We've already told you about DC's Joker graphic novel by 100 Bullets writer Brian Azzarello and Lee Bermejo, a book that Azzarello calls "brutal... the most violent thing I've ever written." With two weeks to go until its release, the first four pages have been released online to give fans of The Dark Knight a chance to see what happened after the Joker got released from Arkham Asylum - and that's just the start of a series of comics set to capitalize on the success of Christopher Nolan's blockbuster to be released over the next few weeks.

The original graphic novel by the fan favorite crime writer marks the start of a exciting time for those wanting to see more of what made The Dark Knight so special; a week after this unofficial sequel to this summer's box office smash - Azzarello says that his take on the character is "eerily similar" to Nolan and Ledger's - hits stores, the Batman RIP storyline finishes in Batman #681 (Again, featuring a showdown between Batman and the Joker - although the grinning one doesn't seem to be the main badguy behind Bruce Wayne's near-death experience judging by what we know so far). The week following that, Kevin Smith returns to Gotham City for the first issue of Batman: Cacophany - offering what may be the last brand new Bruce Wayne adventure for awhile. It may have seemed that DC weren't making their most of Dark Knight fever this summer, but now it looks like they were just saving up their goodies to make sure that they'll own the holiday season...

EXCLUSIVE: Preview Azzarello and Bermejo’s JOKER, the original graphic novel! [MySpace]

Send an email to Graeme McMillan, the author of this post, at graeme@io9.com.