Joker Becomes a Loving Father

Joker adopts a Silver Back Ape and teaches him the ropes to Crime!
Batman 2011 #23.1
#content #explained #comics #explore #new #dc #dccomics #batman #joker

[@Fridge_Fiend]

He was a good father. Jackanapes was just too pure for this world

[@hecrosegreat3943]

Did You miss the part where Joker laughed at His death?

[@Drakavio]

@@hecrosegreat3943 The Joker does not allow himself to feel anything, he tends to repress his feelings as much as possible and he says so in the story. How he tries to teach the same thing to Jackanapes, but at one point it didn't work anymore

[@whathaveicreated1197]

@@hecrosegreat3943 he is emotional but also keeps laughing off his ass the next panel with a personality disorder.

[@whathaveicreated1197]

@@hecrosegreat3943 if joker was a bad parental figure he’d just nearly starve him in a cage, he did make him a family member. No spankings too!

[@localdumbass9355]

@@whathaveicreated1197 true

[@DementedDuskull]

The Joker: "The world is a cruel and unjust place. There is no harmony in the universe. The only constant is suffering." Also The Joker: "omg. An ape."

[@blazikenchad8876]

Joker really said "monke"

[@mithmoonwalker]

imagining mark hamil saying this is perfect

[@Souper482]

I think the saddest part is that Joker did such a good job he accidentally raised a literal ape to be well adjusted enough to understand the weight of his own actions.

[@tanimation7289]

I do feel that Joker was only laughing as a defensive mechanism for all the pain he goes threw. He really felt sad but was too used to laughing it off like he always dose.

[@oshkeet]

Yeah, there's something fucked up in that it might be the only way Joker knows how to respond to strong emotion anymore.

[@tanimation7289]

@@oshkeet This even extends to why he’s always smiling when Batman beats him up.

[@Polymerata]

@@tanimation7289 so in actually it's actually him crying but without water

[@tanimation7289]

@@Polymerata More or less.

[@rebeccapell4030]

@@Polymerata Yes and no, he's honestly a very VERY complicated character. It's honestly hard to tell what's going through his head but judging by the story this just seems to be a coping mechanism and not him trying to be sadistic. This is his way of grieving. It's just to the average person it looks like he's being an a-hole.

[@joshhayes5728]

As always with the Joker, never trust anything he claims to be his back story. "If I'm going to have a past I prefer it to be multiple choice" - Joker, The Killing Joke

[@trickster80]

or, like in Grant Morrison implies, all of his backstories are somewhat true

[@manuelmoralez2257]

@@trickster80 that’s what I always believed

[@newtybot]

Well, he didn't SAY this backstory, we saw it personally via flashback

[@tanimation7289]

Yet a common thing is that he was constantly abused.

[@Kiiieeechiii]

@@tanimation7289 he definitely had a traumatic childhood so I do believe that in all his backstories

[@rightwing707]

While this story ended in tragedy, I am enjoying his current arc in the Harley Quinn Show. He's been nothing short of a great and supportive stepfather to his kids and I'd love it if the "joke" ends up being that he really does care about them.

[@kerdnerl]

Wait what!? They have kids!? Also a new season of hq is out!?!

[@garpogods8323]

​@@kerdnerl he got a seperate family that accepted him being a mass murderer and he later became mayor of Gotham to spite the leader of the PTA. Currently hes removed the police force and apparently managed to jail Bruce on tax evasion. Currently up in the air if this is him thinking it will actual improve anything or one massive plot to cause chaos.

[@callmezeldaonemoartime]

But he does care about them what? That’s his entire character arc

[@fireblast133]

@@callmezeldaonemoartime two face was trying to back Gordon as mayor, and tried to force Joker to drop from the race by kidnapping his adoptive son. When Joker arrived he didn’t really hesitate to choose his son’s life over his ambition to become mayor. It actually ended up playing out as an opposite of the Killing Joke with Joker convincing Gordon not to kill Two Face for almost murdering an innocent child.

[@goatlover6312]

@@garpogods8323 I think it’s quite clear that while he loves his wife and kids and wants what’s best for them he hasn’t really changed otherwise. He is definitely just creating random chaos for the fun of it but is trying to make it better for his kids at the same time.

[@carloscristero]

This is prime joker writing. He is not a true socio/psychopath. He can feel real emotions like sympathy and empathy. Sadly the joker serum kicks in whenever he starts to have genuine emotions, and reset him into a state where the positive emotions either wash away, or get twisted into something negative. Truly making him the one irredeemable villain in the Batman verse.

[@averageminecraftenjoyer9419]

I always thought he was immune to it

[@ItsSupercat94]

since when has that been the case? I've never heard of that before

[@carloscristero]

@@ItsSupercat94 If you read the wiki about the joker Venom. The effects always vary between strains and comics, but some common traits remain the same every time someone is "Jokerized" in the non fatal way. 1) Personality turns sadistic, and have random bouts of psychotic traits. 2) Uncontrollable fits of laughter and twisted sense of dark and violent humor. 3) No matter what personality there was before, the new Joker personality always prioritize abusive behavior, murderous and manipulative against fellow man. 4) The chemicals in the body is always active, and can even be used for new joker serums. Face always end up in a big grin, and clownish traits.

[@pinstripe4254]

@@carloscristero yeah but as far as we know the Joker made the toxin. It’s sort of nebulous as to how it actually works but some versions compare it to a degenerative disease that’s been modified to erase certain parts of you and put joker like traits into those parts. Really while yes the joker isn’t truly mad, how he is is all him. Although it is an interesting concept that maybe original joker wasn’t that bad, but then he got exposed to his own toxin. Which made him spiral down into the mass murdering psycho that he is

[@stevensanchez1192]

Idk, I prefer a more euclid back story mastermind Joker like Heath Ledger, over a typical screwed up back story Joker. In my eye's the Joker is a special villain so he deserves special treatment when it comes to execution. The whole "I smoked chemicals make me insane + messed up backstory" just feels like something I could've written as a twelve year old.

[@randomnothingness6557]

1:28 I fucking love the face joker makes in the bottom panel. There's just so much in it and it's an amazing reaction pic.

[@D.W.M.T.Y.A.W._CheckAbout_]

He looks like he just had a tax payment due at 2 am, and it’s 2 pm… along with having Taco Bell at 1:59 am, only to feel the repercussions 12 hours later… Only to finally see how lacking his toiletries are.

[@ariadnefrolich7243]

This is surprisingly heartfelt - *Joker laughing that he needs a refund* Nevermind, he's still an a-hole.

[@Wirmsl]

Well its probably because joker supresses all of his emotions

[@ballerinvader8893]

@@Wirmsl yeah your god damn right

[@theend-nz6vs]

@@ballerinvader8893 breaking bad

[@Anti-Zoophile-FurryandPedo]

@@theend-nz6vs breaking bad reference

[@_aWiseMan]

@@Wirmsl thats literally the effects of the toxin in his body too. He can still feel, but it gets overwritten with twisted joy or laughter almost always. Except for when he literally cant do anything and is ignored. Then it turns into obsession

[@boomgeneral]

I really like this story as the joker names the monkey Jackinape, and at this time the identity of the joker was a mystery apart from a few stories that could have been made up, but one of jokers "fake" names was Jack napier which I think the reason why joker loves the monkey so much is because he wants to himself grow up the way he thinks he deserved to be, the last bit of sanity to leave the joker

[@aaerondight5163]

>the last bit of sanity to leave the joker This sentiment is slowly getting popular for better and for worse

[@darkmask5933]

You have to wonder, is it more frightening for the Joker to hate you, or to love you? He seems to treat the people he deludes himself into thinking he actually has an emotional connection with so much worse than you'd think.

[@rebeccapell4030]

I'm sorry but if the Joker loved me I- I would lose it. I would be like "Why me go after Batman or something!?! I AM A BACKGROUND CHARATER! I do NOT want to become apart of the main cast."

[@StronkSeal_Eyelashin19]

Joker laughing as like a maniac seems like an obvious coping mechanism from being clinically insane. Like Jackanape was pure and was gonna be like the next Joker. Joker probably still had some sadness in him.

[@rebeccapell4030]

I'm happy I'm not the only one that noticed it was probably a coping mechanism. It's not like he's actually happy he just doesn't know how to express how he's feeling so he does it through well comedy.

[@vakanimates9208]

Me at the start: huh...he is good, wow... Me at the end: huh...he is still Joker, wow...

[@tanimation7289]

He still was a loving dad. Hell the joke about swimming lessons had a respect to his son.

[@vakanimates9208]

@@tanimation7289 best dad joke ever fr

[@tanimation7289]

@@vakanimates9208 It was clearly his way of coping with the loss. Similar to how he laughs when being beaten up by Batman.

[@JudgeNicodemus]

God I love that panel of Jokers face as he sees the baby silverback. It's soooo good.

[@alecaquino4306]

He's a great father. He just lives in the moment.

[@mangareader7474]

Wow the joker showing emotion other than craziness but he’s still a killer

[@twinkiesauce1852]

He was a “good” father. Raised him. Treated him good; not like his “upbringing”. But sanity kicked in and he was the joker we know in love like his son never existed or he was bootling up his emotions to not seem weak but he is heartbroken jackanapes died. Another loved ones died infront of him

[@someone-cz9fc]

He had a family and just laughed it out in the end

[@bruh-ie7cj]

If joker wasn't so insane he would be the best father anyone could have

[@comicfan1324]

I remember Harley Quinn in injustice once discovered she was pregnant and even though she was obsessed with Mr. J could tell he would not be a good father figure. I think this comic proves that she was right…

[@Kiiieeechiii]

I loved the “backstory” for him in this

[@DrBagPhD]

F. You'll be missed, Jackanapes.

[@actionman9451]

He was also great Dad later on in the Harley Quinn series.

[@MRF1983]

I'd love to see a sort of inverted Bat who laughs battle between Joker and an alternate reality heroic Red Hood version of himself. I've loved the idea ever since I watched the Batman: The Brave and the Bold episode where Batman teams up with just such a version of Joker.

[@OneOfGamers]

Joker still being alive is a Bloody miracle

[@f-zilla7347]

I think some small part of the Joker that was human cared for Jack to be sad that he died, only for the Joker to cope with laughter and a joke.

[@ironlisa7s]

I guess you can say he now makes...DAD JOKES

[@sebastiantakesanl9913]

Bro really said "Oh no, anyway"

[@RyanTheMan000]

*Joker looks CRACKED im these panels, christ-*

[@MoniCarl7790]

Joker finally having a normal day of crimess

[@TheTrueTruffle]

Rip Jackanapes

[@Batz-xk3nt]

This is more in character with joker than him getting pregnant.

[@spidey5558]

What

[@THawkMedia]

@@spidey5558 don't ask. Comics are weird

[@grandcanyon-fu9zt]

If this happened during the silver age, no one would over react like they did.

[@THawkMedia]

@The Thing unfortunately, it is a comic

[@sushiiiii26]

@@THawkMedia fr?? what's it called?

[@scarymeunster9095]

Joker has always had very specific and inconsistent barriers as to what he will and will not do, so I could totally see him having an actual hallucination that he believes to be true and doing this and then just having no emotional response to it and laughing it off. The little tell I can see is that he did sincerely enjoy his time with Jackanapes because he wants to do it all again. He has never been shown to have any comprehension of sadness unless literally nothing else is possible (i.e. Batman dies or gets revealed and the Joker persona loses its purpose), so him just deciding to laugh it off and try again is his closest idea to caring about him. It’s childlike, in a way. He can’t comprehend the idea of being sad unless he physically cannot bring himself to be happy.

[@vandalsavage6743]

Dude this is literally Batman with all his Robin relationships

[@YurinanAcquiline]

Agreed.

[@valmid5069]

What If: *The Joker adopts Harambe*

[@luismedina5792]

What if this was the harambe in the DC Universe

[@TheNewRobotMaster]

Part of being a good parent is knowing when to let go. So yeah, I guess Joker is a good parent!

[@reizu886]

Bro is optimistic af

[@adamalvarez7450]

Let's be real if it had been Harley actively trying to open her parachute/wings and crying for help when they didn't open Joker wouldn't have even noticed. He loved that monkey

[@rorocksisagod4046]

Even when he's crying he's still insane completely insane

[@ronanstander3022]

i think the laughing part was a coping mechanism, a lot of the time when he is genuinely defeated he will end up laughing hysterically, so when jackanapes died that kind of kicked in

[@fictionschmiction4478]

He's also not a nazi, beat the shit out of Red Skull in a cross over.

[@grandcanyon-fu9zt]

Red Skull would destroy Joker in a fight lol

[@Getoutman]

​@@grandcanyon-fu9zthe did beat him tho... -

[@pattik_]

he had good intentions but he is evil after all.

[@Irfan-jc9kg]

joker is the best dad ever....i respect him

[@labbit35]

Well in terms of wanting your child to be a villain then yes, he is a good father

[@Clowningnet]

What's 17 more years? I can always start again make another kid

[@emmadavies8117]

I think joker deals with sadness with twisted comedy and joy either intentional or unintentional

[@theblissone]

I like how Joker just laugh and ignore what has happened,Not mean he don't feel anything but what has done is done.

[@rosedante709]

Joker:what the hell is that crying sounds? "Scp 096 cry"

[@MLGodzilla]

I’m so glad this is exactly what I thought it would be

[@lilmango7826]

He was a good father on his twisted way

[@TheMaskOfFairies]

I realised that the name Jackanapes was shortened to Jack which is often Joker’s alias(Jack Napier) when he pretends to be a sane person to trick people.

[@kristinegoco5952]

Joker in 300 years: Revives all jackanapes

[@TitularHeroine]

That's intense, and a lot of that art is amazing.

[@johanthanosa-uwagboe2846]

Well from the eyes of batman joker is a sick man who hurt and gets hurt and laughs so he wouldn't feel it

[@mat-ys2gl]

This is just a dad joke with a killing punchline

[@FilmmakeroftheFuture]

Joker is what he’s always been, insane.

[@jacobthebigbadwolf62]

The ending just like jokers life is the ultimate coping mechanism...inanity over reality. Some may be bummed with the ending but this is exactly how joker handles loss and shit... he escapes into madness and rejects it all and he BELIEVES it. The joker may by no means be a good man a good father maybe but there is method in maddness. His reaction is...proof of his grief

[@rat3446]

Joker: "Mhh Monkey."

[@plaguedoctor8317]

He’s….better than some fathers at least

[@dbzcupcake]

Anyone else notice it's becoming a theme that Joker actually would adopt a kid and not murder them 🤔

[@lewisberry4429]

Some amazing singing there. 😂

[@skullman-us7wn]

Joker really went “Hm. Monke.”

[@Wildwest_Frog]

"he taught him to steal candy and bully children and even teach him how to say the n-wor-"

[@Alex-hu9uc]

Joker won't be Joker without a punchline

[@cadentubeohara3970]

Joker seems to laugh off pain as a defence mechanism like how in the killing joke he laughs and tells a joke right after showing a hint of sadness at how far he’s went to prove his point the joker hides his real thoughts and emotions with insanity and laughter you only get glimpses at his real thoughts until he switches back on the insane laughter the killing joke ending and jackanapes’ death are examples of that glimpse then switch back to insanity these moments show despite the insanity and his many devious acts somewhere deep down he is still the human who he was all those years ago “Jack Napier” “Joseph Kerr” “John Doe” all names versions of joker have went by when he wasn’t the clown prince of crime sometimes you need these reminders at batmans enemies are really just mentally ill people who are sent to Arkham not as justice for their crimes but to give them the psychological help they desperately need

[@lexbayardbellonueva4752]

Joker is just broken he needs a loving family just a family

[@stonyclouds94]

Joker technically laughs more through the pain than when he is up to his no-good deeds. That was definitely his form of mourning along with trauma abandonment issues. (It’s easier to tell yourself the person you lost made a mistake that was fatal than it is to admit that your atrocities caused your child to unalive themselves.)

[@Devilhand21]

Sometimes, grief can be too much for someone and they can only do something that they're known for doing in such times. Most cry, others become angry and a few laugh. In the end, Joker was a better father than Bruce in some ways, and that isn't a joke. How many times were the kids raised by the Batman placed in absolute danger? Been heavily injured, tortured or even killed all because of Batman? One too many times to count now imo. And Joker in this comic only had his son in one dangerous situation but had a plan to get away, and unfortunately Jack decided to kill himself to make up for all the wrong he did. We also learned about this Joker's past and how he only wanted to raise a kid that was raised how he wanted to be raised as a kid, even though his kid was an ape.

[@David-lq6de]

I just wanna see Gorilla grodds reaction to all this

[@DerpyCookieMc]

If I had a nickel for every gorilla villain with guns I’d have like 3

[@supimtired283]

If you really want see a good father joker check out, Joker: The One-Man Operation when he’s the father of batman

[@sushiiiii26]

💀

[@thecrudelab3204]

dude looked like the pog emote for a sec

[@hepatitisf7495]

So this is where that joker face comes from

[@_grievous_the_epok_gamur_7140]

He’s got the iconic “Damn, that’s crazy” face

[@padraigmaclochlainn8866]

Joker was able to be so connected because it's the one thing nobody gives him- Care and attention for the chaos of it. He was able to take control through a method he never felt himself, he used love to manipulate and break people only for either his own worship or even just goons for power and financial gain. A son gave Joker the chance to imprint his view without any over the top praise like Harley and a loyalty akin to blood- something no money in Gotham could ever buy. Perhaps the laughing at the death is because Joker is the Joker, it's a joke in the end to him. He find humor in the despair, a man through numerous universes has been scrubbed with Bleach, lost his wife and child while holding onto nothing- Plus this is a primate- I'm sure Joker feels pride in knowing even a primitive form of a human can find the beauty in chaos. His death almost seems to save Joker the heartbreak of family dysfunction and the their last moments The Joker was unable to really feel with Jackanapes.

[@parmflace]

I thought this was about the time Batman get reverted into a baby and the Joker get confused so he become his father, in a manga

[@XBloodyBaneX]

I wouldn't say it was tears of joy, just that he's the Joker, sad isn't part of his routine, it's part of his psychosis to reflect tragedy with comedy. He needs to make a joke out of every bad thing, because he's unable to mentally handle it.

[@amixedbag5964]

He's a great father, For the bizarro universe probably. Am i the only at the end who felt like joker actually felt sadness deep down but because of how twisted he is the only way he coped with it was the way he knew how

[@lavazilla8870]

8t depends on the view point if we were like joker or if we were joker then yes he was a great father but yo any sane/normal person no he wasn't but he did care for the ape in his own way and didn't torment it so yes joker was a great father in his own way

[@ongogablogian4396]

Oh man, I was thinking it was the OTHER more recent "child".

[@Solqueen86]

Monsieur Mallah and Brain see Joker and Jackie downtown The Brain: honey, You see this Sh*t?

[@AceDetective002]

Well their is a Manga where Joker becomes Batman's father after the two fought in the factory where Joker fell in the vat of chemical and became the the villian he is today, only this time when Batman fell in he turned into a baby. Joker decided if he were to get his rival back he would raise him to become Batman again.

[@thestonemason7413]

You cant really have a villain with a healthy childhood Except Big Jack Horner i guess

[@andreasherg]

These writers keep going for these crazy ideas, but i guess it works.

[@mrjeis20]

Joker he just too broken to be crying.

[@Snooperiso]

Little did you know that ape turned into Gorrila grod

[@A1phaz0ne]

Just some casual snake vore, holy shit lol

[@j0lian142]

Me when i on keep inventory on hard mode in minecraft:

[@oiwithyou]

Sounds like a spin drum during that drum roll.

[@esanscoopsers7538]

the thumbnail just makes it look like he wants to become monke

[@Motherbound]

for a minute i thought this was gonna be the birth of gorilla grodd

[@jinjeredge]

Her: you have got to be a Gorilla developing nuclear weaponry if you think we fucking Me and my silly ass: 2:34

[@cecileanderson4567]

That African drum roll😂😂😂😂

[@SherlockD9761]

Joker is still a menace

[@Wojtek_Ch]

You look like a mix of Shaggy and Alucard from Hellsing. And it's not an insult.

[@john4387]

i say joker he tried to be a lovely father so he can't be treated bad just like him i am pretty sure joker never felt emotional only just smile

[@JediMasterJasonOG]

Joker was a good father until he realized he could just steal more apes if he needed

[@the_infinexos]

Looking at the thumbnail, I thought he went full Tarzan and clapped some gorilla cheeks

[@OI-YEN-AH-OH-YEN-ME]

Before I even knew this comic existed, he totally would want a fucking ape.

[@rebel._]

i think Joker should have took Jackanapes to Ace Chemical

[@TitularHeroine]

Wow..... I'm imagining a maniac ape in Joker colors

[@MCNarret]

I can believe this was all a joke to him.