The world's most iconic superheroes wouldn't be the same without their token archenemies, and no one knows this better than Batman. While comic books have produced many troubling personas over the years, the Joker is arguably the most quintessential super-villain in history. Since 1940, countless authors have crafted their own renditions of the Clown Prince of Crime.

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Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo's notorious The Batman Who Laughs yielded one of the most alarming depictions yet, but it's not the most terrifying. The popular villain has been the center of some of the most discomforting storylines ever written. Here are 10 versions of the Joker that are actually scarier than The Batman Who Laughs.

10 Batman: Bloodstorm Joker

While this Joker was just as psychotic as ever, his direct actions weren't what made Bloodstorm so macabre — it was the curse that remained long after his death. This alternate universe involved Batman being bitten by Dracula and becoming a vampire. Also, the crucifix-wielding clown in this adaptation killed Selina Kyle (Catwoman), prompting Batman to sink his teeth into human flesh and consume the blood of his first victim ever — the Joker.

Riddled with guilt, Batman arranged for Commissioner Gordon and Alfred Pennyworth to stake him to prevent further deaths. Unfortunately, this didn't kill the Bat and he ended up paralyzed while his body decayed. Alfred released him, but the Joker's tainted blood had already worked its magic and the Dark Knight went on to decapitate more victims and drink their blood. Moral of the story? Even death isn't enough to terminate the Joker's influence and few things are scarier than that.

9 The Batman R.I.P. Joker

Batman vs The Joker in Batman R.I.P.

Batman R.I.P. was an extensive storyline involving the likes of the Black Glove, Robin, Jezebel Jet (Bruce Wayne's girlfriend), and Nightwing. A lot goes down in this narrative and it's certainly a doozy. Aside from his terrifying character design, this Joker disfigured his own face, toyed with Batman's mind, and went on a murderous rampage.

This comic also finds a living, breathing Bruce Wayne restrained in a straitjacket and buried inside a coffin, which is appalling (and claustrophobic) enough as it is. Then again, the image of a shirtless Joker decorated with blood, wearing suspenders, and wielding two blades is equally as unnerving.

8 The Clown At Midnight

The Clown at Midnight

Batman #663 saw the Clown Prince of Crime's reinvention after he took a gunshot to the face. The issue has a reputation for being incredibly strange and the layout of the comic is unconventional as a whole. Nonetheless, the villain is just as scary as ever.

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Harley Quinn was a key player in this comic as the Joker used her to carry out the murder of his old associates. Batman eventually intervened, but his efforts to stabilize the violent sidekick were futile. The Joker wreaked havoc on Gotham, as per usual, and Harley was amazed by the new and improved Mister J... until she found out he intended to kill her. Yikes.

7 Joker by Brian Azzarello

Brian Azzarello's graphic novel featured a handful of infamous DC evildoers, such as Killer Croc, The Riddler, Harley Quinn, and Penguin, but the Joker was obviously the greatest threat of all. This version of the clown was more thug-like and he embarked on killing sprees while reclaiming his turf. In a twist we're still not fully accustomed to, his main nemesis in this storyline was Harvey Dent, not the Caped Crusader.

Serving as an exploration of the Joker's mangled psyche, this graphic novel is utterly disturbing. The final showdown is unsettling, but that only goes down after Mister J attacks Harvey with broken shards of glass glued to his fingertips and rapes a woman named Shelly in front of her ex-husband, Jonny Frost.

6 Emperor Joker

Emperor Joker is a godsend for the minority of people that find themselves unimpressed by the Joker as a human character. This arc dismissed the criminal's mortal weaknesses and showcased a timeline where he was almost omnipotent and omniscient. What could possibly go wrong?

As a victory meal, this godlike Joker decided to devour the entire population of China. He continuously tortured and killed Batman (of course) just to resurrect him and repeat the cycle day after day. He also slaughtered Lex Luthor and orchestrated Jimmy Olsen's murder. It ultimately took Superman and Mister Mxyzptlk to put an end to the clown's reign, erase Bruce Wayne's crippling memories, and restore the world to what it had previously been.

5 The Dark Knight Returns Joker

This limited series takes place in the future where Batman is forced out of retirement by the staggering amount of crime plaguing Gotham. As could only be expected, the Joker also re-emerges, convinces the doctors at Arkham Asylum that he's mentally stable, and appears on a late-night talk show only to unleash a cloud of lethal Joker venom on the audience... and that's only the beginning of his barbarity.

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The madman batters Selina Kyle and dresses her up as Wonder Woman to taunt Bruce Wayne. He also kills a group of 16 Cub Scouts, continuing his psychotic rampage despite losing an eye to the Caped Crusader. Batman breaks the clown's neck but doesn't kill him. The Joker takes matters into his own hands, twisting his head until the rest of his spine snaps, framing the Bat for murder in the process.

4 The Joe-ker

This might be a bold statement, but the New 52 Joker is possibly the most abusive towards Harley Quinn yet. The depiction of their dynamic was distressing and it didn't just stop when the clown delivered a brutal blow to her face. He shackled her in a dungeon full of human skeletons — which he claimed were the remains of previous "Harleys" — and told her that he was leaving her there to rot.

While the comment about "other Harleys" was likely a cruel prank, he continued to relentlessly make her life a living hell. One panel even found him hanging her by the neck with a heavy metal chain while bearing that same terrifying smile that's endlessly plastered on his face.

3 The Killing Joke

The Joker leering directly at the reader in The Killing Joke

No discussion of Joker's depictions is complete without the mention of this 1988 DC classic. The Killing Joke is notorious for its brutal storyline where the clown ambushed and shot Barbara Gordon, leaving her paralyzed and in need of a wheelchair. Thus, Oracle as we know her was born.

To make matters worse, it was implied that the clown sexually assaulted Barb, but she wasn't the only Gordon that suffered in this one-shot issue. The Joker's henchmen captured Commissioner Gordon, stripped him naked, and then chained him to one of the park's rides. The purpose? To force him to observe photos of his wounded daughter.

2 Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth

One look at A Serious House's art style is enough to solidify this as one of the most dreadful portrayals of the Joker. Courtesy of illustrator Dave McKean, this graphic novel yields some of the most nightmare-inducing imagery regarding the clown-faced psychopath.

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As the name implies, this story took place at Arkham Asylum where the inmates dominated the staff and took over the institution. The criminals were willing to free the hostages under one condition: that the Caped Crusader was captured. Naturally, the whole fiasco was orchestrated by the Joker who generated a series of traps and games for the Dark Knight to endure.

1 The Death of the Family Joker

Death of the Family was basically the Joker/Leatherface crossover that no one asked for, but it now stands as one of the most horrifying versions of the villain to date. The clown scheduled a meeting with Dollmaker and granted him permission to cut his face off. Wearing his own rotting flesh as a mask, the Joker targeted Batman's family, including his butler Alfred.

Not only did he capture and beat Alfred, but he preyed on the weaknesses of the rest of the Bat-family and abducted them as well. An abundance of blood is shed throughout this story arc and a lot of disturbing things go down, but what more could you possibly expect of Mister J?

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