Source Material #395 - The Joker Presents: A Puzzlebox (DC, 2021)

In this episode of Source Material Comics, Jesse and Mark unravel one of the most bizarre, chaotic, and cunning stories in DC’s Black Label line—The Joker Presents: A Puzzlebox. What starts as a straightforward mystery—who killed the Riddler?—quickly warps into a twisted web of half-truths, unreliable narrators, absurd detours, and mind-bending revelations. With the Joker at the center, gleefully sowing confusion, this story becomes less about whodunit and more about why it was ever done at all.The hosts break down how this 14-issue digital-first series blends the energy of Knives Out with the chaos of Gotham's rogues’ gallery. From Harley Quinn tripping on Mad Hatter illusions, to Penguin navigating booby-trapped catacombs Indiana Jones–style, every villain has their own fractured perspective on the search for the powerful Master Engine. But what if the murder never happened? What if the mystery wasn’t real? And what if the Joker did it all—for a laugh?Mark and Jesse explore how Puzzlebox isn't just a story about the Joker manipulating villains, it’s about him manipulating you, the reader. They unpack the sheer audacity of Matthew Rosenberg’s storytelling, the multi-artist collaboration that keeps the art as unpredictable as the plot, and the wild meta-layer where Joker turns a fake murder into Gotham’s greatest joke. In the end, Joker wins—not with a bang, but with a punchline.