The first appearances of the Joker and other iconic Batman villains

As long as there has been a Batman there has been an ever-expanding collection of Batman villains. From the Joker, Blight, and Scarecrow, to Anarky, Killer Croc, and Victor Zsasz, these characters have become truly iconic, with many appearing in comics, TV shows, and films.

But when did they make their debut? And who is the oldest Batman villain?

Below is a list of more than 50 iconic Batman villains, along with details on where they made their first appearance. If you wish to brush up on your knowledge of the Dark Knight’s most famous foes, then keep reading.

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Who is the oldest Batman villain?

Doctor Death is the oldest villain. Created by Gardner Fox and Bob Kane, Doctor Death is notable for being the first traditional super-foe to face Batman and recur.

Joker, Catwoman, Hugo Strange and Clayface are the next set of classic Batman villains to appear, with all four characters making their debut appearance in 1940. Of the four villains, Joker and Catwoman arrived a few months ahead of Hugo Strange and Clayface, with both characters appearing in Batman issue #1.

Penguin, Scarecrow, and Two-Face soon followed, with the likes of Vandal Savage, Riddler and Mad Hatter not being too far behind. Meanwhile, classic villain, Mr. Freeze didn’t arrive until 1959 (where he was originally known as Mr. Zero), and Poison Ivy didn’t pop up until 1966.

King-Tut and Egghead were villains originally created for the 1966 Batman TV show, and were arguably the best received original villains on the show. Meanwhile, the 1970s produced some great villains in the shape of Man-Bat, Ra’s al Ghul, and Clayface III.

What might surprise some people is well-known characters such as Bane and Harley Quinn didn’t appear until the 1990s. In the case of Harley Quinn, she was initially created for Batman: The Animated Series, appearing as the Joker’s girlfriend/crime companion.

In the late 1990s, the animated television show Batman Beyond served up Blight and Inque, while the 2004 cartoon, The Batman provided the first appearance of a new Clayface aka Detective Ethan Bennett. Meanwhile, over in the comics Hush and Professor Pyg debuted.

More recent villains have included Talon, The Batman Who Laughs, and Punchline.

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From Doctor Death to Harley Quinn: Batman villains in appearance order

• Doctor Death – Detective Comics issue #29 (1939)
• Joker – Batman issue #1 (1940)
• Catwoman – Batman issue #1 (1940)
• Hugo Strange – Detective Comics issue #36 (1940)
• Clayface (Basil Karlo) – Detective Comics issue #40 (1940)
• Penguin – Detective Comics issue #58 (1941)
• Scarecrow – World’s Finest Comics issue #3 (1941)
• Two-Face – Detective Comics issue #66 (1942)
• Vandal Savage – Green Lantern issue #10 (1943)
• Riddler – Detective Comics issue #140 (1948)
• Mad Hatter – Batman issue #49 (1948)
• Deadshot – Batman issue #59 (1950)
• Killer Moth – Batman issue #63 (1951)
• Firefly – Detective Comics issue #184 (1952)
• Calendar Man – Detective Comics issue #259 (1958)
• Mr. Freeze – Batman issue #121 (1959)
• Clayface II (Matt Hagen) – Detective Comics issue #298 (1961)
• Catman – Detective Comics issue #311 (1963)
• Owlman – Justice League of America issue #29 (1964)
• Poison Ivy – Batman issue #181 (1966)
• King Tut – Batman TV show – The Curse of Tut (1966)
• Egghead – Batman TV show – An Egg Grows in Gotham (1966)
• Man-Bat – Detective Comics issue #400 (1970)
• Ra’s al Ghul – Batman issue #232 (1971)
• Talia al Ghul – Detective Comics issue #411 (1971)
• Doctor Phosphorus – Detective Comics issue #469 (1977)
• Clayface III (Preston Payne) – Detective Comics issue #478 (1978)
• Maxie Zeus – Detective Comics issue #483 (1979)
• Deathstroke – The New Teen Titans issue #2 (1980)
• Killer Croc – Detective Comics issue #523 (1983)
• Black Mask – Batman issue #386 (1985)
• Carmine Falcone – Batman issue #405 (1986)
• Lady Clayface (Sondra Fuller) – Outsiders issue #21 (1987)
• Scarface/The Ventriloquist (Arnold Wesker) – Detective Comics issue #583 (1988)
• KGBeast – Batman issue #417 (1988)
• Anarky – Detective Comics issue #608 (1989)
• Amygdala  – Batman: Shadow of the Bat issue #3 (1992)
• Harley Quinn – Batman: The Animated Series TV show – Joker’s Favor (1992)
• Victor Zsasz – Batman: Shadow of the Bat issue #1 (1992)
• Bane – Batman: Vengeance of Bane issue #1 (1993)
• Phantasm – Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993)
• Baby Doll – Batman: The Animated Series TV show – Baby-Doll (1994)
• Cornelius Stirk – Detective Comics issue #592 (1998)
• Blight – Batman Beyond TV show – Rebirth Part One (1999)
• Inque – Batman Beyond TV show – Black Out (1999)
• Hush – Batman issue #609 (2003)
• Clayface (Ethan Bennett) – The Batman TV show – The Bat in the Belfry (2004)
• Professor Pyg – Batman issue #666 (2007)
• Talon – Batman issue #1 (2011)
• White Rabbit – Batman: The Dark Knight issue #1 (2011)
• The Batman Who Laughs – Dark Days: The Casting issue #1 (2017)
• Punchline – Batman #89 (2020)

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Thank you for stopping by It’s A Stampede! to read this post about Batman’s villains. For more posts be sure to check out the recommended reads below.