Duela Dent

Duela Dent
Batman Family #6 (August 1976)
Created by	Bob Rozakis
In-story information
Alter ego	Duela Dent Napier Nigma
Species	Human
Team affiliations	Titans East The Riddler Family Suicide Squad
Notable aliases	The Joker's Daughter Catgirl the Catwoman's Daughter Scarecrone the Scarecrow's Daughter Riddler's Daughter Penguin's Daughter Harlequin Card Queen Joker Riddler
Abilities	Skilled martial artist and acrobat Expert detective Utilizes various clown-based gadgets

Duela Dent is a fictional character in the

Alessandra Torresani portrayed Duela Dent in the Arrowverse series Batwoman. Olivia Rose Keegan portrays Duela in Gotham Knights.

Fictional character biography

Pre-Crisis

Duela Dent first appeared as the Joker's Daughter in the Batman Family series of comic books. She gained the attention of Robin (Dick Grayson), as she later claimed to be the daughter of the Catwoman, the Scarecrow, the Riddler and the Penguin. She deduced Robin's identity and he revealed that she was Duela Dent, Two-Face's daughter.^[2]

Duela claimed that she wanted to join the

. As the Harlequin, Duela utilized gimmicks such as smoke-inducing powder puffs and bullet-firing lipstick.

After the Teen Titans comic books were canceled, she popped up in the Batman titles, calling herself the Card Queen while infiltrating a criminal organization called MAZE.^[3]

Duela's last Pre-Crisis appearance is in Tales of The Teen Titans #50, as a guest at Donna Troy's wedding where she appears to be a middle-aged matron. Dick Grayson notes that he had finally realized that she was too old to be Two-Face's daughter; she agrees, then disappears before he can take the matter further.

Post-Crisis

Delusional and schizophrenic, the mysterious Harlequin has been in and out of mental institutions for several years. An acrobat who possesses numerous "clown-motif" gadgets, she calls herself Duela Dent (while her true identity remains unknown) and acts as an ally to the Titans.

Her first significant Post-

.

Reappearing at her proper age, the Harlequin aided the Titans during the JLA/Titans: Technis Imperative series, in which

.

Duela's next appearance is in Titans Secret Files and Origins #2, in a backup story in which

defeat her and return her to the Helping House Mental Institution in Industry, California. How she met up with the dangerous villains with whom she crashed the party is unexplained. In the same comic, a feature states that her claims regarding her paternity have been disproved, save one; no further information is provided.

In a short story contained in Teen Titans/Outsiders Secret Files and Origins #2, Duela socializes with several villains at their secret satellite headquarters and makes a series of wild claims regarding her parentage, all of which are dismissed by the nonplussed villains (she claims that she has been resuscitated by a Lazarus Pit and that her mother may actually be the villainous parent).

Duela returned to action alongside the assembled Titans who faced

in Infinite Crisis #4 and Teen Titans #32. She later appeared in a double-page spread that was added in the Infinite Crisis hardcover collected edition.

One Year Later

The Joker's Daughter and Enigma both served on the Teen Titans during the lost year. Duela is a member of the splinter group Titans East, with writer Geoff Johns stating: "Yeah. We're going to really get into her. Tony Daniel did an amazing redesign on the Joker's daughter for Titans East".^[5]

In Teen Titans #43,

, whom they torture psychologically. Duela reveals that she joined Titans East simply because they asked. Raven points out that Duela has always been an ally of the Titans and offers her membership on the team. Duela accepts the invitation by punching Enigma and fights alongside the Titans against Titans East. When the battle ends, Duela and Batgirl disappear.

Countdown

Duela appears in the first issue of Countdown. She abducts a teen celebrity from a nightclub, only to be stopped by

In Countdown Presents The Search for Ray Palmer: Crime Society it is revealed that

; the Jokester managed to flee until he is later tracked down and killed by Solomon, the Monitor who killed Duela.

The New 52

In September 2011,

During

).

The Joker later returns in the Endgame storyline, very much alive.^[16]

Much to the dismay of fellow member Harley Quinn, the Joker's Daughter is recruited as part of the New Suicide Squad.^[17]

Critical and fan reactions to The New 52 version of the Joker's Daughter have been mixed.^[18][19]

Powers and abilities

Duela Dent is an expert at acrobatics and armed combat.

Villainous parentage

Duela Dent has claimed to be the offspring of the following villains:

• Joker^[20]
• Catwoman^[21]
• Scarecrow^[22]
• Riddler^[22]
• Penguin^[22]
• Two-Face^[22]
• Doomsday
• Doctor Light
• Punch and Jewelee

Duela is originally depicted as the daughter of Two-Face and his estranged wife, Gilda Dent. Creator Bob Rozakis stated, "It didn't take too long to decide whose daughter she would turn out to be. After all, the only married villain was Two-Face. I convinced [editor Julius Schwartz and associate editor E. Nelson Bridwell, the acknowledged keeper of DC's historical consistency] that Harvey and Gilda Dent had a daughter, that Harvey had been disappointed because she wasn't a twin, and that they'd named her Duela".^[23] Rozakis, upon being asked his thought regarding the current insane version of Duela Dent, who claims to be the daughter of multiple supervillains, replied: "I got a laugh out of it when I first saw it, but I thought they wasted the character. I realize that Marv and company didn't want her around anymore and felt they had to explain her away because of continuity, but they could have just as easily ignored her. Actually, I consider Harley Quinn to be a reincarnation of Duela".^[23]

It is later revealed that the Earth-3 hero the

, helped Evelyn raise her. Upon meeting the Clown Prince of Crime, Duela started calling herself the Joker's Daughter, even though her real father's hero name was the Jokester.

Other versions

Infinite Crisis

In Infinite Crisis #6, Alexander Luthor Jr. creates multiple Earths. On Earth-154, Superman and Batman, along with their sons Superman Jr. and Batman Jr. (the Super-Sons), round up two young, female versions of the Joker and Riddler, along with the daughter of Lex Luthor, Ardora.

Kingdom Come

In

.

The Kingdom Come Revelations supplement[24] adds the following: "Along with Batman's apparent influence on others to follow his style, so has the Joker inspired a few to take after his chaotic clown style. The original Joker's Daughter (who actually turned out to be Two-Face's Daughter) was a former member of the Teen Titans and has no direct relation to this new "riot girl" version, nor is there a true familial relation to the Joker".

The Joker's Daughter II is modeled on Jill Thompson, a writer/artist; Thompson is Chicago-based, as is Alex Ross. Austin Loomis adds that Thompson has occasionally drawn herself into stories that she was illustrating for Vertigo.

It is noted throughout this series that the Joker's Daughter II is always quite dour and serious, quite the change from her namesake, and another example of the generational-clash theme of Kingdom Come. Following the death of Von Bach, Ex1Machina points out that the Joker's Daughter II has undergone a drastic makeup change, with a tear tattooed beneath her eye. She is one of the few characters to survive the final battle in #4. She later reappeared in The Kingdom:

Offspring

#1.

Tangent Comics

A female version of the Joker appeared as part of DC's Tangent Comics

line in her own one-shots (Tangent Comics: The Joker #1 in 1997 and Tangent Comics: The Joker's Wild! #1 in 1998). This Joker bore little resemblance to the traditional interpretation of the character and instead was modeled on Duela Dent.

Teen Titans

In

Red X; Gemini, the daughter of Madame Rouge; Mademoiselle Mallah, the daughter of Monsieur Mallah; and Daughter Blood, the daughter of Brother Blood

. Robin, exasperated after trying to figure out the connection between the criminals, mutters that it is probably just the Joker's Daughter playing a prank.

Teen Titans Go! writer J. Torres confirmed that this character's motives were inspired by Duela Dent. Torres said, "Yeah, I like Duela Dent. Did you see the short story I did starring her in Teen Titans/Outsiders Secret Files 2005? After I did that, I came up with an idea for a story where a mystery girl runs around Jump City claiming to be the daughter of different Titans' villains."^[25]

Tiny Titans

Duela Dent frequently appears in the

Starfire buys at a pawn shop. During the Tiny Titans/Little Archie miniseries, she and Little Archie are discovered in the Batcave

by Batman. Duela then states she is "looking for Robbie". Batman, assuming that Little Archie is the Joker's son, then calls the Joker and tells him to come over and pick up both his kids.

Titans Tomorrow

In the

Tim Drake

of the future. Before she was killed, she hinted that she knew more about him when he was younger.

AME-COMI

In the

Jim Gordon". Duela is Gotham's most dangerous criminal and the main antagonist to this continuity's "Batgirl

" and Robin (Carrie Kelly Gordon).

Flashpoint

In the alternate timeline of the

James Gordon locates Joker with Dent's children in Wayne Manor and goes in without any backup. Gordon is tricked into shooting Dent's daughter, as she has been taped to a chair and disguised as the Joker. The Joker then appears and kills Gordon before Batman arrives.^[27] Batman rushes in and manages to save the daughter. Batman then moves them away from the Joker.^[28]

DC Bombshells

In the

Nazi cause by keeping magic users such as Raven and Zatanna

under her control. She is eventually defeated by the Bombshells - Raven, Zatanna, and Miri Marvel.

In other media

• Duela Dent appears in the
  GCPD
  later find a faceless Duela, who says that she is finally "perfect".
• Duela appears in
  Cullen Row. It is later revealed that she is the daughter of Harvey Dent and Jane Doe
  .

See also

• Harlequin
• Enigma the Riddler's Daughter

References

1. ISBN 978-1-4654-5357-0
   .
2. ISBN 9780345501066
   .
3. ^ Starlin, Jim (w), Starlin, Jim (p), Russell, P. Craig (i), Wood, Tatjana (col), Kish, Karen (let), Schwartz, Julius (ed). "The League of Crime" Detective Comics, vol. 1, no. 482 (March 1979). New York City: DC Comics.
4. ^ ^{a b} Stauffer, Derek (March 23, 2018). "15 Crazy Things You Didn't Know About Teen Titans". Screen Rant. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
5. ^ Rogers, Vaneta (February 7, 2007). "CATCHING UP WITH GEOFF JOHNS". Newsarama. Archived from the original on February 7, 2007.
6. ^ Dini, Paul (w), Saíz, Jesús (p), Palmiotti, Jimmy, Chu, Tom S. (i), Lanham, Travis (let), Marts, Mike (ed). "Look to the Skies" Countdown, vol. 1, no. 51 (May 2007). New York City: DC Comics.
7. ^ Dini, Paul (w), Calafiore, Jim (p), McKenna, Mark (i), Chu, Tom S. (col), Brosseau, Pat (let), Marts, Mike (ed). "Last Laugh" Countdown, vol. 1, no. 50 (May 2007). New York City: DC Comics.
8. ^ Dini, Paul (w), Garcia, Manuel (p), McKenna, Mark (i), Chu, Tom S. (col), Lopez, Ken (let), Schaeffer, Jeanine (ed). "Small Wonders" Countdown, vol. 1, no. 40 (July 2007). New York City: DC Comics.
9. ^ "Dishing with Dan: Countdown #51" Archived September 29, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
10. Horie, Tanya (col), Leigh, Rob (let), Schlagman, Adam (ed). "Of Clowns and Clones" Teen Titans, vol. 3, no. 47 (July 2007). New York City: DC Comics
    .
11. ^ Nocenti, Ann (w), McDaniel, Scott (p), Tarragona, Jord1 (i), Oback, Sonia (col), Lanham, Travis (let), Marts, Mike (ed). "No Blood No Foul" Catwoman, vol. 4, no. 23 (October 2013). New York City: DC Comics.
12. ^ Nocenti, Ann (w), Jeanty, Georges (p), Vines, Dexter (i), Madsen, Michelle (col), Sienty, Dezi (let), Shan, Darren (ed). "The Meat & The Marrow" Batman: The Dark Knight, vol. 2, no. 23.4 (November 2014). New York City: DC Comics.
13. ^ ^{a b} Bennett, Marguerite (w), Hetrick, Meghan (p), Madsen, Michelle (col), Temofonte, Saida (let), Marts, Mike (ed). "Golgotham" The Joker's Daughter, vol. 1, no. 1 (April 2014). New York City: DC Comics.
14. ^ Snyder, Scott (w), Capullo, Greg (p), Glapion, Jonathan (i), Plascencia, FCO (col), Starkings, Richard (let), Marts, Mike (ed). "The Punchline" Batman, vol. 2, no. 17 (April 2013). New York City: DC Comics.
15. Daniel, Tony S. (p), Winn, Ryan (i), Morey, Tomeu (col), Fletcher, Jared K. (let), Kubert, Katie (ed). Detective Comics, vol. 2, no. 1 (November 2011). New York City: DC Comics
    .
16. ^ Snyder, Scott (w), Capullo, Greg (p), Miki, Danny (i), Plascencia, FCO (col), Wands, Steve (let), Doyle, Mark (ed). "Endgame, Part One" Batman, vol. 2, no. 35 (December 2014). New York City: DC Comics.
17. New Suicide Squad, vol. 1, no. 1 (September 2014). New York City: DC Comics
    .
18. ^ "Batman: Joker's Daughter #1 Reviews (2014)". Comicbookroundup.com. Archived from the original on July 15, 2016. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
19. ^ "Batman: The Dark Knight #23.4 Reviews (2013)". Comicbookroundup.com. Archived from the original on 2016-07-14. Retrieved 2016-10-01.
20. ^ Rozakis, Bob (w), Novick, Irv (p), McLaughlin, Frank (i), Schwartz, Julius (ed). "The Joker's Daughter" Batman Family, vol. 1, no. 6 (August 1976). New York City: DC Comics.
21. ^ Rozakis, Bob (w), Novick, Irv (p), Colletta, Vince (i), Schwartz, Julius (ed). "The Copycat Capers!" Batman Family, vol. 1, no. 8 (December 1976). New York City: DC Comics.
22. ^ ^{a b c d} Rozakis, Bob (w), Novick, Irv (p), McLaughlin, Frank (i), Schwartz, Julius (ed). "Startling Secret of the Devilish Daughters!" Batman Family, vol. 1, no. 9 (February 1977). New York City: DC Comics.
23. ^ ^{a b} Titans Tower: Duela Dent Archived October 21, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
24. ^ Kingdom Come #1 Annotations
25. ^ [1] Archived October 15, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
26. ^ Azzarello, Brian (w), Risso, Eduardo (p), Risso, Eduardo (i), Mulvihill, Patricia (col), Robins, Clem (let), Ogle, Rex (ed). "Batman: Knight of Vengeance" Flashpoint, vol. 1, no. 1 (June 2011). New York City: DC Comics.
27. ^ Azzarello, Brian (w), Risso, Eduardo (p), Risso, Eduardo (i), Mulvihill, Patricia (col), Robins, Clem (let), Ogle, Rex (ed). "Batman: Knight of Vengeance" Flashpoint, vol. 1, no. 2 (September 2011). New York City: DC Comics.
28. ^ Azzarello, Brian (w), Risso, Eduardo (p), Risso, Eduardo (i), Mulvihill, Patricia (col), Robins, Clem (let), Ogle, Rex (ed). "Batman: Knight of Vengeance" Flashpoint, vol. 1, no. 3 (October 2011). New York City: DC Comics.
29. ^ "Grinning from Ear to Ear". IMDb. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
30. ^ Otterson, Joe (March 9, 2022). "'Gotham Knights' CW Pilot Casts Olivia Rose Keegan, Navia Robinson, Oscar Morgan". Variety. Retrieved March 9, 2022.

External links

• Comic Book Database: Harlequin II
• Comic Book Database: Joker's Daughter
• Unpublished Duela Dent story from Vixen #1
• DOWN FOR THE COUNT I: RED HOOD & DUELA DENT
• Not Offended--stories based on the Gotham Knights version of Duela