Punchline’s solo debut confirms why the Joker’s new sidekick has accomplished what Harley Quinn never could do in so many years.
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Punchline #1 by James Tynion IV, Sam Johns, Mirka Andolfo, Romulo Fajardo Jr. & Gabriela Downie, on sale now
Harley Quinn has long tried to become the person Joker needs most in this world, someone who she thought would let her take the reins at some point, not just because he trusts her but because he loves her. To Harley, that’s the definition of them being soulmates. It’s why she dumped her psychologist past as Dr. Harleen Quinzel and basically became his right-hand woman in so many cartoons, comics, animated flicks, and of course, the DCEU.
However, while Harley realized the error of her ways and joined the Bat-family, Punchline #1 has confirmed that the Joker’s new sidekick has done what Harley never could do: become the Joker’s true partner.
This issue expands on Punchline’s backstory as Alexis Kaye, a bright young chemistry student who Joker held hostage at a news station after blowing her teacher’s brains out on air. The clown and his goons had her fill in to recite a speech, only to be thwarted by Batman. But while she was struck with fear, this awoke something within her and Alexis began a character study. She’s obsessed with the philosophies behind Joker’s crimes, dissecting them as social justice acts of anarchy and terror, all disguised as jokes. There’s a deeper meaning to them and as Harper Row’s brother, Cullen, starts joining her cult by listening to Punchline’s many podcasts as she awaits trial, it’s revealed that Alexis isn’t a victim at all. Sure, she’s a student but one of death and murder, fascinated by how Joker wants to make Gotham pay, even at the expense of innocents.
As underground subscribers flock to these podcasts, Punchline actually understands Joker in a way that Harley never did and a big part of it revolves around how Harley used him as an excuse to unleash her deepest, darkest inner demons. Alexis, though, is objective and she starts getting corrupted and converted fully by his poison as she endures this exercise all in the name of academics. Admittedly, she’s showing too much compassion and empathy to the madman but she realizes that the punchline to all this is that Joker’s trying to turn the screws and the mirror on the city to show them they’re the real villains of the story — selfish hypocrites who subjugate the poor and elevate the rich, such as Bruce Wayne. It’s why Harley could have been redeemed, as she wasn’t conditioned like this, she still had her old self. But Punchline was just a blank canvas waited to be painted by the Joker’s madness.