10 Most Inappropriate Joker Storylines

7. Poisoning A Group Of Innocent Children - The Dark Knight Returns

The Dark Knight Returns Joker
DC Comics

Poisoning someone is never cool. Poisoning a group of people is even less cool. And poisoning a group of children is about as low as you can go.

Of course, this is the Joker we're talking about here, and this is a figure who is devoid of morals if it means he can get one over on the Caped Crusader. In Frank Miller's seminal The Dark Returns, killing off a bunch of kids is just one of the many misdemeanours carried out by the Harlequin of Hate.

This 1986 tale is one of those rare ones where the Joker actually dies. Like, for real. With Batman deciding that he needs to finally put his nemesis down for good, a purported battle to the death comes up a little short when Bruce ultimately ends up paralysing the Joker rather than killing him. Still, determined to make it look to the public that Bats is a murderer, the Jester of Genocide uses his last ounces of strength to break his own neck and end his life.

Prior to this final fight, Batman had been lured to the county fair, where he found the corpses of hundreds of children who the Joker had gleefully handed out poisoned cotton candy to.

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 and Presenter, 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 day job, his role as 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 and Eli Roth to Kevin Smith and the Russo Brothers, to Kevin Conroy and Frank Miller, to Bret Hart and Sting, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, and Brian Flynn, to many, many more. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is a long-standing season ticket holder and an FSA Award-winner for his time co-hosting the Fearless in Devotion podcast.