A doting father, loving parent, and an expert in… diapers? These are not traits you’d consider when it comes to Joker — until now. Kodansha and DC Comics have teamed up for the new manga The Joker: One Operation The Joker, and its mastermind, Satoshi Miyagawa (with art by Keisuke Gotou and translations by Sheldon Drzka), has put a decidedly unique spin on the character that nobody saw coming.
It’s a story that features Batman as a baby following a mishap at a toxic waste plant, and now it’s up to Joker to ensure Batman grows up good and proper so they can carry on the weekly exploits (read eternal battle of good versus evil) once the Bat’s all grown up. Talk about adding a new fold to their decades-long, media-spanning dynamic.
The series is just one of three that DC Comics and Kodansha have launched in recent months, with digital chapters being released on DC Universe Infinite and a trade paperback collecting the first seven chapters available in bookstores. Along with Superman vs. Meshi, Batman: Justice Buster, and a new manga reader available, DC Comics is clearly serious about building out its manga library. The new manga format, paired with creators putting new spins on DC characters, means original concepts and fresh tales. The Joker: One Operation The Joker is that and more.
To garner some insights into the truly unique project, I asked writer Miyagawa some burning questions. Read on to learn why the Joker captivates him, what challenges he encountered in crafting this story, and much more!
Courtesy of DC Comics.
AIPT: What is it about The Joker that you find interesting?
Satoshi Miyagawa: Maybe it’s because he’s not just a simple “bad guy.” He seems to resonate with the everyday struggles and frustrations that we all face, lulling you into thinking he might actually empathize with you. But just when you let your guard down, he blindsides you with his unpredictable, enigmatic behavior and ideas that are truly beyond what most of us can comprehend. While I do have a soft spot for the solitary Dark Knight, Batman, I continue to be captivated by the Joker.
AIPT: What makes The Joker such a good vessel for storytelling?
SM: It’s all about the unique relationship between Batman and The Joker. Their codependency struck me as almost like a parent-child dynamic, and that’s when I knew I was onto something. Sure, they clash when they’re together, but something feels missing when they’re apart. By drawing on my own feelings toward my parents, as well as what I’ve felt as a parent myself, I was able to infuse the story with both a sense of realism and a dash of humor. Imagining that Batman and the Joker could feel these same complex emotions really helped me bring the characters to life.
Courtesy of DC Comics.
AIPT: What was the most challenging thing about writing The Joker?
SM: When I first started writing, my biggest fear was getting flak from die-hard The Joker fans, telling me I’d completely misunderstood the character. Crafting The Joker’s internal dialogue in the early chapters felt like a high-stakes gamble. Putting words to what goes on in The Joker’s head is like groping through a pitch-black room. You can’t really be sure there’s a “right” answer. But given that this is a comedy, I eventually let go of some of my inhibitions. I thought, “What if the The Joker actually had thoughts like these? What if, in some twisted way, he’s pondering some really mundane stuff?” Once I leaned into that idea, writing for The Joker became a lot more fun, and he started to feel surprisingly relatable.
AIPT: Do you have a favorite Joker story from the comics? If so which story?
SM: The first The Joker story that really struck a chord with me was Brian Azzarello’s The Joker. It’s where I felt The Joker’s “humanity” come through the strongest, and this was something I aimed to capture in my own project, “One Operation The Joker.” I’ve tipped my hat to Azzarello’s work multiple times in my manga, even incorporating Johnny Frost as a character close to the Joker, as a nod to his influence.
Courtesy of DC Comics.
AIPT: How did you come up with such a unique idea for this project? Was it inspired by any specific comic, manga, or other property?
SM: As I touched on earlier, what really got me going was the parent-child vibe I felt between Batman and the Joker. I mean, it’s not a “Tom and Jerry” situation or anything, but it’s also not just cut-and-dried good versus evil. They have this weird synergy. Sure, they fight, but there’s something missing when they’re not butting heads. To me, there’s a kind of parental love in their relationship. To bring this to life, I took my own experiences as a parent and wove them into Gotham’s gritty setting. While I didn’t directly pull from other works for inspiration, I definitely skimmed through a lot of old Batman and The Joker stories for some general pointers.
And you know what’s funny? As soon as I penned the first episode, I had a hunch about how I wanted to wrap things up. I made up my mind that I’d eventually send the characters back to their American comic book roots. But until that moment, I was going to take some creative liberties and have a little fun with them. And that’s basically how I approached the whole thing.
Courtesy of DC Comics.
AIPT: There are fun one-panel jokes at the end of each story in the collected edition. What made you add these and were they tricky to pull off?
SM: I added a bit extra after the main story to help readers warm up to my version of The Joker. I thought that if people could get a more well-rounded view of this new The Joker, they’d probably like him even more.
While I was coming up with ideas for each chapter, I’d sometimes think, “Ah, my The Joker would totally do something like this.” But then I’d realize it wouldn’t fit in the given page count. That’s when I decided to toss those extra bits into some bonus comics. So, really, creating those one-panel jokes was never a struggle.
Courtesy of DC Comics.
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