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"This process, conducted after Bright had recorded only two episodes as Poppy, clearly relied heavily on Bright’s own instincts about the character, based on the limited information in the pack that she had at her disposal, and her character decisions already recorded in the episodes. This clearly allowed Bright the opportunity to personalize her work, though she was aware that these instinctive decisions were not always the most fitting character notes as she became more familiar with Poppy" (Cantrell and Hogg,)

Love this, because it links to how actors in long running shows often run into trouble later on down the line due to instinctual decisions in the moment causing conical clashes of what's real and what might be Retconed. However it's not really a problem with the Joker, Retcons and the like won't happen because nobody is meant to ‘know’ the joker, everything about acting as him should rely soley on instincts, sometimes even he doesn’t know what his next move is sometimes. A fact which was proven when Wonder Woman used her 'Lasso of truth' on him to help foil some plot he had hatched, only discover that he doesn't actually know at any given point if he's in a lie or telling the truth (a true testament to his insanity!)

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The Joker has tortured, brutalised, and murdered an unknown number of people (some of which directly involved with Batman like Jason Todd and Barbera Gordon) as well as leave a wake of anarchy and chaos everywhere he goes. Couple this with his seemingly unhealthy obsession with Batman- which flips between fascination and hate constantly- then you get a recipe for excellent character interactions. Because at the end of the day we as actors are always looking ‘to create (or sometimes imitate) real and believable characters in real and believable situations’, in order to help bring our audiences in, entertain them and bring them to the right emotional level to enjoy our pieces with ‘compelling characters in interesting relationships’ (Alburger, 2014).

The main thing to take away from him, though, is that he’s not a being with a plan, he’s a criminally insane individual that at any given moment can switch on you whether you are friend or foe. What makes him really intriguing for me, and a good indication that he’s a character I would like to portray, is precisely that unnerving feeling that at any given moment he could snap and throw away the lighter, flamboyant, and comical side of himself for a more evil, unhinged and violent one. Afterall, Patrick Tucker said it best when he mentioned his ‘theory of opposites’ where ‘whatever emotion you’re about to show, do the opposite first’ (Tucker, 2015). With Joker, almost every interaction he has with Batman is a rollercoaster of emotions that flips from highs and lows in a never-ending game of cat and mouse.

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A little bit of context, I have been in love with Batman in comics, animation and film for as long as I can remember. Batman himself is such an incredibly written icon of pop-culture. He’s known as ‘the World’s Greatest Detective’ due to his extraordinary mental and physical prowess. In most iterations he’s a master of virtually every known from of martial arts, a brilliant tactician, and a genius level forensic scientist, which helps him earn the ‘greatest detective’ title in almost every piece of media we see him in. Another name he is familiarly known by, ‘The Dark Knight’, is a name that reminds criminals that even if his number one rule is never killing, his violence and penchant for brutality is reason enough not to get on his bad side.

Yet directly opposite him is the perfect antithesis and contrasting element to Batman’s being, the Joker. Batman has no powers and no otherworldly abilities to speak of, yet with his intellect and battle IQ most comic book fans would have no trouble agreeing with the statement that ‘given enough preparation time, he can best anyone’. Even the massively over-powered superman has lost to the caped crusader on occasion. Yet there is only one foe worthy enough to be called his arch nemesis, one foe who is just as equally powerless and brutal in the violence they perpetrate. The Joker pushes batman in ways other villains can never dream to, he never fails to test and push the caped crusader to the very limit when it comes to their interactions. No matter how many times he gets beaten and taken down, the Joker always manages to come back and hurt Batman in cruel and excruciating ways, pushing him to the limits of breaking his one and only rule; Killing

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Aspects of the Joker I wished to incapsulate in my performance:

·        Some iterations of him, like Heath Ledgers complete psychopathic portrayal without a hint of empathy for others, or Jack Nicholsons unhinged, cruel nature, and defientely Mark Hamils Joker (by far the best!)- crazy, manipulative, resourceful, and as equally undeniably evil as he is obsessed with his relationship with Batman.

·        Needs to be evil and cruel- shown though his torture and subsequent killing of Batman’s sidekick, no moral compass to speak of.

·        Needs to be insane, Psychopathic, unhinged- shown through his way of speaking and interacting with Robin. He pretends to be a little girl, with Robin as her toy, also no empathy.

·        Needs to be obsessed with Batman- Why kidnap and try to get his identity out from the boy then kill him anyway? It’s all a part of the game. Some days he tries to figure it out, other days he’s happy with just the thrill of the chase. It’s sick and twisted and something he can’t live without.