The Joker's Second Verse:
Go back in your well, you giggling sewer ginger
Calling him a ginger is funny
You lost to a turtle that wasn’t even a ninja
Simple but funny and effective
When I flow I go Mark Ham with ill zingers
Decent pun
I steal the show like Bob Kane stole from Bill Finger (Ha-ha-ha)
Not really a dis at Pennywise but a fun reference for the fans. Sometimes I feel like I should have a separate category or way of calculating lines that don't really help the person saying them when it comes to a "winner" but make the battle better. Since I don't have that though I'm just gonna count it as a good line
I spit acid, be wowed, every joke of mine stings
You’re three night lights in a cloud beat by the kid from Stranger Things
Lots of "you lost to" or "you got beat by" jokes in this battle. I don't think that's a problem necessarily but compared to the other ones this one's kinda weak
When I compare your antics to the fiendish schemes I revel in
They pale like the moonlight you can dance with the devil in
This line feels very silky smooth to me for some reason, it flows really well. The line is also pretty decent and well delivered.
Verse Overview: Not amazing but strong. Peter's delivery definitely helps elevate some of these lines from "good" to "great". 8.75.
Pennywise's Second Verse:
Pennywise likes the devil, we have so much fun together
But no one’s dying to play with Joker except for maybe Heath Ledger!
THERE IT FUCKIN IS I love it. That shit HURTS. I'm really glad they went there, this whole season has been lacking in this kind of dark zingers.
Puddin', you’re an embarrassment, I’ll beat you like you beat Harley Quinn
Kinda simple but works pretty well as a set-up. Though I guess it's not really setting up the next line, so it's more of just an offbeat punchline. Either way it's decent.
That purple suit is something you should only see Steve Harvey in
Not super clever but funny.
Ah haha! I feast on your fears!
I’m the Derry, Maine attraction every twenty-seven years
The pun here is okay but not really enough to make the line stand on its own.
But you know what? I have a secret (Shh) It’s like a very special toy
If you wanna kill a Batman eat him when he’s a boy
Fun little character driven dig. Kinda one of those lines where you have to think about it before really getting why it's a dis, but that's cool with me.
Verse Overview: Only one truly great line, but the rest of it has enough references and uses them well enough to keep the battle fresh. Another 8.75 but on the lower end this time.
The Joker's Third Verse:
Don’t you lay a finger on my Bat, you little freak
Or I will spend a whole week knocking out those prickle teeth (Hee-hee-hee)
People seem to really like how jealous Joker gets about Batman. I think that's another one of those that's just a bone for the audience, because the punchline isn't super strong but it gets a good reaction nonetheless.
Tell your author for his next gangbang scene
How about a little more PG and a lot less 13
Spicy. I really like it.
Even I wouldn’t stoop to that kind of impropriety
This is Earth you space demon, we live in a society (Ha-ha-ha)
I'm so glad they did this. AND they didn't just throw it in there either, they set it up in a way that it actually really works as a dis I think. Well done.
I’ve seen your movies so I know you don’t hurry
Good little dis inside the set-up.
But I’ll shoo you down the drain so fast they’ll call you Tim Scurry
Eh, could've been better after the strong set-up. I'm glad they at least referenced Tim Curry though. In a way, the fact that they didn't reference him at all until now makes this line a little better.
Ask Robin if I drop bars, I take smiles and I leave scars
The "Ask Robin if I drop bars" is pretty great, and works well with the visuals.
Guards in Arkham will admit that the Joker just killed IT (Ha-ha-ha)
Simple, but when coupled with the subtle "Scars-guard" pun and the Killing Joke visual reference, this feels like a very satisfying finisher.
Verse Overview: Very strong, more punchlines land here than any other verse up to this point. 9.25.
Pennywise's Third Verse:
Arkham? Ha! You stole that from H.P. Lovecraft
Fact statey but a nice deep little reference. Still wish they did a little more with it.
Who needs guards when you couldn’t even escape Cesar Romero’s mustache
Pretty great. Funny and effective.
You jester, I’m Montressor, ‘bout to make you my Fortunado
And seal this battle up like it was the Cask of Amontillado (Woo)
I don't really like how they waste an entire couplet on an Edgar Allan Poe reference with ties of questionable strength to these characters. It's not a bad thing to reference but I think this could've been done in a more subtle way.
I spit January ember flames (Woo) You got beat by the Scooby Gang (Woo)
The January ember reference is okay, the Scooby reference is funny but kinda wish they'd done more with it. Still glad they fit it in somewhere though.
I’m the John Wayne of John Wayne Gacys, the underground Clown Posse, my flow’s Insane
Lot to put in for one line but these are both pretty good references.
Poster boy for missing persons posters, Joker’s gonna float with me
I like the "poster boy for missing persons posters" boast, and the whole line flows decently well.
‘Cause he just messed with the best wall-eyed rapper since the Notorious B.I.G. (Wu-ha-ha)
Again, not a bad thing to reference, and this is a pretty funny way to reference Notorious B.I.G., but not strong enough to be the finisher. Just feels like a bit too much of a stretch to comfortably end the battle. On its own though, it's a good joke.
Verse Overview: A lot of references flying in all directions here, which I like, I just wish more of them were used in a more thoughtful way. That's a nitpick though, this is a good verse with some good lines. 9.25.
Ungraded Stuff:
Idea-I'm glad they did it. It's obvious, but in a good way, and they clearly found a lot to work with relating to these characters to make the battle special.
Visuals-Excellent. I love the comic book thing they got going on with The Joker, I love all the visual Joker references, and I love the effects for Pennywise. Probably one of the better battles in the entire series visually.
Overall Battle: This is the best battle in years, I think. Its biggest flaw I think is that it has so many references that it doesn't know what to do with all of them, but that's probably the best possible problem a battle can have. And when it does land a joke, it lands hard and gets a great reaction. The comments section all can't agree on what part of this battle to obsess over. Kudos to ERB, if every battle was more like this then the series would be an even better series than it already is.
The Joker's Best Line: This is Earth, you space demon, we live in a society
Tough call on this one, but I think this line has all the makings of a great line. It's a great reference, it's a funny joke, and it's a solid dis. The holy trinity. Honorable mentions to "go over that head", PG-13, and Joker just killed It.
Pennywise's Best Line: But no one’s dying to play with Joker except for maybe Heath Ledger!
Not a close call for me on this one, this is one of my favorite lines of the season. Some of these rap battles lately just aren't spicy enough, this is the shit I like to see in ERB. Honorable mentions are Poker, Arkham Asylum, Tekashi 6ix9ine, and Cesar Romero.
The Joker's Overall Score: 18.25/20, 91.25%, A-
Pennywise's Overall Score: 17.75/20, 88.75%, B+
Winner: The Joker
It is very close, a part of me wanted to swing it for Pennywise because he has most of my very favorite lines. But I think Joker's verses are better structured and the punchlines just land a little stronger overall.
Total Score: 54.75/60, 91.25%, A-
Originally Posted by Juiz
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