The original comics manifestation of The Joker’s God Emperor form was never truly terrifying. However, one cosplayer found a way to make it hideous.
When dccomics presented to the world a pious variant of batman fiercest enemy, Emperor jester it never struck as much fear into the hearts of readers as DC intended. DC Comics first introduced this version of the Clown Prince of Crime during the time of Jeph Loeb, Joe Kelly, JM DeMatteis, and Mark Schulz. joker emperor story In it, the magical and whimsical Mister Mxyzptlk thought it would be fun to give a fraction of his powers to a random member of the DC Universe.
That fraction accidentally ended up being 99.9% when The Joker discovered Mxyzptlk’s real name, in perhaps the biggest trick the Joker has ever pulled. Joker instantly used that power to reshape the universe in his image, literally and figuratively. The way this godlike version of The Joker is depicted throughout history, it seems like DC intended it to be deceptively scary. After all, the idea of Batman’s most dangerous foe having an unlimited source of reality-changing power should be, in theory at least, terrifying.
However, the execution fails where the cartoony (albeit stylish) art style doesn’t work when juxtaposed against what is supposed to be Joker’s perceived reign of terror. He just comes across as a goofy prankster in a goofy costume who does goofy things without proper balance alongside actual terror. Surprisingly though, it took a live-action cosplay outfit of James Deeley from All or Nothing Cosplay to finally strike that balance.
That balance between fear and fun has always been a difficult balance to strike in any interpretation of The Joker, be it animated, live-action, or in the comics. He’s a clown, so he should be funny on some level with over-the-top goofiness, but he’s also a psychopathic criminal with a thirst for violence. Very few performances have struck that balance in stride and when it fails, losing just one of those qualities loses what makes The Joker such a compelling character.
Quite refreshingly, James Deeley is able to strike that balance without the need for a million dollar Hollywood budget. Deeley nails the fun-seeming aesthetic that was always captured in the original comic story, while also achieving an underscored menace that might be hard to illustrate on the page, but translates beautifully in person. If this was the Emperor’s version jester that he dccomics The universe had to deal bat Man and the rest of the heroes would certainly have had their hands full.
Source: James Deley
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