10 Terrible Mistakes That Nearly Ruined The Joker For Everyone

3. Giving Him A "Daughter" And Ex-Girlfriend

Harley Quinn was a great character when introduced in The Animated Series, but her comedy always had a dark tinge to it: one day, the Joker would show her how little he cared by leaving her to die or killing her himself. But she was too popular to die, and when she moved to the more adult world of comic books, the cycle of abuse got too depressing, so eventually Harley left the Joker and started headlining her own series. Duela Dent, a delusional woman who believes herself to be the Joker's daughter, has been running around comics on and off since 1976. While comics can always use another empowered woman or two, it's hard to explain why the Joker hasn't made an example of them. It seems like every moment they're free and alive, they're diluting his brand, and the Joker is always brand-conscious. What Fixed It: It's hard to fix this one entirely, though Suicide Squad #13-15 (2012) and Scott Snyder's "Death of the Family" storyline at least made an effort, putting the old Joker-Harley dynamic in a much more macabre light.