| “ | You say you didn't want to hurt me, yet you did. And I insist I don't intend to hurt you, but you know what? You are so going to be my Mona Lisa, and I, for one, could not be more proud. Forget you ever met me. | „ |
| ~ The Joker about to torture Dr. Harleen Quinzel for subjecting him to her shock therapy. |
| “ | She perked as she hear gunfire. She knew what that meant and she couldn't wait for him to make his appearance. The wall behind her exploded. Paramilitary thugs in bulletproof armor and gas-masks power-sawed their way into her cage. Then he walked in. Barefoot and dancing, dressed like the finest Belle Reeve guard. And he was smiling, The Smile. | „ |
| ~ Joker rescuing Harley after breaking into Belle Reeve. |
The Joker is a major character in the novelization of the 2016 DC Extended Universe film Suicide Squad. Based on his film counterpart, he is a psychotic crime lord of unknown origin, the lover of Harley Quinn, and the archenemy of Batman. Like in the films, he was responsible for the death of Batman's protege/sidekick Dick Grayson, also known as Robin, which made Batman take on a more ruthless and violent approach in fighting crime.
Biography[]
Nothing is known of the Joker's origins nor his real identity. At an unknown point in time, he fell into a vat of chemical at ACE Chemicals, which permanently bleached his skin pale-white, his hair dyed a color green and his lips were stained with a bright red, which gave him a clown-like appearance. As he has been exposed to the chemicals, he also suffered brain damage from oxygen deprivation. This, along with the sight of his own disfigured appearance, drove the Joker completely insane, becoming a psychotic, deranged, homicidal, and fearsome maniac nicknamed "The Joker", who then rose through the ranks of the Gotham criminal underworld to become the top 1 crime lord in all of Gotham.
The Joker would then get into conflict with Batman, becoming his archenemy and his greatest adversary in the process. During their repeated interactions, he developed a twisted love for Batman and their games together. Joker would eventually be defeated and then arrested. Batman would frequently imprison him in Arkham Asylum, where during his time as an inmate, he was assigned to a psychiatric intern named Dr. Harleen Quinzel as her patient. During a session, he was subjected to shock therapy that left him “in a black hole of rage and confusion.”
As Dr. Harleen regularly visits him and the sessions became frequent, the Joker managed to psychologically sabotage and manipulate her, causing Harleen to fall in love with him. When his henchmen, led by Johnny Frost, broke into the facility and slaughtered many guards and prisoners while freeing their boss. They soon tied Harleen Quinzel down and she was forcibly strapped to a gurney. Though she tried to reason with him, Joker angrily confronts her over being subjected him a shock therapy that left him "in a black hole of rage and confusion". He then sadistically subjected her to a prolonged electroshock therapy as retaliation for being subjected to her own shock therapy. Harleen's experience during that time fractured her psyche and she was left psychologically traumatized, which deteriorated her stability, losing whatever sanity she has left in herself.
Chemical Wedding[]
Joker takes her to ACE Chemicals, where he makes her swear an oath to love only her and bind and consigning her spirit to him, which she accepts before plunging herself into a chemical vat. Joker immediately turns to leave, believing that he has finally gotten rid of her but was conflicted over his choice, having fallen love with Harleen and so decided to jump in after her. He pulls Harleen to the vat's surface and gives her a kiss, awakening her. The two then kiss and the Joker lets out maniacal laughter. With her skin now-bleached white and her mind twisted like the Joker, Harleen began referring to herself as 'Harley Quinn' and became his accomplice/lover in most of their crimes before getting into conflict with Batman, becoming known (as would later called by Amanda Waller) as the criminal King and Queen of Gotham City.
Death of Robin[]
Many years prior to the events of Suicide Squad, Joker murdered Dick Grayson/Robin, Batman's sidekick and adopted son. Furious over Robin's death, Batman vengefully pursued the Joker and Harley Quinn as they are riding in the former's sports car. Joker tried to shake him off by driving into Gotham river, despite Harley's protests that she can't swim, forcing Batman to grapple away. When he dove into the water to arrest the duo, he finds the Joker gone, as the Clown Prince of Crime had escaped, though he left Harley behind in the process, and she was arrested and sent to the supermax-security prison Belle Reeve.
Suicide Squad[]
Years later into the present, the Joker had become bored and miserable, due to the long absence of not only Batman but also Harley Quinn. He began drowning his sorrows in alcohol while surrounded by all of his bladed and firearm weaponry. His right-hand man Johnny Frost then came in and when demanded on Harley's location, he was unable to provide a clear answer and just informs his boss of a US government-backed plan to form an ops group of criminals to partake in missions in exchange for reduced prison sentences. Seeking more answers, the Joker has his henchmen go to a casino and find Captain Hunter Griggs, one of the guards of Belle Reeve, who was forcefully subdued and brought to the Joker, who sadistically interrogated him, which cowed Griggs to submission, and the Joker learns that Harley Quinn is at Belle Reeve. In addition, he also learned that Amanda Waller intends to use her as a member of Task Force X/Suicide Squad and that she implanted an A.R.G.U.S nano bomb in her head.
Seeking to rescue his love, the Joker then forced Griggs into agreeing to lead him to the facility where the A.R.G.U.S nano bombs are made and also made him deliver a phone to Harley before her deployment so he could communicate with her once her nano bomb was disarmed. While driving to the Van Criss labs with his goons, Joker has a faction of them kidnap the wife of Dr. Van Criss, the scientist that created the nano bombs for Amanda Waller. When the Joker and his goons arrived at the facility, Van Criss Laboratories, a security guard refused them entry, but one of the Joker's goons, nicknamed Panda Man, gives him a package to deliver - he claims it to be a fruit basket for Dr. Van Criss. However, it turns out to be a bomb the goon had concealed, which blew up, killing the guard, allowing the Joker and his men to easily invade the facility. Storming into the building, they killed several guards and anyone that stood in their way before reaching Van Criss's lab. Though the scientist was protected by his office's bulletproof glass, he was horrified when the Joker showed him a live feed of his kidnapped wife, which forced Van Criss to let him and his men in. Moreover, he was forced to agree to accompany them and disable Harley's nano bomb. Out of sadistic amusement, the Joker picks up a nearby nano-bomb implementation injector and shoots it into Van Criss's neck, causing the scientist agonizing pain.
With Dr. Van Criss in their company, the Joker and his goons hijack a Chinook chopper, killing all of the special forces troopers inside. Joker becomes impatient as Van Criss worked to track the signal of Harley Quinn's nano bomb, but the scientist assures that everything is going as far as it is going and requests that he force the pilots to get them to isolate Harley's signal, which they comply. After testing Van Criss's honesty, a smiling Joker tells him that he's his "new best friend". When the chopper reached the Suicide Squad's location, Rick Flag immediately realized it has been hijacked and has US military personal attack it, prompting Johnny Frost to retaliate with a chain gun, forcing the squad to scatter. After Dr. Van Criss disarms Harley Quinn's nano bomb, Joker immediately notifies her through an SMS on her phone and throws down a rope for her to grab onto. As an overjoyed Harley climbed up the rope to reach him, Amanda Waller orders Deadshot to kill her for the sake of having the chance of seeing his daughter Zoe again. He reluctantly complies and attempted to assassinate Harley but missed, to Waller's fury.
As the Chinook flew off, Harley was overjoyed that her Puddin' has rescued her but finds him to be in a bad mood, as he was angry that she hadn't messaged him earlier. As their reunion proved to be tensed, this was interrupted when a Blackhawk copter, piloted by Waller's agent Captain George Hawk, began shooting their chopper down before striking it with a hellfire missile. As the chopper was about to crash, Harley and the Joker were separated when the former was hurled out and she watched in devastation as the chopper crashed into the Groiler building, which seemingly killed the Joker and everyone else on board.
Later, when Enchantress telepathically assaulted Harley, the latter sees herself now named Harley Ker in a vision and had married the Joker (now named Jo), in which they are living together as a happy couple with two children. Harley eventually snapped out of it thanks to El Diablo, who proved to be resistant to Enchantress's telepathic attack. Following Enchantress's defeat, while Harley is back in her now-more comfortable cell in Belle Reeve with a now reduced prison sentence, the Joker, who had survived the chopper crash, breaks into the prison with his men, who are in disguise as paramilitary troopers. After they broke through Harley's cage, Joker, dressed up as a prison guard, reveals himself to a jubilant Harley with a smile.
Trivia[]
- The novel adaption version of the DCEU Joker is capable of making a rictus grin, much like his mainstream incarnation and his 1989 incarnation while his film version does not.
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