For a guy who went largely unseen for nearly a year, it seems like the Joker is suddenly running rampant in every corner of the DC Universe. He’s been causing all sorts of nightmares for Batman and his crew in “Death of the Family,” which is quickly approaching its shocking conclusion. He’s also been grabbing attention in animated form this week in Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 2, due to both the story’s psychotic take on the character as well as Michael Emerson’s chilling vocal work. Then there’s DC Collectibles’ brand new Joker bust, the Joker’s 70s-era self-titled series which we’ve now made available digitally, his appearance as a character in Injustice: Gods Among Us

 

In short, it’s safe to say that the Joker’s been seriously creeping out this week. Here’s what else when down this week on the DC Comics website…

 

Fans of DC’s acclaimed, awesome anthology series Legends of the Dark Knight got mighty excited when we revealed the creator list for the next exciting installments. When it includes names like Rafael Albuquerque (taking on both art and writing for the first time), Joshua Williamson and Peter Milligan, can you blame them?

 

Next month marks the start of a few new highly anticipated ongoings that will be joining the ranks of DC COMICS – THE NEW 52. While you may need to wait a few more weeks before you can snatch them up, you can certainly tide yourself over by reading what the writers have in store for readers. First, Geoff Johns shared his thoughts on the Justice League of America, and what he finds so exciting about writing their brand new book. Then, comic book writer and Arrow executive producer Andrew Kreisberg discussed his latest project, Justice League of America’s Vibe.

 

Wednesday brought us the return of Caption This!, our monthly DC Collectibles captioning contest. This week featured Batman from the new Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Action Figure 4-Pack. And a kite.

 

Actually, BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS was all over DCComics.com this week, largely due to the upcoming release of Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 2, the highly anticipated second half of Warner Home Video, DC Entertainment and Warner Bros. Animation’s animated adaptation of Frank Miller’s graphic novel.

 

In Thursday’s 5.2 Reasons column, we listed off the reasons why this second part is so successful and fun. We also added a new clip from the film—the first one to feature the Joker—that boasts an exclusive introduction by Michael Emerson. Emerson also shared some thoughts on playing twisted characters, while Peter Weller let us know how he feels about playing super heroes. His answer just may surprise you.

 

(And psst! We have some more interview segments and one final, fully exclusive clip coming on Monday, so be sure to check back!)

 

Finally, we got to Friday and this week’s This Just Happened. Our focus this time around was on JUSTICE LEAGUE #16, and the geektastic final page. What final page, you ask? Well, if you’re curious, click here. But beware of spoilers.

 

Not bad for a single shortened week, eh? Look for some exciting stuff next week. Seriously, exciting. And the weeks after that… Whoa, whoa, nelly!

 

We’ll see you again in seven!