In the previous issue, we were introduced to the maniacal characters that made up Joker’s very own “Joker Incorporated” which he made either out of jealousy, boredom, opportunity, or all three. And whenever the Joker is involved, it’s a guarantee that hell will be unleashed, and that’s precisely what happens with this issue. Joker has found like-minded criminals to join his international group of Batman equivalents and uses them as pawns to try to get Ghost-Maker to break his “no-kill” promise to Batman.

Writing

Brisson does a beautiful job of taking the story to another level that leaves the reader on a nail-biter. Joker creates a scenario where the members of the international gang, unbeknownst to them, are set up with a killing gas agent that is rigged to go off if Batman Incorporated tries to do anything but kill them. In a scenario that wouldn’t work with Batman because of his “no-kill” rule, this plot works well with Ghost-Maker, who has been known for taking justice into his own hands and killing those who are murderers themselves. In a classic scenario that sets up each subteam to meet up with a local “Joker” to try and stop them from killing the hostages, this sets the stage for issue 10, leaving us wondering if Ghost-Maker will break his promise to Batman and allow the Joker to win the “moral war,” or if the other members of Batman Incorporated will figure out a way to save the hostages and not kill the Jokers in the process. It’s a brilliant way to create suspense in a Batman story that wouldn’t work with Bruce Wayne but could work with the current leader of the international superhero team.

Artwork

The art by Timms, Lokus, and Cowles continues to bring the best art for the story. The art excitingly showcases the narrative, and the composition of the panels drives in the suspense and chaos that the Joker unleashes in this story. The layouts are positioned in such a way that the reader can enjoy it in print as well as vertical scrolling, and the color work, especially in the backgrounds and environments, is stunning. The lettering does a phenomenal job as always, especially with the final speech bubble to emphasize the impact of that moment in the issue.

Variant Cover Highlight

Issue #9 offers three variant covers in addition to the main cover. One of the variants for this issue is the Cover C DC Pride Card Stock Variant by Rosi Kämpe. The cover features a unique look of the main character, Ghost-Maker, wearing a half-face mask and an outfit that resembles Saturday Night Fever walking across an LGBTQIA+-themed carpet at what appears to be a high-end party. This is a fun side of the leader that readers don’t get to see in the story that brings a lot of great energy that matches Pride Month, and Kämpe simply nails it.