Batman #251 (1973, Joker's Five-Way Revenge)
The Issue That Made the Joker Terrifying Again
Batman #251, published in September 1973, contains one of the most important single stories in Batman history. "The Joker's Five-Way Revenge" by writer Denny O'Neil and artist Neal Adams took a character who had spent the previous decade as a campy prankster and transformed him back into a genuinely menacing, homicidal villain. This single issue effectively reset the Joker's characterization for the next fifty years of storytelling.
The cover, illustrated by Neal Adams, shows the Joker looming over Batman with a playing card, a striking image that has been referenced and homaged countless times in subsequent decades. It remains one of the most recognized covers of the Bronze Age and a cornerstone issue for Batman collectors.
Historical Context
By 1973, Batman was in the midst of a critical creative renaissance. The 1966 television series starring Adam West had pushed Batman comics toward campiness and humor, with colorful villains, outlandish plots, and a generally lighthearted tone. When the show ended in 1968, the comics gradually began shifting back toward darker, more serious storytelling.
Editor Julius Schwartz, along with writers Denny O'Neil and Frank Robbins and artists Neal Adams, Irv Novick, and Bob Brown, had been steadily reinventing Batman as a darker, more grounded character since around 1970. The "Darknight Detective" (as the era came to be known) returned Batman to his roots as a creature of the night, operating in shadowy Gotham City against genuinely dangerous criminals.
The Joker had largely been absent from Batman comics during this transition period. His last several appearances had been as a relatively harmless trickster whose crimes were more mischievous than murderous. O'Neil and Adams saw an opportunity to reintroduce the character in a way that matched the new, darker Batman.
The Story: Joker's Five-Way Revenge
The plot follows the Joker after his escape from the State Hospital for the Criminally Insane. He has a list of five former henchmen, one of whom he believes betrayed him. Rather than simply finding the traitor, the Joker decides to kill all five, methodically working through his list.
The story is structured as a series of set pieces as Batman races to find and protect the targets before the Joker reaches them. Each murder is creative and deeply unsettling, utilizing the Joker's signature toxin (Joker venom) and elaborate traps. The Joker poisons one victim at a swimming pool, stalks another through an aquarium, and dispatches others with equal theatrical cruelty.
What makes the story revolutionary is tone. The Joker is shown as genuinely frightening, his humor masking real psychopathy rather than substituting for it. He laughs while killing, finds his own murders amusing, and treats the entire enterprise as a game. This characterization, the laughing murderer who finds death funny, became the definitive Joker template for generations of writers.
The story climaxes with Batman confronting the Joker at a deserted beach, one of Neal Adams' most dramatic sequences. The resolution is satisfying without being simplistic, ending with the Joker's capture rather than his death, preserving the character for future stories.
Neal Adams' Artwork
Neal Adams was at the peak of his powers in 1973, and Batman #251 showcases everything that made him revolutionary. His realistic anatomy, dramatic use of shadow, and cinematic panel compositions brought a visual sophistication to superhero comics that had rarely been seen before.
Specific highlights include:
The cover composition, with the Joker's elongated face filling the upper portion while Batman appears vulnerable below
The aquarium sequence, where Adams uses reflections and underwater perspectives to create tension
The beach confrontation, rendered with dramatic moonlight and shadow
The Joker's expressions throughout, which balance humor and menace perfectly
Adams' Joker design in this issue influenced virtually every subsequent artist who drew the character. The elongated face, the wide grin that somehow looks both amused and threatening, and the lanky body language all became standard Joker visual language.
Condition Grading Guide
| Grade | CGC Range | Key Indicators |
|---|---|---|
| Near Mint | 9.0 - 9.8 | Flat spine, sharp corners, bright colors, white pages |
| Very Fine | 7.0 - 8.5 | Minor spine stress, slight corner blunting, vivid colors |
| Fine | 5.0 - 6.5 | Moderate spine roll, minor creases, some color dulling |
| Very Good | 3.5 - 4.5 | Spine wear, creases, possible staple stress |
| Good | 1.8 - 3.0 | Significant wear, multiple creases, possible tape |
| Fair/Poor | 0.5 - 1.5 | Major defects, possible missing pieces |
Cover-Specific Concerns
The Batman #251 cover is predominantly dark (black background with green and purple Joker elements), which means even minor wear shows more prominently than on lighter-covered books. Color-breaking creases through the dark areas are particularly visible and value-reducing.
The cover's high contrast between the dark background and the Joker's bright green hair and purple suit makes color fading easy to spot. Original copies should show vivid green and purple tones. Faded copies lose the dramatic impact that makes this cover so striking.
Market Values
| CGC Grade | Estimated Value |
|---|---|
| 9.8 (NM/MT) | $8,000 - $15,000 |
| 9.6 (NM+) | $4,000 - $7,000 |
| 9.4 (NM) | $2,500 - $4,000 |
| 9.0 (VF/NM) | $1,200 - $2,000 |
| 8.0 (VF) | $600 - $1,000 |
| 7.0 (FN/VF) | $350 - $600 |
| 6.0 (FN) | $200 - $350 |
| 5.0 (VG/FN) | $120 - $200 |
| 4.0 (VG) | $80 - $130 |
| 2.0 (GD) | $40 - $70 |
Values for this book have been on a steady upward trajectory as collectors increasingly recognize its significance in defining the modern Joker. The book benefits from being a key Batman issue, a key Joker issue, and a key Neal Adams issue simultaneously.
Significance in Batman History
Batman #251 is routinely cited by comics historians and Batman writers as one of the most influential single issues in the character's history. Its impact can be traced through multiple creative landmarks:
The Killing Joke (1988): Alan Moore and Brian Bolland's iconic graphic novel builds directly on the characterization established in Batman #251. The Joker as a philosophical counterpoint to Batman, finding horror amusing while Batman finds it intolerable, is an extension of O'Neil's framework.
A Death in the Family (1988): The Joker's willingness to commit genuine murder, established definitively in Batman #251, reaches its peak when he kills Jason Todd (the second Robin). This story would not have been conceivable with the campy Joker of the 1960s.
The Dark Knight (2008): Heath Ledger's Oscar-winning portrayal of the Joker owes a significant debt to the characterization established in this issue. The chaotic, philosophically motivated killer who finds his own violence hilarious traces directly back to O'Neil and Adams.
Batman: The Animated Series (1992): Mark Hamill's legendary vocal performance drew heavily from the Bronze Age Joker, particularly the balance of humor and menace that Batman #251 established.
Collecting Context
Batman #251 competes in the market with other major Bronze Age Batman keys, including:
Batman #232 (1971): First appearance of Ra's al Ghul. Neal Adams cover and art. Typically trades higher than #251.
Batman #227 (1970): Classic Neal Adams cover homaging Detective Comics #31. A display piece and a key Adams cover.
Batman #234 (1971): First Silver Age Two-Face. Another O'Neil/Adams collaboration.
Among Joker-specific keys, Batman #251 ranks below Batman #1 (1940, first Joker) and Detective Comics #168 (1951, Joker origin) but above most other Joker appearances. It is often considered the most important Joker comic of the Bronze Age.
Buying Tips
- Examine the cover carefully. The dark background shows wear readily. Look for color-breaking creases and spine stress.
- Check page quality. Bronze Age paper can brown, but off-white to white pages are achievable and carry premiums.
- Verify completeness. Ensure all pages are present and no coupons have been clipped.
- Consider CGC certification. For copies grading 7.0 and above, CGC encapsulation provides authentication and protects the book.
- Watch restoration. Color touch on the dark cover areas can be difficult to detect. CGC's purple label indicates restoration.
- Compare census data. The CGC census shows how many copies exist at each grade, helping evaluate whether a price is fair.
The O'Neil and Adams Legacy
Batman #251 represents the creative partnership between Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams at its finest. Together, they are credited with saving Batman from irrelevance by returning the character to his dark roots. Their run on Batman and Detective Comics from 1970 to 1973 is considered one of the greatest creative periods in the character's history.
O'Neil brought literary ambition and psychological depth to superhero writing. Adams brought cinematic realism and dynamic energy to superhero art. Together, they created the version of Batman that every subsequent creative team has either built upon or reacted against.
Batman #251 is the clearest single-issue distillation of what O'Neil and Adams accomplished. It is the comic that proved superhero stories could be genuinely suspenseful, visually stunning, and narratively sophisticated, all within 22 pages.
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