjoyed talking on the phone! Who would have thought! My grandmother was addicted to the phone as far back as I can remember. She had 30 ft extension lines to the old school rotary phones back in her house when I was a child, so she could walk around the house talking. As a young child you notice these things, but think nothing of it, because you were too busy watching Pee-Wee's playhouse, or The Real Ghostbusters, or outside playing with your friends (yes this was a thing) reading comics, playing with G.I.Joes and learning how to use your first swiss army knife. My grandmother practically raised me since my mom was busy working as a child. I never met my real father once in my life as he was apparently a real scum bag. I found out he died a few years back and felt sad I never met him, but had no memories of him, so it didn't last long. So back to my grandmother. Her dementia had taken hold and she slowly started forgetting things. She'd forget where she put things, her credit cards, her purse, her tv remote. And then would get angry. If she couldn't find something, or thought she lost something, especially her phone, she would lose her shit. I know this was because of the dementia, but I had seen this before. I had seen this as a child, as a young man, and as grown male. A woman losing something, then losing her sh*t. I've seen the same from men as well. But with the phone, it's like losing your contact to the outside world. You have FOMO. You feel like you're nobody if you're not in on the conversation. I've seen this before. More so in women, then men. The phone had become a lifeline to other people, to other people's lives, and my grandmother would use it to call me nonstop to help her with things. Fix the television (that she couldn't figure out anymore) show her how to print pictures off facebook ( I hate social media) and how to cook the food I cook for her and my grandfather. Stupid stuff, but I would compromise my time, because who else was going to do it? My Parents have lives, my siblings have lives, and my grandfather still works to this day. So someone had to "Man Up" because nobody else would. I would spend entire portions of my day with her, taking her places, making sure she ate alright, take her grocery shopping, get gas in her car (she still drove before the dementia was diagnosed) and show her how to use modern technology even if I hated doing so. It was just too much for her mind. Just like modern women. The stimulation is too much. Too many thoughts of other people contaminating your mind with nonsense. I would cook dinner for her and my grandfather or get take out food and come back to their house and watch a film or two with them almost every night. I'd watch my grandfather and grandmother both smile and cry over old school films they hadn't seen in years, and I would do so in return. It took me back to being a child. Watching films with them when I was a young boy. My grandmother was a VHS collector and in turn made me appreciate them and as hobby I would collect them over the years and DVDS/Blu-rays and such. I also would find and sell out of print copies of movies and video games/CDs to supplement my income. So every day after taking care of my grandmother and enjoying her and my grandfather's time, I slowly started thinking, I wish I had someone who would actually enjoy my company as much as they enjoy mine, and I enjoy theirs. Someone with an old soul. Someone who didn't enjoy modernity and wanted simpler things, and enjoyed simpler times. Skip to July 2019. By now I'm at my grandparents house every morning at 5:30 to 6 am, to take care of my grandmother. Her dementia has grown increasingly bad. She yells all the time at me, my grandfather, whomever. Her need to call people on the phone and try to get them to take her to places and do things she use to do when she was healthier had me beyond stressed. My grandfather, stubborn as he is, didn't know what to do, and continued to go to work, leaving me alone with my grandmother all day. Eventually my mother starts to help me take over afternoons and I come back at nights to do the routine movie, dinner, tuck into sleep etc. This way I can take care of my life and not go completely insane. I had taken up smoking cigarettes again after a five year kick. I was mentally drained. I needed to get out. I had been single for 8 years. No dating. No Mating. I was a monk from my last relationship and decided I was better off alone. But I needed someone. Everyone does from time to time. We also try to get a nurse aid to come and help with my grandmother so I can continue with my life and not be there all day and night. It doesn't work. Skip to September 2019. Early morning. I get to my grandparents house and my grandfather is red in the face, saying my grandmother is cussing him out, going nuts on him. I've seen this before. I go inside. Try to talk to her. I get called all sorts of things. It's okay, I can take it. I have before. Things get worse. Mom and Stepdad try to come over and help. No help. Grandmother starts to get hostile and pushy/ throwing things. My grandfather says to call the EMS for her to take her to the hospital. I'm the one to do it. We go to the hospital, Doctors say she has a possible UTI making her act out this way. I'm a hot mess smoking cigarettes outside. I realize then our dog has been home all day and probably hasn't been outside. My parents owned a dog who I had taken care of for years as well. I had to live with my folks due to past surgeries and basically having to restart my life over twice from it. I tell my mother I'll run back to their house and let him out. My younger brother is with me. We get home, and my dog is walking around funny. He walks over to his water bowl, and starts drinking and drinking and drinking. He wouldn't stop. I was worried right away. Then he was outside....Vomiting. In the grass. Didn't look good at all. My brother calls my mother, tells her what's going on. They rush home, then take my car to rush our dog to the VET 45 minutes away. I sit and wait. I get a call. It's my younger brother. He tells me our dog has passed away. I break down as a man would when he loses his best friend. That was the start of the heartache. Days pass. My grandmother has been diagnosed with Stage 3 Dementia. My Grandfather and mother make the decision she needs to be in a nursing home full time. I am crushed. I never thought they would do that to her. She had been so kind to everyone her whole life and her house was her home, her peace. She was extremely extroverted and loved to be outside and talking to people. Running for people, doing for people. I suspect some of it was for praise, but my grandmother was a genuine good soul. Now she was going to spend the rest of her days in a home. And I would visit her everyday, and listen to her tell me everyday "I'm coming home tomorrow, You come pick me up and we'll be okay!" I would internally die a little inside hearing this, and I'd say "Yes, I will be here tomorrow for you!" knowing damn well she'd never leave that place. My grandfather and mother insisted that if she left, she'd be inclined to go home and it would be worse off. I just wanted my grandfather to realize he had to stop and take care of her. Not let some strangers take care of her. Not letting her be around friends in her own house. But in the end, I know I couldn't have taken care of her by myself. Skip to October 2019. I've accepted that my life is completely different now, and I've lost a great deal in a short time. I was coping with a lot. I visited my grandmother every day in the nursing home. I was still helping with my grandpa, still earning money, and still trying to have a life. I create a online dating account. It reminds me why I hate social media. The filters. The faces. The bios all sounding the same. Then I come across one. She's an older woman, but looks great for her age. Says she is Introverted (awesome) and enjoys Horror films (Great!) and a few other details I enjoyed. She was also a Goddess, according to her and her tattoo. I message her something and immediately get a message back! Whoa. We chat a bit, I tell her what I'm into, but also tell her currently what is going on in my life. We seem to hit it off pretty quick, and the next thing I know we have a date. Date night comes, and I get a call from my grandmother. It's a bad night for her, and then for me after dealing with an hour conversation or so about wanting to come home. This was an everyday thing for me. So I called my date up and asked if I could postpone or I could possibly go somewhere closer to where we lived since she only lived a few minutes away from me. She agreed I could buy her a starbucks coffee at 9pm on a friday night and bring it to her. I didn't want to starbucks so I stopped at a gas station and got her an ICED Starbuck coffee. Good enough right? It was. I meet her. She's pretty awesome right off the start. Asks me about my day and I ask her about hers. Tell her about my grandmother and why I had to postpone. Says she understands and thinks I'm pretty great for what I do. We make out almost immediately, and I could have gotten more, but I didn't want sex. I wanted companionship. Someone to talk to. So we just made out cuddled and watched The Joker. I leave at like 4 in the morning, she tells me to text her when I get home. I do, emojis hearts and all that silly fluff. Days later we're hanging out again, doing the same stuff. She wants to clearly have sex. I don't give it up because I want to find out who this girl is. RED flags ignored from her wanting me early on. I start to ignore her because I feel like If I give her too much attention I'll seem clingy. She still insists on hanging out almost every other night. So we do. Eventually one night, we make love. A few times. She seems to enjoy it and I did too. After 8 years of not having sex, it's nice, but nothing is nicer than having someone next to you who (pretends) to care about you after the act is done. I start to stay over, as I would usually leave early in the morning, and she gets use to that. I get use to it. Things feel good. My grandmother calls me everyday still. Tells me how great I am, and that she wants to come home and for us to watch movies etc. (For someone with dementia she had a great memory still) And it would eat me up inside, but I knew she was safer there, than she would be with me, but I always regret being the one who called the EMS to have her put away. It slowly would eat away at me. December 2019 After being with my girlfriend for a couple of months I finally ask her to go STEADY. Yep, I'm lame. She asked me what that meant? I told her. A committed relationship. A couple. She said I was lame, but she accepted. I even started to use the L word again with her. It was odd telling someone you loved them after not doing it for so long. Then one day, my grandmother called me. She was blaming me for not being there all the time, etc, even though I was the only one there, visiting her every single day. It just made me snap. I quit working for my grandfather. I went off on him and my mother for allowing this. I said they had no idea how this made me feel for being the one who locked my own grandmother up, trying to do the right thing. It didn't matter. Nobody listened. So I broke something. I broke a window and I was kicked out. I was sleeping in my car. I didn't care. I didn't even tell my girlfriend till later that night. She told me to come over and I could stay with her. So I did. We talked, I told her about everything how I felt, just needed someone to listen to me for once, instead of being the one always listening. And she did. She said I could stay with her till I sort things out. During this time we really grow to love each other, finish each other's movie quotes. I taught her survival skills, how to prep for disasters, end of the world shit. Etc. She thought I was goofing around, I was serious. I read disaster books and study history so I know where we are headed in our current state. She bragged to her friends and family about me. It felt good to feel appreciated. Then suddenly, Corona comes around. Jan - Feb 2020 Things are doing good, I'm helping fix up the girlfriends house. She works and lives as an onsite manager at her job, so It was definitely something to get use to. I bought her all sorts of things she needed for her place, it looked like someone's place who ate out dinner every night and rarely cooked for herself. For I helped make it feel more like a home. We went shopping to get new plants for the house, furniture that I would have to move and or put together. We would talk all the time about our plans for the future etc. I eventually got a new job, but then I lost it, as the lockdowns began. March 2020 The lockdowns have started. The masks have started. The prepper in me knows this is not good. The girlfriend doesn't really see it as anything major. Until 2 weeks, became a meme. Even then she didn't see it. She remained an essential worker throughout all this, meanwhile I watched people I knew working jobs for 30+ years lose them due to this pandemic. I eventually built her a proper pantry and filled it up with food and water for her. I spent hundreds, thousands on stuff for her to keep her safe and have her set up in case something happened. Solar panels, portable power stations. You name it. She finally realized I was serious about this, and about her, and about US. She would post pictures of the things I gave her claiming she was now a "Survivalist" etc. It was cute. Women are cute. Things seemed well. I wasn't working, still looking but wasn't working full time, but could still pull money in from doing side jobs and selling collectibles. While she worked. I cooked, I cleaned, I did the dishes, the laundry (all by hand because none of her appliances worked) I helped fix things in her place. Fix her car tires, fix the problems on her new car she bought (Without me going to look at with her) and ultimately did alot of work at her job, for free, to help her out. She enjoyed it, I enjoyed it. I thought July 2020 By now the quarantine has gotten to people. I'm use to being inside and alone and not going out all the time so it's not too bad to me. For my girlfriend, like others, it is. They miss going out. They miss their social lives. They're all on their phones way too much now. Searching for SOMETHING. Meanwhile, I've created a spare bedroom at my girlfriends place, because she snores, and I couldn't sleep most nights with her. Terrible I know. I also have insomnia so it was vital I get at least a couple hours of sleep a night to keep my sanity. So one night after spending time with the woman, making love etc, I tell her I'm going to crash in the other room so she can get some sleep, and I can as well. Kiss goodnight etc. I walk in a couple times in our bedroom to check on her, she puts her phone down immediately and I ignore it. Then I can't shake something. I'm just thinking she's talking to someone etc. I didn't want to be that guy and ask her for her phone. So I did something that wouldn't get me into trouble. I installed the dating app we used to meet back in October. I get online and start looking for women her age in my area. Boom. See her profile. New pictures. Single. New Bio. I lose my poop. I burst into the bedroom and go off on her. I say what the f are you doing? Call her names. Yell. Then I grab my stuff, pack up everything. Takes me 5 hours or so to do this at 1 in the morning, and take about 7 trips in my little car to and from her places and my parents. At this point I'm just beyond pissed and upset and start drinking and smoking heavily. A couple days later, we talk, I apologize (stupid of me I know) for flipping out. She said she just felt lost and confused etc. Same ol' trite. We get back together. Make love, and eventually I come back. Things feel weird, but I'm glad to have her back in my life. I truly love this woman and would do anything for her. Then, this changed everything. Her sister, age 50, alcoholic, divorced multiple times, dating multiple men, moves in with us. Yep. 3 people in a tiny apartment. Living together. Doomed from the start. Her sister claimed her mother whom she was living with, had bed bugs and had to come stay with us. I said okay. Turns out it was permanent. This b*tch took over my spare bedroom I made. And then I even helped her set up an office in their so she could work from home, while drinking all day like an alcoholic. Good times. So now I was dating a woman, and dealing with her sister's bullsh*t. I had to listen to her about her failed life, her men that she didn't need, yet was constantly monkey branching from one to the other. I will admit this lifestyle was not one I am accustomed too. I'm a white male, and my girlfriend was african american. So I had to listen to her talk bad about men, her own family behind their back, etc, all day. Whilst I was busy cooking, cleaning, doing EVERYTHING neither of them would do, all the while trying to find a new job during a pandemic. Meanwhile neither of two really understand what was going on. Just as long as they had their job, and their booze. I slowly started to realize this woman was never going to leave my life. She wanted to cling to little sister to drink and tell her all her problems, especially about MEN. This really put me off, seeing as I was man, who was helping take care of their asses. I was buying groceries, with little money I had, and then her sister would continue to eat, drink, and rarely contribute to our household. The only thing she would contribute was BOOZE and that was after she would drink most of the stuff I had bought. I didn't sign up for this. And everyday, I still had to deal with this, and talk to my grandmother, and try to find a job whilst being a house maid. September 2020 It's my girlfriend's sister's birthday. The pandemic has made everyone crazy by now. Including my girlfriend, her family etc. I'm cool as a cucumber. Except it's 103F degrees outside. I'm grilling out for a small group of her family for her sister, and I'm outside for hours, prepping for her sister, with my girlfriend, waiting on her sister to get to the park we had planned it for. What was she doing? Getting drunk, letting us do all the work for her, meanwhile her friends were showing up to her own party that she wasn't at. Ridiculous. So I grill out for hours, nobody says thanks other than my girlfriend. She tells me "Thanks for being so great, you're so great." I like to think I have been great. Turns out I got dehydrated from being outside in the heat all day and ended up getting sick. Went home and to bed. Girlfriend doesn't console me, instead has some family members and friends come over from the party, to get loud and drink. No consideration for my health. A day or two later, I get in huge fight with girlfriend saying she didn't give a d*mn about my health what I did for her and her sister etc. End up packing up all my stuff once again, and leaving. I was done. I signed up for a girlfriend not a girlfriend and a sister. If her sister was hot maybe, but not the case. I was done. I thought. But alas, we talked, she apologized, I apologized (again stupid of me) and we got back together. October 2020 My favorite month. I love Halloween. So much I helped decorate my girlfriends place with stuff, and she said she never did this in her life. She had a bad childhood, and I don't think she ever really did FAMILY stuff that didn't evolve drinking or getting high etc. She really enjoyed it. We watched horror films all month, and she seemed genuinely happy. I was happy. Not with the living situation, but happy with her, and happy with life. I was still dealing with my grandmother. Not being able to see her thanks to the lockdowns had really put a damper on my spirit, but I never showed it around my girlfriend. She knew or claimed to know how much my grandmother means to me. But I don't think she ever understand what I really did for her or put up with just to help others. Everyday having to retell my grandmother why I couldn't visit her because of the pandemic, something she couldn't comprehend. It was killing me slowly again inside, but I dealt with it, because that's what men do. Nov-Dec 2020 Things had been going well. I had been putting in job applications with no luck, but I was still keeping busy, hadn't let this pandemic crush my soul completely. My girlfriend was becoming more and more stressed, and drinking more and more. I was too. I also started to resent my girlfriend for leaving a mess every single day. It would take me 4 to 6 hours a day to cook breakfast and bag it for the girlfriend, clean the dishes, clean the house, vacuum, take care of the cats, make her lunch, do the laundry, clean the dishes again, rinse and repeat. It became exhausting. Her and her sister would just get drunk and spill something every single night. I would step into something sticky and it would drive me absolutely mad. Like living with children rather than grown up. Whatever, I love this girl, right? I'd do anything for her. She found a kitten end of November too. Rescued him when it was cold outside and we took him in. I loved the little sh*t and our other cat more than anything after losing my dog a year ago. Older cat would sleep with me in bed, and the little one I'd let out and play with in the day and he'd bite and claw me. How I miss that. My girlfriend however had grown distant. I noticed it more and more. She slept on the couch with one cat. I slept in our bedroom with another. Her sister was constantly interrupting us and putting a strain on our relationship. My sleeping pattern was changing and my insomnia was getting worse again. But I still loved this woman right? Most of December though, we do alright. We talk about Christmas plans etc. I get her gifts that she says "Are the best gifts EVER" and a one year anniversary ring and she took them to her families house for Christmas to show off, and tell everyone how great her boyfriend was. She never met my family. I tried to get her to come to family events even during this CRISIS. Never met my family other than my brother and cousin. That's cool though right? I love this girl. Christmas day, I call my grandmother. Wish her a merry Christmas. Tell her I love her. She says merry christmas and I can't wait to see me again and come home. It kills me. Five days later my grandmother passed away. After being told she was sent to the hospital and would be okay, I got the call at about 9:45 pm from my brother saying she had passed. I had just fallen asleep from a long day, and this nightmare was not one I was prepared for. I immediately started crying and my girlfriend hugs me, askes if there is anything she can do. I say no. I leave to my grandparents house, and we all just cry. I don't get back home till 2 in the morning. She barely says anything to me. Rubs my shoulder, and I cry myself to sleep. My grandmothers funeral was January 5th. I have missed talking to her every single day. My girlfriend sees me walking around like a zombie. I feel lost. She doesn't even try to console me. I cry every morning to myself while making her breakfast. I never let her see me cry. My girlfriend didn't goto the funeral because she had to work, and then tried to say I never asked her to come to the funeral after I told her I didn't know the funeral date till after her work schedule was made. Girlfriend seems more cold than ever to me. I needed my best friend she claimed to be. Just one day out of the past year I needed her for emotional support. Nope. My girlfriend's birthday is a day after my grandmother's funeral. I get my girlfriend a birthday cake, and some gifts. She barely cares. I'm depressed as hell. She DOESN'T care. She says she wants to go out for her birthday etc. I'm depressed as hell. Have a lip/mouth infection that I tell her about, she dismisses it and just says I need to see a doctor. Thanks babe. That night she goes out. I don't go with her. Says she went to bar or some shit. I don't remember nor car. Comes home piss drunk, I don't care. For a week she ignores me. Doesn't ask how I'm doing. Nothing. I still continue my routine. Cleaning cooking, etc. She says he wants to go out again on a sunday for her birthday. I said you already had your birthday. Doesn't matter. She celebrates it all month apparently. She askes me to go with her I decline saying I'm not in the mood but to go enjoy herself. She leaves at 3 in the afternoon, dressed sexy as hell, doesn't come home till 10:30 at night from the "Bar." I stay up all night waiting for her to get home, she's p*ss drunk again, and I just goto bed. A couple night's later We have dinner watch a movie, everything seems okay again. I'm nodding off in the chair in the living room, because I haven't slept proper in weeks. I goto bed. I wake up 30 minutes later to her drunk sister and her laughing being loud. I text her to keep it down please. Didnt happen. An hour later. I text her again. Keep it down! She says she's trying and it's her sister. I said tell her to be quiet then. Continues to another hour. Can't sleep. Depressed. Angry. Tell her to please shut the f up! Girlfriend says okay. Text me back saying her other sister and brother in law will be here on saturday for her birthday (how many f*cking birthdays do you get!) and they will be loud so I should probably go back to my parents house. A house I haven't been in in a over a year. I said fine, I'm leaving in the morning. Packed my stuff up. Left. Didn't talk to her all day that day. Text her at night. She never answered. Called her. She kept making up excuses not to talk to me. I've seen this before. She then calls me at midnight saying she can talk. I say I'm going to bed. She breaks up with me the next day over text. Not like an adult. Over a text. I lost it. I freaking lost it.She said I wasn't bringing anything to our relationship, and seeing me act how I act over the loss of my grandmother was making her think I was a sinking ship basically. I said how can you be so cold? 3 weeks ago I was the best boyfriend ever. Now this. Betrayed. Stabbed in an already broken heart. I tried to talk to her. Why? She screwed me over? I loved her. I loved her. But what I didn't love was what she pretended to be. I realized she never cared about me or what was going on in my life. It was always about her and her family. So what did I do? I lost my shit. I blew up her phone and wanted to make her feel the betrayal and pain she gave me. I just lost my grandmother and this b*tch had the nerve to say I was the problem? And she made me believe I was. After all I did for her, and put up for with her and her crazy sister and family. I tried to talk to her and she ignored me. For a year and a half living with and loving this woman, and her feeding me bullsh*t whilst never asking for anything in return other than companionship. I lost her. I lost my cats. I lost my grandmother. All in a couple weeks. I wanted her to feel the pain I felt and the pain she had brought me. After her ignoring me, I finally got drunk and went back to our place to see she had a party going on. She was celebrating her birthday and the removal of me from her life. That is how it felt. To see the woman you loved, who you just gave an anniversary ring to, then stare at you like a total stranger whilst she is intoxicated and you're standing there looking like a emotional trainwreck. I just wanted answers as to why she would do this to me? It didn't matter at that point. It was over. And we both let it out on each other. I tried apologizing like an idiot. Just made it worse for me. She gave up along time ago. And now I'm just trying to put myself back together. I can't sleep. I can't eat. I just work and drive and smoke cigarettes now. And she doesn't care. And never did. She's already moved on, loves her new life, new boyfriend I'm sure of. I should have seen the red flags. But didn't. Stay safe out there. Fin
Persona 5 Strikers is a worthy sequel to Persona 5, and fans will be delighted with it. With a very good combat system that tries to mix the musou genre with the characteristic contributions of the Persona saga to the battles and a good story, perhaps it is too irregular in some sections to become a round game, but it certainly will not disappoint.
Fusing the rich game world of Persona with real-time combat, Omega Force and P-Studio have created a new Persona of their own and it is a worthy addition to a classic franchise.
Persona 5 Strikers not only continues the story of Persona 5 wonderfully, but also works very well as a stand-alone game. It is much more than just another Warriors clone and becomes an action RPG that every fan of the series should definitely check out. The story is not comparable to the level of a Persona 5, but the attention to detail and the fun summer trip across Japan make this game a great holiday with dear friends - and prisons.
Persona 5 Strikers is essential gaming this year. The virtue this title carries is for everyone, not just the JRPG enthusiast. an opportunity to portray our favourite group of rascals for one final bow-out. [...] a spectacular sequel
It's early yet to tell whether or not that tried and true formula will overstay its welcome, but Persona 5 Strikers is looking real good so far, as an Omega Force brawler and as a Persona game. It's a bold claim for sure, but it already grabbed me with the promise of more Persona.
Strikers captures the affable singularity of Persona 5 while shifting its perspective from a turn-based slow burn to an action-focused escapade. At the same time, Strikers' devotion to its source material succeeds in keeping the player active and invested amid the turbulence of its strained support structure. It's a summer vacation masquerading as a sequel, and that seems to suit the Phantom Thieves just fine.
Koei Tecmo has somehow crafted not only a genuine sequel to Persona 5, the JRPG, but the team has managed to equal it. Or – if action combat is your thing – perhaps even exceed it. That is no mean feat.
Fast paced Musou battles combined with the typical Persona 5 elements take you on a wild, stylish ride. Perfect for everyone who found P5 too lengthy. Strikers is cool, fast, and a little shambolic.
While Persona 5 Strikers disappointingly removes the mainline series' social links, it carries over enough familiar elements to feel like a true successor
If you loved Persona 5 and wanted to spend more time with Joker and the Phantom Thieves, Persona 5 Strikers is almost everything you could wish for. It’s a fun, zany and heartfelt waltz through the Persona Universe.
Blending an engaging and often thought-provoking narrative with combat that flirts with both strategy and chaos but always remains fun, Persona 5 Strikers is quite simply one of the best action RPGs I’ve ever played.
Persona 5's RPG elements thrive in action-based combat, and while the story may not hit hard, the Phantom Thieves haven't forgotten what they're about.
Persona 5 Strikers is a magnificent sequel that manages to feel familiar and different at the same time, without forgetting to thrill with its story while offering a pleasant playable change in line with the Action RPG.
Persona 5 Strikers is a fantastic sequel to one of the best JRPGs of all time. It's less of a Warriors game and more of an action RPG with fun, fluid combat, great characters, and an excellent story and soundtrack.
Persona 5 Strikers is a superb follow-up to Persona 5, even if it isn't quite the sequel people were hoping for. The same quality of writing is still present, and the combat is so compelling throughout that I never grew bored of fighting Shadows.
Although it runs and looks worse than on PC and PS4, Persona 5 Strikers is still fantastic on Switch, with a great story, superb combat, and more Phantom Thieves, which is always going to be a positive for me.
If you liked Persona 5 (is there anyone who didn't?), Strikers should be a no-brainer choice. The gameplay isn't exactly our cup of tea, but the story is so interesting, the characters are so lovable and it just looks SO cool, that you would be mad if you didn't accept the Phantoms Thieves calling card.
Persona 5 Strikers is the perfect sequel to Persona 5. A game that reinvents the formula that has made hundreds of thousands fall in love, while maintaining the pompous and unattainable style that characterizes the series. The first half of the adventure falls short in comparison with the second, and even at the highest difficulties the game fails to provide a real challenge, but these issues won't ruin what is, in fact, a really fun experience with an incredible cast of characters some of the best moments in the entire saga.
Persona 5 Strikers is a slick and stylish spin-off that manages to successfully combine a surprisingly strong story with some satisfying Musou-inspired hack-and-slash action. There are a few issues here and there, with some necessary grinding at points, slight difficulty imbalances and a camera that can be a bit of a pain during busy battles but, overall, this is a thoroughly entertaining action RPG that comes highly recommended.
Persona 5 Strikers may live in the shadow of its lauded game of origin, but with a source that good it’s not such a terrible place to be. Thanks to the Warriors inspired gameplay and vacation theme, all wrapped up in that signature style, it’s the best series spin off since Persona 4 Arena.
Despite that I can't deny how much fun I had with the gameplay, and I'm probably going to end up replaying it on PC for the chance to enjoy it in surround sound (another feature the Switch version weirdly lacks). For as much as the story disappointed me it just wouldn't be true to say I don't like Persona 5 Strikers. I like it a lot, and I felt really happy with it when I finally finished it. It's a game that I want to recommend, but that recommendation has to come with a big caveat: if you're a Persona fan that loves the Phantom Thieves but you're just not interested in the gameplay, it may be more worth your time to just play Persona 5 again.
I don’t think anyone expected Persona 5 Strikers to be as fleshed out as it is. There's a massive full game here with well over 50 hours of content for you to experience. Further, it's a way to reunite with a cast that you’ve probably already spent just as long with, if not more. The action-RPG systems make for a surprisingly fun and addictive gameloop that isn't overshadowed by the mainline entries and it still offers more than enough unique elements that differentiate it from a Musou title.
The Phantom Thieves arrive on PC in a more streamlined form than the main Persona series, but an equally engaging one that's as stylish as it is action packed.
Persona 5 Strikers takes what's special about the Persona franchise and meshes it with what makes the musuo genre special. Despite some hiccups, Persona 5 Strikers offers up something special: It's equally accessible to newcomers as well as established fans, showcasing all the style of the franchise in all its glory.
Playing Persona 5 Strikers is like being blessed with a reunion special of a beloved series that ended years ago. It feels different, perhaps through a new lens or just more timely, but the characters you grew to cherish are all back for one last, terrific adventure. Omega Force's influence is clear, but the game walks a confident line between the traditional Persona format and a musou spin-off. If you're a fan, do yourself a favour and don't sleep on this – Strikers is one hell of a road trip that deserves to be considered a proper sequel.
Persona 5 Strikers is a fantastic follow up to a beloved JRPG, carving out its own identity with an excellent action-based combat system. It presents the perfect excuse to hang out with the Phantom Thieves one last time, and does a great job of building upon the established characters and themes of its predecessor. While we doubt that Strikers will be remembered anywhere near as fondly as Persona 5, the game goes beyond expectations to provide a classy companion piece. A must-buy for existing fans.
Atlus and Omega Force have ensured that as much as possible of what made Persona 5 so beloved has been transported here and put into an appreciably tight package. Spending extra time with the Phantom Thieves and travelling with them across Japan is a much needed positive experience and well worth it.
Still, Persona 5 Strikers nails the atmosphere perfectly and doesn’t make it feel like you have to review everything beforehand. It succinctly lets you know that the areas you’ll explore are larger and you may have to do a little more research to prepare, but your team has your back. Granted, it is something that will be best enjoyed and appreciated by those who know and love these characters.
A surprisingly polished and experimental game for developer Omega Force, Persona 5 Strikers is overall fairly solid but is hampered with clunky pacing and a lackluster plot.
Persona 5 Strikers is a good action role-playing game, but an imperfectly polished combat system and the absence of some of the series' core elements make it a must-buy only for fans of the Phantom Thieves.
Persona 5 Strikers is an excellent welcome back party for the franchise. It takes a formula that is proven to work and takes it to a new place by adding a whole new combat system that allows you to play as the whole team, rather than the main character we're all used to. This said, and although Persona 5 Strikers is excellent in its own right, there's enough that's been stripped back to make this game work that it can't reach the lofty heights of the original.
Persona 5 Strikers is a fun sequel that builds off the first year of the Phantom Thieves and might be the kind of action-packed sequel that only true fans of the original Persona 5 will desire for.
Persona 5 Strikers delivers the meaningful story, relateable characters, and complex mechanics fans expect from mainline games but switches the gameplay up to focus on action over time management.
I expected Persona 5 Strikers to be like Hyrule Warriors and got a genuine Persona sequel. It might be thinner on content than the 100-hour behemoth it is based on, but it's still plenty of fun to play. The combat system takes some getting used to, but otherwise, it's like slipping on a comfy pair of well-worn slippers. I welcome the chance to revisit the world of Persona 5, and Strikers is a wonderful send-off to the Phantom Thieves.
Batman: Three Jokers – After-issue Post 3 – Final Breakdown and Theories - (SPOILERS)
Three Jokers This is Part 3 of my After-Issue posts: After-Issue Post 1 After-Issue Post 2 I wasn’t sure if I was going to make this at first, but after reading the final issue, I just had to. Like the last two, I’ll break down the issue, find some references/easter eggs, theorize and give my thoughts. I thought there wouldn’t be much left to theorize but fortunately for me, there’s still quite a ton. I recognize that reception is a bit more mixed, but I personally really enjoyed this book with a few minor disappointments IMO. I’ll get into that. This’ll also be my big farewell to this series after theorizing on it for almost two years. So, I know I’ve said it before, but this is the biggest post I’ve made, ever.
I. The Briefing
The issue begins with the trio, after a brief fight, putting aside their differences and finally focusing on detective work. Something hinted at last issue with Bruce looking into his leads on the Jokers. Credit to u/XxRambo-ApocalypsexX for the following image from his post: https://www.reddit.com/DCcomics/comments/jj7ixa/comic_excerpt_flashbacks_batman_three_jokers_3/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf Flashbacks First let’s break down each. The first we see is the Criminal, who Bruce confirms is the first he encountered and points out his more serious and focused personality. A calculating mastermind indeed. The flashback is from a panel in Batman #1 (1940, the Joker’s first appearance), specifically the very first Joker story (there are two in this issue). If you’ve been following my posts, this should be familiar as I pointed it out in the first post as Jason Fabok teased this on Twitter earlier this year. I called it! As I said last time, this means that the original version of their encounter takes precedence over Man Who Laughs retconned version. Dick Grayson is now once again already Robin, so the Criminal likely stole jewels as well as murder his victims. His conflicts with organized crime may also be back. Next up is the Clown, and we once again see a reference to Gaggy (the Original Court Jester and Sidekick of the Joker) and his first appearance in Batman #186 (1966). The way Bruce describes him of course matches what we know, and also very much reminds me of Mark Hamill’s Joker. Like I said in the first post, he’s my personal favorite, even if he’s the least in depth as a character. But finally, here we have the Comedian. Credit to u/WarWolf343. It is the obvious choice, and that actually adds a lot to the Comedian in the end which I’ll get to. Of course, that means that Rebirth image was inaccurate after all. The implication of this of course is that Scott Snyder’s run IS considered canon to this story (which is a given if this is in main continuity), meaning Zero Year is canon. The story featuring a new version of the Red Hood gang, with Red Hood One being a true criminal mastermind, not a decoy, leading several Red Hoods. This could explain how there could be more than 3 Jokers if Bruce only had 1 encounter with RH. Bruce points out a level of sadism under his smile that’s different from the others. I can see where’s he coming from. To me, that smile just looks fake compared to the Clown, who looks genuinely happy. Just my thoughts.
II. The Confrontation at the Monarch Theatre
\"Joker The Immortal\" Next up we have the climax taking place in the Monarch Theatre, the cinema Bruce watched Mark of Zorro in with parents that fateful night. Sound familiar? We’ve had similar Joker confrontations happen in both Arkham City and recently in Joker War. Jw’s wasn’t quite a climax as it took place in the middle of the arc, and there’s also a horde of zombies that Bruce sees as Jokers (and so fights them blindfolded). Funny similarities there but I doubt any of this is intentional. 3 Jokers was written long ago and Jason Fabok and James Tynion IV both support the idea that Joker War was made without any knowledge or consideration of 3 Jokers. However, I’d like to talk more about Arkham City. This was also the big ending of the game. I still remember playing it for the first time. Here, the Joker died after accidentally preventing Bruce from curing him. This was after it was revealed that he was still poisoned and that there was a second healthy Joker which was Clayface in disguise. Hmmm. Sounds familiar. Does this live up to those two? IMO? Absolutely. Jason Fabok and Brad Anderson make this a fiery climactic battle while Geoff Johns does, IMO, a great job tying up what he’s set up since #1 (get to that in a bit). The Joker’s death in AC was of course more impactful than the Criminal’s, but his and the Comedian’s plan here was great and the twist is just as good. I’ll get to that in a bit. Lastly, Geoff Johns apparently has advised on Origins and Knight’s stories. Knight of course has the weakest, but IMO the character arcs in Origins makes it the best. The way there were “multiple Jokers” in Knight and City might have inspired him to make this. Also, both City and Knight has at least one line from thugs talking about there being or possibly being Three Jokers. This could be a whole post on its own so better go back to the book. The Criminal Joker reveals he wants to turn Joe Chill into the new Joker. As I’ve said before, Jason Fabok points to Jack Nicholson’s Joker as an inspiration for him, who killed the Waynes and not Chill. Because of that, Michael Keaton’s Batman then aimed to kill him for revenge. This confirms he did not hire Chill (who is not a hired killer). Now, why would the Criminal want to do that….
III. Batman’s Greatest Scar
This book made clear from the very first pages and in interviews with GJ and JF that the main theme is about scars. Physical and emotional. This in fact the whole purpose of the scars montage with Bruce. He’s had many, many scars from his rogues gallery, but we see that the Joker has caused them the most. But no matter what, the scar caused by Joe Chill will always be deeper than the others. More than Penguin, Bane, Scarecrow, Riddler, Catwoman… More than the Joker Well, from the Joker(s)’ point of view, that’s just not right. To the Criminal, this meant he had to fix the Joker. To make a new one that’ll far surpass him, his other two “apprentices”, and mean more to Batman than ever. Someone “far younger and more powerful” maybe (more on the Sith Lords later)? He’s old and tired. He can’t even laugh without crying over the pain. He wants the Joker reborn better than ever, mattering more to Batman than ever, so he could finally rest. In my last post, I pointed this out as the motivation for the Joker and recalled how Jeremiah Valeska (Proto-Joker 2) from Gotham had a similar gripe with it. “I want to be the star of the show!” So what did HE do to try and fix that? Reenact the Wayne murders with Jim Gordon and Leslie Thompkins, complete with Crime Alley, pearls and Bruce being there to see it of course! Now, both plans have flaws. All Jeremiah is doing with this rehash would be to remind Bruce of that original trauma anyway. Even if Selina wasn’t there to stop him, this probably won’t make him mean more to Bruce than Joe Chi- err- Matches Malone (see: Gotham). Unlike the Jokers in this book, Jeremiah failed to realize that Bruce will never be more broken from what he can do over than what Chill/Malone did. The Criminal would be pulling a Batman ’89, as Bruce would know the Joker’s identity. Something the Comedian doesn’t want. Which leads me to the twist on what the Comedian’s plan was, and to me it was genius and out of the box. Far surpassing Jeremiah and the Criminal. He didn’t rehash or steal that trauma. He took it out of the equation entirely. He. Healed. It.
“It wasn’t the Joker that was broken. It was the Batman” -more on that quote later
After the Criminal failed to turn his new potential successor, he planned to kill him and Batman instead, only for the Comedian to shoot him dead. The Comedian was playing him all along in a plan to become the last remaining, definitive Joker and become the worst source of suffering Batman has ever had. Something foreshadowed last issue when the Criminal confirmed that it was his suggestion to reveal their secret. And in the end? It worked. And it would only not work if Bruce didn’t have forgiveness in his heart. It was checkmate. BRIEF DETOUR An evil master (cough Darth Sidious/Emperor Palpatine) failing to turn a prospective apprentice/successor (cough Mark Hamill cough), then deciding to kill said person only to be betrayed and killed by his current apprentice who tended to plan behind his back (cough Vader)? His other apprentice (The Clown and Dooku) being killed by another younger, edgier prospective apprentice (Jason/Anakin) before this? Sorry I just had to bring that up lol. I haven’t watched Mandalorian S2’s premiere yet to not get distracted from this or my IRL responsibilities which also delayed this. But seriously, the Criminal emphasizing the rule of threes (which is actually a real thing) last issue did remind me of the rule of two. His search for a successor and his traitorous relationship with his protégés here really, really made me see them like Sith Lords lol. DETOUR ENDS HERE u/Hmz_786 and I discussed before about how the Comedian could have been planning to betray the Criminal and the others all along. Maybe even seeing the Clown’s death coming. It seems that may be the case after all. Which I will delve into more later. Besides Jack Napier from Batman ’89 and Jeremiah Valeska from Gotham, one Joker that I got reminded of in this was John Doe from Telltale’s Batman and Batman: Enemy Within. His last lines to Bruce in the Villain ending (there are 2 versions depending on your choice of dialogue to him) evoke the themes of this story or parallel what the Comedian says here. (“Sure we’ve had some good times”) “I hope you’ll look at that scar and remember those good times” (“I wish we never met”) “I’ll be the knife on your side until the end of time” Back to Bruce and Joe Chill. Definitely the best part of the issue and this story, is Bruce forgiving Joe Chill and healing his greatest scar. I’ve seen people say this has been done before. That’s true, but never exactly like this, not quite to this extent. He didn’t forgive him in his mind as an old man after witnessing a new gang of criminals act far worse than him. He didn’t just spare him and leave him to die by either suicide or murder by his fellow criminals or to just rot in poverty. This Joe Chill was truly remorseful, dying of cancer and wasn’t active as a criminal anymore. Bruce stayed by his side and held his hand as he passed. This is the most positive closure Bruce has ever had with Joe Chill, ever IMO. “Forgiveness is Freedom” So, the Comedian Joker won. He healed Bruce’s greatest scar. He killed the Criminal and became the last Joker. But most of all, the ambiguity behind who the Joker is remains. Or does it?
IV. The Joker’s Name
One thing I brought up in my last post is that the Comedian hates memory and remembering the past. Since he is the Endgame Joker after all, that means he likes to tell his false origins as supernatural, demonic or nightmare fuel stories that prey on his victims (the back up stories). Which in retrospect, fits with the idea that he doesn’t want people to know about his tragic past. He wants people to think he’s chaos incarnate, but he’s not. Which is why in Death of the Family, he panicked and fell when Bruce claimed he knew his real name, which would prove he was human. Then in Darkseid War, Bruce got the Mobius Chair. He asked it two questions. One rhetorical for a test, and the other we assumed wasn’t. He asked who killed his parents and then asked what was the Joker’s real name, only to learn the premise of this very story. There were Three Jokers. Here we learn that Bruce DID know the Joker’s name all this time. This means that it was also a test (which Jason Fabok has confirmed on Twitter to multiple people). Let’s go back to The Killing Joke The Joker attempted to drive Jim Gordon insane to prove his absurd, nihilistic thesis that life is a joke and anyone can see that just like he did by going through “One Bad Day”. Which in turn is to prove to Batman that they are alike and that he should be insane just like him. Thing is… … He failed. Jim wasn’t driven mad. Bruce wasn’t convinced and instead tried giving a counteroffer of rehabilitation. But the Joker refuses because he thinks A) He’s too far gone and B) He doesn’t trust that Bruce will keep the light on and commit to doing it. The Joker did not prove his point and yet couldn’t accept an alternative hypothesis. If this was an official social experiment for research, he’d get an F (and then get kicked out and thrown in jail for unethical human testing without consent). And really the flashbacks themselves prove it. The flashbacks take more than one day. He was a struggling comedian in poverty and at times vented this on his wife. No, that is not an invention of this book. That panel is directly adapted from TKJ. We don’t see more from this scene in 3 Jokers, so it’s left ambiguous whether they reconciled or not the way we see in TKJ, but I think the latter works still. Even after apologizing the comedian still vented and ranted about his life. He made it clear he wants to get out of there, but he didn’t try more comedy gigs or getting his old job back at ACE. No, instead he gave in to crime. Not too different from Joe Chill. Note, there is an unspecified time gap between that scene and his meetings with the criminals. He’s had 2 in fact. He had to find them first, possibly introduced to them by the Criminal (more on that later) and then have that first meeting planning the heist and setting him up as a decoy Red Hood. From dialogue, their next meeting will be “next Friday” right before the heist. At least a week has passed then. “One bad week” doesn’t quite have the same ring to it. But that’s not the point. He gave into crime even before the accident and he relied on that to save his family. What would Jeannie think if she heard about him being willing to associate with criminals? How would he act toward her in that 1 week where he still hasn’t fixed his life? Whatever the case, we don’t learn his name but we do learn that Jeannie lived. Whatever happened in that lost week, she eventually couldn’t take it anymore and got help from cops to escape. She and her son (who IMO btw has to be 15-20 years old, or at least older than Damian) are alive in Alaska. Which is why Bruce wasn’t looking at missing Comedian files earlier, and instead looked at his globe. This does feel like a very similar situation to the psychiatrist who tried curing the Joker in Killer Smile, only to end up driving his wife and son away and nearly killing them in the Joker’s plot to make him like him. We then learn why Bruce can’t reveal his name, and possibly why he can’t kill the Joker. If he reveals the Joker’s name, people will find his family and they wouldn’t be safe. The Joker would find them too. As for the latter, if Bruce kills the Joker, he would be taking a father away from his son (more on the son of the Joker in the bonus segment!) So in the end, Bruce had the last laugh. He knows the Joker isn’t the devil. He was a man once. He had a wife who he loved before turning to insanity. The Joker failed in keeping the ambiguity behind himself, a week after Bruce fought the Joker (the Criminal?). He failed a long time ago. And now, Both refuse to reveal the identity of the other.
V. Is the Joker Broken, or Chaos Incarnate?
Now, a lot of people think this book is painting the Joker as someone who was always bad and that this ruins TKJ. I kind of already talked about that in the previous segment, but here I’d like to bring back an old post I made discussing the conflicting views of the Joker: From IGN Alan Moore of course argued for the Joker being a dark reflection of Batman. Both born from tragedy. but Frank Miller argued the Joker was pure evil. Satanic even. Evil incarnate. Not insane. Evil. “I am chaos. I am the devil. I am everything to you and nothing. It wasn’t the Joker who was broken. It was the Batman.” Putting that quote in that context, it looks like Miller’s version is what’s coming here. But I don’t think so. As I’ve pointed out, the Comedian is a liar that takes credit from the other Jokers and pretended he was an immortal supernatural boogieman in Endgame. This is how he wants to be seen, because he’s afraid of the truth. In reality, he’s the only one of the Jokers who has a desire outside of Batman and apparently the only one with One Bad Day. The Clown said he loved to take credit, he teased him about being a failed comedian and the Criminal called him out for wasting time with fantasies. They were the ones pushing him down. It was the Criminal trying to get him to focus on what matters. He almost comes off as the bullied co-worker that gets reminded every time about where he came from and he HATES that. This was his revenge. By killing them and taking credit for all their work. He became the Joker who mattered. Not Chill, the Clown or the Criminal. “Says the failed Comedian” “There is no her. There is no one else but the Batman” Clearly, he still loved his wife. Despite him venting to her, she and their unborn son were still the reason for him going insane. Even now he secretly fantasizes them being with them. Another thing to take note of is that, in both the Killing Joke and Three Jokers, He NEVER reveals this specific origin to others It’s always flashbacks and fantasies. When he does tell false origins, it’s always to paint him as this bigger force of chaos. A façade to hide his real past that the other Jokers see right through and belittle him for. With them dead, no one else knows now…except Bruce. Speaking of which, this makes him more like Batman. Because the way he wants to be seen by others, is just like how Batman wants to be seen by criminals Pretending to be a supernatural force of nature to strike fear is now common among the two victims of trauma. He failed to prove anyone can be like him in TKJ, so he decided to embrace the idea that no one can be like him. In many ways this also relates to the Joker movie, where Arthur pretended, he killed those people for no reason other than them being awful. Hiding his pain by embracing evil. Of course there’s also the fact that, it hurts when he laughs and likely cannot control it. I discussed that in the last post, but it’s based on a real condition: Pseudobulbar Affect. The Criminal’s age makes it, so he cries almost every time. But from what he asked Jason, and the Comedian in Doomsday Clock, I’m betting all the Jokers have this trait to varying effect. Finally, before moving on, one of the most important things to take note, is that the book spent a lot of time blurring the line between Jokers and victims. Jokers and Victims The jokerized Red Hood/Comedian lookalaike at the beginning of the story, the horde of Jokers at the pool, and of course, Jason himself. Being the Joker in this story seems to be about taking your pain and trauma, then inflicting that onto others. Which is again, the exact opposite of Batman, which all about taking that pain, using it to do good and making sure no one else has to face it alone. In the end, can the Comedian be redeemed? Maybe. Maybe not. But if even Joe Chill can, maybe one day the Joker can too. Or not This again reminds me of Telltale Joker (voiced by Anthony Ingruber). One path lets him become a vigilante modeling himself after Batman, but in the end, he just couldn’t change his fate even with Bruce’s help, and he will become a villain anyway unless you offer your friendship to him. “I really wanted to be a hero you know. But…I-I just can’t!” I honestly did think we could’ve gotten a redemption for the Joker. I even had a theory (never published) about how Bruce’s new yellow oval having a flashlight as a reference to the titular Killing Joke and him not turning it off. But since this book does want to be canon somehow, it’s stuck from fixing that status quo even if they wanted to. In the meantime, we have White Knight by Sean Gordon Murphy for those who want it.
VI. Who is the “Real”/Original Joker?
This is definitely something the book, and the Comedian specifically, want to keep ambiguous. But just to theorize, let’s list down the points for and against them. Case for the Criminal
He states to Jason that he was the first Joker, and that he ran Gotham before Batman.
Bruce confirms he reminds him the most of their earliest confrontations. That briefing scene and the scars montage include flashbacks that clearly feature him as the first.
Why would the Comedian only show up WAY later if he was the original?
IRL he literally is the original Joker.
He is the oldest and his laughing condition has been the worst. He wishes to retire after this.
The captions place as him as number 1.
He’s the only one to not claim to be the “real” Joker, as to him the Joker is an idea. Meaning he’s the only one willing to create new Jokers in the first place. The others don’t want to share the spotlight as both the Clown and Comedian claim to be the definitive Jokers.
The Criminal acts like a boss and strict mentor to the Jokers, specifically the Comedian.
The Comedian, from the first pages he’s introduced to the ending, is a liar.
Case for the Comedian
He is the Joker who Bruce identified the past of a week after their first encounter.
He “has a good eye for talent” meaning he probably did find the others.
His normal-ish life before this and desire to hide it means he has the most to gain by making new Jokers. They hide his identity and teach him various skills. The Criminal can teach him marksmanship and planning. The Clown can teach him to be more creative and actually be funny. Meanwhile he was an ex-chemical engineer who worked at Ace so he has the means.
As you can see, I favor the Criminal, with three times the points as the Comedian’s 3. However, if ever this becomes fully canon and referenced, there is a 90% chance the others will be retconned into being fake Jokers made for this story and there is an explanation for it. BUT What’s the THIRD option? What if they were all born on the same night? This was hinted at in the first issue with the 3 Red Hoods jokerized. If Zero Year is recanonized, well then that explains how there can be multiple Red Hoods. The most skilled and experienced at being the Criminal, the Criminal took the lead and taught the other two until they were ready. The Comedian having the most normal life, made him the easiest and first choice for Bruce to deduce.
VII. Who are the Three Jokers?
How did they become to be? Now that is a question that’s been in my mind for a long time. Earlier this year I made several posts about the Three Jokers. Last year made several Doomsday Clock posts which was what got me known. But before all that? Almost two years ago now, this book was announced. I was curious. Whenever I was waiting for a car, bus, commuting or whatever after class, after training or whatever on my way home, I didn’t have anything to do but use my phone. Except I didn’t have data and I grew out of mobile gaming. Usually I bring comics to read, but one day I decided to use that time to type down notes on who I thought the Three Jokers would be. For fun. Who knows maybe I’ll be close? I used that to also read a lot of old classic Batman-Joker comics and even episodes of BTAS, Batman ’66, Brave and the Bold etc. A few months later, I realized how long it ended up and decided, what the heck, what if I make this an write up and post it on Reddit or something. And so I posted this: https://www.reddit.com/DCcomics/comments/a7odrk/my_theory_on_the_three_jokers/ It was really long and REALLY messy. Very outdated too. I didn’t make anything like it again until the Doomsday Clock stuff, but this was the first. Then a few months ago I did more when the covers were released. So, without prolonging this any longer, the Three Jokers, who they are and how they came to be: The Criminal The Criminal Joker was the original Joker. A calculating and cold criminal mastermind with a method to his madness. He challenges Batman and the police. He likes to mess with gangsters because he hates organize crime. Batman is his ultimate rival. As the oldest of the three, the pain of his laughs has grown to the extent that he cries uncontrollably when doing it. Because of this he rarely laughs and smiles now. In the past he was a criminal who grew up on the streets of Gotham. He was a rebellious young man who injected chaos onto organized crime. He was skilled in hiding his identity and was smart enough to stay a step ahead. Bank robber, jewel thief, hitman, enforcer, con artist, gambler he’s been them all. Skilled with guns, knives, explosives, poisons and more. The world’s greatest criminal like Batman is the world’s greatest detective. Eventually he rose to the top as a mob boss. He ran Gotham before Batman came in. Due to boredom he created the Red Hood gang. He named himself the Joker after the wildcard, as he planned to rob the Monarch Playing Card company next to Ace Chemicals. Today due to his old age, he’s the one that looks the most different from the other two and so in the decades since he’s avoided fighting Batman again out in the open. Preferring instead to mentor and boss his successors. His last known appearance was in-universe was War of Jokes and Riddles. The Clown The Clown Joker is the classic Joker. A theatrical but murderous prankster-thief with a creativity and charisma that surpasses the others. He only kills when it’s funny. His plans are smart but also outrageous and non-sensical. He loves using gags and trick novelties, at times weaponizing them to be lethal. He recruited Gaggy from a circus as his sideckick but later ditched them and killed his henchmen. He made the Laughing Fish. He killed Jason Todd because it was funny, and it would get to Batman. No real other reason. He doesn’t need a big point. He’d love to have this fun forever if he could. In the past, he was likely a clown. He might’ve ran away to the join a circus once and met Gaggy there. After that he left to stay in Gotham and tried to be a clown at children’s parties and such. It didn’t work out and he joined the Red Hood Gang as the Criminal’s right hand man. But really he’s the one whose origin we have no clear knowledge on other than his title. Today he’s the substitute Joker who does the smaller acts for fun and to throw Batman off their trail. The Comedian The Comedian Joker is the modern Joker. The one with the most meaning. He believes life is a joke. He’s the most sadistic and crazy Joker. His ability to evolve and change himself is due to his Super-Sanity. He thinks outside the box all the time, even as Batman tries to make a new one around him. He is the most unpredictable and dangerous. His obsession with Batman is the strongest, yet unlike the others it’s ironically not the only thing he wants. Unfortunately, he can never have the other thing, and that’s why he’s the most hateful. Love and Hate are almost the same to him. In the past, he was a former chemical engineer at Ace chemicals who gave up his job to achieve his dream to be a comedian. It didn’t work out. He was a poor desperate man with a pregnant wife he loved and wanted to provide for but vented his anger on due to stress. He turned to the Criminal and Clown who made him a decoy Red Hood in their gang. Before their heist, his wife left him and faked her death, which broke the man. He didn’t want to do it anymore, but he had no choice. Today, he’s the main and only Joker left. He’s learned enough from the other two. He surpassed them in intelligence and insanity. How they look similar? I believe they are brothers who were separated, not at birth but early in life, taking different paths but ending up in the same place. The Criminal being the eldest at 10 years older than the youngest but looking much older due to his lifestyle pre-Joker. The Clown and the Comedian are possibly twins. That’s how the Comedian found a job with criminals so fast. That’s how they were so familiar with each other. That’s how they (somewhat) trusted each other as Jokers. That’s how Jeannie became horrified and left him. She also likely informed the police of their heist which is how security increased and Batman got there. Which is also likely how Bruce discovered the Comedian so easily. His wife was the one who tipped him and the police off. But if ever the other two are retconned as fake later, they could always either use:
Cadmus Tech cloning (the Joker apparently used this in ROTJ according to Terry in Epilogue)
Multiverse/Metaverse side effect after the constant reboots and anti-reboots making them all matter (cough Doomsday Clock cough Death Metal cough Generations Shattered and Forged cough Prime Time Punch)
Facial surgery done on the other two
Why should there even be 3 Jokers in the first place? Super-Sanity is better. Super-Sanity isn’t mutually exclusive IMO. At least 1 of them has one with the Comedian being Morrison and Snyder’s Joker, but considering how the Clown also changed to be more lethal I’d say he too has it. What this adds is the ability to give ambiguity to the other two Jokers while giving one a defined origin. You see Alan Moore believed the Joker wasn’t a very good character. I believe it’s partly because he couldn’t have a real origin. TKJ didn’t invent the trope of a mysterious origin for him. That appeared in Dennis O’Neil’s Joker run and Brian Bolland himself says he didn’t originally plan on making an origin for him when he pitched the book. That was Moore’s decision and the main point of TKJ hinges on it being at least generally true. So no gangster Joker who was always evil. With one Joker having a defined origin, we have a deeper understanding of his character and motivations while still having mystery on the others. With Super-Sanity, the Joker can have an infinite amount of personalities, motivations and fake origins but since we can never know which is real, they might as well all false. Which is what the psychiatrist concluded in Serious House on Serious Earth. “He has no real personality”.
VIII. Who is the Best Joker? Who is my favorite?
Now if we’re going by who’s the most in depth character and best villain, then the Comedian is it. His origin gives meaning and depth to his character and motivations while making him a parallel to Bruce. His rant on the other two sums it up pretty well. He doesn’t want to give the Joker the identity like the Criminal or Tim Burton did. He was more than the Clown. BUT He’s not my favorite or best Joker. u/mojothemobile said it best on a thread I saw earlier. The best Joker is the one you can laugh at as much as be scared off. A hilarious Joker that can make such vile acts seem funny. The kind of the Joker who would try and copyright fish infected by Joker venom, kill people with deadly pranks, make a Christmas special, stalk some guy who cursed at him on the road, attack Gotham with an army of bane-like Titan monsters, pull a fake Joker ga- “Wait a minute, are you just describing Mark Hamill’s Joker?” Yup. He had Criminal elements in Mask of the Phantasm, was the Comedian in the Killing Joke movie and maybe Return of the Joker, but in pretty much everything else (BTAS, TNBA, JL, JLU, JL action, Arkham Asylum, City and Knight (Troy Baker was more Comedian in Origins)), the definitive Joker voice played the Clown archetype. Brave and the Bold and Batman ’66 adapted this Joker well. Nothing beats the classics. But I understand it’s up to preference.
IX. BONUS ROUND
Did I have any disappointments with the book
Sure. Like I said I almost expected Bruce to try and rehabilitate the Joker again. I did wish we had more closure with Jason and Barabra. On how little they reveal on the 3 themselves, IMO they gave enough for me to make this so I’m grateful lol but it’s probably necessary to keep ambiguity for it to be canon. Otherwise a great book for me overall. Is it on the same level as Long Halloween or even Killing Joke?! Maybe not. But I’d personally put this equal to or greater to Hush which has similar strengths and weaknesses. Though not sure where I’d put it compared to DOTF and Endgame, but IMO this is above Joker War for me. Before moving on, I’d like to add a random bit. The panel in the police car with the light shining on the Joker declaring he’ll be Batman’s pain until they die, absolutely great art. I think this was what Jason Fabok talked about when he said Brad Anderson homage the original colors of TKJ by John Higgins.
What about Jason and Barbara?
Jason, I think had the second most important part just below Batman. His arc is about realizing how close he is to becoming the Joker, and maybe realizing that he might need to find a new identity, which Bruce offers to him. But of course that can’t happen here or they can’t really be in continuity fully. Barbara doesn’t get to do much but she does act as the heart of the trio who understands both and wants them to reconcile (but. She initially wanted to bring Jason in, but seeing him vulnerable as he was made her understand him more. In turn Jason seeing how she became this way inspires him to be better.
“Don’t tell me you’re a Jaybabs shipper Earthmine!”
Relax I’m not calling for that at all. I’m not really into shipping period and I do think the book could improve without it. But their relationship and parallels are important in this story and I think it was well done. By the way, I like the idea of Jim knowing Barbara and Barbara knowing he knows.
What about Harley?
Harley in continuity appeared during No Man’s Land. That plus the Comedian wishing he still had Jeannie, means he likely filled that void with Harley, only to be abusive to her. She reminds him too much of Jeannie. Punchline doesn’t though. I would like to share a theory I’ve had a long time now. In Case Study, it’s reveled that it was Harleen who made the report, concluding the Joker is sane, should be retried and executed. She changed her mind about it after meeting the Joker herself. She discovered the past of the Criminal, but by then he was semi-retired. If the Criminal found out he probably had the Comedian change her mind. The Clown of course likely avoids her since he hasn’t had a sidekick since Gaggy. So she only worked with, and maybe met, 1 Joker.
Will it Canon?
please don’t sue me Watchtower Database, big fan So, after all’s said and done, is this canon? Well it can be. I’d say, in the past of the next new timeline which restores more Pre-New 52 (including Pre-Crisis) history. I understand reception of this is more mixed than Doomsday Clock (which wasn’t universally loved either) and not everyone, maybe most people, aren’t sold with their being 3 Jokers. But they can easily retcon that premise out for the other things or once again give multiversal, excuses. There really is a lot of potential to deal with all of this.
Detective Comics #1000: The Last Crime in Gotham
The son of the Joker. Gee that sounds familiar. Maybe Geoff Johns already used this concept before? He did! In his short story in ‘Tec 1000. There are plenty of themes of family in this. The Joker died due to the chemicals that created him and somehow his son became just like the father and died too. His last act was a gift to Batman and Gotham. He left a note, emphasizing the importance of family. Besides that, this possible future includes Barabra and (a) Jason being married and Bruce and Selina having a daughter. Though at the end it’s implied to just be a wish by Bruce. I recommend reading this after Three Jokers. It serves as a good extra epilogue IMO.
Post-Script
Well that’s it. This was a great series for me and I’m glad to be able to do this. Thank you so much for giving your time reading these and special thanks to the following users I’ve had discussions about this. Whether in Reddit threads, DMs, Disqus, Twitter and more. Whether short or long they’ve helped me a lot in making this, either by giving me more ideas or motivating me to keep doing this crazy thing. Thanks also to those who appreciated these so much they used their had earned coins for rewards. I’m really glad these aren’t just for nothing, thank you. All of these include (but definitely aren’t limited to): u/Hmz_786, u/WarWolf343, u/HelloGoodbyeOhGawd, u/xXRambo-ApocalypsexX, u/ScottishRyzo-98, Joe57039631 from Twitter, u/Tough-Part, u/Badbatmanman, u/mrwiyagi, u/NewsYouDontNeed, u/Ricky_Ticky_Tangy, u/Ozymandias2019 and many more I probably missed looking through my history, my sincerest apologies in that case. Thanks to you all.
TL;DR Onision: In Real Life (Onision's Reaction to News of The "Documentary")
Now, I don't watch Greg's videos solely because I can't tolerate him visually, which is why I am so grateful foru/FillerBearfor their TL;DW work. However, I don't mind sifting through long sloughs of texts and what a time to TL;DR something recent Greg decided to vom out of his brain. Here we go. (I may also grammar nazi a bit but it'll be limited to strikethroughs and my own opinions will be in italics. Super TL;DR below if it's too much to read) Onision: In Real Life (Onision's Reaction to News of The "Documentary") < At your own risk! First paragraph: To start us off, he explains why he didn't make a "monetized full video" about the documentary; he didn't "have the energy to make yet another video", something about his vanity and desire to be on camera is dead... There are eight ellipses in this short paragraph, I find this extremely annoying at best. Moving on. Second paragraph: He continues on about how it's not fun to make videos about his life anymore (shocker) and that it was fun to make "fake meltdowns... fake prank videos (he) did with numerous people," by which he brings Shiloh as an example; shaving her head, filming her in the shower, etc and hints that he likes Dave Chappelle. He then laments about how people used to understand his jokes but people hae "lost their memories of exactly what was actually going on back then." He brings up the typical "people are fucking stupid" sentence as the finisher for this paragraph. There are four dashes that were needlessly used and a missing open bracket towards the end of the paragraph. Next. Third paragraph: Using larger bold text, he makes a statement piece of sorts. Quote "It's kind of the same deal with a lot of Youtubers - they did a lot of hilarious things which, if you weren't there, you just don't get it in 2020." Talks about cancel culture and brings up that even though it was demanded of them, they are now being punished for the said demanded thing. He finds it "hilarious" about this irony, and akins it to "watching dogs attack their owner as their owner is trying to feed them or seeing a snake eat it's own tail" He likes using the words "hilarious" and "hysterical" a lot. Just something to point out. Anyway... Fourth part:This is going to be kinda long because he's micro-analysing thedocumentary summarywhich I'm clumping together as one part but I'll be as brief as I can. He skims through two sentences and is agreeable to them, but the third one prompts a Joker meme as his response. Here I'd like to clarify that he's using five different font sizes and styles at this point. Font continuity is not his strong suit. Quote "But while his channels were twisted, his real life might be more sinister." He then states that the use of "might be" confirms that they have no proof of what they claim. Mentions Hansen coming by his house and that "blindness of society and complete detachment from facts/common sense" is why people like Joker. Some talk about being a puppeteer to people online, even when he's out of the picture. Basically reads as someone trying to prove that they're always in control period. Bullshit. A gif ofan aloof Greg clapping his hands together to transform into the Ledger Joker that looks like he just slapped himself appears. So edge. Much crin-geh. Very EUUGH. Quote "This cutting-edge investigative series explores the mystery, controversy and alleged criminality surrounding Greg Jackson." Spends a paragraph focusing on "alleged" like a dog with a sausage, so much that the word itself is used six times with quotation marks. He emphasizes that their use of the word means they're speculating without proof and for the money. Says "Sarah is a literal criminal" and "Shiloh is a literal criminal". Same old song. Tries to put aim the gun at all his exes about their "criminal behavior" and why "Discover" is instead focusing on "a former US Air Force cop... who literally helped the police bust illegal establishments in Oklahoma City while volunteering as a US Vet." Mentions being persecuted for speeding and blackberry bush removals. If only, Greg. He changes font again at this point. Make up your fucking mind. Calls Billie, Sarah and Shiloh "the three siren's". More mention of his being a US Vet, his deployments... but goes back to "the three siren's" and lambasts them about their drug using/dealing, committed felonies and disirespect for the law. Quote "... bringing forward new research and revelations about the man that the YouTube community loves to hate." He laments about being the hated victim, how people only care for themselves and how they only care about the law "when it's on their side." Lowkey shoutout to LeafyisHere. Font size changes AGAIN. FFS. Fifth paragraph (finally): Here he starts revealing a lot of "criminal acts" that Shiloh and Sarah have done, because he assumes we think it's cool that they're doing crims, ending with his go-to "Sarah apologized for being a rapist" quote. He then expresses how we ignored what they did and "be on the wrong side, and have literally no concept of what reality, evidence or justice is." I am literally going to have a brain aneurysm and I will literally drown myself in alcohol after I'm done with this because I am LITERALLY done with seeing the word LITERALLY used by a mid-30s man like a highschooler would.LITERALLY. Sixth part: He places a Speaks video Onision's Receipts (Proving He Did Nothing Wrong) here and proceeds to make big, in bold text statements about his warning people about taking the wrong people's sides, namely Social Repose, Blaire White, Shane Dawson, Shiloh, Hansen and Joy Sparkle's sides. He then proceeds to state what was wrong about them and how he was always right with a bonus Reacts video Chris Hansen's CRIMES & LIES (The Onision Case) and a special addition of Sarah with another Reacts video Sarah Admitting To Sexually Extorting Onision & Other Incirminating Video Evidence. Seventh paragraph: So why does this docmentary exist? Quote "It's Discovery Plus finding a way they can make money from lies." To the best of his knowledge, which let's face it isn't much, the documentary's sources are from Regina and Shiloh. Now he proceeds to emphasize how he's never met Regina, how desperate Regina was and was crazy about Kai; same treatment with Shiloh except it's calling the cops on her multiple times and her getting into trouble with fighting people "due to her difficult personality." Eighth part: Talks about the videos talk discuss interactions with Shiloh and links DeOreo and RealStream's vids on their experience, adn then shifts to something Damon Elliot, Shiloh's former producer" told him directly about her being "evil" which he was still in contact with Shiloh. Quote "Her own music producer, trying to get me to never take her back." Ninth paragraph:This begins with a series of confusing text with multiple double asterisks, which make this extremely hard to read. Fuck you Greg. Type like a fucking adult if you're even capable of doing that anymore. He blatantly insinuates that we're not going to listen to him and that the reason he's linking all these videos and pictures that will follow soon after is because he wants to easy-link this to people who ask if he owns the documentary. Brings up what he thinks is fine print shenanigans that a member of his Discord spotted; quote "...in the contract it implies they can edit me out of context and I wouldn't be able to do anything about it..." the end is near. my salvation. He then posts three screenshots; the first is an email correspondence from Thomas Patterson asking for an interview for the documentary with a pdf attached, the second is of said pdf which is a Personal/Appearance Release Form that Greg would have to sign should he have agreed to the documentary and the third is a similar email from Thomas Patterson to Kai. Another rogue Ledger Joker appears. How very droll. Final part: Quote "Imagine someone making a whole TV show about you, calling it "Your Name: In Real Life" despite never having met you even once... absolutely, hilarious." FFS I can't EVEN. Last sentence. Ellipsis "absolutely" comma "hilarious" FUCK YOU GREG. NO. On an additional note, there was ONE comment on 9th of December from Benny Fox: "I don't know how a documentary on you is allowed? Your not charged with any crimes I know of. This is not going to go down well I suppose. You better get an attorney to help your defense or at least a public relations lawyer." Grammar is not as bad but considering I've just spent nearly two hours reading and rereading this, this reads like a fake comment. That is two hours I will never get back. Super TL;DR is Greg has extremely questionable grammar and if this forum post had myspace options we would have seen peak myspace cringe because his choice of font sizes was aggravating. And he's regurgitating the same old shit we've been accustomed to seeing. Now I'm gonna go drink away my pain, have a good night you guys.
DISCUSSION: WW84: The movie's themes and message of truth, but how the reality isn't always the case
One of the many issues with WW84 is its theme of truth, and the resolution at the end regarding the wishes made by others, but Diana pleading with them to renounce them because their wishes caused more harm than good. Everyone sees the damage their wishes are causing, sees the truth as Diana puts it, accepts it even, and renounces them all, saving the day. While I still believe Bruce Almighty gave a better message with "want a miracle? be the miracle", I get this ending. Its well done, the music, acting, etc. But the joke has been "wow, glad everyone renounced them, I have a feeling some wouldn't for obvious reasons," and the criticism is a similar "I think alot of people wouldn't want their wishes to be undone, have you considered why that would be the case?" This ending also tied with the theme of truth as it added to Diana accepting (I should put that in quotes because of BvS) Steve's death. But also, it tied itself with something that everyone would say which is: the truth will set you free; but the reality makes that more of a lie. The reason is: the truth will set you free is very vague, as the truth could heal, but it can also be a weapon. All you have to do is ask yourself: how many times has the truth helped you, and how much has it hurt you. Chances are, its more of the latter. It was thanks to a podcast that made me see this angle, but you couldn't help but think of WW84 and compare it to others like The Dark Knight, Wonder Woman 2017; but also, from that podcast, they also compared WW84's themes of truth with a radical choice: Oldboy. Some are obvious, others aren't. But one of the conclusions is what i said above: the truth will not set you free. But there is also another: sometimes its better living a lie. Because of that, I wanted to start this opinion/discussion. WONDER WOMAN 2017: We can all agree that WW2017 told this story thematically much better compared to its sequel. The theme of that movie was "its not about what you deserve, its about what you believe." Diana's mother tells her "they don't deserve you" implying Man's World, and the message of "deserve" is something Diana uses all the way until the turning point regarding humanity. But its her nativity that makes her break down when she kills what she thought of Ares, and even with the actual Ares, that humanity is not all that good, and that they can be bad too. She feels lost until she remembers Steve, the village, the people she's met, and realizes Steve was right: its not about what you deserve, its about what you believe, and she believes in love. The truth here is that its not all black and white, humanity is both; in fact, Diana was introduced to the gray in moralities. Diana saw the truth in the reality. THE DARK KNIGHT: One of its best quotes is also one of the best film quotes: "you either die a hero, or you live long enough to you see yourself become the villain." Harvey Dent says this, and its the job of both Batman and Gordon to protect him and preserve him as he is the only one who could save Gotham as he is a good person, no dirt, no corruption, not evil. Sadly, because of Joker, he becomes Two Face and kills five people and almost Gordon's family if not for the aide of Batman. Facing everything Dent worked for being destroyed, they decide Batman will take the fall for Dent's actions, and Dent's legacy is preserved, saving Gotham. Because "you either die a hero, or you live long enough to you see yourself become the villain." TDK isn't new to this theme as you can see this in almost every Nolan movie from Memento to Inception: lying to yourself to have a life, maybe living a lie to be with your family. In this movie's case, sometimes its better living a lie, especially when the truth is more painful with the repercussions it can cause. And given Gotham for example, its understandable especially if you want to save it. Until it gets undone in THE DARK KNIGHT RISES. OLDBOY: I don't know how much to go into this, as it is dark and disturbing. But this is the movie where what I said above is its actual theme: "the truth will never set you free." I think many know the plot of Oldboy, but in general, its about a man named Dae-Su who is abducted and lives for 15 years in a cell for no reason, not knowing why and by who. He loses his mind and becomes crazy from the lack of human connection, that when out of nowhere he was finally released, and decides to find his jailer and find out the truth of his imprisonment. AND SPOILERS FROM HERE ON IN... As Dae-Su falls for a woman named Mi-Do, he is met by his jailer himself, a wealthy man named Lee Woo-jin. He tells him if he finds out why he imprisoned him, he'll kill himself. Dae-Su figures out that Lee Woo-jin is a former classmate of his, and he exposed him and his sister who were having incest. Figuring he has the answer, Dae-Su sees Lee Woo-jin who tells him he is wrong: the truth is Dae-Su exposing him and and his sister instead of keeping it a secret for the sake of her well being led to his sister killing herself. Living in his own shame like a prison for 15 years, he kidnapped Dae-Su for 15 years and let him go so he could have sex with the woman Mi-Do, who is actually his daughter! Threatening to kill her after exposing the truth to her if he doesn't seek forgiveness, Dae-Su presents himself in a belittling pathetic dog and cuts his own tongue! Feeling satisfied, Lee Woo-jin kills himself, leaving a traumatized Dae-Su alone. SPOILERS END HERE. As you can see, the truth will never set you free. In fact, Dae-Su was hoping the truth would help him understand why he was kidnapped, but in the end, the truth was so horrible that Dae-Su cut his own tongue out. Plus, just to add a bit back from THE DARK KNIGHT, you could say the living the lie narrative is present here; as much as you can tell the truth, expose what's going on, a question one raises is: is telling the truth enough for you to accept the consequences of what happens to the people exposed to its effects? All of this goes back to why the truth theme in WW84 doesn't work. Alot of things don't work, mind you, but this is one I thought about and wanted to focus on as it is the primary theme and message from the prologue with the contest to its ended resolution. But it opened up a bigger discussion, bigger questions, on the movie, on Diana even. And yes, maybe something we maybe want to talk about in WW3. If they take this further, what if Diana has a crisis? What if she realizes that truth is irrelevant, it is subjective beliefs, and objective facts? What if she realizes her fighting for the truth was actually running from it and she was living a lie? Now granted, it may be what you want for WW3, it may not happen at all, just as much as surprises exists and we could be onto something, especially if you want to have this in WW3 in reflection to the previous two films, cementing its trilogy narrative. There is alot here, and you may not agree with this just as much as you do or are surprised by it, but it was on my mind and wanted to share this opinion/discussion of this topic.
so basically we live in a society Obtainable via idk, Velvet Room? maybe just finding a mask lying around during the Dark Hour or inside a TV with a 50% chance of obtaining Arsene? Design Passive A - SP Bar : The user's GUI will come with a light blue bar, representing how much “SP” the user has, which is 335 SP total. Moves that require the use of a Persona's special abilities to attack will drain the user's SP. The user can regenerate SP from successfully landing specific melee attacks(I know this isn't how it works in the games, but it's better than having people run while spamming SP regeneration items like every JRPG protagonist) Passive B - Critical Hit : There is a 5% chance for the user's attack to crit, showing a little cut-in of the user's face before knocking down the foe off their feet and pulling up a menu for the user. While this menu is pulled up, the foe will remained stunned until the user chooses an option. Pressing LMB again will initiate the All Out Attack while pressing X will allow the user to simply cancel it, leaving the foe stunned for 10 seconds or until they're hit again. This passive can also be used against the user, allowing other players to crit the user and pull out an All Out Attack themselves. and yes, the foe and the user cannot be harmed while the menu is pulled up, so you can't just smack someone with a critical hit and leave them permanently stunned while your goons beat them up on top of the 10 seconds to use the menu before the foe gets back up, main difference with this is that Arsene users get to hold the stunned enemy at gunpoint too Passive C - All Out Attack : If the player or foe chooses to use an All Out Attack, the person who performed the original crit will rush at the foe and perform Persona 5’s classic All Out Attack in a series of flurries directed at the foe before the user jumps away and does Joker's signature pose, dealing 45dmg or instantly killing if the victim is under 30% hp. Passive D - Persona Mastery : you know what CD does with that “attack to automatically summon stand”? just that, but the funny mask just burns away
Stats :
Power - B+ Speed - C Durability - B HP : 285
Stats :
Q - “I am thou. Thou art I... Thou who art willing to perform all sacrilegious acts of thine own justice.” : Joker's mask will appear on the user's face before the user rips it right off, summoning Arsene. LMB - “Swing your blade!” : The user will slash their dagger, dealing 15dmg and regenerating 15 SP. Cooldown : 4 seconds E - Trickster's Combo : Arsene will perform a basic three jab combo, dealing 10dmg in each jab with an additional “curse” afterburn that deals 3dmg per second for about 5 seconds from the last punch. Cooldown : 6 seconds R - Brave Blade : Arsene will swing their leg down onto the floor, slashing the foe ahead of them and dealing 35dmg with weak knockback. There's a cool downwards sword swinging effect that comes along with the attack. Cooldown : 8 seconds T - “For his neutral special, he wields a gun.” : The user will strike a pose as they hold out their pistol, holding the camera in an over shoulder angle basically like a third person shooter. Pressing LMB will allow the user to fire the pistol in their current direction, dealing 15dmg in each shot. Pressing T again will cancel the move. Cooldown : 5 seconds V + T(cursor on target) - Down Shot : The user will roll to the side before performing a leap as they fire at the target relentlessly in style, dealing no damage but stunning the target and applying Passive B. This move can be completely nullified if used on players who are blocking or performing unique attacks(ie VTW’s Roadroller or TA4's nail shot), rendering the user immobile and unable to attack for 3 seconds. This move can only be used 5 times per life. Cooldown : 20 seconds shares cooldown with default T Y - Eiha : Arsene will jab their arm into the ground before a burst of dark energy bursts from the ground in front of them, dealing 25dmg + 5 additional curse damage to any foe caught within the 10 stud radius blast zone. This move eats up 40 SP. Cooldown : 10 seconds F - Showtime : The user leaps upwards as Arsene does the same downwards jab motion in the air, causing a burst of red energy to burst underneath the user in a 45 stud radius, dealing 65dmg and great knockback. This move consumes 150 SP. Cooldown : 35 seconds G - Cognitive Outlook : Basically, kneel down as blue flames engulf your entire body, giving you a free Joker cosplay. Press G again to go back to normal clothes. Cooldown : 10 seconds J - Chains of Society : For some unexplained reason, chains will begin to surround the user before they grab it and lash it forwards, smacking the foe and dealing 25dmg with weak knockback. Cooldown : 15 seconds J(if foe is killed) - Sinful Shell : Spoilers for Persona 5’s EndingThe chains that surround the user will begin to start breaking apart, summoning Satanael who will appear from the skies and fire a single shot at the target. [insert Persona 5 Final Boss defeat] A bullet made from the Seven Deadly Sins that can pierce even a god.imagine being a TWOH user on a building and seeing some giant demon lord point a gun at you Z(cursor on target) - Grappling Hook : Just like Persona 5 Royal and Smash Bros, the user will fire a hook from their hands onto their cursor's location, pulling themselves towards their cursor if it hits anywhere within a 100 stud distance of the user. Cooldown : 12 seconds Q + Z - Wings of Rebellion : Much like the Smash Bros Moveset for Joker, Arsene will flap their wings and propel the user upwards, creating great vertical distance with little horizontal distance. Cooldown : 16 seconds X - Rebel's Guard : you know, the Smash move where Joker just holds his face and soaks damage, but it lasts for 7 seconds and you only get half the amount of SP out of every attack done to you(ie attack that does 50dmg will only give you 25 SP, 8dmg attack gives 4 SP, etc. decimals will automatically round up to next number for sake of long decimals breaking GUI). Cooldown : 10 seconds C - Dash : The user will dash ahead. Cooldown : 5 seconds Pose Pose Theme Stand(?)’s idle pose
Quotes :
same thing, couldn't pick between English or Japanese
“You need proper punishment.” “It's showtime!” “It's useless.” Remember that feature I mentioned in the last two posts? Here it is again: When the user decides to just start smacking people or gets smacked, Life Will Change plays. Once the user hits 30%, it just kinda cuts to Last Surprise, which will start playing. Sinful Shell sounds like a pain to code, but it'll look cool to pull out against that one guy with Doppio KC for absolutely no reason oh, and I guess you can start running in circles after you beat someone to death
I've recently watched this show and obsessed over it for awhile. As I literally lost much sleep over it, thought I'd just use it for a New Year writing. If people enjoyed this segment, I would probably post everything else I wrote. Lemme know your thoughts! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- So I’ve finally hit the big craze on Netflix this Christmas season. That’s right, over the lack of celebrations and awkward reunions, I watched the Queen’s Gambit with my mom, nearly in one sitting. To be fair, I regard anything bingeable as a worthy creation but there’s slightly more credit due here than the mere fact an unemployed had enough time and patience to watch the miniseries. Indeed, the Queen’s Gambit is more than a showbiz spectacle: “Competitive chess on Netflix?! Bravo! First of a kind and probably better as the only one of its kind.” No, I would go so far as to say, The Queen’s Gambit is one of the most tasteful coming of age shows ever created. For one, it is far more reasonable and relatable than things like Sabrina the Teenage Witch and its associated contemporaries. For another, it is far more profound and valuable than the likes of Mean Girls (a film but very comparable). Of course I know the word on the street, The Queen’s Gambit boosted interest in chess so I would seem like a madman if I say this film is never about chess. But humor me, having watched the show, do you even know what a Queen’s Gambit means in chess if you hadn’t known before hand? Or the Sicilian Defense? If this film really were about chess, I can almost guarantee there’d be far less interest in chess and far more mockery towards competitive board-gaming. If you hadn’t caught the subtle hints of substance abuse and the lack of healthy relationships that loitered rather liberally throughout the film, then let me catch you up. This Netflix miniseries was so attractive not because it managed to miraculously elevate the topicality of chess by adding pensive fanfare during tournaments but because through the metaphor of chess, this series put on a fascinating display of growth in Elizabeth Hermon the person, the unfortunate, the outsider, and the exceptional. I think the show, and by extension the book, has done an incredible job of excavating the artistic potential of interlacing the game of life with the game of chess. There’s not a moment where anyone could miss the irony that despite Harmon’s ability to see with such clarity into the future if said future were confined to one chessboard with a clearly defined opponent, she handles her real future like a kid at her pinata party: blindfolded, discombobulated, not to mention dangerous to the point of lethality. In fact, the explicit consistency of this theme throughout the show made me wonder why the series did not start with the Russian tournament opening sequence where all the players are sat at the lobby and a rather banal broadcaster recited the Huxley quote. You know, “the chessboard is the world, the pieces…” blah, blah, blah. I mean in terms of grandiosity, profundity, and tension, this scene has got what it takes to make a strong first impression. But I’m pleased to figure out why it wasn’t a first impression, if any impression at all. Sure, the audience loves a story where it opens with a Mexican stand-off and then rewinds. But it’s such a cliché and worse yet, this trick merely tells the audience that there’s about to be a climax without showing us its inherent appeal, almost like a Hollywood sex scene. Of course, The Queen’s Gambit isn’t about popular expectation. Knowing that Harmon’s struggle in the game of life is the centrepiece of the story, the director refused to hook the audience with some old white man repeating the words of a dead white man as if such pretentious claims about nature, the world, and God were about to bring wisdom and insight into our understanding of Elizabeth Harmon’s life. No, this stunning prodigy with unforgettable orange hair was portrayed exactly as she is. The opening scene was dark, naked, and hustled. And in the mere moments of descending to the hotel lobby from her room, Harmon manages to be the disruption in every single environment she comes across. Without a doubt, the opening scene is the very definition of the directors’ mastery over their craft. And I’m not just blowing the directors’ trumpets here because the book, which is the foundation of this show, began with Beth finding out the death of her mother at the Methuen Home rather than at Paris. Besides, both the book and the show, excluding the aforementioned opening, follow a strictly linear narrative. Therefore, it is no outlandish assumption to say the exceptional (and I mean every sense of that word) opening was entirely the brainchild of the directors. I would deduce that there’s a certain statement to be found in the opening scene whether it be wisdom or folly. And if I may be so bold to venture a guess, this makeover demonstrates an awareness on the part of the directors that like a game of chess, the way you open a narrative will define how the story gets progressed and perceived. So now the question begs, “how did the opening define the plot and our understanding of it?” Well, quite simply, the opening scene bid us to view Harmon as a competitor in the game of chess which then translates into a competitor against her own fate as the plot unravels from her childhood. That’s how the directors funnel us into her anger and fear so we understand her desire to win and her determination to be better. I mean, you do not need a film major nor any artistic talent to understand that part. It’s meant to be intuitive, almost like offering a one-sided trade of pawn for your opponent. It might seem like a pedantic, forced interpretation of the opening sequence. You know, “oh the title refers to the Queen’s Gambit therefore the opening of the show must also be a gambit,” I want to make it clear that I am not the kind of person who believes every choice in art needs to embody a meaning. In fact, I reckon art is often the opposite of purposeful wisdom, for better or for worse. No, I am merely exploring something I found unusual about this show. You know, for a show promising conflict and competition at its core, there are so rarely any bursts of self-righteous indignation, raucous display of rage, and bitter outcry of pent-up emotions. I don’t mean to stereotype but how comes an American film-production embraces a nearly Swedish aversion to outright aggression in its narrative? Let’s just take the first episode as a whole for example since we are talking about openings. Of course, while the directors never shy away from stacking one horrible fact after another on the audiences’ plates, they approached the portrayal of the young Harmon with a calmness that reminds me of Camus’ L’Etranger. Given the traumatic nature of being orphaned by car crash, not once did Harmon demonstrate a desire to reject the orphanage nor any attempt to grieve for her mother. In fact, she showed more anger and sadness over a game of chess with Mr. Shaibel than any emotional reflection upon her history. One of the most striking moment of that whole episode is undoubtedly the moment when Mrs. Deardorff asked Harmon to surrender her old clothing for the Methuen uniform. I use the word surrender with no exaggeration either as we observe for a brief moment just how delicately Harmon stroked the embroidery on her gown. Then Mrs. Deardorff turns around with the Methuen uniform and extends her hand. And no, rather than snatching the gown out of Harmon’s hands, she pauses, again just for a brief moment. And this pause is a statement, a question, a command. Give me. And the response from Harmon? Nothing. No struggle nor sadness. She observes and refrains even as Mrs. Deardorff so callously commented that “I’ll just burn this” after seizing the gown. It’s so extraordinary that this moment of tremendous tension is so orderly and tenderly delivered, not in so much proclamations as in gestures: one move after another, developing characters, relationships, as well as the plot. And this iconic moment will define the narrative throughout the episode, where even the most intense moments are masterfully circumnavigated. For example, when Harmon appears to be on the verge of a tantrum calling Mr. Shaibel a cocksucker, he simply shuts Harmon out, for days. Likewise, the ending scene when Harmon was caught stealing drugs from the Home. I mean it simply can’t be a coincidence that Harmon passes out right as Mrs. Deardorff led the entire congregation of the Home to witness her crime and ultimately to chastise her for it. And really, there’s literally nothing else in a show like a cliff-hanger that signals to the audience that the directors are withholding something. Anyways, I might be catching on to a pattern but so what? The directors have a style of illustrating tension which may seem quite contrary to the atmosphere and the purpose of the film but can’t it just be deadpan and absurd humor so the atmosphere lighten up a bit? Sure, you can see it as such but keep in mind, this perceived deadpan is commonplace throughout the show. Yet it’s so far from the likes of A Series of Unfortunate Events that we can safely rule out this contrast serves only a comedic effect. My theory for the prevalent avoidance of tension is that this method allows the directors to dilute the catharsis of resolving these slightly less confrontational problems in the plot. I mean, this is not a crazy notion that the bigger and messier the problem, the more catharsis we should feel when the whole ordeal is over. Perfectly balanced, as all things should be, little one. Jokes aside, If we take some moments of serious conflicts from other theatrical endeavors like The Crucible, in a moment of life and death struggle for morality and favor of the Almighty, we get the main character screaming out in pain and anguish, “leave me my name!” and the associated soliloquy about cosmic valor and other romantic stuff about philosophy of life. That particular scene is so pompously cathartic as our man lay somewhat ruined in a jail cell but nonetheless rose against his tormentors to rattle such goodness that was still left in his soul. Contrast that with the kind of resolutions to confrontations in The Queen’s Gambit. Revisiting Harmon’s moment of conflict with Mr. Shaibel, we notice that the resolution of that fight was so subtle. Forgiveness was given by the unlocking of a door and then chess as usual. Same players, same disposition as always. I don’t think I need too many examples but I feel as though the Mexico City sequence are iconic enough to fully illustrate my point. When Harmon encounters Borgov and his seconds in the elevator, there was a scene of incredible tension as Harmon hears them saying really cruel things about her background. This attack upon Harmon received no immediate response but in the following scene, we see Harmon’s symmetrical defense where the twins stand on either side of her and then Harmon going, “reserve a seat for my Mother”. In that instant I laughed because it was so surreal like something out of a classical Batman movie. You know, Batman and Robin versus Joker and Harley Quinn, what do we do now Batman? Get my mum will you. Jokes aside, this moment was definitely outstanding in the way that it broke the hostility of the previous scene. The following sequence, when we learnt that Mrs. Wheatley didn’t make it to Harmon’s match because she died, the directors broke our emotional fall by rather shocking use of deadpan “my mother did mention the Tequila tasted off”, then we get the pills, but ultimately, we get the most wonderful shot where Harmon returned to the house and spent the first night alone on her mother’s favorite spot on the couch, watching the TV just like she used to do, and then falling asleep in that familiar blanket. Not a word in that scene but it says far more than enough about loneliness and solace. Truly if the show has a more appropriate name, consider calling it “Killing You Softly”. And here I feel as though I should interject with my ignorant two cents about the casting choice for this show. Because every scene is done with such subtlety to the point of risking obscurity, I just felt that it was a wonderful idea to find actors and actresses who have really captivating physical features. I mean, Anya Taylor-Joy had such pronounced facial structure with large round eyes that are a true force of nature. Put that face next to Harry Melling whose facial features are crunched and sunken. Now let them have a go at a relationship and watch the mismatched dynamic unfold itself without any words or even actions. There’s also the incredible feat of finding the most beautiful 13-year-old cowboy on the street for Benny Watt’s role. Put bland beauty in exotic costume and voila we get a character who everyone wants to know more about regardless of what they really have to offer. I mean, Benny Watts was supposed to be the mouthiest, the most irritating character of the show but because of the shock value associated with Thomas Brodie-Singer in cowboy, we come to accept the character with far less annoyance than we should have had. I mean, I’m not the only one who gets hung up on the characters’ appearances. Remember that scene where Harmon asked Watts about his knife despite his incessant ramble and narcissistic advice on how to get better at chess? Yeah, what Watt did to Harmon, Thomas Brodie-Singer did for me. Of course, nothing sexual, yet. There’s more winning picks like Bill Camp on Mr. Shaibel, Christiene Seidel on Mrs. Deardorff, Marielle Heller on Mrs. Wheatley, I mean I’ll stop right here before it looks like the end credit and it should be noted that these actors are not just perfect in their roles because of the look but also because they delivered truly worthwhile performances so power to them. Still can’t believe they put TBS in cowboy, never gets old. Yeah, sorry, been sitting on that pun for twenty years. Hopefully you’ve had a laugh because we are about to plunge into the depth of the show’s subject matter which may or may not deserve as much sobriety and gravity as I will give it but do stay with me...
My name is Lonnie Machin. I am writing this of my own free will without coercion and all of this is the truth to the best of my memory. I was born in Gotham December 1, 1992, in the East End to Melinda Machin. My dad wasn’t really in the picture. My mother worked at Ace Chemicals to provide for us, send me to school, put clothes on my back. We lived in a run-down apartment not far from there. The landlord wasn’t a good man. I was young, so I don’t remember a lot about him, but he was angry whenever he visited. Plus looking back, I’m not sure where our utility payments were going. Visit the East End today and you’ll see the place hasn’t changed. There’s actually more scumbag landlords extorting dirt-poor residents than there was before. Sorry, I’m getting off topic. Like I was saying, the building wasn’t maintained. Garbage piled up by the emergency exit, the water was a muddy brown color. You get the idea. We stayed because the alternative was living on the street. I remember I was in school, first grade, it was a Tuesday when we found out. If anyone here remembers the East End Fire back in ‘03 - it burned down two blocks, mainly residential. It started in my building. The electrical short-circuited in the walls. It started a fire. Mom would’ve just been coming home from a night shift at the plant, so she was probably asleep at the time. An investigation found that the building hadn’t been inspected in over a decade and a court ruled the owners guilty of criminal negligence. I was placed into the care of a distant uncle who happened to live in the city and his wife; Michael and Roxanne Machin. The settlement contained an amount I cannot disclose, but no amount would have been enough to make up for the death of my mother, nor the tremendous loss of life which the East End is yet to recover from. Still, it was just enough to pull me out of the local public school and enroll me in Gotham Academy. I remembered feeling dirty - using my mother’s blood money to go to school. I benefited from her death. I’ve been told to look at it like a gift from her, but it always felt more like a bribe to me. Gotham Academy, from a physical, emotional, mental, and academic perspective, was hell. I would like to say I was at the top of my class, but truthfully, I was slightly below average and had to work my ass off to stay there. My time in public school left me lagging behind the other kids. Between that and my being poor, I was bullied basically my entire time there. It wasn’t anything physical, mostly. My classmates preferred exclusion and gossip to direct confrontation, maybe because of the stories they were fed about the feral kids at the public schools across the river. I was sixteen when the bullying came to a head. A group of boys decided it would be funny to play a prank on me and hide pot - marijuana - in my locker at school, then report me for it. The police got involved. I was escorted out of my classroom by an armed officer of the law. I was instantly suspended and spent an unforgettable night in juvie. I was charged with possession of an illegal substance with intent to distribute, although received probation and community service before a judge. Returning to school was the hard part. Word had gotten around campus and parents were concerned about their children mixing with, and I quote, my ‘kind’. I pleaded my case in front of the principal who was certain I was guilty. I feigned repentance, I promised to do anything to stay at the school. I knew that if I got kicked out, I’d be right back where I was and my mother’s death would’ve been for nothing at all. The principal let me stay, but I was walking a tightrope after that. I tried to confront the kid that did it after school. That was the first time I was in anything resembling a fight. I stopped him after school to extract my pound of flesh, figuratively, of course. I was pissed. I knew most of the kids there were scared of me. So there I was, going on some long monologue in front of him, threatening him basically, when he punches me in the stomach. Before I could retaliate, he told me his dad was on the school board and with me on my final warning, he could get me expelled like-- And then he snapped his fingers. So I swallowed my pain, bided my time, and eventually graduated from Gotham Academy. Go Knights.
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Slam! The door crashed to the ground, knocked off its hinges, and the clowns surged in. Having joined the new Joker’s movement, a dozen protestors broke into the run-down apartment looking to find where the GCPD were hiding the dirty child abuser Sebastian Hady, city comptroller and surviving mayoral candidate. But, as the clown-masked insurgents swept through the safehouse, it became quickly clear that the police had been tipped off to their arrival with time to spare. The place was empty. Dick Grayson raced along the streets of Gotham City, across the Finger River and through Somerset. He was one part of a convoy escorting Comptroller Hady to a second location after a tip that the first safehouse had been compromised. Ahead of him was the black, unmarked police truck driven by Detective Harper, with Hady and Bullock in the back. Though it wasn’t the truck ahead that had Dick’s attention. Instead, Dick’s attention was pulled to the streets. After Jim’s lockdown, few vehicles were on the roads, a rare sight for Gotham. But what did pack the streets were protestors. Navigating Gotham’s twists and bends was difficult enough on a regular night, but now along every other road marched dozens upon dozens upon dozens of people, packed tightly together, blocking what little traffic there was as they waved placards and chanted. “Fuck the Waynes!” “Feed the poor!” “Eat the rich!” “We are not a joke! We are not a joke!” To Dick, it was inspiring to see the people of Gotham rise up and peacefully demand that their rights be respected, that they get what they deserved. But it was also hard to forget that the ones they held most at fault was his own family. Not only that, as the convoy crept and circled along the blocked streets, it quickly became clear that not everyone was so peaceful. The new Joker’s words empowered the disenfranchised, poor, and otherwise vulnerable to rise up and demand respect, but his and Harley’s actions and iconography, along with their direct call to action had also sparked a flame that was sweeping through the city. Whether it was rioters going too far to send a message, or the many opportunists of Gotham crawling out of the woodwork to loot and destroy among the existing chaos, widespread crime had engulfed the city, drowning out the more silent majority of peaceful protestors. Not that it was overwhelmingly easy to tell the difference, as many from both camps hid behind clown masks or white face paint. As such, as Dick drove through the streets, he saw several police cars race by - sirens on - and armoured-up officers on foot clubbing clowns. But of which colour? A shiver went down Dick’s spine as he recalled a vision of another Gotham City - one that was darker, and ruled by tyrants hiding under the guise of the GCPD *. Was this how it began? As the convoy took a turn down Palance Street, Dick’s phone rang over the car’s sound system. He punched the answer key on his dashboard and refastened his concealed earpiece. “Alfred?” “Master Dick!” The gentlemanly Alfred Beagle called down the phone. It was already immediately clear he was in a panic. “You must get back to the manor at once! A mob of men and women in clown masks have broken in and are searching room-to-room!” Dick’s eyes shot open. “Is Stephanie safe? Where are you?” “She is with me,” Alfred explained. “I’ve barricaded us in Miss Kyle’s old room. It hasn’t seen use for many years, but it’s deep enough into the East Wing that it should take those clowns a good while to find us. But you must hurry!” “I’m on my way, Alfred.” Dick pumped his breaks and took a harsh U-turn, barrelling up Lester Street to cut as fast as he could back to the outskirts of Gotham, racing to Wayne Manor and abandoning the police convoy.
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By the time I graduated, I’d caught up with my peers enough to get a spot at Gotham University. My “Rising from Adversity” essay caught the eye of the Head of Admissions and I was guaranteed a full scholarship studying Social Work with a minor in Sociology. As a freshman, I managed to land a spot in a research study with then-Professor Sam Young. We connected immediately. I found out that he’d grown up just two blocks from my old apartment in the East End and worked his way to his position from poverty. Even after the study ended, we would spend hours sitting in the campus coffee shop, talking about politics. We talked about history, about policies, candidates. We had a conversation about the corruption in Santa Prisca’s fascist regime, mass poverty, and incarceration rate which ultimately became the basis for my thesis. I collected data, conducted peer-reviewed research, and wrote pages upon pages of a plan meant to improve the living conditions of the poorest and most vulnerable of Gotham City. I don’t remember exactly, but there were no fewer than thirty pages of charts detailing where I’d get the funds from. Little discretionary funds I’d found inspecting City Hall’s budget that wouldn’t be missed put to use elsewhere. I wanted to set up offices in poor neighborhoods that would teach people in poverty valuable skills, then put them to work in office jobs. Funds were set aside for a safety net just in case someone started backsliding into their old habit or if disaster struck, as it often did for Gotham’s vulnerable. I showed it to Professor Young and he was blown away. He promised to get me in touch with the right people and my heart soared. That’s why I was so worried when a few days later he stopped replying to my emails. I went to his house, but found out he moved. I thought maybe someone had him disappeared. Either City Hall or one of the big CEOs who benefited from maintaining the status quo. I didn’t show my research to anyone else after that - I was worried I might be next. Turns out I was wrong. Sam Young appeared on television a week or so later as the nationwide director of the Wayne Foundation. I saw Bruce Wayne on television commend him for his brilliant insight into poverty. Young had stolen my ideas, my thesis and was being bankrolled by Wayne Enterprises to introduce them nationwide. I decided to confront him - and if you’re sensing a pattern here, good for you. I showed up at the Wayne Foundation Gala, crashed it technically, and called him out on it. I told him that my ideas were meant for the government, not to be co-opted by Bruce Wayne. You know what he told me? He said, “There’s a lot of money in charity.” I think I remember the headline that night being ‘Professor Young attacked by deranged former student at Charity Gala.’
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In the haunted husk of Ma Gunn’s School for Boys, Jason Todd paced back and forth, having retreated here following Harley Quinn’s escape. It had been only a day since his whole life had been turned upside down, since some of his earliest trauma had been drudged up and entirely redefined. Sat on a pile of debris opposite him was Alice, his older sister. She had been dead for nine long years, along with their mother and father, claimed by the fire. Except she hadn’t. Having reappeared out of the blue, she had told him she was plucked from the fire by the Black Glove, the devil-worshipping cult their parents belonged to, and who had lit that very same fire to engineer an orphan to be adopted by Batman, but that Bruce had saved the wrong kid from the fire. So, because Bruce found Jason first, Alice was reclaimed by the cult and forced to be their assassin, wielding magical guns that killed anyone that deserved it. It was all, frankly, ridiculous, but Alice was there right in front of Jason. And, even if she had avoided him all these years, and even if she was being pursued by powerful dark actors, Jason was overjoyed to have her sister back. But that didn’t mean the rest of his problems had vanished overnight. “I don’t get it,” he huffed. “People are coming out in droves to support this fake Joker. As if their memories are that short!” “He’s saying what they want to hear,” Alice replied plainly. She had been listening to him go for quite some time after he had rushed to get back to her following his failed mission. “People are fickle. And if they’re desperate enough, they’ll follow anyone promising change.” “He’s calling himself the Joker! Wearing his colours, with Harley Quinn on his arm!” Jason exclaimed. “The things the Joker’s done… the people he’s hurt, or killed, or…” The second Robin recalled back to some years ago, in Bosnia, where he narrowly avoided a gruesome, sticky end at the hands of the Joker, the real one. That night, Jason had seen the Jester of Genocide as he truly was, beneath the glamour and the verbosity. A satanic figure, barely human. “No-one calling himself that name could possibly be out to help anyone, including himself.” Alice shook her head. She had been outside of the Gotham sphere for long enough to see the Joker as most of the world did, from a distance. She hadn’t witnessed his atrocities first hand, nor had she seen the destruction he had wrought, but even thinking about him made her guns yearn for his life. Still, it was clear her brother was too far in his own head. “Look,” she stood and walked towards him. “As far as what they’re all feeling, Batman abandoned Gotham. The Waynes retreated to hide, lie, and tend to their own interests, and in doing so let a city dependent on industry that they managed to fall to fear. The elite that they depend on keep making selfish decisions without regard for their welfare. The Joker is an icon of chaos, of anti-authoritarianism. Nobody knows what he stood for, but everything he did spat in the face of the status quo that is oppressing these people. And, right now, the public would sooner follow a new Joker’s promises than be stuck under the elite’s thumb.” “We weren’t looking after our own interests!” Jason scoffed. “If we lost the company, we wouldn’t be able to afford the gear we use to protect the city!” He leaned against the decrepit wall. “And Joker isn’t a hero. The old one or the fake. They can flock to him all they like, but he’s only going to destroy this city. Rule of law exists for a reason.” “Is that why a vigilante had to swoop in to save Gotham from the mob all those years ago, outside of the law?” Alice challenged him, despite knowing she would get nowhere. “Batman worked with the police as soon as they got on side!” Jason exclaimed. “Well the rule of law is hurting people, Jason,” Alice persisted. “And you all lurk in the shadows, protecting industrialists, stopping desperate robbers, and locking sick people away. You rule with fear, and people don’t like being scared.” “Gotham doesn’t know what it needs,” Jason shook his head, clearly not listening. Alice sighed. She had hoped she could still convince him to leave this godforsaken city with her, but now she knew that wouldn’t be the case. Sadly, she replied, “So what does it need?
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Dick barrelled across the Trigate Bridge, away from the Burnley island and into the hills of Bristol Township, flashing his badge to pass through the quickly erected police checkpoint. His silver Porsche couldn’t move fast enough as he raced along the inner waterfront, climbing Dozier Hill and approaching the front of the manor. And as he did, Dick saw more and more people in clown masks marching up the hill towards Wayne Manor. As he approached the outer gate, he found the mansion surrounded by rioters spewing hatred and fire. The gate had been knocked clean open, and while many had pushed in, a large proportion opted to stay out front, preferring to be seen and heard than to cause needless destruction. A minute before arrival, Dick’s phone blared. “Grayson!?” spat the voice of Harvey Bullock. “Where the hell are you!?” “Family emergency, Harvey!” Dick replied quickly, hanging up. Instantly, he pressed his communicator and got in contact with the family on the secure line. “Robin! Huntress! Regroup at the cave ASAP.” Dick cut the line and brought the car to a screeching halt. He leapt out and sprinted towards the mansion, and while he was recognised instantly by the mob, he didn’t care. A dozen clowns leapt on his sports car, rallying against its doors and windows, destroying it. A similar number ran towards the detective, but he was faster and more agile than any of them, especially when he was determined. Then, as Dick burst through the front doors and into the foyer, he found absolute chaos. The portraits were torn, busts smashed, the windows and glassware alike shattered across the floor. Piles of wooden doors, ripped canvases and torn curtains were strewn about the floor, set alight. Similar fires raged all about as far as Dick could see, with black smoke pouring through each doorway. The very air was red, polluted by the smoke and fire. The manor was like Dick had never seen it, a horror to behold. Two dozen men in clown masks and colourful face paint turned to face him. Some were still clutching placards, the most carried baseballs, tire irons and strips of metal. They all froze and then dispersed, allowing their leader to emerge from within their numbers. Joker. “Oh, look everyone!” The new Joker grinned and gestured towards Dick. In one hand he held a silver handgun, and in the other a jerry can of gasoline. “A cop!” At the impostor’s ushering, the clowns dived toward Dick. First came close and Dick threw his torso back, ducking under the swipe of his baseball bat by a large margin. He then pivoted round, moving up and striking out at the next two in a fluid motion. An elbow to one’s throat, the back of a fist to the next’s nose. He heard a crunch and a twang as a tire iron came crashing down against his back, and - winded - Dick held his breath, pushing through. He dived forward, bouncing off of the ground into a front handspring, bounding over another attacked and driving his elbow into their back as he brought his front half over, landing. Sure, he was a cop, but he was also a master gymnast. And when it was 1 v 20, you needed to move quickly. As two more rushed him, Dick employed some capoeira, taking a low stance and beating away a swing with a kick, diverting it to hit the clown’s friend and then switching balance to strike the clown in the side of the head with his other foot. Then, it was time for some Wushu, leaping up and striking the clown advancing from behind with a butterfly kick. A second’s breath later, Dick swept to the ground, plucking off of it the discarded baseball bat of a fallen clown. He gripped it tightly, pulled inwards and then flung his arm out, raking it across three more clowns. Another bat beat against his shoulder, so Dick moved his grip and drove the metal-plated knob at the base of the bat into the ribs of the cheeky assailant. But, in doing so, Dick left himself open. For as quick as he was, he was outnumbered and emotionally compromised. As the enemy behind him fell to the ground winded, four more clowns moved in. The first kicked him squarely in the gut. The next two grabbed him by the arms and pulled them back, attempting to restrain him. Dick tried to thrash, to overpower them, but the fourth swung back and struck him in the ribs with a swing. Dick’s body went limp, and he fell to the floor, only held up by the clowns taking him tightly by the arms. He had lost. Dick struggled and strained in agonising pain, forcing himself to look up at what was happening. Before him stood Joker, who had forced his followers aside to get a closer look at the cop. It also meant Dick got a much better look at the clown. He was younger than Dick initially thought. The real Joker was ageless, with twisted, wrinkled skin, jaundiced eyes, and a long-stretching career of carnage, but the vigour and energy of a man in his prime. This Joker on the other hand was clearly not much older than Dick, a man who looked - beneath the haphazardly dyed hair and messy chalked face - like a normal man. Like any man off of the street in a halloween costume. That was the true terror. The Joker’s identity had always been an enigma, but it never mattered who he was. He was just the Joker. But this Joker? It mattered who he was, because he was everyone and anyone. “I don’t get you, Dick Grayson,” the clown got up in Dick’s face, slapping his lips as he spoke. “Why do you do the things you do? It’s like… I’m missing one piece of the puzzle, the one piece that makes it all make sense.” Dick spat, his brow furrowed. “The real Joker wouldn’t waste time trying to make sense of anything.” Joker stood up from his squat and moved back. Dick tried to pull himself free but the clowns only tightened their grip. Their leader took a deep breath and then shrugged. “I suppose you’re right.” Rapidly, Joker turned and leveled his handgun, training it at the helpless detective. “Is this spontaneous enough for you?” Beat. “The GCPD has failed Gotham. You all truly don’t get it,” he shook his head. “The people finally rise up and refuse to be oppressed by the tyrannous elite, refuse to submit to the manufactured safety of the police and the Bats. And what do you do?” He took a step forward. “You double down. You come down on us like a ton of bricks, shove your boots back in our faces, and oppress us a bit harder for extra measure instead of actually listening. And then you wonder why we had to get violent!” “I’m listening now,” Dick replied. “No. No, you aren’t, Dick Grayson.” He took another step forward, his gun still raised. “You’re just biding your time so you can escape and go find the rest of your pig family before we do.” Dick spat. “Then kill me,” he said. “You brought that gun. Use it.” Joker broke out into a splutter, a hearty laugh to himself. “I’m not going to kill you!” he exclaimed. “I’m not letting you be a martyr. You need to live to tell the tale!” Dick said nothing. He looked past the villain, seeing the flames rapidly beginning to grow out of control, enveloping the space around them. “And you’re so perfect!” Joker clenched his off-hand into a fist. “Born in dire straits - to a Romani circus performer, no less - and adopted by the billionaire monarch of the city. A class traitor, a race traitor. Bourgeoisie, and now even a pig to boot. The perfect paragon of the true evils of Gotham all rolled into one: A privileged, wealthy American protecting the interests of other privileged, wealthy Americans. And now you’ll go down with the ship. People will see what happens to the wicked when they reap what they sew!” Dick listened to his words, and as he watched the flames grow into an inferno, it became clear what he meant by ‘going down with the ship’. This man was no Joker at all, not an agent of thoughtless chaos. He was a laser-guided agent of social change, an anarchist obsessed with the bigger picture. And now the Waynes were set to lose everything. “Harley’s already having your man Fox drain the Wayne bank accounts as we speak. Once she’s done, we’ll redistribute the wealth, and no-one in Gotham will go without again,” Joker grandstanded, the roaring of the flames having grown so loud that the clown had to shout to be heard. “You’ll be left with nothing. You can stop pretending to care about this city, and we can do some actual good for a change. Without your selfish motives.” In that moment, Dick had an epiphany. He knew exactly who the clown before him was because he had encountered him before, years ago. But it didn’t matter, because a second later, the gas oven in the kitchen two rooms away went up, engulfing half of the foyer in a fireball.
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After I - a deranged man with a criminal record for drug abuse - viciously assaulted my former mentor in a public place, I was sentenced to six months in Blackgate Penitentiary. Six months. Six months in a hole for losing my temper against a man who would exploit the vulnerable for a profit. I spent those six months minding my own business, trying to stay alive in a prison populated by literal supervillains and their minions. But that wasn’t the worst part, for as awful as it was, it was over in six months. When I was released, I was a changed man. Not because I was any different, but because, in my anger, I had seemingly confirmed every rumour passed around about me at school. I had proven them all right. I was a dirty criminal, not a scholar. After six months, I had my freedom, but my reputation was irreparably tarnished. No-one would hire me, despite my more than impressive qualifications. All my years of tireless study, all my research, my whole degree, it was worthless to them. The schooling that my mother’s blood money had afforded was for naught. She had truly died for nothing. That kind of thinking was what brought me to the Trigate Bridge. I’ll spare you more theatrics of my downward spiral, and the true depth of my self hatred. What matters is that I was there, ready to jump, with the traffic passing by giving not the slightest care. Nobody saw me until he did. A gentle flutter. I turned from looking at the river below to look behind me. There was Robin - one of them at least - in his red tunic, his green tights and his yellow cape, looking ridiculous as ever, if not especially so having long since outgrown the look. He gave me the usual spiel: That I had so much to live for, that there was a better way. Nothing original. But one way or another, he got me talking. That’s one thing I remember often: Getting me to talk to him was effortless for him. So I told him everything, like I’m telling you, probably skipping a lot of important details. I told him how Professor Young stole my work and gave it to the fat cat playboy Bruce Wayne to make a profit nationwide. He sympathised, but he said something that truly infuriated me. “Surely, helping the poor and the needy is a good thing, no matter his intentions?” Intentions are everything, I assured him. What’s the point in a prosperous world if nobody is good? I don’t know why I expected him to understand. Batman and his Robins *protected the city - sure - but they didn’t make it any less terrible. They kept the criminals in their homes, scared, but they didn’t make them any less awful. Just like how men like Bruce Wayne kept the poor safe, and arguably well fed, but they never gave them the means to rise up and compete with them. Not if that risked them being toppled.* Robin told me that everyone hides things, that we can’t always glean people’s exact intentions just on what we see. He said some people may seem awfully cruel, but are good on the inside. But, to that, I asked: What am I meant to think of someone other than what they choose to show me? I told him what I have always known to be true: Any small amount of real goodness out there is and always has been swiftly trampled on by everyone else. The universe isn’t fair and never will be. God, I got so enraptured in the debate, I almost forgot I was here to kill myself. And the truth is - and I haven’t admitted this to anyone before - he convinced me. He had me so riled up that I didn’t want to do the world the favor of ridding them of me. The world had to suffer my stern words much as the former Boy Wonder. That was the plan until I lost my footing. It’s embarrassing. You make a plan to kill yourself, you stand on the edge for a good 15 minutes, and as soon as you decide to live, the wind knocks you over the edge. Seemed awfully par for the course. So I fell. I plunged faster and faster towards the Gotham River, the shallow rocks welcoming me. For a moment, a wash of calm fell over me, until at the last minute I thought of everything I was yet to say. Every man and woman out there I had yet to give my piece to. At that moment, I had something to live for. Then I hit the water.
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When Dick came to, he found himself in the heart of a ferocious sea of flames. It was difficult to see through the smoke, and his every muscle still throbbed, but he had to keep moving. Lonnie Machin and his followers were gone, and now only the flames stood in his way. They had expected Dick to flee, to watch his adoptive father’s home come crumbling down from the outside and know the cost of his mistakes, but instead Dick delved deeper into the blaze, charging up the stairs, covering his sinuses with the inside of his jacket. He fell down the East Wing, sprinting towards the room Alfred had referred to, the one that was once Selina’s, and as he moved Dick noticed something even more alarming. Even as he outran the flames, plastic explosives were littered along the halls, on walls and support beams. They didn’t just want to burn the manor down, they wanted to demolish it. Dick pushed further, his head beginning to spin from smoke inhalation, and before long he reached the final door of the East Wing. He pushed it open and fell in, the air pressure rapidly equilibrating from behind him to the room before him. There sat Stephanie Brown, scared witless, close to Alfred Beagle, who nearly fired a shotgun slug in Dick’s chest from the sudden start. “We need to go!” Dick spluttered. His face was caked in soot and blood. Without thinking, Stephanie lunged forward and threw her arms around Dick, holding him tightly. Alfred moved through the doorway and saw the explosives lining the hall and the flames in the far distance growing closer and closer. “By God, there’ll be nothing left!” Dick grabbed Alfred by the arm as Steph moved away. “They’ve hit the manor at its key points. And no doubt the rioters are waiting outside. We need to bunker down.” “You don’t mean…?” Alfred looked to Steph, who was none the wiser. “It’s our only option,” Dick snatched a breath. Alfred furrowed his brow, raised his shotgun and took the lead. Together, Alfred, Dick and Steph weaved down the servants’ staircase, taking the back way back around to the front of the house. And while Alfred nearly fainted at the sight of the foyer in ruins, he couldn’t stop. They pushed into the lounge, which was - apart from the interior walls - mostly intact. Alfred moved over to the piano and laid his weapon across the top of the lid and held down as many keys as he could with his bony fingers. And though the piano made no sound - a piece of debris having taken it out of commission - the important mechanisms were still in place to prompt a section of the nearby bookshelves to recede and slide away, revealing the hidden staircase. Stephanie’s eyes went wide. Why hadn’t they gone to the panic room sooner? She had no idea what was in store for her. Behind her, Dick ushered Steph along, with little time to spare, the flames hot on his back, and - with Alfred still at the head - the three disappearing down the stone steps, down to the Batcave below, the bookcase door sliding shut behind them with a resounding click.
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Believe it or not, I survived my nosedive off Trigate Bridge, the universe once again playing fast and loose with my trajectory. I landed in the hospital a broken man. My time in prison had driven away basically everyone I knew, but I got two visitors while I was in my full body cast and eating lunch through a straw. The first was the wealthiest, gaudiest, most well-known playboy in the city. The late Bruce Wayne. He said a little birdie told him where Professor Young’s ideas were coming from. He said that Young was no longer attached to the Wayne Foundation and even offered me a spot on the team once I’d left the hospital. What a moment that was. I had a few moments to think everything was right in the world. I’d just come off years - maybe a lifetime of bad luck. So to think it was starting to turn around, that perhaps karma was real, and the universe wasn’t just another oppressor - well it was great. Naturally, it only lasted a day or so. My next guest, they said, was a psychologist. I figured she wanted to ask me important questions like ‘Why did you jump off that bridge?’. Imagine my surprise when Harley freaking Quinn visited me. Apparently she’d been watching me for a while at that point. That’s what she said anyway. I wasn’t in much of a position to force her out - and after she said she had information for me about my mom, I didn’t want to either. She knew about the faulty wiring, but she showed me documentation of a building inspection. It pointed out everything that was wrong with the apartment and what would happen if it wasn’t fixed. I didn’t understand it at first. It would’ve been peanuts to get it fixed, not to mention that that document didn’t show up during the investigation. Harley said the fire was planned and pulled out more documents. It was an insurance claim they filed after the fire, worth a hundred times what was paid out in the settlement. For a third time, I felt cheated. It was wrong. Worse than wrong it was repulsive, cruel, wicked, and unfair. Harley looked at me and said it was a sick joke.
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Stephanie Brown stood in the centre of the Batcave, dumbfounded. Everywhere she looked was a wonder, be it the array of Batmobiles, the towering penny, or the giant animatronic dinosaur. But no single sight rivalled the impact of the underlying truth. One - that Bruce Wayne was Batman, and her new adoptive family were his sidekicks, and - two - that she had been lied to. And though she was angry, and though she had only narrowly escaped certain death either by burning alive or by killer clown, as Steph put the pieces together, everything suddenly made a lot more sense. That was why the family had defended Bruce Wayne so ardently. That was why they lied about his death. That was why it was so important to them to hoard Wayne’s assets: Batmobiles weren’t cheap. And finally, the most important thing clicked into place. She wasn’t adopted for good PR, nor was that the reason Wayne had taken in Dick Grayson and Jason Todd all those years ago. Grayson and his family weren’t looking for good press, they were protecting orphans like themselves, and… God. Was she the new Robin!? “Our sincerest apologies, Miss Stephanie,” Alfred hung his head in shame. “We wanted to give you a home, not… this.” “So I’m not the new Robin!?” Steph exclaimed. “What?” Dick looked to Alfred incredulously. “No, I--. I’m retired from leaping off buildings. I promised to help you as Dick Grayson, not as Robin… or anyone else.” “So Bruce Wayne was Batman, and you’re Robin,” Steph relayed. “I used to be.” “Now you’re just a cop.” Dick took a deep breath. He was used to this. “Cops can do a lot of good.” “Cops are fighting a war on the streets,” Steph shook her head. “My streets. My dad died helping the cops. He needed more than ‘just a cop’.” “I know,” Dick replied. “But I can’t be that.” In the distance, the far off waterfall parted ways to open up the secret runway that trailed from the street to the cave. Along it raced a violet motorcycle that came to a prompt and screeching halt. Off of it dismounted the Huntress, in purple and black regalia. She turned to find the family, her face flush with worry having seen the manor up top, and then jumped again as she saw Steph. Stephanie scoffed. “So I guess Jason’s Robin then,” she threw her hands up. “You all must have thought I was a real idiot, didn’t you?” Alfred moved over to her after having discarded his torn and burnt tuxedo jacket and rolling up his ashen white sleeves. “Master Dick wanted to give you a safe home, Miss Stephanie. He didn’t want you wrapped up in this world.” “Well,” Stephanie turned to Dick. “Great job. There’s only rioting clowns burning down my bedroom!” Then, in came the Robin-Cycle. From it, Jason dismounted and tossed his helmet aside. His face was wrought with pain. But unlike Helena, he wasn’t worried. He was hurt. “Great, we’re all here,” Dick began, raising his voice. “Things… are terrible. But I have a plan.” Instantly, Jason cut him off. “I have my own plan.” With haste, Jason reached over his shoulder and removed his torn canary yellow cape from around his neck, throwing it to the ground. He moved towards the armour situated beyond the Batcomputer and began replacing his gear, worn out from an especially harsh night. “As far as Gotham cares, Batman abandoned them,” he began, echoing his recently-found sister’s words. He removed his red domino mask and placed it on a nearby table. “We ran away to look after ourselves and the company--” He unclipped his golden utility belt and hung it over a railing. “-- And the city that depended on us to keep them in check descended into chaos. There’s only one answer, and it’s obvious. It always has been.” Stephanie looked to Dick, confused. “What’s he talking about?” “The people of Gotham are a superstitious and cowardly lot. They’re dangerous because they’ve gotten too brave,” Jason resolved, looking to Dick with expectancy and finality. “And they need Batman to return.”
Joker Quotes About Pain & Love. 31. If you listen to me closely, you can hear me not caring. 32. Strong people don’t have the attitude they have standards. 33. If they come back to you don’t forget how they left. 34. Yes, I’m a nice person but if you cross the line too many times, shit happens. 35. If it’s real it will hurt like hell. Joker Quotes From Joker (2019) Movie / Arthur Fleck aka Joaquin Phoenix 1.) I used to think that my life was a tragedy, but now I realize, it’s a comedy. 2.) The worst part of having a mental illness is people expect you to behave as if you don’t. 3.) For my whole life, I didn’t know if I even really existed. But I do, and people are starting to notice. 4.) What do you get when you cross Joker Quotes that show you the ultimate reality of this cruel world. Read these best Joker Quotes with images and your will learn a lot of things in your life.. These all the Joker Quotes are included from the movie Joker, The Dark Knight, Batman.. The best thing about these quotes that these are all included with love, life, sad, pain, smile, happiness, attitude, friendship, and so on. Of course, if anyone else calls you beast, I’ll rip their lungs out.” – Joker. Joker quotes by Joaquin Phoenix. 90:) “You didn’t think I’d risk losing the battle for Gotham’s soul in a fistfight with you? No. You need an ace in the hole. Mine’s Harvey.” – Joker. 91:) “I have given a name to my pain, and it is Batman 100. “I used to think my life was a tragedy, but now I realize it’s a comedy.” – The Joker. Famous Joker quotes . 101. “Would ya like fries with that.” – The Joker. 102. “I have given a name to my pain, and it is Batman!” – The Joker. 103. “I’m different, f*ck your opinion.” – The Joker. 104. “Very neat! That ugly 14 Quotes By The Joker That Are Painfully True In Today's Cruel World Nishi Jain Updated: Feb 9, 2017, 11:45 IST If there is one film, where the villain is a greater enigma than the hero, it’s Joker Quotes About Pain - Hello friend It's meme time, In the article that you read this time with the title Joker Quotes About Pain, we have prepared this article well for you to read and take information in it. hopefully the post content Article attitude joker quotes about pain, - Hello friend It's meme time, In the article that you read this I hope You Liked Our all these heath ledger as joker quotes, joker quotes about love and all these dark knight the joker quotes with images.If You Liked than Comment Below With Your favourite Joker Short Quote.. Can Share Your Own Life Quotes, Attitude quotes And Any Type quotes in our Comment Box, I will definitely Add That Quotes In my Next Post. There's almost no one who is unaware of the most iconic super-villian, the Joker (Heath Ledger). Probably, everyone has watched his outstanding performances in Batman The Dark Night Arises, Suicide Squad and of-course the legendary one which released in 2019, Joker (played by Joaquin Phoenix). So, we decided why not give the character a tribute No, thank you.” – The Joker “See I’m a man of simple taste. I like things such as gunpowder…dynamite and…gasoline!” – The Joker “I have given a name to my pain, and it is Batman.” – The Joker, Joker quotes about pain “Don’t talk like one of them. You’re not! Even if you’d like to be.” – The Joker
PAIN MAKES ME RE-FOCUS - Most Powerful Joker Villain Quotes.
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