SUPER VILLAIN

(DC)

Despite an impressive writing team – including Jeph Loeb, JM DeMatteis and Ed McGuinness – Emperor Joker is a mess. This time, Superman takes on the harlequin of hate in a reality-warping tale as the Joker takes on God-like powers. As with all these tales of extreme magical manipulation, it’s hard to find any narrative to cling to. Events blink in and out of existence – one minute Superman is turned into a dog, two panels later he’s fine again. When anything can happen it’s hard to care about anything that does happen.

Also, calling this collection Emperor Joker ruins a big reveal at the end of chapter four (the original stories were published as ‘Superman Arkham’ until chapter five). Slapdash humour and merely perfunctory art just add up to a thoroughly unsatisfying read.