Barkham Asylum, a new middle-grade novel being released in Feb. 2024 by DC, will reveal whether the Joker's dog is as evil as the Clown Prince of Crime or if he's truly a good boy.
Barkham Asylum comes from writer and artist Yehudi Mercado (Shazam! Thundercrack). The graphic novel will see all of Gotham's worst supervillains thrown into Arkham Asylum, while all of their pets are sent to a god pound called Barkham Asylum. There, the Joker's canine companion Jester will work with a stray cat named Penny to try and win a talent show in order to reunite with his owner. Barkham Asylum will continue to explore whether Jester is truly as chaotically evil as his master or if there's a more heroic side to the character buried somewhere within him.
DC said of the Barkham Asylum graphic novel, "When the Super-Villains of Gotham get thrown into Arkham Asylum, their henchpets go to the maximum-security pound known as Barkham Asylum. Fur flies when Jester, The Joker’s dog, gets a tough-talking stray cat named Penny tossed into lockup with him. But they’ll have to work together to figure out what the evil Dr. Hugo Mange is up to. And the only way to stop this terrifying team-up is to win the talent show and get visitation with their masters at Arkham on the hill. Because the Joker is sure to help! What could go wrong with that plan?"
Why Jester Doesn't View the Joker as a Villain
"When crafting this graphic novel, I pulled some inspiration from my own experience growing up," said Mercado. “I was a class clown in school and as a result of that, I spent a lot of time in detention. So I can kind of relate to the lead dog, Jester, in my own way. All Jester wants is to make people laugh, so in his mind, his master isn’t such a bad guy. Locked up with him is an innocent stray cat named Penny, a loner who rejects Jester’s request to join his pack. But if they’re going to get out of this mess, they will have to team up. And if a stray cat and The Joker’s dog can get along, then maybe there’s hope for all of us!"
Barkham Asylum is intended for middle-grade book readers ages eight through 12. Written and illustrated by Mercado, the graphic novel releases on Feb. 6, 2024, wherever books are sold from DC.
Source: DC