Darkest Joker Moments From The Comics We Hope The Movies Never Show Us
Batman’s nemesis is a bit of a maniacal madman, but he brings so much to the table that his bad behavior is almost excusable. Whether it’s in comics, in Batman: The Animated Series, or in The Dark Knight, the character, the Joker has been delighting fans for decades. As crazy and endlessly entertaining as his mischievous antics maybe, there’s a very dark side of him only a few villains can compete with. With that being said, these are the darkest Joker moments from the comics we hope that movies never showed us –
Joker Killing His Mother
Since he was a child, Arthur always assumed that Penny Fleck was his mother. One day, he discovers (through Thomas Wayne) the contents of their relationship. As he struggles with his conflicting emotions, Arthur runs into Thomas at the hospital and becomes very upset after knowing that he was adopted by Penny. To cope with this dramatic revelation, Arthur takes out his frustration on Penny by suffocating her till she’s dead. This was the darkest moment in the comic arc. And fans and viewers wish to never see it on screen. But apparently, the makers used this arc in the 2019 release, Joker.
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When The Joker Makes Batman Lose His Control
In The Dark Knight Return by Frank Miller, Batman and the Joker are engaged in a final battle at an amusement park. There, Joker starts shooting his gun continuously, killing innocent couples in boats. His levity over doing so is disturbing, and when he laughs as he guns down innocent people, we know that he has truly lost his sanity – as he relishes torturing and killing others. This was another arc that was painful and that fans never wished to see on screen. But again, the opposite happened.
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Joker Killed Jason Todd
The Joker’s worst attack on Batman was when he killed Jason Todd by beating him with a crowbar and leaving his lifeless body on the ground. Later in the Death in the Family storyline, the Joker set a bomb and blew up the place with Robin inside. As a result, the Joker once again proves that his evil knows no bounds as he has made his way into one of DC’s most brutal moments in history. Till now, DC has not used this scene in the DCEU. And as fans, we could only wish not to see it anyways.
Related: How Moon Knight Takes Its Surprising Inspiration From Todd Phillips’ Joker
Joker Paralyzed Barbara Gordon
In the gripping tale The Killing Joke by Alan Moore, the Joker shows a new kind of depravity, unlike fans, have ever seen before. Whenever anyone talks about his level of evil, they’re probably talking about this story arc. This tale of terror has become renowned as one of DC’s most terrifying stories yet. In The Killing Joke, it’s revealed that Barbara Gordon a.k.a Batgirl was acting as Oracle after being shot by the Joker and left paralyzed from the waist down while dealing with her father Commissioner Gordon going insane from Joker trying to drive him mad over photos of her after the brutal attack and being tortured leaving her in hospital for some time. While it haunted the comic readers back in time, DC should not have used it in the film as an arc.
Related: Every Jim Gordon Actor, Ranked (Including Jeffrey Wright)
Joker Kidnapped A Batman Impersonator
Heath Ledger is most widely known as the best Joker. However, in The Dark Knight, his hostage footage of a Batman impersonator is far more than just being dangerous. It was exactly portrayed the way it was in the comics. It’s unsettling enough that Joker pets his captive with his manicured nails. But when he yells at him in return (a deep demonic growl) and then finishes off with casual homicidal threats and his trademark maniacal laughter, he shows Gotham City just the fact how psychotic he could be in reality.
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