Back باتمان: النكتة القاتلة Arabic Батман: Убийствената шега Bulgarian Batman: The Killing Joke Danish Batman: Lächeln, bitte! German Batman: The Killing Joke Spanish بتمن: شوخی مرگبار Persian Batman: Tappava pila Finnish Batman: The Killing Joke French באטמן: הבדיחה ההורגת HE Batman: A gyilkos tréfa Hungarian
| Batman: The Killing Joke | |
|---|---|
 Cover of Batman: The Killing Joke by Brian Bolland | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Format | One-shot |
| Genre | |
| Publication date | March 1988 |
| No. of issues | 1 |
| Main character(s) | |
| Creative team | |
| Created by | Alan Moore Brian Bolland John Higgins |
| Written by | Alan Moore |
| Artist(s) | Brian Bolland |
| Letterer(s) | Richard Starkings |
| Colorist(s) | John Higgins (original) Brian Bolland (Deluxe Edition) |
| Editor(s) | Dennis O'Neil |
| Collected editions | |
| Trade Paperback | ISBN 0930289455 |
| Trade Paperback (Titan Books) | ISBN 1852860820 |
| DC Universe: The Stories of Alan Moore | ISBN 1401209270 |
| 2008 Deluxe Edition | ISBN 5012256263 |
| Noir | ISBN 140126364X |
| Absolute Edition | ISBN 1401284124 |
| Novel | ISBN 1785658107 |
| 2019 Deluxe Edition | ISBN 1401294057 |
Batman: The Killing Joke is a 1988 DC Comics one-shot graphic novel featuring the characters Batman and the Joker written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Brian Bolland. The Killing Joke provides another origin story for the supervillain the Joker, loosely adapted from the 1951 story "The Man Behind the Red Hood!", which was written by Batman co-creator Bill Finger. The Joker's supposed origin is presented via flashback, while simultaneously depicting his attempt to drive Jim Gordon insane and Batman's desperate attempt to stop him.
Created by Moore, Bolland, and Higgins as their own take on the Joker's source and psychology,[1] the story became famous for its origin of the Joker as a tragic character; a family man and failed comedian who suffered "one bad day" that finally drove him insane. Moore stated that he attempted to show the similarities and contrasts between Batman and the Joker. The story's effects on the mainstream Batman continuity also included the shooting and paralysis of Barbara Gordon (a.k.a. Batgirl), an event that eventually leads her to develop the identity of Oracle, secret data broker for the DC Universe's superhero community and leader of the superhero team Birds of Prey.
Many critics consider the graphic novel to be the definitive Joker story and one of the best Batman stories ever published. The comic won the Eisner Award for "Best Graphic Album" in 1989 and appeared on The New York Times Best Seller List in May 2009. In 2006, The Killing Joke was reprinted as part of the trade paperback DC Universe: The Stories of Alan Moore. In 2008, DC Comics reprinted the story in a deluxe hardcover edition, which featured new coloring by Bolland, with a more subdued palette than the original. Elements of The Killing Joke have inspired or been incorporated into other aspects of Batman media.