The Tribute To The Killing Joke
Alan Moore and Brian Bolland’s The Killing Joke is etched in time as the quintessential Joker story, and paints the Clown Prince of Crime as the real nasty piece of work that he is. In that tale, he does everything he possibly can to break down Jim Gordon’s psyche and drive him to madness.
King and JanÃn pay homage to this in Batman #28. The issue kicks off with Gordon securing a meeting with the Joker under the condition that he comes wearing only his underwear. Complying, he walks through the streets of Gotham in his tighty whities all the way to the amusement park for his little powwow with the psychotic clown and his merry band of goons.
The Joker’s choice of attire for Gordon is picked for the sole purpose of humiliating him, and echoes memories of his actions in The Killing Joke. In Moore’s classic, Gordon was naked, chained, and looked like a gimp at the best of times, but the Ace of Knaves’ degradation of the police commissioner is equally as nefarious here as well.
