Spider-Man Makes a Surprising Link Between a Marvel Villain and Joker
Warning: spoilers ahead for The Amazing Spider-Man #62!
The declining relationship of Spider-Man antagonist J. Jonah Jameson and former companion Joseph Robbie Robertson bears a striking resemblance to another key comic book alliance between Batman's archenemy The Joker and his occasional romantic foil Harley Quinn.
The rift between Jonah and Robbie has not only had a negative effect on their own friendship but on the heroic defender of New York City, Spider-Man. Though often butting heads, J. Jonah Jameson and Robbie Robertson were once an inseparable pair of respectable journalists who made The Daily Bugle the foremost newspaper publisher in NYC. Now, with the times of news distribution in flux, Jonah has attained a position at the offices of media website Threats and Menaces, while Robbie has remained at the Bugle rising up to the esteemed ranks of general editor. The Amazing Spider-Man #62 from writer Nick Spencer and artist Patrick Gleason includes a reunion between the current news competitors. In an effort to reconnect with his old colleague, Jameson reacquaints himself with Robbie and Robertson's son Randy, who welcomes Jonah with the phrase "Mr. J". Though not a direct reference, Mr. J is most commonly an infamous pseudonym used by Harley Quinn in the pages of DC Comics to designate the infamous clown prince of crime.
Following her memorable introduction to the DC Universe through the Emmy Award-winning Batman The Animated Series, Harley Quinn has shared a complicated dynamic with her "Mr. J", The Joker. Harley's small screen ties to The Joker would translate to the comics without much deviation from the TV series in which Quinn originated. While there is a form of mutual respect between the two characters, it's a rarity to place Joker and Harley in a room together without either of the two attempting to backstab or completely eliminate the other.
Though Jonah and Robbie were an ideal duo in the past, they often clashed. The shift of the news was only the final nail in the coffin for their relationship to reach a point of no return. As newspapers become more of a relic of the past, Jonah's dedication to the world of traditional news sees a plummet. The hot-headed publisher has gone from covering war stories to the emergence of larger-than-life superheroes. Now that Jameson's abandoned nearly all of his former principles, Jonah has virtually turned Spider-Man into a social media puppet to appeal to his own agenda.
In the scheme of Spider-Man and Batman, The Joker and Jameson are not cut from the same cloth, but they do share similarities in regard to defining their foils. While one is a homicidal criminal, the other is a slightly immoral journalist. In the same manner that Joker was able to influence Dr. Harleen Quinzel's transition from a civilized doctor to his wicked partner in crime, Jameson has a shatterproof hold on the city of New York. Though Jameson has slightly evolved from his days of donning a suit to chase after Spidey throughout NYC, Jonah still has a significant amount of pull on the people. There is a reason that Spider-Man was crowned a public menace for years on end, while The Avengers and Fantastic Four were free to operate with few criticisms. Now Jameson's smear campaign against Spider-Man and other heroes has not swayed everyone in his favor, specifically Robbie, but he provides an internal obstacle for Marvel's heroes to overcome.
The Joker and J. Jonah Jameson are not by any means on the same level of malicious intent, but their reach, power, and influence serve as driving motivators to sway the people surrounding them while simultaneously pushing away others, in accomplishing their goals whether it be Spider-Man, Joseph Robertson, or Harley Quinn.