AKA the comic that would never be finished (until now). Commentary + process will be up on my Patreon ($1 tier), and I have a public Moment over on my twitter that collects every post I made about it. I’ll link them in a later reblog bc I think tumblr still unlists posts that have outside links in them.
you know what i don’t see enough of? circus kid dick grayson critiquing the joker because he’s a bad clown. not like, bad, and also a clown. but bad at being a clown. i want to see dick grayson taking the existence of this horrible clown very personally as a matter of professional pride. he has known clowns, and you, sir, are no clown. the joker is an insult to the legacy of emmett kelly and this shall not stand.
“Sir, you are no clown! Your slapstick is shoddy, your prat falls are practically nonexistent, and you have NO sense of comedic timing! Do you even have ANY idea what type of clown you’re trying to pull off? Are you a Straight Whiteface, or a Grotesque Whiteface? Because you have no commitment to character that I can see! You can’t just slap on some makeup and call yourself a clown. There’s a proud history to be upheld! I BET YOU NEVER EVEN GOT A DEGREE FROM CLOWN COLLEGE!!!”
*Joker and henchmen stare in shocked silence as Dick continues his rant*
#Joker changes his rivalry from Batman to Nightwing because he’s so offended
#Dick storms into Arkham and stomps down the halls to Joker’s cell
“AND ANOTHER THING!”
Highkey here for this.
Forever reblog. Classical clowning is one of the hardest performance arts there is and damn right the Joker can’t start appropriating it!!
Joker: *breathes*
Dick: *TRIGGERED*
Okay, but what would make this 10x funnier is if it’s Dick as himself that does it, not Robin. Dick Grayson, newly orphaned, ward of Bruce Wayne, missing home like he just lost a limb.
Dick’s been in Gotham long enough now to have heard about the various Rogues that terrorize the city, knows exactly who the Joker is. So he’s rightly terrified when Joker and his goons bust into the bank and take everyone hostage.
He’s tucked into Bruce’s side, trying to go unnoticed, watching everything, as the goons round everyone to one side of the bank, and then Joker opens his mouth, starts in with his latest schtick.
And Dick goes rigid. This…this guy is going around, claiming to be the “Clown Prince of Gotham ™ ” and that’s the best he can come up with?
His get-up is decent, but those are the only points he’s getting.
His timing? Terrible. He pauses too long between beats.
His jokes? Lackluster. They lack flare. Originality.
Where’s the showmanship? The Pizzazz!?
He’s bringing shame to the game!
And before he can help it, before he can register what a terrible idea it is, Dick blurts out, “Are you kidding me?”
Everything stops. He feels Bruce’s finger’s clamp down on his shoulder. A warning. Too late. Everyone, everyone, turns to look at this tiny kid who probably just signed his own death certificate.
Joker, torn between amusement at the kids audacity, and anger at being interrupted, lets out a surprised, “What?”
And Dick, deciding, at this point, he really has nothing left to lose, missing home, his parents, his friends, takes a breath, and let’s him have it.
He lists in alphabetical order it exactly where Joker’s act is wrong, why he’s a terrible clown, and maybe he should think of another career choice. ‘Cause buddy, I know clowns, and they’d weep if they could see what you’ve turned their craft into.
And Bruce, is silently laughing as he watches his new ward, this 9 year old kid, who’s 90lbs soaking wet, just RIP into one of Gotham’s most notorious Rouge’s. Trying to hide his pride, because really the Joker is a terrible clown, and his tiny, bouncy, bendy kid can say it so much better than the Bat ever could.
Dick’s tirade lasts long enough for the GCPD to show up and arrest everyone, no shots fired, or lives lost.
Whoops, my finger slipped…
Someone did art!! Look at our sassy circus baby. He’s only 9 and already done with the Joker’s shit. He is sad, and tired, and he’ll fight to defend the owner of PROPER CLOWNING
When Harley gets a rant years later from her eleven year old hostage she takes notes. The kid was in the circus after all, he knows his shit.
Proudest moment for Harley is when, after years of effort and getting out of the Jokers clutches, she finally gets the clown seal of approval from Dick.
…..she then proceeds to have it framed and go to the joker to tell him how she not him got the certificate of approval
