As one of the most terrifying villains in DC Comics history, the Joker has terrorized countless heroes — not just Batman, but Superman and others too — but one man isn’t afraid of the Clown Prince of Crime. Alfred Pennyworth was a former secret agent for the British Royal Army, and he spent a long time working alongside Batman, and he isn’t afraid of any clown.
The Bat-Family has been fighting Joker for decades at this point, and he is responsible for some of the most damaging events to happen to Batman and his allies. Joker was the one who shot Barbara Gordon, ending her career as Batgirl for a long time. He was the one to famously beat Jason Todd to death and the ways he has tortured Batman are nearly too numerous to count. Joker is a monstrous individual that people are very justified to be scared of, but one member of the Bat-Family isn’t.
Batman & Robin #17 (2011) by Peter J. Tomasi and Patrick Gleason shows the Bat-Family recovering from the traumatic events of Death of the Family by Scott Snyder and Greg Capulo and each member has a nightmare reflecting their current feelings. For example, Damian has a nightmare about his future, unsure about whether he belongs as a Wayne or an al Ghul. He fears what he could become as an al Ghul, but the prospect of growing up and inheriting his father’s darkness also terrifies him. Bruce dreams of letting his darkness sail away in a paper boat, to be free of it, only to have the boat dragged down and sunk by his rogues’ gallery, including a terrifying Jokerized whale. Alfred’s dream, however, is much more pleasasnt in comparison and shows that he isn’t bothered by the Clown Prince of Crime.
Alfred dreams that Joker breaks into the mansion and kills the rest of the Bat-Family using a hammer. This is the exact tool Joker attacked Alfred with earlier in Death of the Family. Alfred is ready this time, however and has his trusty shotgun. After ordering Joker to stand down, which the Clown refuses, Alfred pulls the trigger and cleanly blows Joker’s head off. Alfred awakes from the dream and falls back asleep, a smile on his face. At the time, Alfred’s is the only good dream being had in Wayne Manor. Alfred has been through a lot in his life, he has served as an MI6 agent for the British Royal Army, and he has helped Batman numerous times throughout his adventures. Alfred is also the only member of the Bat-Family not expected to follow Batman’s one rule prohibiting killing, which dream Joker finds out very quickly.
Alfred Pennyworth is the most enduring and loyal of all Bruce Wayne’s allies. He has been with Batman since the start and has seen the rise of all of his villains, which is exactly why Alfred isn’t afraid of the Joker. After all, Alfred Pennyworth was around for the days when Joker was trying to copyright fish and was a harmless prankster.
