Joker's Favor Batman the Animated Series Joker

"Joker's Favor" is the seventh episode of Batman: The Blithe Series . It originally aired on September 11, 1992. When an ordinary human being inadvertently crosses paths with the Joker, he is plunged into a nightmare. This episode marks the first advent of Harley Quinn in any medium.

one Plot
ii Background data
three Cast
- iii.1 Uncredited appearances
4 Quotes

Plot

Charlie Collins realizes, to his dismay, he's merely cussed out the Joker.

Charlie Collins, an unremarkable Gotham citizen, inadvertently curses out the Joker when the latter'southward getaway car cuts him off on the highway after a particularly bad day. The Joker runs him off the route and corners him. Desperate to save his life, Charlie mentions he has a wife and son and promises to exercise anything the Joker asks of him. The Joker accepts and takes Charlie'due south license; to Charlie'due south surprise, Joker says he has no idea what the favor will exist, and leaves with a promise to keep in impact.

2 years later, the Joker learns that Commissioner Gordon is to be given an award, and decides to phone call in the favor. To Charlie'due south horror, the Joker has effortlessly kept tabs on him, even though Charlie has changed his proper noun and moved to a different metropolis. When the maniacal clown calls him and drops a thinly-veiled threat to his family unit. Charlie finds he has no choice but to travel to Gotham.

Upon arriving, a bemused Charlie learns he is to concord a door open for the Joker's right-hand adult female Harley Quinn while she wheels a cake into Gordon's testimonial dinner at the elite Peregrinators Club. Regardless, the Joker promises to send Charlie home immediately after.

Bruce Wayne discovers the makeshift Bat-signal within the club.

Not knowing the Joker's aim, but desperate to avoid information technology, Charlie fashions a rough Bat-signal, which is seen by dinner attendee (and early on absentee) Bruce Wayne. Only then, Charlie is called to perform his favor. Charlie dutifully opens the door for Harley, only to find his hand glued to the handle. Harley slips Charlie a gas mask and dons one herself earlier gimmicked candelabras in the room spray a gas that paralyzes everybody else. As the guests scout, immobile and helpless, the Joker enters in grand manner and "congratulates" Gordon by pinning a bomb to his lapel. The Joker and Harley then leave, explaining to a horrified Charlie that they never promised to send him home alive.

Seconds before the bomb goes off, Batman arrives on the scene. Acting on Charlie's alert, Batman grabs the bomb and launches it outside with his grapple gun. Hearing an explosion from outside rather than inside, the Joker realizes something is amiss; moments later, he sees the flop has blown up their getaway van.

Within the Peregrinators Club, Batman frees Charlie from the gum, while Charlie explains that the Joker called Charlie his "hobby", keeping spotter on him for years and threatening his family.

Charlie Collins threatens to kill the Joker to save his family.

Batman pursues the Joker through the club, dealing in turn with Harley and two thugs. The Joker himself manages to escape the gild, only to discover Charlie waiting for him in an alley. The Joker laughs this off, only is surprised when Charlie punches him into some garbage. In a rage, the Joker repeats his threat on Charlie'due south family. But, driven to mad desperation, Charlie holds upwardly another one of the Joker's bombs, vowing to protect his family with a murder-suicide that will rob Joker of the merely dream he has—defeating Batman in a huge spectacle or dying in the attempt—and ensure he'll only be remembered every bit the victim of "a miserable little nobody". Panicking, the Joker tries to talk Charlie down while simultaneously screaming for Batman's help. Batman arrives and tries to reason with Charlie, but Charlie insists only his way can keep his family unit rubber. Finally breaking, the Joker surrenders all the information he has gathered on the Collins family, only for Charlie to toss the bomb at him anyway. The Joker screams and hides behind Batman, but the flop is revealed to be a harmless confetti firework.

As an tickled Batman takes a disgruntled Joker into custody, Charlie heads for home, freed at last and looking frontward to his "ordinary" life more than he ever has before.

Background information

Home video releases

Production inconsistencies

When Joker reads Charlie Collins' driver'south license, he includes the middle name Michael; however, the name on the license is simply "Charles Collins".
Springdale, Ohio is an actual city (though information technology does not have a Marigold Lane), but the area lawmaking is 513, not 614 as listed on Joker's note.

Trivia

This episode marks the first appearances of The Joker (airdate-wise) and Harley Quinn.
The first-produced episode featuring the Joker was "Christmas With the Joker", simply this was the offset aired.
Ed Begley, Jr. went on to vox Dr. Peter Corso, ironically another ordinary human being who was blackmailed to work with in order to salve his loved 1, in the Batman Beyond episode "April Moon".
Harley'south line most beauty school may suggest that her origins every bit a psychiatrist may not have been cemented at the time.
When the Joker orders Rocco and Henshaw to applaud him for his decision to accolade Commissioner Gordon, Henshaw is shown to exist reading a magazine featuring the title card and the characters of Buster and Babs Bunny from young man Warner Bros. production Tiny Toon Adventures . Many Batman: The Animated Series crew members, including Bruce Timm, Paul Dini, Tom Ruegger and Andrea Romano, had previously worked on that serial.
This episode is one of the few instances in the entire DCAU when Batman laughs, and the just time he laughs from genuine amusement. Batman afterward laughs sarcastically in The New Batman Adventures episode "Mad Love" in guild to provoke Harley Quinn. Then in a scene from Batman Across: Render of the Joker , Terry McGinnis storms the Batcave to find a nearly-dead Bruce Wayne laughing later he had been attacked by the Joker and dosed with Joker venom.
The Peregrinators Gild re-appears in the episode "Harley and Ivy".
Charlie's drivers license (earlier leaving Gotham) includes one of several references in Batman related media to Gotham City (or in this case its suburbs) being located in the country of New York, possibly near New York City or a replacement section thereof.
While cheering for the Joker at the testimonial dinner, Harley mimics the trademark "woof-woof-woof" hand gesture of talk show host Arsenio Hall. Ironically, one of the Jokerz that assist the Joker in the movie Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker is called Woof.
Harley's chauffeur disguise would subsequently be used for Mercy Graves'southward design. Harley eventually used Mercy's chauffeur adapt in the Superman: The Blithe Series episode "World's Finest, Part I"
During the pan of Springdale, Ohio, background characters include Sherman Grant and Roberta from "I've Got Batman in My Basement".
Co-ordinate to his driver'south license, Charles Michael Collins was born on March 17, 1946. His license was issued on September 25, 1991 and expired on March 17, 1995.

Cast

Actor	Role
Kevin Conroy	Batman/Bruce Wayne
Bob Hastings	Commissioner Gordon
Robert Costanzo	Harvey Bullock
Efrem Zimbalist, Jr.	Alfred
Mark Hamill	The Joker
Arleen Sorkin	Harley Quinn
Ed Begley, Jr.	Charlie Collins

Uncredited appearances

Quotes

Charlie: Dominate turns me down for a raise, my kid needs braces, and Bonnie's cooking meat loaf for dinner... at what betoken did I become life's punching pocketbook?

Joker: At present, look, my rude friend, we can't have people cursing at each on the freeway. It's merely not polite! (jumps and grabs Charlie) I'chiliad just going to have to teach you some manners.

Gordon: If anyone should exist getting a testimonial, it'due south you.
Batman: I'yard just the nighttime shift. You deal with this mess twenty-iv hours a solar day.

Joker: Jumping Jiminy Christmas! Charlie Collins. It'south been forever. How are y'all man? You await corking! Lost a little weight. Lost a little hair, too.

Bruce Wayne: Congratulations, Jim. I'chiliad deplorable I'chiliad unable to stay for dinner.
Gordon: Ah, the life of a decorated socialite. (leans in and whispers) Any fashion I could sneak out with you?

Harley: Here's to Gotham'southward Commissioner G., yous lock upwardly the weirdos, the crooks, and the geeks. You're a hero to all the boys in blueish, only this time, baby, the joke's on yous.

Charlie: Wait! You promised to send me home!
Joker: I never said "alive"!
Charlie: You dirty, evil...
Joker: Sayonara, sucker! (laughs; Charlie looks in horror at Gordon wearing a bomb)

Joker: Estimate I'll have to find a new hobby at present that old Charlie Collins is... Pfft!
Harley: Macrame'due south nice.
(explosion)
Joker: That came from exterior! Rocco, Henshaw! I smell a bat! Quick! To the van!

Joker: You miserable piddling nobody! If I get caught, your wife and son are history!
Charlie: You're non getting caught, not this time! (shows him the flop) I found this diddled out of the van. This is how it ends, Joker! No big schemes! No grand fight to the finish with the Dark Knight! Tomorrow, all the papers will say is that the bang-up Joker was found blown to bits in an alley alongside a miserable little nobody! Kind of funny. Ironic, really. Run into, I can destroy a man'due south dreams as well, and that's really the simply dream you've got, isn't information technology?
Joker: Look... Charlie! Yous've had a busy day. All this running effectually, all this excitement with... (cups a manus to his mouth and yells) BATMAN!

Joker: Finish! Y'all're crazy!
Charlie: I had a good teacher. (laughs madly) Say goodnight, Gracie.

Batman: Put it downward, Charlie.
Charlie: You lot know he'll just escape again! This is the just manner to keep my family condom!

Batman: Get abode, Mr. Collins.
Charlie: Dwelling house. I never thought that could audio so good. I wonder what Bonnie's making for dinner. Correct at present, anything would gustatory modality great. Fifty-fifty meat loaf.