10 Most Inappropriate Joker Storylines

8. Eating China - Emperor Joker

Joker Harley Quinn
DC Comics

Rather than happening in a Batman story - as is so often the case - the antics on display here from the Clown Prince of Crime actually happened in a Superman tale titled Emperor Joker.

Released in 2001, here we find the Joker interacting with long-time Man of Steel villain Mr. Mxyzptlk. A god-like imp with the ability to warp reality, the curious Mxy decides he'd like to see what would happen if he gave just 1% of his powers to a human. Step forward, the Jester of Genocide.

Ever the cunning devil, Joker tricks Mr. Mxyzptlk into handing over 99.99% of his powers, and thus Mr. J becomes one of the most powerful beings in the galaxy. With Superman on a mission to bring a halt to Joker's spree of deranged depravity, Batman's nemesis sets about having some fun with the capabilities now at his fingertips.

Here, the Joker murders Lex Luthor, gleefully slaughters Jimmy Olsen, and tortures and kills Batman before then reanimating him and repeating the process every single day. As for China, Emperor Joker bizarrely eats the entire nation and its population - all while making quips that are at best inappropriate, at worst outright racist.

Eventually, Mr. Mxyzptlk and the Spectre rebuild reality and save the day.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.