If there’s one element of
Batman: The Enemy Within that feels somewhat locked in place by the threads of fate, it’s John Doe. He’s a treasure of a character, and through him, Telltale plays perhaps the cruelest game imaginable with our emotions. We’re shown without much ambiguity that this is a man who is, to paraphrase the late Roger Ebert’s description of classic villain Dr. Hannibal Lecter, "a good man to the degree that his nature allow[s] him to be." He’s intensely likable but emotionally volatile. Not so much overtly evil as deeply troubled. And he unquestionably, without a shadow of a doubt, absolutely adores both Bruce Wayne and his alter ego.
This is the most important plot in Batman: The Enemy Within, and it boils to a head in Episode 5 – Same Stitch. Though there’s some inevitability in the development of Doe’s relationship with Bruce, his development into the Joker is a bit more nuanced. I get the feeling that most players will experience it more or less how I did. His groupie/fanboy personality has been nurtured to such an extreme that he’s taken up the mantle of crime fighting – as with all things, in the service of pleasing his idol Bruce Wayne/Batman. However, his mental state and lack of scruples leads him to create conflicts that our hero wants to avoid. I didn’t quite buy his penultimate breakdown and consequent rampage, but man did I care about this guy.
