Road Trip



Road Trip is the thirteenth episode of the first season of The Joker Blogs. It was first uploaded on Youtube on December 22, 2009.

Plot Summary
At the start of the video as the camera is recording, Dr. Jeremiah Arkham is seen in the darkness, as he is now locked up in his car trunk. He states out loud that he is ready to come out now, to which the Joker opens the trunk and asks if he is going to behave. Jeremiah affirms he will, and the Joker motions with him to get out of the trunk, telling him that he wasted enough time screaming earlier. As they head to the car, the Joker orders him to sit in the back, with Jeremiah mumbling how typical that is. The Joker says it's hard to find good help these days and that's why the staff at Arkham have been so generous. The camera, still being held by Jeremiah, captures Pearl who is sitting in the driver's seat. Jeremiah asks if she is okay, and the Joker answers for her, saying that she is fine as she'll be their designated driver. The Joker holds his gun at Pearl who hurriedly starts the car and then tells Jeremiah that he'll be their cameraman.

When Lyle asks about what he will be doing, the camera shifts to his side, revealing Lyle is now in a black dress with a pearl necklace and matching earrings. The Joker states he gets to sit there and look pretty. Jeremiah asks if that is his wife's dress, and the Joker remarks that it looks better on Lyle before making Jeremiah sign a disclosure form to avoid legal problems. Jeremiah signs but insists it won't hold up in court. The Joker disagrees as he has a pretty good lawyer. Pearl asks where she is supposed to be driving to, only to be reprimanded by the Joker when he hits her with the clipboard and causes her to briefly swerve the car. The Joker growls that nurses are to be seen but not heard and he threatens to gouge out her eyes if he hears her again. Lyle yells at the Joker to get his hands off her. The Joker tells him to relax as no one important is getting hurt and especially not him since he has a role to play. After directing Pearl to continue driving straight, he puts the security anklet on Lyle's foot, mockingly telling him it's a perfect fit and he can go to his ball now.

The camera screen goes to static before showing Jeremiah, Lyle, and the Joker are now at the entrance to the sewers. Lyle refuses to go in, but after the Joker suggests he can come with them before he turns into a carved pumpkin at midnight, he relents. Before closing the sewer door behind Lyle, the Joker instructs him to keep going further into the sewer until he gets to the other side and to be careful of crocodiles. Jeremiah asks if there is actually an exit at the other side, and the Joker expresses little care about whether there is or isn't.

They head back to the car, and the camera cuts in and out through various moments throughout the drive. Pearl is heard saying she took a wrong turn. Jeremiah awkwardly sings Lady Gaga's "Pokerface" off-key, with the Joker adding the line, "J-j-joker face."

Finally, the camera changes again to show an apartment complex in the background as the Joker is pulling supplies from the car. He takes the car keys and prepares to head into the complex, telling Jeremiah and Pearl to wait for him. Jeremiah struggles against the handcuff keeping him trapped, with Pearl also handcuffed to the steering wheel. They both begin yelling for help, to which the Joker also starts shouting for someone to help them. He laughs at their foolishness as they're in the Narrows now and no one is coming to save them. Jeremiah keeps the camera on the Joker who departs from the car to begin climbing up the stairs of the complex. As the camera follows the Joker's form, Jeremiah wonders out loud if the Joker means to set the building on fire. The camera then cuts to static.

Characters

 * Scott McClure as Joker
 * Steven Molony as Dr. Jeremiah Arkham
 * Joy Dolo as Pearl
 * Steve Gibbs as Lyle Bolton

Event Chronology

 * The events of "Road Trip" occur after "Dinner With The Arkhams" and before "Killing Kopski".

Episode Connections

 * Dr. Jeremiah Arkham and Pearl became the Joker's hostages in "Car Trouble".
 * Jeremiah was terrorized by the Joker in "Dinner with the Arkhams" before being put in the car trunk in "Road Trip".
 * Lyle Bolton was taken hostage in "Let Sleeping Dogs Lyle".
 * The Joker makes Jeremiah sign a disclosure form similar to how the Joker had to sign one in "An Apple A Day".
 * The Joker puts a security anklet on Lyle's foot, which is the same anklet that he wore in "Car Trouble" before he forced Jeremiah to deactivate it.
 * The crocodile in the sewer is confirmed by Lyle to be real in "Staff Verification".
 * Who the Joker goes to find in the building is seen in "Killing Kopski".

Multimedia Connections

 * The Joker telling Lyle to be careful of crocs is a reference to the DC Comics character Killer Croc, a criminal, and nemesis of Batman's who was born with epidermolytic hyperkeratosis, a medical condition that progressively turned his physical features into that of a crocodile's.
 * The Narrows, where the Joker, Jeremiah, and Pearl arrive at the end of the episode, is a decaying and crime-infested neighborhood between Midtown and Downtown Gotham City. Arkham Asylum is situated here and the Narrows is also where Ra's al Ghul, Batman's former mentor, began his plans to destroy Gotham City in Batman Begins.