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The Joker is a supervillain from DC Comics. Famous as the archenemy of Batman and DC's smartest psychopath, Joker made his first appearance in the comic Batman #1 in 1940.
Background[]
Little is known about the Joker's backstory. However, it is certain that he was at one point a thug leader known as Red Hood, and was eventually thrown into a vat of chemicals, driving him to insanity and permanently changing the colors of his body, most notably white skin and green hair. Driven by a hatred for Batman, the Joker has devoted the rest of his life to destroying the Caped Crusader, and drive him to a similar madness that the Joker himself suffers from. This drive has ultimately lead to various tragedies, such as the death of the 2nd Robin and the crippling of Batgirl.
Powers & Abilities[]
- Unique Physiology/Insanity: Due to his chemical submergence, Joker gained beyond average advantages over normal humans as well as further exposure tainting his physiology.
- Pain Resistance: It was speculated that the Joker's exposure to chemicals may have heightened his resistance to pain. It was also implied that he was masochistic in nature, and thus enjoyed any pain received, making it an ineffective way of dealing with him.
- Tainted Blood: Joker's blood was tainted. It was said that "being an avid consumer of his products, Joker's immunity to poisons has been built up over years of dedicated abuse." When a mosquito sucked the Joker's blood, it "writhes and whines, choking on tainted blood".
- Psychic Resistance: Due to the broken state of his mind, the Joker's mind is incredibly difficult to control.
- Toxic Immunity: The Joker was immune to his own venom as well as various similar toxins.
- Super-Genius Intellect: Though totally insane, the Joker is one of the most intelligent characters in the DC Universe. He has consistently outwitted the likes of Batman and Superman.
- Master Manipulator: Many criminals, heroes, and even fellow tacticians have been manipulated into the Joker's schemes.
- Master Tactician: The Joker is capable of devising plenty of traps and strategies in the midst of battle that can surprise even his archenemy.
- Brilliant Weapon Designer: Famous for his massive clown-based arsenal, the Joker has devised plenty of unpredictable devices to aid him in combat.
- Master of Disguise: The Joker has created disguises over the years. Most commonly used on his weapons to make them appear as harmless gag items, he has also worn costumes and alter egos over the years that could fool even the brilliant detective Batman.
- Drug Resistance: The Joker has a natural resistance to drugs and toxins.
- Joker Venom Immunity: Due to his constant exposure to his signature laughing gas, the Joker is immune to its effects.
- Master Martial Artist: Joker beat down and captured the likes of Alfred Pennyworth. He killed 19 police officers inside the GCPD and killed all of the top lieutenants of every crime family in Gotham, including Penguin's bodyguards. He bested the members of the Batfamily, beating the likes of Nightwing, Red Hood, Red Robin, Robin and Batgirl in battle and held them hostage. Joker even held his own against a damaged and weary Batman in battle, almost winning in the process while enhanced by Dionesium himself. Both he and Batman worked together and managed to defeat the The Batman Who Laughs.
- Weapons Expert: The Joker is highly skilled at wielding various guns, explosives, knives, and countless other weapons.
- Skilled Acrobat: To take advantage of his lanky frame, the Joker has become swifter and more dexterous than even Batman himself.
- Cheating Death: The Joker has an uncanny ability to cheat deadly situations, including before his transformation into the Joker, when he was still Red Hood One.
- Regeneration: Joker's spine contains the chemical compound Dionesium within it. This allows Joker to recover from injuries at an accelerated rate. He was able to regenerate his face after it was cut off, and instantly heal from a lethal gunshot.
- Cosmic Awareness: The Joker has, at times, shown to be fully aware of being a comic book character, even directly talking to the reader. However, most other characters ignore this, believing it to be a manifestation of his insanity.
Equipment[]
- Joker Venom: Joker's trademark weapon and most deadliest of all. A deadly poison that infected his victims with a ghoulish rictus grin as they died while laughing uncontrollably. This venom came in many forms, from gas to darts to liquid poison, and was his primary calling card.
- Joker Teeth: A common weapon and theme for equipment for the Joker were "Joker Teeth." Clacking, wind-up gag teeth were commonly used to mock the Dark Knight and his allies. They were one of the Joker's signature items.
- Knives: The Joker has carried countless blades and daggers into combat.
- Guns: Over the years, the Joker has used more firearms than any other weapon in his arsenal. He seems to favor machine guns and pistols over all others.
- Long Barrel Pistol: A 9mm pistol that the Joker always carries on his person. Just one shot of this gun has brought down some of Batman's own vehicles.
- Tommy Guns: Of all machine guns, thompson submachine guns are his most frequently used.
- Card Gun
- Ace of Spades: A large-caliber revolver used to execute people
- RPG
- POW! Harpoon Gun: The Joker's signature gag gun, the first shot fires a fake "POW!" noise and a flag rolls out of the barrel. On the second shot, however, the flag itself is fired as a lethal projectile that impales foes on impact.
- Explosives: The Joker carries a large assortment of bombs and other explosives on him at all times.
- Fuse Bombs: The clown wields classical bombs light with fuses that are often designed after their insane wielder.
- Toy Bombs: Aside from conventional grenades, the Joker has also wielded many bombs disguised as various items ranging from eyes to toy chattering teeth.
- Explosive Pie
- C4
- Smoke Grenades
- Bazooka: The Joker has carried rocket launchers on him to fire explosive missiles at enemies before.
- Boxing Glove: The Joker wields a comical, spring-loaded boxing glove that quickly extends as a mid-range blunt force weapon.
- Jester Cane Sword: Disguised as a walking cane, the Joker sometimes wields a cane sword for bladed combat.
- Spinal Fluid: To make up for his lack of armor or superhuman durability, the Joker has a chemical housed in his spine that accelerates his healing factor, allowing him to regenerate from normally lethal wounds over time.
- Razor-Edge Playing Cards: To add to his "joker" theme, the Clown Prince of Crime has devised playing cards with bladed edges to throw as cutting projectiles.
- Acid Flower: The flower on the Joker's jacket can spray out a corrosive acid that can stun or melt opponents. It has also been filled with other things in the past, like simple water or even his Joker Venom.
- Joker's Joy Buzzer: The Joker often used a modified novelty joy buzzer strapped to the palm of his hand. The buzzer administered a lethal dose of electricity into anyone who came into contact with it.
- Dionesium: Joker's spine formerly contained the chemical compound Dionesium, within it. This allowed Joker to recover from injuries at an accelerated rate. He was able to regenerate his face after it was cut off, and instantly heal from a lethal gunshot.
- Mallet
- Blimp
- Smiley Face
- Spring Shoes
- Crowbar
- "Joker-rangs"
- Grappling Hook: Joker has a grappling hook with sharp teeth attatched, used for get to high places or to bring people closer.
- X-Ray Specs: These specs allow Joker to see his enemies the same way Batman does when he goes into Detective Mode.
- Jokermobile: To mimic the Batmobile, the Joker occasionally rides around the streets of Gotham in his own custom armored car, the Jokermobile. Though it is rarely ever more than a mildly modified car, it has been weaponized with several missiles and machine guns, as well as a boxing glove spring in the trunk.
Feats[]
Strength[]
- Strong enough to cut hands with a butcher knife like butter.
- Strong enough to send Batman flying with a kick.
- Easily knocked out Jason Todd.
- Easily beat Jason Todd to a bloodied mess.
- Can kick down a wooden door with ease.
- Left Scarecrow near dead after beating him.
- Snapped necks with ease.
- Shattered people encased in ice easily.
- Can brutally beat Nightwing.
- Bitch slapped Lex Luthor.
- Kicked Batman off a cliff/flipped him.
- Can beat Batman until he's near death.
- Can swing heavy steel poles like they're nothing.
- Overpowered Duke Thomas and Hal Jordan.
- Made Green Lantern spit up blood with a single punch.
- Nearly strangled Booster Gold to death after beating him up.
- Killed several League of Assassins with his bare hands.
- Can damage Aquaman with a few strikes.
- Knocked out the Creeper.
Speed[]
- Shown to be swifter than Batman himself before.
- Caught Black Mask off-guard.
- Fast enough to keep up with Dick Grayson.
- Can catch Batman off guard.
- With the aid of roller skates he is literally capable of running circles around Batgirl.
- Blocked Nightwing's throwing knives.
- Can dodge Batman's batarangs.
- Can casually outrun Batman.
- Can casually dodge gunfire.
Durability[]
- Consistently takes beatings from Batman.
- Has a high enough pain tolerance to cut off his own face and laugh it off.
- Has survived countless massive falls.
- Survived a stalagmite piercing through his back.
- Has shaken off explosions before.
- Resists mind control.
- Survived the accident that transformed him into the Joker.
- Survived a beating and brutal torture from Jason Todd.
- Endured a beating from Azrael.
- Laughed off getting shot in the kneecap.
- Tanked being blasted by fire.
- Tanked a beating from Nightwing.
- Tanked jumping out a window.
- Tanked getting slashed in the stomach.
- Tanked a car crash.
- Got stabbed in the hand and simply laughed it off.
- Took a stone pillar to the back and was fine.
- Has taken multiple gunshots.
- Completely immune to poisons.
- Has survived multiple falls from tall buildings.
- Can push his stamina past the normal human limits.
- Constantly cheats death.
- Survived being shot in the face.
- Survived a helicopter explosion.
Skill[]
- Manipulated the psychologist Harleen Quinzel into falling in love with him, driving her insane as his lover and lackey Harley Quinn.
- Outsmarted Batman on multiple occasions.
- Fights evenly with several members of the Bat Family in hand-to-hand.
- Claims to have found out the entire Bat Family's identities and addresses.
- Can form elaborate traps to capture even the likes of Batman with limited resources.
- Has lured Lex Luthor into traps before.
- Trapped and beat Jason Todd with a crowbar before killing him with a bomb.
- Tracked down and shot Batgirl, crippling her for life.
- Casually defeated Wonder Woman and her Amazons. (Batman: The Brave and the Bold continuity only)
- Defeated Ra's al Ghul in Chess.
- Infiltrated the Pentagon.
- Killed 12 League of Assassin ninjas.
- His plans are so genius that even the Riddler doesn't understand them.
- Knew about the Multiverse before it was revealed to still exist in Infinite Crisis.
- So insane he is unaffected by Scarecrow's Fear Toxin.
- Almost got Batman to kill him and break his code.
- Took an entire hospital ward full of newborn infants hostage.
- Killed Sarah Essen.
- Stole Mister Mxyzptlk's reality-altering powers.
- While he had reality-altering powers, tortured and killed Batman and Lex Luthor every day.
- Jokerized all metahuman inhabitants of Slabside Penitentiary.
- Manipulated a police sniper into killing several of his officers by dressing up said officers as him.
- Began a shooting spree with a high powered sniper rifle.
- Slaughtered a branch of the Royal Flush Gang.
- Killed an alternate version of Alexander Luthor.
- Captured Damian Wayne.
- Escaped Arkham Asylum several times.
- Crippled Dick Grayson of Earth 2.
- Has an amazing bank roll.
Weaknesses[]
- Humanity: Though he has taken beatings far greater than that of a normal person, the Joker is indeed still human. Because of that, any normal weapon can still greatly injure and kill him if applied correctly.
- Equipment Reliance: While the Joker has a brilliant mind and formidable hand-to-hand combat, much of his offensive power comes from his arsenal, which can be removed from the Joker or destroyed outright.
- Mental Illness
- Missing Eye: Joker had his right eye shot out by Harley Quinn.
- In alternate realities and timelines he can die from:
- Certain poisons (Batman: Arkham games)
- Neck snapping
- Impalement by Pirate Batman (Earth-494)
- Bitten by Vampire Batman (Earth-43)
- Impaled through the chest by Superman (Injustice)
Fun Facts[]
- Joker is most commonly voiced by Mark Hamill, who is famously known for playing Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars franchise.
- Another fun fact about Mark Hamill, it is impossible to spell his name without "Arkham", which is the name of an insane asylum in Gotham where Joker is commonly imprisoned after being subdued by Batman.