The ‘Clown Prince of Crime’ goes from goofball thief to psychotic killer in DC Comics’ Earth-One continuity! Stories featuring the original Joker (set on Earth-Two) portrayed him a criminal, prankster and an occasional killer. But the introduction of the Comics Code meant crime stories were no longer in vogue, so Batman‘s series became veered into the realms of strange sci-fi title in an effort to emulate the popularity of Superman’s books. However, this had a huge detrimental impact on sales.
While there’s no official beginning for Earth-One, there are many (see the credits below) who have a specitic take on when the new continuity starts! The popular belief is that the Silver Age version of the Joker made his debut in Batman #97. But this Joker didn’t have the killer instinct of the original and focused on committing goofy crimes, much like his TV counterpart played by Cesar Romero.
Jump ahead to 1970 – the beginning of the Bronze Age of Comics – and writer Denny O’Neill was saving Batman from cancellation, month after month, by taking him back to his roots as a detective and telling much darker stories than we’d seen the Caped Crusader partake in for quite some time. By 1973, he was ready to restore the Joker as Batman’s most-feared nemesis, making him a truly deadly threat! These stories continue to define the character to this day and, if you’re looking to read tales that feature this more familiar Joker from before DC restarted their continuity with CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS, then begin with Batman #251.
Thank you to the DCU Guide and the DC Comics Database for the assist!
Must Reads: Story arcs marked with a ✔ are the tales that feature notable Joker appearances; stories in which the Joker only makes a minor appearance aren’t ticked.
Chronology: All appearances of the Joker are included in chronological order, laying out their timeline rather than just the order the issues were released; all first appearances are in reference to the Silver and Bronze Age versions of these characters, rather than the original Golden Age versions.
Anthology Issues: When an issue contains multiple stories, the relevant story is denoted with square brackets. For example, [2/5] refers to the second story of the five stories in that issue, so you don’t need to read the other four.
Spoilers: The issue/story overviews may include spoilers, so be warned!
Did we miss something? Let us know!
| Must Reads | Title, Synopsis & First Appearances | Crossover / Event |
| Untold Legend of the Batman #1-3 (1980) Flashback: Batman recalls the possible origin of the Joker and their earliest interactions. |
Want to keep it simple? Here’s the core reading order without story descriptions, page-by-page breakdowns – just the stories:
- ✔ Batman #97 [1/3]
- ✔ Batman #110 [1/3]
- ✔ Batman #123 [2/3]
- ✔ Batman #127 [1/3]
- ✔ Batman #136 [3/3]
- ✔ Batman #140 [1/3]
- ✔ Batman #144 [2/3]
- ✔ Batman #148 [3/3]
- ✔ World’s Finest Comics #129 [1/3]
- ✔ Batman #152 [2/3]
- ✔ Batman #159
- ✔ Batman #163 [2/3]
- ✔ Detective Comics #332 [1/2]
- Justice League of America #34
- ✔ Detective Comics #341 [1/2]
- ✔ World’s Finest Comics #156 [1/2]
- World’s Finest Comics #159 [1/2]
- ✔ The Brave and the Bold #68
- ✔ Batman #186 [1/2]
- Batman #191 [1/2]
- ✔ Detective Comics #365 [1/2]
- Batman #200
- ✔ Batman #201
- ✔ World’s Finest Comics #177
- Superman and Batman: World’s Funnest
- ✔ Detective Comics #388 [1/2]
- Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen #125 [1/2]
- ✔ Justice League of America #77
- ✔ Batman #251
- ✔ The Brave and the Bold #111
- Batman #258 [1/6]
- ✔ Batman #260 [1/6]
- ✔ The Brave and the Bold #118
- ✔ The Joker #1-6
- Justice League of America #126
- ✔ The Joker #7-9
- ✔ The Brave and the Bold #129-130
- The Joker #10
- DC Super-Stars #10 [1/3]
- ✔ Batman #286
- ✔ Batman #291-294
- Detective Comics #472-474
- ✔ Detective Comics #475-476
- ✔ The Brave and the Bold #141
- Green Lantern #117
- Detective Comics #486 [1/5]
- ✔ Batman #321
- ✔ Detective Comics #504 [1/2]
- ✔ DC Comics Presents #41 [1/2]
- World’s Finest Comics #276 [1/5]
- ✔ The Brave and the Bold #191 [1/2]
- ✔ Batman #353 [1/3]
- ✔ Detective Comics #526
- ✔ Batman #365
- ✔ Detective Comics #532 [1/2]
- ✔ Batman #366
- Batman #373
- ✔ DC Comics Presents #72
- Swamp Thing #30
- Crisis on Infinite Earths #2, 9
- Ambush Bug Stocking Stuffer #1
- Swamp Thing #52
- ✔ Batman #400
| Must Reads | Title, Synopsis & First Appearances | Crossover / Event |
| ✔ | Batman #97 [1/3] (1956) The Joker starts announcing his crimes before he commits them, inspired by Batman’s new role as a guest-star on a crime-busting TV show. 1st appearance: Joker (Earth-One) | |
| ✔ | Batman #110 [1/3] (1957) Batman and Robin investigate a series of thefts and discover the Joker is selling off his plans to members of his Crime-of-the-Month Club. | |
| ✔ | Batman #123 [2/3] (1959) The Joker uses practical jokes to inspire his latest crime spree to confound Batman and Robin. | |
| ✔ | Batman #127 [1/3] (1959) A new costumed hero called the Eagle comes to Batman and Robin’s rescue when the Joker locks the Dynamic Duo in an armoured car; the Eagle’s career is cut short when his cosmic powers begin to fade. New identity: Alfred Pennyworth as the Eagle | |
| ✔ | Batman #136 [3/3] (1960) Batman and Robin are challenged by the Joker who commits a series of crimes based on the four elements, attacks the heroes in his Sky-Sled and faces defeat by the fifth element he forgot all about. | |
| ✔ | Batman #140 [1/3] (1961) It seems not even death can stop the Joker when he’s killed in an explosion but comes back to haunt Gotham City. | |
| ✔ | Batman #144 [2/3] (1961) The Joker dresses as Batman to chase his own gang members while they foil crime in Gotham; Batman uses a disguise of his own and infiltrates the Joker’s gang. | |
| ✔ | Batman #148 [3/3] (1962) The Joker finally unmasks Batman and learns his secret identity. | |
| ✔ | World’s Finest Comics #129 [1/3] (1962) Joker joins forces with Lex Luthor in Metropolis; Batman and Robin join forces with Superman to upend the formidable duo’s threat to cause chaos at the city’s biggest public events. | |
| ✔ | Batman #152 [2/3] (1962) A mysterious criminal mastermind organises some of Gotham City’s criminals into the False Face Society to commit crimes on his behalf; Batman and Robin investigate the identity of the gang’s leader. 1st appearance: False Face Society | |
| ✔ | Batman #159 (1963) Batman, Robin and Bat-Girl (Elizabeth Kane) face a major crime-spree in Gotham when the Joker and Clayface compete to prove which of them is the biggest threat to the city. | |
| ✔ | Batman #163 [2/3] (1964) The Joker traps Batman and Robin and forces them to stand trial in a court made up entirely of Jokers. | |
| ✔ | Detective Comics #332 [1/2] (1964) The Joker commits a series of robberies by causing his victims to burst into uncontrollable laughter; Batman and Robin find themselves falling prey to the Joker’s assault on their emotions. | |
| Justice League of America #34 (1965) Doctor Destiny makes the Justice League’s dreams a reality by making the foes and the crimes they commit in their dreams come true in the real world; the Joker battles Chac in the Amazon when Destiny reflects the events of Batman and Hawkman’s dreams. |
| Must Reads | Title, Synopsis & First Appearances | Crossover / Event |
| ✔ | Detective Comics #341 [1/2] (1965) The Joker disguises himself as Batman to escape capture at Robin’s hands when his plans to remake old comedy films by committing real crimes catches up with him. | |
| ✔ | World’s Finest Comics #156 [1/2] (1966) While Batman and Superman are off-world, Bizarro creates Bizarro Batman and takes him to Earth where they cause absolute mayhem; the Federation of Bizarro Idiots release the Joker from jail and he convinces them to join him in a crime spree. 1st appearance: Bizarro Batman | |
| World’s Finest Comics #159 [1/2] (1966) Joker cameo; exposure to gas in the Fortress of Solitude turns James Gordon and Perry White into costumed super-villains; the Anti-Batman and Anti-Superman steal trophies from the heroes’ headquarters, including a mask they give to the Joker. New identity: James Gordon as Anti-Batman, Perry White as Anti-Superman | ||
| ✔ | The Brave and the Bold #68 (1966) The Joker joins forces with the Penguin and Riddler to transform Batman and turn him into a rampaging Bat-Hulk; Metamorpho contains the Bat-Hulk and his three new criminal allies. New identity: Batman/Bruce Wayne as Bat-Hulk | |
| ✔ | Batman #186 [1/2] (1966) A diminutive clown called Gaggy becomes the Joker’s sidekick and helps him steal original or prototype items; their scheme draws Batman and Robin’s attention. 1st appearance: Gaggy/Gagsworth A Gagsworthy | |
| Batman #191 [1/2] (1967) Joker cameo; from his prison cell, the Joker reacts to the news that Batman has quit. | ||
| ✔ | Detective Comics #365 [1/2] (1967) Joker sets up his own shop to sell Joker merchandise when the sales of Batman merchandise go up; Batman and Robin become convinced there’s more to the Joker’s latest scheme and find he’s set up his own TV channel. | |
| Batman #200 (1968) Joker cameo; the Joker is among the villains recaptured by Batman and Robin while they search for the Scarecrow. | ||
| ✔ | Batman #201 (May 1968) The Penguin recruits the Joker, Catwoman, Cluemaster, the Getaway Genius, Mad Hatter and Johnny Witts into his Gangland Guardians to stop Mister Esper from taking control of Gotham City on behalf of the West Coast Crime Syndicate. | |
| ✔ | World’s Finest Comics #177 (1968) The Joker breaks Lex Luthor out of jail and takes him back in time to bring Benedict Arnold, Leonardo da Vinci and Baron von Munchausen into the present to help them commit crimes; Luthor and the Joker soon turn against each other and their time-displaced prisoners convince them to have a duel. | |
| Superman and Batman: World’s Funnest (2001) Superman and Batman take Lex Luthor and the Joker into custody, only for them to be freed by Mister Mxysptlk and Bat-Mite. | ||
| ✔ | Detective Comics #388 [1/2] (1969) Batman and Robin investigate the Joker’s night-themed crime-spree and steals an anti-gravity device from a demo at the Wayne Foundation. | |
| Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen #125 [1/2] (1969) Jimmy Olsen finds one of Nostradamus’ lost prophecies and tries to collect the tears of the Joker, Superman and others to gain powers. | ||
| ✔ | Justice League of America #77 (1969) ‘John Dough’ creates a public demonstration to oppose the existence of the Justice League and convinces Snapper Carr to reveal the location of the team’s Secret Sanctuary; Dough uses weapons from the trophy room against the League before Batman unmasks him as the Joker. New identity: Joker as John Dough | |
| ✔ | Batman #251 (1973) Having escaped incarceration from the mental hospital, the Joker seeks out the members of his gang and he’s willing to kill them all with Joker Venom to make sure the one who sold him out is dead; Batman tries to get to the gang members before the psychotic Joker, but his deadliest foe proves to be too cunning. | |
| ✔ | The Brave and the Bold #111 (1974) Someone’s copying the Joker’s style to commit a series of murders, Batman is forced to do the unthinkable and turn to the Joker for help in solving the case. | |
| Batman #258 [1/6] (1974) Joker cameo; when Two-Face breaks out of Arkham Hospital, he turns down the Joker’s request to let him tag along when the coin shows the scratched side. 1st appearance: Arkham Hospital |
| Must Reads | Title, Synopsis & First Appearances | Crossover / Event |
| ✔ | Batman #321 (1980) The Joker kidnaps Robin, Alfred Pennyworth and Commissioner James Gordon and straps them in to his Victim-Go-Round to celebrate his birthday; Batman’s interference leads to an explosive finale for the Joker. | |
| ✔ | Detective Comics #504 [1/2] (1981) Batman searches for the Joker after the suspicious death of a toymaker, only to fall into a series traps in the Joker’s ice cream factory hideout. 1st appearance: Olivia Ortega | |
| ✔ | DC Comics Presents #41 [1/2] (1982) Superman reluctantly turns to the Joker for help in locating a crime boss’s hidden stash, hopefully before the Prankster can get to it. | |
| World’s Finest Comics #276 [1/5] (1982) Joker cameo; the Joker is seen in his cell in Arkham Asylum. | ||
| ✔ | The Brave and the Bold #191 [1/2] (1982) ‘The Joker’ kills the Penguin on live TV; the real Joker calls upon Batman to ask him to help prove his innocence and find the man who’s framed him. | |
| ✔ | Batman #353 [1/3] (1982) The Batman investigates the theft of demolition explosive, only for the thief – the Joker – to try and kill the Batman with those same explosives. | |
| ✔ | Detective Comics #526 (1983) The Joker gathers a number of Batman’s foes – including the Scarecrow – in a plot to kill both the Dark Knight and his new foe, Killer Croc; the Joker is soon faced with Robin and Batgirl when his plans go awry. | ALL MY ENEMIES AGAINST ME |
| ✔ | Batman #365 (1983) Detective Comics #532 [1/2] (1983) Batman #366 (1983) The Joker takes Vicki Vale hostage; Batman only barely survives his confrontation with the Joker due to the arrival of a brand new Robin! New identity: Jason Todd as Robin | THE JOKER IS WILD! |
| Batman #373 (1984) Joker cameo; the Scarecrow breaks into Arkham Asylum, looking for revenge against the Joker for using him in his plot to murder Killer Croc. | THE FREQUENCY OF FEAR | |
| ✔ | DC Comics Presents #72 (1984) Faced with the interdimensional insanity of Maalador the Darklord, Superman and the Phantom Stranger turn to the Joker for help to counter madness with madness. | |
| Saga of the Swamp Thing #30 (1984) Joker cameo; sensing danger emerging from Louisiana, the Joker stops laughing. | LOVE AND DEATH | |
| Crisis on Infinite Earths #2, 9 (1985) The Joker and Batman both witness a vision of the Flash warning about the impending end of the world; the Joker is among the villains gathered by Lex Luthor and Brainiac to take advantage of the Crisis; Joker and Poison Ivy capture Freedom Force. 1st appearance: Anti-Monitor, Cosmic Tuning Fork | CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS | |
| Ambush Bug Stocking Stuffer #1 (1986) Joker cameo; the Joker receives an opportunity to reunite with Irwin Schwab, the Ambush Bug. | ||
| Swamp Thing #52 (1986) Joker cameo; the Joker is seen among the inmates at Arkham Asylum when the Swamp Thing breaks in. | ||
| ✔ | Batman #400 (1986) Ra’s al Ghul breaks Batman’s biggest foes out of Arkham Asylum and sends them all to draw out the Dark Knight; Joker and Penguin take over Gotham City Police Department Headquarters until Batman comes to their aid. | KNOW YOUR FOES |
More Joker Reading Order entries incoming:
- THE JOKER, 1940-1983: Earth-Two – The Golden Age
- THE JOKER, 1987-1990: New Earth – The Killing Joke
| Must Reads | Title, Synopsis & First Appearances | Event / Crossover |
| ✔ | Batman #145 [3/3] (1962) In a possible future, an older Batman confronts the Joker about a new threat claiming to be the Joker’s Son. | |
| The Joker’s Happy Victims! (1966) The Joker blackmails people into committing robberies on his behalf. Note: This is a free comic included with selected packs of Kellogg’s Pop-Tarts and is a retelling of Batman #52 with Earth-One versions of Batman, Robin and the Joker instead of Earth-Two. | ||
| Batman #300 (1978) In a possible future timeline, the Joker is revealed to have been cured of his insanity, but still remains in prison. | ||
| ✔ | DC Special Series #27: Batman vs The Incredible Hulk (1981) On Earth-7642, the Shaper of Worlds offers the Joker his greatest wish if he helps the Shaper restore his powers with an experimental Gamma-Gun; Joker attacks Wayne Research in Gotham City where Bruce Banner has managed to get a job under a false name; Banner soon transforms into the Hulk and the Joker convinces him Batman is his true enemy; Joker escapes with the gun and uses it to restore the Shaper, though it doesn’t last; the Shaper realises he needs the Hulk’s power to restore him, so he tricks Batman into helping him bring the Green Goliath to the Shaper; draining the Hulk’s power, the Shaper grants the Joker his wish to become king of the world; the Joker is horrified by the twisted world his subconscious has created and accidentally gives up his power, allowing Batman and Hulk to defeat him. 1st appearance: Batman/Bruce Wayne, Joker, Shaper of Worlds, Gotham City | |
| DC Challenge #7, 9, 12 (1986) Set outside of regular continuity, the Joker implies he’s heavily involved in the mystery everyone’s trying to solve when the alien heroes based on Earth start going missing; the Joker takes the place of the Guardians of the Universe on Oa until Batman intervenes. | ||
| Outsiders #6 (1986) Set outside of continuity, this parody story features a baseball game between the Outsiders and Kobra with numerous heroes and villains – including the Joker – in the stands. | ||
| ✔ | Detective Comics #569-560 (1986-1987) The debut of the Post-Crisis Joker is fairly quickly shown to be outside the new continuity as it doesn’t really fit into Earth-One or New Earth’s stories due to the reimagining of Batman and Catwoman’s origins in ‘Batman: Year One’. 1st appearance: Catwoman/Selina Kyle, Joker | |
| Batman: The Audio Adventures Special #1 [9/9] (2021) Batman: The Audio Adventures #1 (2022) Seemingly set on Earth-One, the comic spin-off of the podcast series features the Joker preparing for his latest scheme to mess with Batman. |
| Collected Edition Title | Collects… |
| The Joker: The Bronze Age Omnibus | Batman #251, 260, 286, 291-294, 321, 353, 365, 365-366, 400 Brave and the Bold #111, 118, 129-130, 141, 191 DC Comics Presents #41, 72 Detective Comics #475-476, 504, 526, 532 Joker #1-10 Justice League of America #77 Wonder Woman #280-283 |
| Collected Edition Title | Includes… |
| Batman: The Golden Age Omnibus vol.10 | Batman #97 |
| Batman & Superman: World’s Finest Omnibus vol.2 | World’s Finest Comics #129, 156 |
| The Brave and the Bold: The Bronze Age vol.1 | The Brave and the Bold #68 |
| The Brave and the Bold: The Bronze Age Omnibus vol.2 | The Brave and the Bold #111, 118, 129-130, 141 |
| The Brave and the Bold: The Bronze Age Omnibus vol.3 | The Brave and the Bold #191 |
| Batman by Neal Adams Omnibus | Batman #251 |
| The Joker: His Greatest Jokes | Batman #260, 353, 366 Detective Comics #388 |
| The Joker: The Clown Prince of Crime | Joker #1-9 |
| Justice League of America Archives vol.9 Justice League: The Bronze Age Omnibus vol.1 | Justice League of America #77 |
| The Strange Deaths of Batman | Batman #291-294 |
| Tales of the Batman: Len Wein | Batman #321 |
| Batman: Strange Apparitions Legends of the Dark Knight: Marshall Rogers Tales of the Batman: Steve Englehart | Detective Comics #472-476 |
| Tales of the Batman: Gerry Conway vol.1 | Detective Comics #504 |
Reading Order © Omniverse Comics Guide 2024
I was looking for the first SA of Joker and thought it was Batman #97 but per a few sites state Batman #110 is it as it was published in Oct 1956 as that is when Silver Age starts. And #97 was published Feb 1956. Thats what I found.
If it helps, Silver Age Batman’s first appearance is considered by many to be Superman #76 in 1952, with his next appearance being Batman #81 three years later. The Golden/Silver Age transition is far from clean! So it makes it an interesting ear to pick apart and what’s considered to be Earth-Two and Earth-One continuity is, again, something that’s up for debate and not a clean-cut “from this issue on” or “from this year on, this is the Silver Age” as this was largely retroactive
I’m correcting my info I just posted. Batman 103 was first SA, Oct 1956. 110 was supposedly the fist SA Joker, Sept 1957. Sorry about that
its cool, John, these things are always up for debate, especially with DC continuity, byt the most common belief these days is that, yes, Batman #97 was the Silver Age Joker’s first appearance. But hey, I like to think people can make up their own minds about these things and can pick and choose what they prefer the answer to be from their own, personal perspective. If you believe it should be 110, then 110 it is! – Dave