Honestly the idea of the Scarecrow having "groupies" makes a lot more sense to me than the Joker having a cult/gang/whatever Tynion calls it. It just feels like more people would gather around the concept of fear as a tool for climbing the social ladder than they would around the idea of social anarchy.

Killer Croc's story was the shortest. He threw a rock at Batman, but it missed.

Penguin's one-shot has still one of the most villainous things I've ever seen in a comic; that of Oswald freeing a woman from sex trafficking out of pity only to return her to it when she later angers him. That bothered me for days after I read the book.

Ivy: So in this point of my life, I said "screw clothes", and I've been rocking leaves ever since.

I would really like it if they did more with Poison Ivy as her own character. Her relationship with Harley Quinn is fun and all, but I have always found Ivy to be one of the more interesting Batman villains all on her own. Ivy has motivation that is actually cogent and kind-of justifiable, but she takes it to an extreme and has tunnel vision that keeps her from seeing different perspectives. That, to me, makes for a really compelling villain.

At first I found the Penguin's revenge on the cook funny. Dark, but funny. But when it turns out that he does stuff like that all the time it becomes disturbing. Then again I've always considered Penguin to be more of a mob boss than an Ahkham inmate.

I flipped a coin. Landed on heads. I sighed with relief, because that meant Holman's story ended well.; for me at least.

You know a horror anthology series hosted by Mark hamill's joker, could be a great show

A villains book with the villains actually act like villains and aren’t retool to be antihero… modern villains books, take note. The Penguin story was definitely the creepiest and as a sucker for Poison Ivy I did have a lot of fun with that one, overall this series has an interesting concept and I hope they bring it back and do more villains like Riddler, Mr. Freeze, and Mad Hatter.

The only hero that can match Batman's rogues gallery is Spider-Man.

Nice entry - some of the issues like the Joker's Wild has been done before. The Penguin story is creepy because it rings too true. We need a nice Lois Lane wedding issue to cleanse our palette.

This concept would make a good anthology TV series for HBO max. I would watch it.

Someday, I'd like them to make a Joker story called Jokers Wild, about the Joker taking over a TV station and teaching us all about how the entertainment media are the real monsters... but the twist is that everyone but the Joker looks bored. Hostages keep doing stuff before he tells them to do it. The producer guy is like "So we're not cutting away, right?" and the executive guy doesn't look up from his phone and says "Iunno... how's the ratings doing?" and the producer's like "We're up like half a point" and the executive just sighs and says "Might as well stay on it I guess." Commissioner Gorden tells Batman that "Joker's doing that THING again." and Batman just rubs the bridge of his nose and sighs... doesn't even bother to do the disappear thing and just drives off to deal with it...

No Mad Hatter or Riddler? Mad Hatter would’ve been perfect for this miniseries.

I like the idea of Scarecrow gaining disciples. Riddler: How about him going on a Zodiac style murder spree. Might be better from Gordon's pov. Deathstroke: A contract he chose not to complete. Ivy: Have her take on Swamp Thing in the Green. Mad Hatter: Maybe he and Riddler have a mild bidding rivalry for Lewis Carrol's artifacts.

“Madness, as you know, is like gravity. All it takes is a little push!” - The Joker, The Dark Knight (2008) 🃏

So- if we now have Punchline, is there a chance that Lindsey could become a follower of Scarecrow? Not only that, I'd love to see someone do a series about groupies/disciples of Batman's major villians- having them team up to take over Gotham. Considering the size of the Bat Family now, there should be someone for everyone- Red Hood gets Catwoman's disciple, Nightwing gets Lady Bane, Tim Drake gets The Riddler's follower- it could become something.

The stories of Poison Ivy and Two-Face were my favourites.

It's somewhat surprising there was no Joker's Asylum: Harley Quinn issue. Not only is printing Harley comics tantamount to printing money, but I'd imagine a Harley story told from "Mr. J's" point of view would interest readers.

A lot of this seems to be standard stuff that’s been done before, but I gotta say, unique presentation. The two basic themes seem to be the villains selfishness in going to extremes just to prove a point. The other is that we, the readers are responsible for them coming back time and time again. Batman defeats them, but never truly vanquishes them. The same debates are re-sparked, but never concluded. The books sell, Comics industry isn’t free, so lather, rinse, repeat. Much like any medium. We’ve seen this before, in comics such as the Secret Origins special, episodes of Gotham, even Batman: the Annimated series. All Gotham’s villains put Batman on trial, blaiming him for their various criminal situations. His Defense Lawyer (played by Actress Stephanie Zimbalist, daughter of Ephram Zimbalist Jr., the voice of Alfred for many years) pointed out that these criminals would be doing what they do in some capacity even if Batman never existed. That they see themselves as tragic maligned figures, giving themselves license to take no responsibility, among other things. And that’s how we want them. And every so often we get a commentary on audience desires. Still not a bad ride, though. Would like to see what became of the Scarecrows “student “.

I've read the Ivy, Harley and Penguin one before. These are actually solid stories. The Penguin one always felt like an extension of Bird of a Feather to me just taken into a darker direction. In the Ivy story I actually liked how far they pushed it at the end with her dismembereing the guy. I actually like that approach more than the explicit stuff. And seeing those panels actually makes me realize how Guillem March seems to have gotten worse as an artist. The linework is just so much more appealing here than in his more recent stuff where it looks pretty lazy. And the Harley story is just her going full Jon Wick on valentines day, showcasing her skewed sense of priorities super well. I hope you'll also gonna look at the other half of this series. And as far as media commentary goes, I think Joker Time is more entertaining because of how stupid it is (basicly, a delirius Joker ends up on Jerry Springer).

Now I wanna hear you cover Vol 2. Killer Croc and Mad Hatter's stories are the best ones!

Mad hatter has always been my favourite batman villain and in my opinion at his best when they balance his naïve innocence with his creepy brand of terror. Secret six - six degrees of devastation is a perfect example of this.

Now I wish there was a choose your own adventure book of Two-Face, but you always have to flip a coin to see which path to take.

That Penguin story is dark, complex, and sadistic. A true villain. It’s very well done.

My personal favourites from this series are probably the penguin and killer croc

Two things regarding Batman´s villains: 1. They´re TOO many as they are as to create new ones all of the time. There are some of the well known ones that are barely used not to mention old/forgotten ones. So, go through them first and then start creating more. 2. I´m a fan of the Penguin and I don´t like when he´s sometimes shown to have been in Arkham. As he´s not crazy. The same way Black Mask or Bane belong to Black Gate.

If Joker throwing a party you know it’s going to be wild and crazy. XD.

When, oh, *when* will we get that deep dive into the grand characters of Maxie Zeus, King Tut and The Weeper? When, I say? *WHEN?*

Joker to Penguin: At least I don't have to pay for it.

Harley being promoted from Jokers girlfriend to protagonist got Poison Ivy demoted to Harleys girlfriend. That’s some good irony.

Oh the Joker is like the Crypt Keeper... or something... glad it wasn't too scary.

I remember years ago there was a joker comic from his perspective. Some new doctor at Arkham decided to make joker a vegetable by forcing him to watch tv day in and day out. Joker ended up escaping and ended up on a Jerry Springer parody show. It was also supposed to be another “tv is bad for you thing”.

12:59 just to throw a real world fact into our geek out, one major difference between 2F & his mentor is *how* they were disfigured & the effects of it's aftermath. The mentor was burned w fire, which means a very long & dicey recovery followed by extremely visible scars. Dent was burned with acid though, which means despite the time that's passed some of that acid *is still in his face*. He's very likely in chronic pain from both the the scarring twisting his face and that acid eating away slowly for years. No wonder he got a lifetime pass to the loony locomotive

If the Joker farts, does it smell funny?

great vid, I agree Bats has the best rogues. I always loved the ones who had sad backstories as they elicit sympathy and not just revulsion. the best do both

I loved the framing device of Two-Face, Too and the coin flip ending.

Now..., you would think that all of the TV stations in Gotham City would have Bat Signals that way that the Joker hijacks TV broadcasts almost every other week! 📺📡🦇😂🤣

Holman's wife: "If I'm about to die, I'd rather you unhesitatingly shoot Batman to ensure I live than try to find a way to save both hostages."

J.T. Krul. Haven't heard that name in years, for good reason. The Penguin story sounds genuinely interesting, and the Scarecrow and Two-Face ones sound worth a try. Good recap!

Werent there more of these? i think they came out in two batches of four a year or so apart. I'm sure I remember a Riddler and a Harley Quinn one from the second batch. The former was presented as a big puzzle which i couldnt work out so it didnt quite click for me. But the latter has the best Joker narration on the first and last pages. It's really well presented. Of the first batch I think Two Face was my fave. I remember it the best because that fourth wall breaking on the last page really stuck and was scary. And I love Andy Clarke's art it's great. The Penguin one comes back to me. I don't remember the Ivy and the scarecrow ones. I do like the art that you show of the latter. It is very effective. I really did like this format all in all. I would love to see more of them. Quite surprised to find how long ago it came out. With the joker one: I was watching the Denmark Finland football match the other week when certain things happened. And I couldn't look away. Not being ghoulish. But because I had to know that he was okay. Would I keep watching something in the joker style just for similar reasons? I can but wonder. And indeed not, you have to wave! I'm always primed to wave back so doing it differently always catches me out.

Do you breathe? When do you breathe? Prove that you breathe.

I remember picking up the individual issues for Penguin Scarecrow and two-face during one of my first visits to a comic book shop.

WIth that first tv story I can't even roll my eyes at how on the nose it is bc this is basically what happened on tiktok with that guy who killed a man to become famous.

3:13 I mean she's trying to keep the house from burning down.

6:30 If there's one thing this story tells us it's "Don't piss off The Penguin."

That Penguin episode looks sooooo good though. I could pick that up and just lose myself in the page composition. Imma have to dig up more of Jason Pearson's work...

I want to see a comic where Batman’s villains all end their lives as rehabilitated, happy functioning members of society and use their skills to help Gotham.

The series is basically Joker gossiping with us.

Sasha, have you ever read Batman & Poison Ivy: Cast Shadows by Ann Nocenti? Probably my favorite Ivy story stories outside of the work Greg Rucka did with the character during No Man's Land.

I like the way your analysis is focused on story, character and art, which I myself, have not seen a lot of in discussions about comics

RIP Kentaro Mira. I love the placement of the Berserk book in her back ground.

This series convinced me that Penguin is Batman's real scariest villain. Everyone else has their own little idiosyncrasies and gimmicks, and they stick to them well. Even the Joker, for all his horrible deeds, is just out for a good laugh, and to a degree you're laughing along with him. But Penguin? If you cross him, he will destroy you completely in the most personal, painful way imaginable. Just because he can.

I never got the point that the audience is the "real sickos" when Joker is the one *doing it*

I read these a few years ago. I think there's a second volume. That Penguin story makes me want to take a shower 😱

You had me at "gone WILD"

The penguin story actually scared me

I won't pretend I've read a ton of Scarecrow stories, but man, God of Fear is a masterpiece.

damn, I think that scarecrow story is a call out to the nightmare on elm st. franchise. especially after hearing the main characters name.

I… I was not ready for that Penguin story. Personally I prefer him more as a gentleman villain and not…. That.

That's the scariest I've ever seen the penguin

Jonathan Crane is still allowed to work as a therapist? How!?

I agree that Harley and Ivy's relationship can be detrimental if used wrong but I love that this somewhat random relationship works on so many different ways, I saw one comic where they were both more in their "successful women" nerd gear rather than villaness costumes and I realized that oh yeah, they were both professional brainy women

My curse is that I really, really need to love the art in a comic or I have a tough time with it. I've read all of these but the only one that I held onto was the Mad Hatter issue because I loved the art as well as the story. I really wish the Two-Face story had a different artist, as I think David Hine is a great writer (ever read Bulletproof Coffin? Great stuff.)

I believe that the Supergirl style top has allowed super character-voicing powers. TwoFace finally gets that crackly throat voice.

I would like to see more recent Bat-Foes covered. Professor Pyg, Cluemaster, Egghead, Shame...wait the last two are Batman 66 characters. Humm...Mr. Freeze, Baby Doll, Humpty Dumpty...

A Mad Hatter story with a tie-in with the Penguin human trafficking would be interesting. The Hatter was involved in that for a while, Idk if he still is (with his "Alices").

I love your voice for Joker, Sasha. It is perfect for the psychopathic Clown Prince of Crime.

Honestly I liked this series, I kinda wish it progresses with other members of the rogue gallery... Mr. Freeze, Harley, Professor Pyg, Man-bat, etc it's just very fascinating

This one-shot really showed the Penguin at his best; under the radar (the police KNOW he's dirty, but he's acting "clean") and petty as hell. Not straight up killing someone, but a slow avalanche of petty acts designed to destroy someone completely. He looks civil, can act civil, but evil inside.

I am admittedly part of the Joker problem as well. Love your channel!

AWESOME analysis Sasha, you are in impeccable form!!!! Thank you for sharing, and your tireless efforts. PEACE, God bless, and you better wave for the close.

Thanks for the analysis, Sasha! Fortunately, this series (and the Supergirl one you reviewed a week or so ago) are on DC Infinite and with the reading I'm doing from the subjects of your vids, it's paid for it's subscription for the year already. I look forward to your vids all the time. Especially when it's time for my chemo.

I like the series for few reasons. I love the different ways they are drawn giving you a gallery of different styles to look at. Also I love the one shots as a breather before another big arc. I would say I didn't like the joker one but I'm also jokered out.

I love Two Face and Poison Ivy so I will check this out as they're both three dimensional characters when written well. It's a shame that there wasn't a Riddler issue as I would love to see the Joker's perception of Riddler. Congratulations on getting 95k subscribers.

You always look amazing! Yes, I think they use the Joker too much. They should use some under rated villains like Manbat. And I dont even consider him a villain. I just think he is a much better character.

That Scarecrow comic looks like Erin Esurance has broken bad.

I’ve only seen Ivy in the animated series and in classic stories. It’s weird seeing her killing someone with an axe.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on Harley’s issue of the joker’s asylum series.

I like the flip a coin aspect in that last one. Reminds me of that one batman black and white comic; the riddle which I won’t spoil but it’s also very tied to the themes of the respective villain in a similar way. Also ya it’s nice to see poison Ivy as poison Ivy and not just more solidifying an already canon ship. Saw the trailer for a book on the official dc channel a little while back and it frankly made the book look it probably sucked.

It looks like Joker's Wild stole the visual style of the Joker that was done in the Batman movie released only a few months earlier that year.

Okay but where’s the Kite Man edgy dark Joker-narrated issue?

We are definitely the true monsters! Joker only does what he does because we keep consuming his sick plots. We must fight our natural urges to buy everything joker and let him finally die.

I think this would have been better if it had been with Harley Quinn instead of the Joker. The idea that she may have at one point dealt with all these rogues as their psychologist (psychiatrist?) and has a profile of each of them and a neat story that helps that profile come across.

14:45 yay I flipped heads lol

ALWAYS LOVE UR DC STORIES...THANKS. 😍👍

15:57 At this point I wouldn't be that bothered if DC got rid of Harley because her being turned into a hero or anti hero starting in the New 52 destroyed her. She should have either reformed and lived a normal life or stayed a villain but without Joker.

You should make a video on Arkham Asylum: a serious house on a serious earth.

Hey can you do the Golden Age Seven Soldiers of Victory and their legacies? And there re-return in the Stargirl Spring Break Special.

Poison Ivy was better showed on the Harley Quinn TV show 📺

This outfit gives me elexrta vibe

Thanks Sasha, I’ve read Ivy’s story here a bunch cuz I love the character, and the artist loves Catwoman and the GC sirens more generally. Such great art work he does, countless great works from him Also Jesus H Christ penguin

Hey Sasha, just discovered your channel and I'm addicted already Could you talk about Face The Face sometime? One of my favorite Batman stories ever and it's set right after 52

To rant on Poison Ivy for a bit, in the beginning Harley was the sidekick and she was either partnered with Joker or Poison Ivy. I hate, HATE, this alpha persona they are forcing onto Harley because it weakens Ivy and even Joker. Harley was not a leader, and that’s okay, but now it seems writers are just obsessed with making Ivy Harley’s girlfriend, weakening Ivy’s dangerousness. Rant over, great video.

usually i skip over the adverts for merch barked by youtubers, but you are so entertaining and interesting and lovely that i sit enchanted by your sales pitch... me thinks you are the model for Marvel's Amora....

You can't hear or see it but I am clapping like a seal at Sea World. 👏👏 First, Sasha's outfit is fantastic! I feel it could be a prototype for a Spider-Woman outfit. It is just missing the interconnecting webs. Love it. 🕷 Second, always love Batman's rogues gallery. I have never read this comic but from the description my favorite is Penguin's story. Sasha describes it well, especially the way the Penguin goes after that chef. Great video Sasha. Got really good energy from you. Favorite Sasha quotes: "Then he has" times x5, "The story has a lot of cake. This story claps. Its thick with two "C"s. So thick that the first "C" is leaning in on the second "C"."

That top is awesome!

Your shirt is super cool in this ep

I loved the art style of the scarecrow comic. I liked it way, way more than the joker one 👀

I honestly wonder why Batman doesn't just kill his villains two-face and joker and penguin are to dangerous to be kept alive!