McFarlane Toys has made a lot of Joker figures. Like, a lot. Yet fans have been clamoring for the one most toy companies would make first: a true-to-comics Silver Age Joker in his most classic purple costume. The company has done, many, many artist- and media-specific takes on this Joker, but never a universal one based on his approved look across all the comics of the era. Indeed, this Joker looks likely to sell out preorders quickly when he goes up at all your favorite online outlets starting September 12. Each figure will also include a McFarlane Toys digital collectible, for those who collect such things.
Holy Variant
On the same day, McFarlane will also drop an Earth-2 Robin, with a wired soft-goods cape. This version of Dick Grayson is the 1940s version all grown up into adulthood, maintaining the Robin persona rather than becoming Nightwing. Maintaining a real-time story pace, he replaced Batman when his mentor retired. This Earth-2 Robin was erased from existence during Crisis on Infinite Earths; subsequently, the new Earth-2’s Dick Grayson never became Robin.
This Earth-2 Robin, as seen during the Crisis, will also come with a digital collectible.
Both figures seem to offer signs of optimism for fans of more traditional comic-book looks for characters. Many fans have noted, for example, that all McFarlane Toys figures of Harley Quinn so far have been based on animation or live-action versions, but not the comics. As an artist himself, Todd McFarlane naturally gravitates to rendering fellow artists’ specific drawings in three dimensions, but as a toy mogul, he may be seeing the value in more style-guide-like versions, of which Kenner’s original Super Powers may be the ultimate example. (McFarlane reportedly wants to add Watchmen characters to his extension of that line, which feels multiple sorts of wrong.)
Let’s see what comes next.
