THE JOKER: THE LAST LAUGH #1

COVER TAGLINE: This One'll Really Kill You TITLE: Part One: Stir Crazy STORY ARC: The Last Laugh RELEASE DATE: Otcober, 2001 COVER DATE: December, 2001 WRITER: Chuck Dixon, Scott Beatty PENCILER(s): Pete Woods INKER(s): Andrew Pepoy COLORS: Tom McCraw, Digital Chameleon LETTERS: Willie Schubert EDITOR(s): Julius Schwartz COVER: Matt Idelson PRICE: $.25 CHARACTERS: The Joker; Nightwing; Oracle; Shilo Norman; Warden Zimmer; Dr Keaton, Dina Bell; Apeface, Hector Hammond, Captain Nazi, Rancor, Multi-Man, Mister Mind, Joe Gardner, Psimon, Chiller, Black Mass, Floro, Mammoth, Frag, Sivana, Hellgrammite, Polaris, Effigy, Airstryke, Batman, Blue Beetle II INTERIOR ART: PLOT: While in the Slab, the Joker discovers his clock is ticking. Shilo Norman, the former Mister Miracle and now head of Slab security, knows this is a recipe for disaster, so why won't anyone believe him? The Joker shares the venom that transformed him into the pasty faced sociopath that he is with countless other super-villains - ensuring his legacy lives on. Meanwhile Oracle, the first line of defense, is unavailable, leaving only Black Canary to try and stop a riot of the DCU's most deadly and unpredictable villains

ISSUE SUMMARY: As Nightwing and Oracle enjoy a romantic meal outside Gotham, a riot in the Slabside Penitentiary is making headline news - it has been instigated by the Joker in response to learning the news that he has a fatal brain tumour. Oracle ponders how many lives would have been saved if someone had just killed the Joker long ago. Joker meanwhile, is killing Multi-Man time after time, hoping that he will ressurect with a useful power. Eventually, he gains an explosive ability, clearing the way for the Slab inmates to access other floors of the penitentiary. Shilo Norman realises with horror that they are on their way to bust the powerful Doctor Polaris out. The warden of Slabside orders the use of all available inhibitors on the inmates - the regurgitants didn't work, so the metagene inhibitor gas is put into operation. The inmates are horrified, apart from the Joker. When Black Canary, who discovered the riot and sneaked into the prison, comes upon the villains, she discovers why - they've all been transformed into carbon copies of the Joker: chalk-white skin, green hair, hideous smile and incessant cackling. At that moment, Oracle returns to her appartment and is horrified to find out what's been happening.