Punchline: The Trial of Alexis Kaye

The Joker (2021)

by James Tynion IV, Sam Johns (Illustrator), Mirka Andolfo (Illustrator)

The Joker War’s breakout star takes center stage, get ready to meet Punchline!

Spinning out of the pages of “The Joker War” comes the first solo book starring the blockbuster new character Punchline. As she faces the consequences for her role in “The Joker War,” the story of how Alexis Kaye became Punchline will take Leslie Thompkins, Harper Row, and Cullen Row on a harrowing journey that reveals a fringe teenager’s radicalization to the ideology of a madman.

This incredible hardcover collects Punchline #1 and stories from The Joker #1-15 and The Joker 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular #1!

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Dc Comics, Batman, Fiction, Superheroes, Graphic Novels Comics

200 pages, Hardcover

First published September 6, 2022

About the author

Prior to his first professional work, Tynion was a student of Scott Snyder's at Sarah Lawrence College. A few years later, he worked as for Vertigo as Fables editor Shelly Bond's intern. In late 2011, with DC deciding to give Batman (written by Snyder) a back up feature, Tynion was brought in by request of Snyder to script the back ups he had plotted. Tynion would later do the same with the Batman Annual #1, which was also co-plotted by Snyder. Beginning in September 2012, with DC's 0 issue month for the New 52, Tynion will be writing Talon, with art by Guillem March. In early 2013 it was announced that he'd take over writing duties for Red Hood and the Outlaws in April.

Tynion is also currently one of the writers in a rotating team in the weekly Batman Eternal series.

Reviews

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just like The Joker series is really about Commissioner Gordon, these backup stories from The Joker are really about Harper Row (Bluebird) trying to find evidence to make sure Punchline is convicted. You do find plenty about Punchline's origins. What I didn't like about this story is how dumb Harper is. She consistently plays right into Punchline's plans (and this story makes her seem smarter than any of Batman's villains.) I do like that Punchline sees through Bluebird's secret identity in a heartbeat. This is something I've said since the character's creation. She's got the same blue/pink hair and piercings as her alter ego. Anyone that has seen both of them should be able out they are one and the same.

Punchline too easily manipulates the public through social media into believing she's a victim of the Joker. It was also a bit ridiculous as to the level she was able to take over the entire prison. She's lounging around like the warden and guards all work for her while everyone on the outside still thinks she's the victim. The story ends midstream which is frustrating. She's getting her own miniseries this fall.

[Khurram · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book much more than I thought I would. I thought Punchline was just a replacement Harley, but I think she is every bit bad as her mentor, the Joker.

I hate stories that try to build sympathy for the villains. The Joker and Punchline are just evil. The book shows how dangerous, manipulative, and (in an evil way) how brilliant Punchline/Alexis is. The book covers her origin and obsession that made her Punchline, but she was always bad. It also highlights the danger of social media and misinformation.

A good story and artwork and a preview of the coming games. The book finishes with a varient cover gallery.

[Diz · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's interesting how Punchline uses social media to garner favor with the public. It is a relevant idea for these times. However, reading social media doesn't make for exciting comics. For example, there is a section of the story where someone is listening to Punchline's podcast. It is made up of long text boxes with images of the character listening to the podcast. It's as boring as it sounds. Thankfully, that is just a few pages of this volume.

[Haley · Rating 5 out of 5]

*sigh* I do love unhinged women

[Shaun Stanley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Punchline: The Trial of Alexis Kaye collects Punchline 1 and the back-up stories from Joker 1-15 written by James Tynion IV and Sam Johns with art by Mirka Andolfo, Sweeney Boo, Rosi Kämpe, and Belén Ortega.

Alexis Kaye, aka Punchline, is attempting to convince the public if her innocence in a hope to sway the jury into a not guilty verdict. But first she will have to deal to with Harper Row, aka Bluebird, and Dr. Leslie Tompkins.

I thought this book would focus more on the trial but instead mainly takes place in Black Gate Penitentiary when Harper Row (Bluebird) breaks in to try to get dirt on Punchline. It felt really out of character for Bluebird (Who I usually really enjoy) who is more of a tech expert than a sleuth. It would have made more sense to add in Batgirl/Orphan’s Cassandra Cain or Spoiler’s Stephanie Brown and made it a team up. I also really liked Punchline from the Joker War crossover but she felt more one dimensional here as they made her a jail kingpin. It just felt like a lot of weird character decisions. The ending also felt really rushed after the middle arc dragged on forever. Overall it was series that had potential to buildup a new Batvillain but fell flat.

[Mols · Rating 3 out of 5]

i could fix her

[Judah Radd · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a pretty sweet follow up to the Joker War, and it’s a pretty cool collection overall.

This compiles the B stories contained within the ongoing Joker series, and it’s pretty much the first time we actually are able to learn anything about Punchline.

Definitely a fun, sociopathic character. She’s way more Jokerishly evil than Harley Quinn (not not a lot less likeable.) I’m excited to see where she goes from here as a villain.

[Rod Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

Punchline was almost interesting for a few dozen pages at the start of the book where she was portrayed as an acolyte of Joker who was trying to tease out the philosophy and hidden meanings behind Joker's jokes and crimes -- as opposed to just being a groupie looking for love -- but the plotting becomes all half-assed and comic book-y as it devolves into a courtroom drama with ludicrous legal moves and over-the-top witness tampering as well as a prison drama with even more ludicrous manipulations and fight scenes.

It doesn't help that Punchline gets pushed to the side so the book can become a vehicle for Bat-family C-lister Harper Row to run around being highly ineffectual in her Bluebird identity. She's a total snooze as a hero and takes Punchline down into the meh with her.

Contents:

• What Comes at the End of a Joke (from The Joker 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular #1) / James Tynion IV, writer; Mikel Janin, artist
• Center Stage (from Punchline #1) / James Tynion IV and Sam Johns, writers; Mirka Andolfo, artist
• Punchline: The Trial of Alexis Kaye, Chapters 1-13 and Finale (from The Joker (2021-) #1-13 and 15) / James Tynion IV and Sam Johns, writers; Mirka Andolfo, Sweeney Boo, Rosi Kämpe, and Belén Ortega, artists
• Knock Knock (from The Joker #14) / Alex Paknadel, writer; Vasco Georgiev, artist
• Cover Gallery / Yasmine Putri, Jorge Jimenez, Ejikure, Frank Cho, Warren Louw, Shannon Maer, InHyuk Lee, Creees Lee, Ari Lee, Brian Bolland, Greg Horn, Dawn McTeigue, Guillem March, Justine Frany, Alan Quah, Kael Ngu, Sam Kieth, Nathan Szerdy, and Natali Sanders, artists

[b · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m a sucker for Tynion’s lead, whether it’s his original work or managing a property like the Batsssss.

There’s something “timely” (decide for yourself if that’s an insult) in a dead-eyed psychopath woman who’s hot and is clearly way too online, because people love this shit.

But it’s still a little hackneyed, all and all. A touch not-online-enough to get into the nitty gritty of the social media and the counterculture’s dissent; that’d be okay if we weren’t so inundated with “radicalized, but wait what if Joker / Riddler / whoever was right” motifs in like, every fucking superhero story these days.

I came to this with no Joker War context but it still somehow worked.

Nice to see the good guys “lose,” too.

[Robert · Rating 1 out of 5]

The most recent in a long string of unlikeable leads no audience asked for.

[Rae likes books · Rating 3 out of 5]

Punchline has such a nice design and I think the idea/concept of her character is really cool.

This volume was interesting but kind of felt a little all over the place, issue to issue. I think the first issue with the podcast as a narrative was soooooo good and was a really good introduction into Punchline's mind/idealogy. I wish we kept that throughout because the whole trial and investigation was pretty weak but could have been sooooo cool. It also doesn't help that I didn't read Joker War so I don't even know what crimes she was being charged with.

But i love the whole influencer/streamer concept of Punchline and hope that it's more utilized in the future.

[Kirolos Elkes Bishoy · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first few pages were promising but then the lengthy podcast pages started and my boredom began to set. With 200 pages of buildup, you expect that would matter on the outcome of the verdict, but it doesn't. And the actual trial is like, what, 10 pages long! All those lengthy text boxes; I read those, and I would have read a solid trial lengthy text boxes too... If you're gonna make me read lengthy text then why not make it into something interesting? Like the actual trial.

[Bon · Rating 5 out of 5]

ily hotclown

[Chris Richards · Rating 2 out of 5]

Allegedly written by James Tynion IV and Sam Johns, I suspect Tynion’s name was simply slapped on this without really having contributed much at all.

Punchline’s thoroughly underwhelming origin is covered in about 4 pages at the start where she kills her college dean.

Most of the book though is about the build up to her trial post-Joker War while she wins over the public via Social Media. Topical? Absolutely. Believable? No, not really.

The protagonists of the arc are the least charismatic characters available to the Batman mythos: Leslie Thompkins and Harper Row.

Orca also shows up just to really rub it in my face how the worst characters available are being used here. Surprised Joker’s Daughter didn’t make an appearance.

I actually like Punchline. I think she’s a cool new character with a lot of potential. I also think this story starts with potential. Punchline convincing people she’s an innocent victim over social media, her podcast on the Joker that led her into his madness that she’s now getting others like Cullen addicted to? A great start.

Harper Row going undercover in prison for an extended period? Punchline being openly evil to a comically ridiculous extent but still being found not guilty and having large swathes of support? A convoluted subplot with the Royal Flush Gang? What a load of crap.

I’ve been loving Tynion’s Joker series and I’d heard these Punchline back ups were even better. I heard wrong. It’s atrocious.

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dive into the secret origin of Alexis Kaye, as she languishes behind bars in Blackgate. But Punchline won't stay down for long - unless Bluebird and Leslie Thompkins can unravel her plot and keep her where she belongs.

We start strong with the Punchline one-shot and her stories from Urban Legends and the Joker Anniversary Special, which gives us more backstory than we've got for her up until now, but then things go south once we hit the Joker back-ups.

Punchline's first solo story is more about Harper Row than Alexis Kaye herself, which is a bit of a misstep I think, and I say that as a big Harper fan. I wonder if it's an attempt to ape what the Joker storyline does, in that it's a story about the Joker told via Jim Gordon. The issue is that we don't know enough about Punchline to have her story told from outside just yet.

The prison storyline makes Punchline out to be a bogeyman character rather than giving any focus on her specifically, and it throws in characters like the Royal Flush Gang and Orca without really knowing what to do with them. There's also a subplot about Harper's brother Cullen and his new (evil) boyfriend, for what that's worth.

Then everything rushes to a 'conclusion', which isn't even really a conclusion but a prelude for the upcoming Punchline: The Gotham Game mini-series instead. It almost feels like DC were going to wrap Punchline's story here but then decided to do an additional mini-series, so everything swerves at the last minute to tie up loose ends and set-up that instead. It's all very strange.

The artwork is also a strange bag. There are contributions from Sweeney Boo and Mirka Andolfo, neither of which really suit what's going on. Andolfo's art style doesn't lend itself to constant prison settings, while Boo's is a little too cutesy for what's actually serious subject matter at times.

Punchline's first foray into headlining a title doesn't work as well as it should. Some narrative missteps and ill-suited art make it a slog to read at times, but the surrounding material props it up from being a total miss.

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just in case you were actually interested in the bland Harley Quinn replacement from Joker War, here comes a decompressed mini-series about that character's criminal trial. Actually, the mini-series is about Bluebird's attempts to infiltrate the prison where Punchline is being kept to extract a person who knows Punchline's true history. But Punchline, surprisingly, is always one step ahead! The perfect villain.

This book could have been interesting if it were about 100 pages shorter. Bluebird's brother stars in a dull subplot in which he's almost convinced to join the legions of Punchline supporters. The book primarily attempts to make it seem like hordes of screaming teens who love serial killer podcasts would immediately support an actual serial killer on trial. Unlikely.

Oh, and the art is very hit or miss.

[Cody · Rating 4 out of 5]

To give this book a 4 is being a little generous. It's somewhere between a 3.5 and a 4, so we'll round up.

I enjoyed this book. Truth be told, the reason I picked up, Their Dark Designs, was because it was the debut of Punchline. I've only recently comeback to comics after a long hiatus, but I've been aware of the character and somewhat fascinated with her. I've been tying to find out of she lives up to the hype or not. The answer so far is, kind of. I don't think she has been living up to her potential in what I've read of her so far, I dig the character design and concept, I'm just not convinced it's being used properly. I've not started reading Gotham Game, but I've been picking them up, we'll see what it does when I get to it soon.

But as far as this book, I like it. It's super heavy on narration, both directly and offered as "posts" from the internet. And this book has a definite political message and slant, but they are kind of presented in the old school way. It's there, but it's not exactly in your face about it (though I'm sure some would disagree and think it's very on the nose). It doesn't exactly tell you how to feel or what to think, but it for sure leans a certain way, the writer has answers for the questions they are raising, but the answers are not part of the book, more peppered in as flavoring.

I think it's fair to look at this book as a critique of modern internet culture and of e-celebrities. I find it's commentary on that front to be a little flat. Not totally wrong per se, but not offered broad enough that anyone can get it. That's what I mean when I think other may disagree with me about how pointed the politics of this book is. Some will see the commentary on offer and just instantly think it's aimed at a certain group, and to be fair it probably is. But you have to fill in those gaps yourself. It's not directly aimed at anyone or any group, it's more playing with the concepts of internet celebrity and of sycophants as well as the mindless mob mentality. It is more or less condemning them, but not out right and not in such a way that there is any one to one correlation with real life.

Outside of that, is a fun detective story of intrigue and manipulation. It explains the origins of Punchline, not just from her dawning a costume, but from the moment her mind was warped. It's showing us how dangerous and devious and truly evil she is in her own right, outside of any influence from the Joker or otherwise. It is fair to say they are setting her up to be Harley Quinn 2.0, but they are doing their best to make sure you understand that unlike Harley, there is no room for sympathy here, you can't blame the circumstances she fell into, she actively sot them out of her own volition after she had a brush with destiny and evil. She cultivated this in herself, before she got plugged into it, unlike Harley that kind of fell into it and can somewhat be viewed as a victim of circumstance. Also unlike Harley, she is competent in her own right. She isn't just connected, she isn't just propped up by others or lucky, she knows exactly what she's doing and she's damn good at it.

Art in the book is pretty good and consistent through out. There are several artists here, but they do a good job of meshing with each other so there is no whiplash. It's all pretty great stuff and all worthy of the story and the mythos it's being used for. All pretty good stuff.

[Jed Kudrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

I met one of the authors, Sam Johns, at a comic book convention, and while she may not be anywhere near the most famous of celebrities that I have met, she was one of the most special to me as she is an author of a comic book series and I am a creative and professional writing major in college who loves superheroes. She was super positive and supportive of my interests and my career dreams for the future and I was lucky enough to be able to buy a copy of this book and get her signature along with it. That being said, I then read the book and, don't get me wrong - I think Punchline is an amazing girlboss and a great female counterpart to the Joker, but that's just it - we already had one of those. What is the point of creating Punchline when Harley Quinn already exists? Punchlines mentions multiple times in the book that she hates Harley Quinn, which makes sense, because if she's trying to woo the Joker then degrading his ex would make sense. But, what is the point of Punchline if she's just a modern Harley Quinn? Harley Quinn was changed from Joker's sidekick to her own feminist villain herself. She moved past Joker to become her own thing and seems to be thriving because of it. This isn't to say that I don't prefer Joker - Joker will always be my one and only favorite supervillain of all time. Joker is better off without Harley Quinn just as Harley Quinn is better off without Joker. So, why would you create a character that basically served the same purpose as Harley Quinn did in the past when you already removed Harley Quinn from that position? Punchline just seems to be a more insane and obsessive version of what Harley Quinn was and I don't see why DC needed to make that. Regardless of my opinions of what the point of Punchline's existence is in the first place, the story was actually very good and I did love reading another story where the villain wins in the end. On that note, Bluebird should not have been the hero of this story - Bluebird is a weak hero that cannot save this story from a villain that is stuck in Harley Quinn's shadow. Bluebird honestly just made this story worse, because she is not a hero I cared to read about - any version of Robin or any other Batfam member would've made the story better than fricking Bluebird. I am glad Punchline technically beat Bluebird in the end or else that would've made an already questionably pointless storyline even worse. I'm not bashing the writers or any other individual who drew or produced this book - I just don't understand why DC needed to have Punchline created in the first place.

[Akirakitamura82 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Punchline - Der Prozess

Werbung (Rezensionsexemplar) vielen Dank an Paninicomics

Vö: 10.01.2023
Format: Softcover
Autor: James Tynion IV, Sam Johns
Zeichner: Mirka Andolfo, Rosi Kämpe, Sweeney Boo
Seiten: 132
Storys: The Joker 1–15

Der Joker ist entkommen, aber Punchline nicht, und jetzt muss sie sich wegen ihrer Verbrechen vor Gericht verantworten. Punchline war die Gefährtin des Jokers im brutalen Joker-Krieg. Jetzt droht der sadistischen Killerin der Prozess! Doch die Anklage gegen sie gerät ins Wanken! Um eine Zeugin zu gewinnen, die gegen Punchline aussagt, schleicht sich Batmans Verbündete Bluebird undercover in die Strafanstalt Blackgate. Doch Punchline hat den härtesten Knast von Gotham längst übenommen..

Schon bevor Punchline dem Joker begegnet, war sie wahnsinnig, grausam, Manipulativ und Böse, was sie sehr von Harley Quinn unterscheidet.

Die Gefängnisgeschichte macht Punchline zwar zu einer sehr interessanten Figur, aber man konzentriert sich nicht speziell auf sie, vielmehr geht es um Harper Row und wirft viele neben Figuren rein wie unter anderem Orca, was ich persönlich nicht so gut fand. Dennoch erfahren wir einiges über Alexis/Punchlines Vergangenheit.

Die Zeichnungen sind sehr gut, wenn auch stellenweise zu niedlich für eine Gefängnisstory, aber dennoch sind es sehr schöne Zeichnungen mit viel Liebe zum Detail.

Punchlines erster eigener Richtier Comic, funktioniert nicht so gut, wie er sollte, was an den Autoren liegt, irgendwie hat man dem Charakter nicht soviel zu getraut wie sie es hätten machen sollen. Aber es kommt ja noch eine Punchline Reihe und ich denke und hoffe, das man es hier besser macht den Punchline hat soviel Potenzial und bitte macht mit ihr nicht denselben Fehler wie bei Harley Quinn, die mittlerweile einfach nur noch nervig und lächerlich ist. Von mir ☆☆☆

[Paige Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not as cringey modern as expected. Even though I love classic or Margot Harley, I actually still like Punchline. She’s legit unhinged, violent on her own path even if obv strongly tied to Joker. He held her hostage as a teen during live TV to read off his message like cue cards, and after that she became obsessed in figuring out his MO, what he finds funny.

She started a pod over it (52 eps like a pack of cards) and inadverdantly TikTak true crime trends (I like when things are just parody cute vs topical for marketing). When she sees Joker again she stabs him and kisses him as quickly, so it’s a fun unpredictable craziness, even more so than Harley’s. I’ve always preferred (though it’s surprisingly rare) when it’s implied J has multiple personalities/dementia with them so I like to see those traits in others.

The art is bright and collage-paneled, w/ goth aesthetics but in a kinda cuter realer Jhonen Vasquez way. The writing for the Royal Flush female prison gang is a little repetitive or shoehorned, but the designs are nice, like The Kluster from XJ9 meets Suicide Squad and gender-swapped Joker. I also loved her insightful albeit brief analysis of classic gags like the Joker Fish and their aftermath exposing corruption, like the city making money off the tourism/aquarium/merch/charity programs. So stuff like that better explains his punky fans like in the Phoenix Joker movies or IRL serial killers/Lugi what’s-his-face. The writing mostly felt good, like it didn’t meander too long and the humor was mostly dry ironic vs whacky.

The birdy pink and blue haired hero I’m just not feeling. Her design feels simple and unfinished. She blends in too much with everyone else. Admitting to crimes so bluntly over a prison phone is stupid. J was barely in this. Kinda wish this felt more self-contained vs. the continuation in Gotham Game.

[Clint · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars
Pretty awful! Punchline’s original character design is striking and her brief appearances in Tynion’s Batman run made me interested to see how her character might be fleshed out more. Sadly, the writing here is a mess. The story is primarily a clumsily transparent screed against alt-right reactionaries radicalizing apathetic youth through social media, and while it’s certainly contemporary in its concerns, it’s not thoughtful at all and depicts its targets of criticism in boringly didactic and patronizing ways. The plot is also just way too stretched out and convoluted, and Punchline’s grand social engineering scheme is the most “things happen” cape comic nonsense I’ve read in a while. The Royal Flush Gang subplot is terrible filler and gives an excuse for a run of very bad playing-card-based dialogue. Punchline’s teenage origin story is unsympathetic, unsurprising, and uninteresting.

I was hoping the art would be good even if the writing wasn’t great, and I guess the cover art is all solid, but the interior art is rough. The YA webcomic style isn’t my favorite look, but I can enjoy it when it’s done really well (e.g. Giant Days) and when the tone of the writing is similarly light and playful. That’s not this book’s tone at all, though, and aside from Mirka Andolfo doing the earliest pages of this, the parade of fill-in artists are all unremarkable and sloppy-looking.

[Adam Fisher · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars.
With Harley Quinn turning hero (or anti-hero, depending on how you look at it), Joker was missing a companion that really understood him. During "The Joker War", his new companion became Punchline, who was arrested at the end of the storyline. Beloved by the people of Gotham for being "misunderstood" and a "victim of love", Alexis Kaye stands trial for her actions.
Also getting involved in this is: Harper Row (AKA Bluebird), who wants Punchline behind bars even more for effecting her brother; Orca, who is trying to go straight after a long stint in crime but gets caught as a double agent within the walls of Blackgate Prison; and the Royal Flush Gang, who I remember as kind of a joke from the Animated Series, but apparently is more of an influencer to Gotham than I thought.
We will definitely being seeing Punchline again... and the Joker won't be far behind.

Overall, this was kind of a long read, but still good. I feel like Punchline is a much more developed character with this Volume published.
Recommend.

[colleen *™ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the art, I like Punchline's design. I think this comic does a good job showing how Punchline uses manipulation. I thought it was interesting that her attraction to the Joker seems to also be an attraction to an anarchical lifestyle, like she already had contempt for Gotham but her encounter with the Joker made her act out on it. Feels more calculated to me than some of Harley's schemes. Not that it means shes a better villain, I love Harley and I like when she's scheming as well! In fact I like all the differences between the two villains. From what I've seen, Harley is more about the thrill of crime while Punchline feels more hateful.

I think the protagonists fell into Punchline's schemes a little too easily at times, almost making it too easy to see where the story was headed. This wasn't a deal breaker for me however. This comic is an interesting introduction to a part of Gotham's villains/heroes I hadn't seen before.

[Josh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read because the Youtube channel Casually Comics has been championing this character for years now.

There is the germ of a good idea here with Punchline being a sort of influencer villain who uses social engineering for her nefarious purposes. It's something that could easily have become something lame and hokey ala Screwball over at Marvel, but a solid design and presence helps her stay above that. Unfortunately, that initial concept doesn't get used or explored in any meaningful way along with the titular trial. Instead of Punchline building up her cult of personality through the trial itself like so many serial killers have done in the past, she just kind of has it already. Thus, Punchline doesn't actually have anything to do in her own comic book, outside of some pretty pointless prison shenanigans, except to sit around wait until she wins in the end.

[Peyton F · Rating 4 out of 5]

Punchline is this character that is perfect for the modern world but I think was hated during her time, and there are a few reasons for it, but I think the biggest one is that she is not Harley Quinn. And she never was trying to be. This book more or less distills Alexis’ pathos down into her obsession with Joker the Idea and not Joker the Man. It makes for an interesting read to have this master manipulator character that is also a streamer, influencer, podcaster, and just a general grifter. I love Tynion’s writing, his character work acts as a big inspiration for me in my own writing. I think that this is really a fun read. However, I had totally forgot who Bluebird was, and it’s like, her story fits as a foil for Alexis, but it’s like two lower tier characters duking it out. I was more engaged with her brother’s story, but I think Bluebird has potential.

[mire · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did enjoy this more than gotham games for sure, but I just think punchline's character is not my cup of tea… there were some interesting parts but they were the minority. I don’t really like the influencer thing that they have going on for her, which is difficult for me to like her then because that's a really important part of her whole character. as for bluebird, I'm pretty neutral to her character, she’s not someone I really look forward to see in a story but I don’t mind her being around.

in a more positive light, I like that you can tell she's not a carbon copy of harley, she wants to be more present in whatever joker plans and just has a more precise personality of what she wants of each attack. props to belén ortega and mirka andolfo because their art was outstanding!

[Maddox Smith · Rating 1 out of 5]

Fucking awful. Easily the worst writing I've seen in Tynion's entire career. I personally have found him to be hitting a slump as of lately, and this book (yes, it came out years ago) is just further proof to me. He's starting to become someone who's accidentally achieved a few successes but fumbles literally ever other time. Alexis Kaye is such a fun character, but everything in here is just absolutely awful. Some of the worst writing I've ever seen in comics with a statement on current politics that while, yes I agree with Tynion's point of view on the subject, is way too on the nose and obvious to the point of it being literally ridiculous.

1.5/10.

[Ian Raffaele · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bleak story. I'm not sure how much I'll get into this new Joker sidekick. It's impossible to not compare her to Harley Quinn who is hands down a far more interesting character. Quinn has depth and layers. Punchline is just mean. In many ways she is more of a pastiche of the Joker than Harley Quinn is accused of being. Mabey her character will be fleshed out more in the coming years; assuming fan backlash doesn't push this villain to the sidelines beforehand.

[Annemarie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Punchline parts were the only reason I kept reading the joker (2021) for a while, so having them all collected made them way easier to read. I really enjoy the character of Punchline as a true villain, and her trial is an interesting one to read. The art is stunning, and the cover collection at the end is great as well.

[Jourdy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book definitively shows how different Punchline is than Harley. I highly recommend this!!! She’s so good in the most evil way. Similar to Harley she was already tipped in the direction of attaching to the Joker but she’s taken it to a whole other level and I find her to be an incredibly compelling character.