Should The Joker be dead by now?

[Keehar]

Let me start off by saying I do not actually want the Joker killed off. He's my fav Batman villain. I'm just being hypothetical here.

Looking at the amount of evil and monstrous things the Joker has done over the years. The hundreds, maybe thousands of people he's killed, not to mention the amount of people close to Batman that he's hurt and killed, you'd think that someone would have bumped him off years ago.

I mean, he's not some super powered villain. He's a normal guy. All it would take is a bullet between the eyes. Run him down with a car. Poison his food in Arkham etc.

I know Batman has been sorely tempted to do it. And Commissoner Gordon too [you really, really can't blame that poor guy]. But, you'd think that someone from the family or friends of the many people Joker has slain, would have killed him or tried to kill him.

I've seen people say it's actually ridiculous that he's still alive. Anyone else agree??

[DWEarhart]

Maybe, but then Batman should have been killed off long ago too. So should have Nightwing (who, technically, did kill the Joker), and Robin, and others.

Batman's secret identity isn't exactly the worlds best kept secret any longer.
Someone could have been tortured enough into giving it up, or just being mind probed.

Joker still being alive just adds to his place as the true nemesis of Batman. Both are human, yet in a world filled with god-like beings, they live and they thrive with only their wits and their determination.

One light one dark.

[Kid Kyoto]

Well we all know the real reason, because Egghead just isn't quite ready to take over as Batman's arch enemy. :)

But the long-standing answer to this is if Batman kills the Joker the Joker has won and shown that everyone is just like him and will kill if things get bad enough.

I remember someone, somewhere (Grant Morrison) offered the answer that the Joker was some sort of force of chaos who possesses hosts, so he may in fact have died already. Not a bad idea but not really suited to Batman.

[Eliseu Gouveia]

Like someone once suggested:

Prison Guard#1: With compliments from my sister who you killed 5 years ago....
Prison Guard#2 : And from my dead son.
BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!
BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!

Prison Guard #3 (bends over the corpse) : Look! He´s got a concealed weapon!

BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!

[ChthonicSpirit]

Like someone once suggested:

Prison Guard#1: With compliments from my sister who you killed 5 years ago....
Prison Guard#2 : And from my dead son.
BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!
BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!

Prison Guard #3 (bends over the corpse) : Look! He´s got a concealed weapon!

BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!

Exactly. Even if Batman won't kill the Joker, someone would have walked into Arkham and blown his head off by now. Or he would have been executed, given that he's been declared sane enough to stand trial in the past.

[choptop]

Well we all know the real reason, because Egghead just isn't quite ready to take over as Batman's arch enemy. :)

hey! dont dog my boy Egghead he may not be ready yet but givie him time +he's cool.:D

[OverMaster]

Well, one thing we have to consider is, we have already seen the Joker shot multiple times by cops, shot multiple times *and then trapped in an exploding plane over the sea*, hit by lightning, shot squarely in the face, falling into industrial chimneys, *and* still surviving all that.

I figure Gotham has just got the clue by now and stopped trying in vain. :p

[Effect]

There is still the option of slicing him up into little pieces, beheading, cutting him in half at the waste or from the head straight down.

I agree though that someone should have killed Joker off a lone time ago or tried to. This is part of why I enjoyed Under the Hood vol2 as much as I did and why I had a hard time being on Batman's side in that story in the end. Joker needs to be killed and should have been killed a long time ago. The character has just been written into that type of a corner think. Batman clearly can't get the job done. Another would have had to have gotten feed up with Joker and stepped on Batman's toes to get him.

I still hold to the opinion that no matter who killed Joker, as a results people in general would have to be written as praising and thank the character (hero in this case) I think for doing so and wouldn't want to charge him with anything even if Batman hunted that person down and handed him over the cops. I would think with the amount of death Joker has brought people would be extremely happy to see him killed.

[yourverysilly]

well, look, Batman should have died a few thousand times already too! people could try to kill the joker, but security in arkham being how it is...I mean he'll never stand regualar trial because he is insane, and security guards who have personal beefs with the joker wouldn't be employed.

Jesus! just suspend your disbelief guys!

[King Krypton]

I think the problem is that the Joker's been turned into such a one-note serial killer type that keeping him alive doesn't make a lot of sense. It seems like every time or almost every time he shows up, it turns into a slaughterhouse. Frankly, it's not only boring and diminishes him as a villain, but it really makes Gotham City law enforcement look stupid for not putting him down already. Batman won't kill him simply out of a moral choice, but why wouldn't he have been sent to the gas chamber or Ol' Sparky by now?

If you look at the Golden and Bronze Age Joker, as well as the animated version, the character wasn't a walking bloodbath. Dangerous? Yes. A killer? When it suited him, yes. But was it all he ever did? Nope. He had grandiose schemes and plots that often DIDN'T involve loss of life, or at least would only result in Batman's death. There was also a playfulness and sense of fun to him that's been absent for a quite a while now. With that Joker, there wasn't that feeling of "why hasn't this guy been kacked yet?" There was more variety and panache to him that made him worth keeping around. That's been lost, and in recent years all he seems to do is kill, kill, kill. He's not interesting or fun anymore, and as a result it makes perfect sense that people would be questioning why he's still alive after everything he's done. So yeah, I have to agree with the feeling that the Joker's been written into a corner. But then again, that's happened to a LOT of the DC icons post-Crisis.

[Chudy]

In my point of view Joker should be dead. In NML there was a brillant moment in Endgame, when Gordon have to decide whether kill Joker or be faithful to rules. The Death of Joker in Endgame by Rucka and Grayson could be an wonderful top of his carrier.

But no, boys from DC want to earn more and more money. That's why Joker live! And it's very pathetic. Just see, how he was used in War Crimes, Hush, Hush Returns and The Red Hood Saga. Writers of these stories don't understand this character. They only wanted to use him, 'cause they have known that it will be certain success. Financial success.

Joker was one of my favorite characters. WAS. Thanks to Loeb, Lieberman, Winnick, Willingham and Gabrych, things change. Good for him, if he would be dead.

P.S. Although Dini did great Joker story in Det' 826. But let face the truth - all hope is in Morrison hands.

[rwe1138]

In my point of view Joker should be dead. In NML there was a brillant moment in Endgame, when Gordon have to decide whether kill Joker or be faithful to rules. The Death of Joker in Endgame by Rucka and Grayson could be an wonderful top of his carrier.

That was awsome. After Joker killed Sarah Essen-Gordon, then surrendered to the cops, and Jim contemplated blowing his brains out. Even Bruce stepped aside and basically said, "If you do it, I won't stop you." And then Jim plugs him in the kneecap, which Joker finds hilarious: "My God! You shot me! I'm gonna be a cripple...Just like your daughter! Good one, Commissioner! Hahahahaha!" To have that much restraint, especially after all of No Man's Land, speaks volumes about Jim Gordon's character.

And don't forget, once Dick got so pissed, he did beat Joker to death in the Joker: Last Laugh event. Then someone (implied to have been Bruce) brought him back with CPR. That was an uneven storyline, but had some truly great moments with Barbara debating with Dick whether or not Joker should just be killed. Really, if anyone gets to do the deed, it should be Jim or Barbara Gordon. He's put them through more shit than anyone else, even Bruce.

[Kristofer]

When he does die, though, it's a very lame way.
I mean, I have always imagined the death of the greatest villian of all time to be some kind of huge event, lasting several pages long....but, no. In Kingdom Come, Magog just walks up to Joker as he is leaving the courtroom and fires his trident into his chest...not in battle, not dramatic...just in the most sissified pansy-like way...while Joker is in handcuffs and defenseless

[IamtheRock3]

they should be a story though where they least TRY to kill the Joker. A group of citezens.

And batman force to try to convince them why its wrong. Then it could have a flashback of Joker greates hits with the citezen charcter mix in. Or maybe they have Joker tied up and torturing him like Suicide Kings



But yea someone said in a thread I made about. If batman killed the Joker would anyone besdie him care. Someone said the exchange would go something


Batman to cop- I JUST KILLED THE JOKER arrest me

Cop- Dang its a nice day out today

Batman- I did it, I shot him, slice him to a 1000 peices and fead him to his dogs

Cop- Feels warm

Batman- are you listen

Cop- Boy I wonder if the Ice cream story open. Sure love ice cream..lalalalalla


also someone said it be weird if batman popularity grew after that for something he ashame of doing

[davids]

In the real world some beat cop sick of this nut job killing so many and getting free to kill so many more wouild just shoot him dead and put a throw away saturday night special in his hand and reprt he killed him in self defence!

Then agai he could piss of wonder woman and his head ight end up on a pike?