Say what you will about The Dark Knight being over-hyped, but don’t discount 42 Entertainment, the company behind the viral marketing campaign.
As the scavenger hunts, free screenings, poisoned cakes and mystery phone calls come to an end, a bigger picture has been painted bridging the narrative gap between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight
The B&U spent some time combing through message boards, wikis and old viral stuff we had lying around to form a summery of the relevant plot points that bring us to where we are when The Dark Knight opens.
Mob wars, Citizens for Batman, dirty politicians, a costumed mad man and a hostage crisis are just the beginning.
Our full report should make sure that you are up-to-date on the events in Gotham by the time you hit the theater…
At the end of Batman Begins, Lieutenant Gordon (Gary Oldman) reveals the first Joker card to Batman, teasing The Joker as the villain for the sequel that became The Dark Knight.
DA Carl Finch, shot at the docks in Batman Begins, is replaced by Roger Garcetti mid-term. Rachel Dawes (Katie Holmes in Begins, Maggie Gyllenhaal in Knight) and Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) are co-Assistant District Attorneys. Dent begins a campaign to “clean-up” the Gotham City Police department, spurring calls for him to seek the DA’s seat in the next Gotham election.
Citizens of Gotham begin the I Believe In Harvey Dent website, which days later is mocked by a mystery prankster who launches a companion website - I Believe In Harvey Dent Too. The secondary website prompts users to submit their e-mails to reveal the person behind the prank:
Though the citizens of Gotham are, in the game, unaware of what to call this person, The Joker fits pretty well.
At San Diego Comic Con, altered one-dollar bills are found with the same black eye-circles and red smile that appeared on I Believe In Harvey Dent Too. Instead of the “ONE DOLLAR’ text along the bottom of the bill, it reads: “Why So Serious?”
This lead to WhySoSerious.com, The Joker’s main conduit to communicate with the players in the alternate reality game. The site debuted with a defaced WWII recruitment poster:
The coordinates on the poster lead to Comic Con and was accompanied by a countdown. When the countdown hit zero, a cross-town scavenger hunt was launched with Joker goon players on the ground and “Oracles” aiding them by phone on the internet.
At the end of the hunt, an unmarked black van pulled up and grabbed one of the Joker goons from the front of the mob. The van sped off and later, a body was found.
Gotham PD released a police report, which was later reproduced on WhySoSerious that summed up their version of events:
In an ironic twist, the mob ended up betraying their instigator, believed to be the notorious criminal known as “the Joker.” A black vehicle which officers believe may be connected to certain underworld figures pulled up in front of the mob, who allowed a pair of armed men to drag away “the Joker.” Witnesses report hearing agonized screams from the vehicle as it sped away.
Officers later discovered the body of the dead clown a few blocks from the site of the abduction.
The GCPD conclude that the Joker is dead, though his antics continue online, alerting his internet followers that he is just fine.
The GCPD report also serves to bring the web players into the world of Gotham City:
Officers were initially called to the downtown area after receiving multiple reports of defaced currency.
Detectives received reports that the money was somehow linked to a website.
On Halloween, The Joker kicks off another scavenger hunt that ends with a call for his goons to dress like the Joker and send in the pictures, this leads to the discovery of RorysDeathKiss.com and another picture of the Joker.
Those that submitted pictures to the challenge received a copy of The Gotham Times, which has many relevant plot points in the articles:
-On Thanksgiving in Gotham City, a gang-fight described as a “cascade of open assassinations, revenge killings, and drive-by shootings” kills 30 Gotham mobsters and 6 citizens. Batman is seen trying to calm the storm. The article introduces new mob characters key to the plot of The Dark Knight: Police officials said that the warning factions include the ruthless organization headed by “The Chechen,” the Falcone faction now headed by Sal Maroni, and the street toughs headed by Gambol. Each of the gangs were bloodied in yesterday’s fighting and it is not yet clear who has the upper hand, police sources told The Times.
-An article mentions that DA Roger Garcetti is building a case against “The Batman” that includes “illegal use of force, kidnapping, impersonating a law enforcement official, criminal endangerment, being a public nuisance, and damage to public property” prompting citizen calls to Gotham City Hall in support of Batman and foreshadowing the future Citizens For Batman.
-Harvey Dent launches WeAreTheAnswer.com, a tip line for Gotham Citizens to talk about police corruption. DA Garcetti accuses him of starting a political smear campaign. Dent starts his own task-force to battle corruption within the police department, and we learn that he has already begun prosecuting a few officers: Jim Cornigan, Roger DeCarlo, A. Flass, Peter Grogan, Timothy Monroy, and Jordan Riche.
Dent’s tip line leads players to submit tips including the names of the officers who appeared in the Gotham Times. In the article about mob violence, officers Karl Breitup and Jason McCree were reported to have fled the scene of a murder. When entering their names, players were e-mailed back with:
Thank you for this information. The officer(s) you report are the subject of an open investigation and your information will certainly be included in that investigation. We hope to get back to you within 1 or 2 business day with regards to this matter (The Gotham DA’s offices are closed on weekends).
Thank you for doing your part in making Gotham City better, safer, stronger. Together, We Are the Answer.
When the two are caught in a sting operation accepting bribes, a shootout erupts and one of the officers is killed. GCPD is officially scared of Harvey Dent.
The Joker viral game continues with little Dark Knight plot development.
Months later, the Gotham District Attorney election approaches and Harvey Dent calls his supporters asking him to vote for him in the upcoming election. Those that help through distributing campaign ads and sending in videos receive another issue of The Gotham times with the following plot-points:
- Harvey Dent announces his run for Gotham District Attorney, DA Garcetti accuses attempts to trash dent in the press. Dana Worthington, spokesperson of a anti-crime group in Gotham is also on the ballot.
-The Gambol mob and the Chechen mob war at a local festival, killing 5 before Batman shows up. Refrences are made to the ongoing mob war.
- Jim Gordan’s Major Crimes Unit makes its first major appearance investigating a money-wire laundering plot. Former top Treasury Enforcement official Lars Bakely has the key quote, foreshadowing the bank robbery that jump-starts The Dark Knight: “It’s the life support system for organized crime. To survive, criminal conspiracies require a constant flow of money from nefarious sources to legitimate financial channels. If you shut off that flow, you shut down the organization.”
- A pair of articles referencing the events in Batman Begins claim that prisoners are still escaping Arkham Asylum, even after the “Narrows Attack” that occurred at the climax of Begins. Dr. Crane (the Scarecrow) and 99 other inmates have been simply declared “dead” even though no bodies were recovered.
Not long after the new Gotham Times hit the street, a group called Concerned Citizens For Gotham swift-boats the Harvey Dent campaign by producing GCPD officers who claim Harvey Dent bribed and blackmailed them into testifying against other innocent cops. DA Garcetti joins the bandwagon on his campaign website by suggesting that Dent bribed officer Francis Notaro of the GCPD.
The Joker uses cakes with cell-phones baked into them to instruct his goons to hack into a new website, ACME Security Company. Those who attempted to do as they were told received e-mails from Lieutenant Gordon telling them to cooperate in the investigation into the Joker or face criminal charges.
The Norato story is hurting the Dent campaign, since Norato is a decorated sergeant in the police department. Then, a leaked memo begins (re-launches?) the probe into Norato:
FORM # 24756TT/543
Official Investigation into Use of Deadly Force by Gotham Police Officer CASE FILE # 4591023XN INVOLVING OFFICER: Officer # 38739GPD, Sargeant Frank Notaro
DATE: May 13
Officer Frank Notaro testifies that he was walking home from a late movie at 2AM down Jackson Street in Downtown when he heard gunshots. He ran to the sounds, which is the alley in the 1300 block of Jackson between Columbus and Madison. There, he witnessed a man holding a semi-automatic weapon shooting at passers-by. One man was hit already and on the ground. Notaro says he raised his service revolver and shot the man within seconds. Notaro says he was defending the lives of citizens and felt as personal risk by the gunfire.
INITIAL COMMENTS
There are several inconsistencies in Sargeant Notaro’s storiy (sic). The gunshot which killed the shooter, Richard Lukas Gould, appears to have been shot from a maximum of ten feet away. Yet Gould was found dead forty feet from the entrances of the alley on Jackson and Columus (sic). Thus, Notaro would have had to brave semi-automatic gunfire as he moved forward for up to thirty feet and then shot the man from ten feet away, which seems improbable. As well, the injuries to the passersby do not seem consistent with the incident report. Analysis of the shots to the foot and thigh of the two injured passersby reveals that the gunshot was from a different caliber weapon from the one retrieved at the scene.
RECOMMENDATION
The inconsistencies in the story by Officer Notaro demand investigation. I recommend an expanded probe into the incident and the suspension of Officer Notaro until conclusion of probe.
FOLLOW UPS
October 4 Probe rejected for budgetary reasons
March 25 Case file declared closed
More documents, including receipts, wire taps and DNA evidence reveal Norato’s tragic story: His wife was raped by the “Jackson Park Rapist,” who has been attacking women for three years. Some eyewitnesses submitted reports matching the description of Richard Lukas Gould, the man who was shot by Sgt. Norato. Norato’s bank statements also include travel companies, suggesting he killed Gould and was preparing to flee Gotham before being roped in to testify against Dent. In case the story couldn’t get any more tragic, DNA evidence found at the scene of one of the attacks doesn’t match Gould, but shows tampered evidence to conceal the actual rapist’s identity: Jeremy Mered Slabotnik, who is connected with the Chechen.
[For those of you who haven’t been updating your mob checklist, the three major Gotham mobs are: The Chechen from the Soviet Union, the Falcone gang, now headed by S Salvatore “Sal” Maroni and the Gambol]
Several $10,000 deposits to Norato from “JC” make players suspect that JC is Joseph Candoloro, a lawyer who happens to be the head of Concerned Citizens For Gotham. A wiretap reveals that Candoloro and a man named Albert Rossi have been helping suppress the investigation into Norato’s shooting of Gould. Candoloro and Rossi also own a Deli together: Rossi’s Deli.
At some point, news of the player’s discoveries make it back to fictional Gotham, because Glenn Barhyte, a detective in the GCPD Internal Affairs Division sets up a secret meeting with Norato on the Gotham Ferry. Norato doesn’t show, but it gets Candoloro worried enough to kill Norato’s partner and his whole family in a car bombing. Barhyte is found dead some weeks later.
Norato goes to confront Candoloro at Rossi’s Deli, but snaps and takes a hostage during a Harvey Dent press conference. Dent himself walks into the Deli and talks Norato into releasing the hostages. Norato then squeals about the mob plot to discredit Dent, though he doesn’t give the identity of the mastermind, codenamed Iceman.
Joseph Candoloro calls for all the dirty cops in Gotham to flee the city, triggering Operation Slipknot as headed by Gordon’s Major Crimes Unit. In a perfect plot twist, Gordon calls upon all the viral players who were caught trying to hack ACME Security. The players intercept packages sent to the 30 corrupt cops by Candoloro and Gordon manages to arrest 27 of them. In the packages, however, are Joker clues, making a mystery connection between the Norato scandal and the mysterious villain.
Citizens For Batman, lead by a man called Brian Douglass, launches as an activist group and message board where citizens of Gotham can start CFB neighborhood watch groups. Now lagging in the polls since Dent diffused a hostage situation, DA Garcetti declares CFB lawless vigilantes.
Polls open and Rossi threatens voters with 2 goons and a baseball bat until Batman shows up, tying all 4 thugs to a tree. Harvey Dent wins by a landslide and brings former DA Garcetti up on charges as his first act as DA. Dent alleges that Garcetti was aiding or working with Sal Maroni, mob boss.
A new issue of The Gotham Times is circulated to players that claims the Fear Toxin is still making its way through the city, hitting Gotham’s “drug culture” hard. It is suggested that Dr. Crane may still be alive, poisoning Gotham’s drugs. A Gotham Tonight suggests Crane targets Ecstasy. Also, more deaths in Gotham come from poisoned cakes and though the Joker is not named, his cake gifts to players suddenly seem a lot more sinister.
Meanwhile, Lieutenant Gordon’s Operation Slipknot closes in on two of the remaining three dirty cops left over from the Concerned Citizens For Gotham Scandal and DA Garcetti becomes a Dark Knight plot point in this brief article:
In a stunning turn of events, former District Attorney Roger Garcetti is rumored to have turned state’s evidence in a corruption probe.
Garcetti, who was formerly reported to have been indicted in the probe, will form the lynchpin of Dent’s case against purported mob kingpin Sal Maroni.
Sources say Garcetti is suspected in involvement in a corruption ring that reached into the upper reaches of City Hall and the battered police department.
Garcetti is said to have operated in mob circles with the codename “Iceman” and is purported to have played a major role in several criminal conspiracies.
“The extent of Garcetti’s alleged involvement is a surprise, but not the fact that he had mob ties,” said Walt DeFabrizio, long time Gotham political commentator. “Garcetti has been dogged by rumors of mob connections for years.”
DeFabrizio said Garcetti may have turned state’s evidence in an act of vengeance. “There’s no way he’s going to let himself get taken down. If turning state’s evidence keeps him out of jail, he’s going to spill the beans.”
One source told GCN that Garcetti may have made connections with the mob while he served as legal counsel to the policeman’s union.
Only time will tell whether those beans form a trail that leads to mob involvement in the GPD, kickbacks, bribes, money laundering, or any number of other crimes. But one thing is for certain - this is one mob trial that will certainly keep Gotham jumping for weeks and months ahead.
Woes continue for Citizens For Batman as their ballot proposition to protect Batman from criminal charges is voted down. Some members have fractured off from the main group with original founder Brian and begun to fight crime on their own, starting with drug re-ups on the corner and working to the major deal. Some members are shot and injured, but no one dies.
The Joker makes his first media appearance when players stumble upon a ACME security camera feed at Dock 138 in Gotham Harbor. At one point, the feed cuts out, flashing this image:
Gotham Tonight mentions that a large shipment of ammonium nitrate had been stolen from the docks that night, enough to make multiple highly-destructive bombs. And the perp was “crazy enough to smile into the surveillance camera.”All this leads up to the final episode of Gotham Tonight, with special guest Harvey Dent (which you can an SHOULD watch HERE). Dent talks about the upcoming Maroni trial where he plans to end one of the warring mob branches by using ex-DA Garcetti against him.
The interview is interrupted by news of a bank robbery, the same one that begins The Dark Knight…
[Sources: Superhero Hype! Message Boards, Why So Serious, Batman ARG Wiki]
