Who's Who in the Superman Comics

Joker

The Joker

He gets his kicks causing others to kick the bucket. The Joker is one of the world's most infamous super villains. Primarily opposing Batman in Gotham City, The Clown Prince of Crime has fought Superman in many key confrontations.

The Joker first battled Superman when he threatened to destroy Metropolis with a thermonuclear bomb. He even managed to kidnap Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, and Perry White. (Mentioned in Superman Villains Secret Files and Origins #1).

When The Joker was named as an ambassador of Iran, Superman was contacted by the United Nations to protect the demented comedian from any attempts of vengeance on the part of Batman. Days before, The Joker was involved in the murder of Robin, Batman's partner, and secretly Jason Todd, a ward of Bruce Wayne. As it turned out, the joke was on the UN General Assembly, as Joker tried to poison its diplomats with his lethal laughing gas. Fortunately, Superman inhaled the gas, and foiled what would have been one of the worst acts of terrorism. (As seen in Batman: A Death in the Family trade paperback collection).

One of Joker's latest battles against Superman was initiated when Anson Turley, the owner of Turleytoys, introduced figures and accessories for a toy line based on The Joker. Looking for his next big hit in the toy industry, Turley thought that he would make millions of dollars capitalizing on a famous face, minus licensing fees and royalty agreements. The toys were introduced to the public at the Metropolis Toy Fair, enraging The Joker. He then kidnapped Turley, and tried to sabotage the Mile-O-Mirth Parade. Superman eventually foiled Joker's fiendish plot, but the joke was not over: The Joker, despite his incarceration, managed to deliver a discarded Joker doll to Lois Lane (ACT #714).

Unfortunately, the figure was coated with a lethal toxin, and when Lois grabbed the doll enough times, the poison was triggered and sent her into a deadly convulsion and successive critical condition. Enraged, Superman sought Batman's help, and the two heroes questioned The Joker in Arkham Asylum. Eventually, Batman saved Superman from killing The Joker, and ultimately, Lois recovered from the serum. The Dark Knight correctly deduced that the joke would have been on Superman. By killing Joker in a fit of rage, The Joker would have made Superman into a coldhearted killer, all the while knowing Lois would not die. Thus, innocent blood would have been on Superman's hands (ACT #719).

The Joker became an even more lethal foe to Superman in the Superman: Arkham and Emperor Joker storyline. Beginning in a strange backwards world where Superman is a villain who escapes every day only to be imprisoned again, we find out slowly that Mr. Mxyzptlk has been persuaded to give Joker a small touch of his power. Joker of course uses it for complete insanity, and the world is almost destroyed. Only through the combined efforts of Superman and Mxyzptlk was Joker able to be stopped, and not without consequence...because of the Emperor Joker storyline, Ignition, Faora, and even a new Bizarro have entered Superman's world.

Recently, a perverted doctor tricked The Joker into thinking he was going to die from an inoperable brain tumor. Orchestrating his insidious "Last Laugh", The Joker went wild, infecting several super villains with a strain of Joker Venom, thereby making them deadlier than normal. He caused acid rain to fall on San Francisco. And worse, his venom intoxicated the evil sorceress Circe, who transformed Superman into a mad monster, similar to Doomsday. Wreaking havoc in New York City, Superman and the city were ultimately saved by Wonder Woman (Wonder Woman #175).

Indeed, while The Joker is Batman's archfoe, he is equally qualified to be registered in Superman's Rogues Gallery.



Who's Who in the Superman Comics

Introduction

This is a listing of many of the notable characters and a few places that have appeared in the Superman comics from the 1986 revamp up until around 2008.

NOTE: A new, and more current version of the Who's Who is currently being worked on and can be accessed by clicking here.

Although Superman often appears in other DC Comics, this text's information is limited mainly to what has occurred in the regular Superman comics.

Many thanks to Scotty V, Derrick Lyle Coleman, Dean Vanek, Genevieve Clemens and Benjamin Grose who all helped out at one time or another with writing and updating these Who's Who descriptions.

The listings are displayed as follows:

  • Surname, Firstname - Text describing the character, place, object, etc...

Relevant issues of the Superman comics are listed as such:
  • SUP = Superman
  • MOS = Man of Steel
  • AOS = Adventures of Superman
  • ACT = Action Comics
  • MOT = Man of Tomorrow

The Issue Number for each of these titles is written in this manner: “#000”. (e.g. SUP #123)

“First Appearance” refers to the issue since 1986 unless otherwise noted.



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