He’s as maniacal as they come, and he’s always eager to give Batman a bad day. In the long history of Batman in comics, the Joker has been equally popular as the Dark Knight. He’s the ultimate villain, one who thrives on corrupting the incorruptible. Even when facing the possibility of meeting his end at the hands of a crook or heroic vigilante, his delight in spreading violence and chaos never wanes.
There are many stories that highlight the levels of depravity the Joker will stoop to, and they are mighty low. For that reason, his notoriety as a villain is probably more pronounced than most villains in pop culture history. With the recent release of the long-awaited sequel Joker: Folie à Deux, let’s dive into the darkest and most perilous stories featuring the psychopathic Clown Prince of Crime.
10. Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth
The ’80s was a defining decade for both the Caped Crusader and his No. 1 baddie, the Joker. Among the best stories told is Grant Morrison’s epic Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth. The story popularized Arkham Asylum and it’s iconography within Batman’s world.
In this dark and twisted tale, Batman is forced to head to Arkham to contend with the villains who’ve all broken out of their holding locations and are causing chaos thanks to the Clown Prince of Crime. He’s the leader of this mass hysteria, and it’s up to Batman to put a lid on it. This book became the very basis for the Batman: Arkham Asylum video game released in 2009 and developed by Rocksteady Studios.
9. The Batman Adventures: Mad Love
This one-shot tale written by Paul Dini and Bruce Timm, the creators behind Batman: The Animated Series, capitalized on a newly established character in the Batman mythos: Harley Quinn. The early ’90s cartoon brought us one of the most beloved characters in DC history. And Mad Love gave us a bit more incite into the relationship between Joker and his girlfriend, Harley.
As you would expect from a maniacal murderer, he’s rather unkind toward Harley despite her attempts at truly winning his heart. However, the Joker apparently only ever sees her as a lackey. It’s a twisted look into the life of the Joker outside of his daily villainous shenanigans. Ultimately, you’ll feel for Harley. And we all know that one day, she will turn her back on her evil boyfriend for good and truly make a name for herself.
8. The Arkham video game trilogy
The aforementioned Batman: Arkham games developed by Rocksteady Studios have solidified their popularity not only through engrossing gameplay and fluid combat, but also because of the original stories behind the trilogy that many who’ve been a part of the Batman legacy over the years helped to create, including writer Paul Dini, the late Kevin Conroy as the voice of Batman, and Mark Hamill as the Joker.
It’s difficult to really pick just one of these games as Joker’s story encompasses all three of them. We witness the Clown Prince of Crime wreak havoc on the asylum in the first entry, then attempt to take control of Arkham City and coerce Batman to cure him from a self-inflicted ailment he received in the asylum, and finally live enduringly in Batman’s noggin’ in the final game always taunting him. The Joker’s impact on Gotham isn’t something that can simply be killed like his corporeal form, something this trilogy depicts in dramatic fashion.
7. Batman: The Man Who Laughs
This one-shot story written by Ed Brubaker is a reimagining of the first meeting between Batman and his famous archnemesis. The comic ties into the Joker’s “Red Hood” origin story as depicted in The Killing Joke, and depicts the murderous villain doing what he does best, sowing discord via a bloody trail within Gotham.
There’s nothing creepier than Joker’s famous laughing toxin that causes his victims to die with a brilliant smile on their face. It’s his calling card after all. There’s no shortage of death and insanity in The Man Who Laughs, which earns the story high marks within the Joker legacy.
6. Batman: White Knight
Do you ever wonder what Batman’s world would be like if the Joker suddenly stopped being insane? What if the Joker became a normal civilian? What would he be like if he stlll had a clear recollection of his villainous life? Batman: White Knight, illustrated and written by Sean Murphy, is a popular modern look at the character. In this storyline, Batman aggressively pursues and beats the Joker, then force-feeds him medication. The medicine reverses the Joker’s insanity while the public’s opinion of the Dark Knight tanks after seeing his treatment of the criminal.
The Joker then goes by his legal name, Jack Napier, and is freed from custody due to little evidence of his crimes. Jack eventually runs for city councilman, an election he wins. Secretly, he sets out to scheme against the city. But in the interim, he establishes a task force within the Gotham City Police Department to bring down Batman. It’s a gripping story that earns its standing in the Joker legacy at the end of the day.
5. Batman (1989)
The famous Tim Burton-directed film put the dark and brooding version of the Caped Crusader on the map. Gone were the days of Adam West’s campy superhero delight. And by the same token, gone is the goofy Cesar Romero iteration of the Clown Prince of Crime. This Joker is far edgier as he electrocutes a former gangster associate to the point of becoming a crispy skeleton in his comfortable chair at the discussion table. That’s something you won’t see in the 1960s Batman serial. Jack Nicholson’s take on the Joker leaned heavily into the murderous aspect of the character.
Nicholson’s version of the criminal also established a Joker who is commanding and ultimately conducts business like a gangster, much like his pre-accident days before his skin (and mind) were altered by chemicals. You can’t go wrong with Batman when looking for a solid Joker narrative.
4. Batman: Three Jokers
This miniseries, written by DC author Geoff Johns, was published in 2020. And just like its title heavily infers, the story is about three Jokers. That’s right. Batman receives a horrifying revelation that the Joker isn’t one, but three individuals operating under the same moniker. However, each Joker has a slightly different theme, similar to the very different takes on the character over the years. While they’re all just as insane as ever, one is considered “the criminal,” the second “the clown,” and the third “the comedian.”
The criminal is calculating and methodical. It’s assumed that he leads the trio. The clown represents the campy depictions of the character. He is overly goofy and leans into physical gags and violent pranks. The third lives up to his designation as the comedian by keeping humor at the forefront of his persona.
Truthfully, all three of these traits make up the monstrous villain we’ve always known. This is why Three Jokers, revealing that the character is actually built on three individuals, makes for a fascinating read.
3. Batman: A Death in the Family
Imagine a Joker story where he actually won. His schemes didn’t just end in success, but a clear defeat of team Batman. That’s the draw behind the story A Death in the Family. This series of issues published in 1988 can now be found in a collected edition, and it subverted fans’ expectations by chronicling the death of Jason Todd’s Robin at the hands of the Joker.
In reality, fans chose this outcome. DC enacted a vote where fans could submit their choice of the story’s outcome: Jason’s death or Batman’s success in saving his partner. Reader’s were likely shocked at the time when they learned that they all actually wanted a taste of something different than the average superhero story: a tragedy.
The Joker’s murder of Jason Todd was quite horrific. Comics have become even darker and more graphic since. But A Death in the Family certainly raised a few eyebrows by depicting the brutal demise of a child.
2. The Dark Knight (2008)
It’s almost impossible to not think of director Christopher Nolan’s (Oppenheimer, Dunkirk) The Dark Knight in association with the Joker. The late actor Heath Ledger would go on to win an Academy Award posthumously for his portrayal of the villain. The Dark Knight focused on the mystery behind the Joker in depicting an anarchist who thrives on violence and chaos.
Ledger’s Joker proved to be the ultimate villain to Christian Bale’s Batman. He was a villain the vigilante couldn’t frighten or beat into submission. Instead, he learned a little too late that the Joker’s endgame was to drive corruption within Gotham at large by turning it’s most respected leaders, namely the D.A. Harvey Dent, to the dark side. The Dark Knight will always have strong place in the Joker’s history as a character.
1. Batman: The Killing Joke
Writer Alan Moore’s Batman: The Killing Joke is, perhaps, the definitive Joker story. It’s frightening, and quite possibly triggering for some. Joker’s depravity knows no bounds as he emotionally and physically scars Barbara Gordon after invading her home, and then proceeds to torture her father commissioner James Gordon in an attempt to mentally break him through physical indignations and the details of his dealings with Barbara earlier that night.
The Joker pushes Batman to the brink in hopes that the hero will do the one thing he’s sworn never to do: kill. In retrospect, the book is still just as horrifying as ever. However, it cements the Joker as the most heinous villain in the Batman mythos, and perhaps, DC comics as a whole.
