The Joker Gets a Facelift in New Batman Story ‘DEATH OF THE FAMILY’

Batman fans have been treated to a wide variety of takes on the classic villain The Joker.  Yet, there hasn’t been anything quite like Greg Capullo’s grisly new version.  After sharpening his teeth for years working on Spawn over at Image, Capullo is now bringing some of that grittiness he has become famous for to this new story-arc for DC: Death of the Family.  Comic fans have been anxiously waiting for this storyline after the Clown Prince of Crime had his face cut off by the Dollmaker in a shocking turn of events in the pages of Detective Comics over a year ago.  Was The Joker dead? What was going to happen to the character now?

I guess the character just needed a little time off and a face-lift.  The Joker is back in issue #13 of Batman (not the Detective Comics book) and just hit comic-book stores this week.  This has been one of the most anticipated story-arcs of the year for comic-fans as the creators have teased over the past few months that this will indeed be a bloody and potentially fatal story for many characters in Batman’s universe.  Horror fans will smile with glee (something The Joker will no doubt appreciate) at the sight of the iconic villain.  A page looks to have been lifted from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre films as The Joker’s face has been fashioned in a similar way to Leatherface.  See for yourself if this truly ends up being one of the most brutal and graphic stories in Batman history as the first part of Death of the Family is in stores now.  Check out the creepy cover below.