Warning: contains spoilers for The Joker Presents: A Puzzlebox #7!
The Joker is known for having an endless number of tricks up his sleeve when planning his crimes, but the newest issue of The Joker Presents: A Puzzlebox sees him diving back into the well to use a twist from the video game Batman: Arkham City. After six issues, the Joker has supposedly told the Gotham City Police Department everything he could regarding the death of the Riddler. However, the final issue of this limited series brings on a whole line of reveals as Joker unveils what's really been going on, and one turn in the story is eerily familiar.
Picking up with Joker being led back to his cell with a who's who of villains, explosions begin to go off across Gotham City at the bases of notorious crime leaders. Realizing one of the boxes is at the police department, Jim Gordon rushes back believing that this is an attempt to bust Joker out of prison and kill the witness to Riddler's murder. When he arrives though, the witness is being led out by a police officer and Joker is still in his cell. Things aren't all they seem, as it's revealed that the real Joker is the officer, with his girlfriend, Punchline, dressed as the "witness."
So, who's sitting in the prison cell while Joker makes his getaway? It's none other than the shapeshifting villain Clayface, taking Joker's appearance and allowing him to get away. If this sounds familiar, it's because this was a crucial final twist in Arkham City. In that story, the Joker was dying from his blood mutating due to exposure to the Titan formula from the game that preceded it, Arkham Asylum. When he gets ahold of the only cure, it seems like he's made a miraculous recovery with even the colors of his clothes becoming brighter. It's not until Batman catches up with Joker though that it's revealed he never took the cure because it was stolen by Talia al Ghul before it could get to him. Thus, the "Joker" Batman had been chasing since the cure was taken from him was Clayface all along, portraying a healthier version of the Joker to keep up appearances. It seems Joker has a fondness for this gag, as it returns in The Joker Presents: A Puzzlebox #7 from Matthew Rosenberg, Jesus Merino, and Vanesa Del Rey.
Even though Puzzlebox reuses this twist for its story, there are different set-ups and outcomes that make it different from its video game counterpart. The biggest change is Joker's partnership with Clayface leading up to the reveal. Puzzlebox has Clayface not realize he's working for Joker until later down the line when he disguises himself as Batman. Joker was just an unnamed client that Clayface agreed to help. Then, when frozen by Mr. Freeze, Joker uses the Mad Hatter's hat to control Clayface and make him disguise himself as Joker so he can make his getaway. Arkham City, however, goes for a more mutual partnership. Clayface is never under Joker's control. It's implied that he does it more as a favor for Joker's dying wish while waiting for Batman to find the cure.
Joker is a master of the unexpected, and that's exactly the theme that The Joker Presents: A Puzzlebox #7 is constructed around. Enemies, allies, and even fans will always be tripped up when they start to believe they know what the Clown Prince of Crime is thinking. Joker loves swapping out for Clayface because it's the ultimate distillation of his unpredictability - even though everyone approaches him with suspicion, there's no reason to believe he's been replaced until his trap is already sprung. The only way to avoid being fooled by this gag is to always assume he's a fake - a dangerous assumption to make when dealing with the ultra-volatile real deal. Like any comedian, Joker knows his audience, and knows Clayface's Arkham City role is a reliable gag that no-one ever sees coming.