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The Absolute Universe's provocative version of the Joker comes from Absolute Batman writer Scott Snyder's own upbringing in New York City. Thus far, we've learned that Absolute Joker comes from a moneyed pedigree in Gotham City (or does he?), and his enormous wealth has opened doors for him to become truly monstrous on all levels, especially physical. And as outlandish as Absolute Joker looks on the pages of Absolute Batman, the character is rooted in Scott Snyder's experiences growing up around privileged kids in New York. 

On Twitter, a fan asked Snyder if there was anything that Absolute Joker was afraid of, and the writer responded in a series of posts. "He’s not afraid of anyone. This is probably going to be too long of an answer, but I attended a high school in NYC where a lot of generationally wealthy kids went," Snyder began.

"What you learn being around kids that grow up that way is that they react to the money in all kinds of ways. And to be fair, i imagine it must be really strange being born into huge amounts of money you didn’t earn. At the two extremes of the spectrum were kids who wanted to put it all to good use, charity, philanthropy, etc. At the other end, though Were kids that acted as though being born into it was a sign of worthiness, like they were from better people who worked harder, so by proxy they deserved it. With these kids, the frightening thing was that they were often surrounded by people who just said yes to everything," the writer continued. 

"Sometimes Their parents, but more often whoever was paid to take care of them, so people that would tell them what they wanted to hear. Insulating them further from reality. And what you get when that happens is something really frightening. A person with tremendous Power but no sense of reality let alone accountability — driven by a kind of bottomless need for affirmation of their worthiness. Nothing is ever enough. Nothing matters but them. They are always the main character. If they die, the whole world should die." 

Snyder concluded, "It takes a lot of circumstances to create this kind of person, and there are certainly a couple operating on the World stage right now. Absolute Joker to me is the totality of this point of view. He’s the cruel parent and the cruel child, all of it in one." 

Snyder's thoughts struck a chord with me as someone who brushed shoulders with kids whose families and ancestors are listed in the Social Register and on Wikipedia while I was growing up in New York City and going to prep school (yes, it's appropriate to drop the Law and Order sound effect here, or Going Backwards by Depeche Mode, whichever suits your boat). I think Snyder nailed the worst of the bunch perfectly here and in Absolute Joker. Sometimes the scariest monsters aren't found in a dark alley, but in a penthouse on Madison Avenue. 

Here's an update to date guide on the Absolute Batman release schedule.