Joker's Millions
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Joker's Millions is both a comic book story and an animated television episode.
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[edit] Comic book
Joker's Millions is a story published in Detective Comics #180 in February 1952. As with all early Batman comics, Bob Kane is the only person credited for the comic, but the comic itself was probably written by Bill Finger or Walter Gibson.
[edit] Plot Summary
At the funeral of "King" Barlowe, a criminal racketeer and rival of The Joker, Joker is surprised to learn that he inherited Barlowe's vast fortune. With his newfound fortune, the Joker builds himself a life of luxury and retires from crime. Joker spends his money freely, thinking he still has plenty left, only to discover that the rest of the fortune is counterfeit as a joke of Barlowe's. He then receives a visit from the IRS, who wish to collect an inheritance tax.
The Joker is torn between reporting the money as counterfeit (thus becoming a laughing-stock in the underworld) or returning to crime in order to rebuild his fortune. The Joker chooses to the latter option, yet he decides to commit normal crimes so that no one would suspect him. First he breaks into a bank safe, but "fate's invisible hand plays a strange trick" as the wind blows a banner onto the bank the Joker just robbed, making it look like a joke crime. After discovering Joker's money is counterfeit, Batman and Robin have to prove Joker is committing these crimes.
When Joker performs a stick-up at the Gotham opera house dressed in a trenchcoat, Batman is able to guess that the Joker was behind it and burns the theatre's tickets to I Pagliacci to make it look like a Joker crime. A similar deduction occurs after Joker tries robbing the Gotham Zoo. Batman locks himself in the zoo's bat cage to make it look like a joke performed by the Joker. The Joker, jumping at the chance to satisfy his ego, claims to an underworld friend that he had robbed the zoo for the sole purpose of humilating Batman. However, the underworld friend was Batman in disguise, and with a recording of Joker's confession, the Joker is arrested.
[edit] Publication
As well as appearing in Detective Comics #180 it has been reprinted in:
- Batman: The Complete History (Paperback, 1999, Chronicle Books ISBN 0-8118-4232-0)
[edit] The New Batman Adventures episode
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| The New Batman Adventures episode | |
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| “Joker's Millions” | |
| |
| Episode no. | Season 03 Episode 007 |
| Writer(s) | Paul Dini |
| Director | Dan Riba |
| Original airdate | Feb. 21, 1998 |
| Episode chronology | |
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| "Never Fear" | "Growing Pains" |
Joker's Millions is the seventh episode of the first season of the American animated television series The New Batman Adventures. First aired on February 21, 1998. It was written by Paul Dini and directed by Dan Riba.
This episode is an adaptation of the comic story, yet with many changes. There are more examples of the Joker's dark humor, including one scene where the Fake Harley irritates Joker to the point that he nearly shoots her, but is stopped by one of his minions. Instead of Robin, Batman is accompanied by Batgirl and Nightwing (however, Dick Grayson, AKA Nightwing, was the Robin from the original comic story). Several other Batman villains make small appearances in the story, including Harley Quinn, The Penguin and Poison Ivy.
[edit] Plot Summary
The Joker and Harley Quinn flee a botched attempt at a robbery, pursued by Batman and Batgirl. Joker's money problems come up constantly during the battle, as they cannot afford ammo or gas for the getaway car, and the Joker can only afford one ejector seat for his car, which he uses to escape from Batman. In the meantime he ditches Harley, who is arrested and taken to Arkham Asylum. The Joker retreats to his low-income apartment and gets a sudden burst of glee when he reads a letter revealing that one of his criminal enemies, Edward "King" Barlowe, has passed away and left his money for the Joker.
The first thing Joker does with his money is assemble a team of shady lawyers who are able to erase Joker's criminal records and have him declared sane. Dick Grayson (Nightwing) and Barbara Gordon (Batgirl) observe Joker when a "going legit" party is held for him at the Penguin's Iceberg Lounge. To their chagrin, they wind up saving Joker when a disgruntled former bodyguard of Barlowe attempts to kill the clown. Joker continues to enjoy his new wealth. At Arkham, Harley is confident that Joker will eventually set her free, only to be outraged when she learns that Joker is holding auditions for a new "henchgirl". She makes an escape from Arkham, using the laundry chute. The Joker soon hires a new hench-girl, whom he dubs "Fake Harley".
Problems soon arise for the Joker when he learns that he owes the IRS a large inheritance tax. While trying to gain the required money from his vault, he finds that all of his remaining money is counterfeit. He then discovers and plays a video tape that Barlowe made shortly before his death. Barlowe accurately predicts the Joker's situation and laughs at him until Joker blows up the television in anger. The Joker now finds himself having to choose between reporting the money as counterfeit (thus becoming a laughing-stock in the underworld) or returning to crime in order to rebuild his fortune. The Joker chooses to the latter option, yet he decides to commit normal crimes so that no one would suspect him.
The Joker attempts to steal a load of money from the Gotham Mint as it is transported by boat. So that no one will notice his absence, the Joker hires one of his thugs to pose as him in the Iceberg Lounge. But Batman sees through the disguise and interrogates the thug until he reveals Joker's scheme. Batman, Batgirl and Nightwing are able to successfully capture the Joker, Fake Harley and their goons, even though at one point Joker tries to commit suicide as an alternative to losing his money. In the paddywagon, Joker is ready to laugh off the whole fiasco, but he finds that the police officer supervising him is actually Harley in disguise, and she repays him with by beating him with a club.
[edit] Trivia
- This is the Penguin's first appearance in The New Batman Adventures and the first animated appearance of his Iceberg Lounge.
- The beginning of the episode emphasizes Joker's poverty. This plot thread is carried over from the three-part Superman crossover episode "World's Finest", in which it was shown that Joker had lost "everything" after his numerous battles with Batman and was now desperate for cash, leading him to attempt killing Superman for Lex Luthor.
- An event from "World's Finest" is directly referenced at one point in the episode. Bruce Wayne reminds the fake Joker of his most recent encounter with the real Joker, when Joker pushed him off a building "last month". The said scene happened in the second part of "The World's Finest", during Joker's kidnapping of Lois Lane.
- At one point Harley dons a police officer costume, similar to the one she wore during her first appearance in the episode "Joker's Favor".
- This episode contains a musical montage of Joker enjoying his fortune. The music from this montage would be reused in a different montage in the Superman: The Animated Series episode "Superman's Pal".
- The Fake Harley bares a resemblance to comedian Fran Drescher, both physically and vocally.
- The male candidate for replacement Harley is based on writer Paul Dini, although his voice more closely resembles the Freakazoid character Fanboy.
- The scene where Joker uses lawyers to buy his freedom is a satire of the O.J. Simpson murder case. One of the Joker's lawyers resembles Johnnie Cochran, one of Simpson's lawyers on the case. The lawyer's phrase of "If a man's filled with glee, that man must go free!", is similar to "If the glove does not fit, you must acquit!", the lawyer's catchphrase that he used many times during the Simpson trial. The same lawyer reappears several episodes later, in "Over the Edge".
