Ledger Joker wasn't really smart at all outside of your typical "I'm a comic book villain and good at causing mischief". He absolutely fell apart the moment his world view was challenged. I mean, what dumbass has absolutely no defense of their beliefs once challenged? He crumbles apart in an instant.Arthur was never using anyone's misfortune to his own advantage. The seeds of discord were already sown before he became joker. Getting propped up was happenstance, not something of his own doing. There wasnt a single thing he accomplished in this movie that didn't happen by pure coincidence and flat out luck.
I'm not talking about fighting. Joker, historically, isn't someone that can go toe to toe with batman. I'm talking plotting, planning, and generally being someone on par with one of the greatest intellectuals intellectuals in the DC universe. And this version of the joker isn't someone that I would even consider competent, let alone intelligent. Ledger joker was incredibly smart, unbelievably so but at least they portrayed him as having the intellect to be able to push batman and the city as a whole. Arthur on the other hand had everything happen to him, never made any smart decisions on his own, and happened to be doing this during a time the people of gotham were in turmoil. He didn't plan anything, he just lucked out with everything. Batman would kick his ass immediately.
100%. Its literally taxi driver just with joker. (and not anywhere near as good either)
Arthur isn't at a point where he could take on Batman, and Batman himself is still a child at this point in time. Joker is clearly a completely different character than Arthur in the movie though. Looking at "Arthur" as Joker isn't really fair. We don't see much of this Joker, and what we do see is literally the first day of the character's existence.
and yeah, Arthur/Joker gets credit for sparking the riots. He doesn't care about anything or anyone when he's on the talk show (besides himself), yet he throws out the speech about rich vs. poor, kills the host, and starts the riot. Despite his internal conflict and selfishness he's able to put on a great "act" and get everyone behind him. Which is like, a huge part of Ledger's Joker.
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