Was The Batman Who Laughs Inspired By Judge Dredd’s Most Dangerous Foe?

Some people say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. If something becomes iconic and successful, then it’s only fitting that other creators will be inspired by it, especially in superhero comics, where Superman set the tone for everything that came after him. It’s not unusual for characters like Green Arrow and Hawkeye, Aquaman and Namor, or Catwoman and the Black Cat to coexist. However, The Batman Who Laughs from DC Comics and Judge Dredd’s foe Judge Death are uniquely similar. One is a super fiend from another dimension while the other is an alien super fiend from another dimension: the similarities between The Batman Who Laughs and Judge Death are uncanny and numerous.

Created by John Wagner and Brian Bolland in 1980’s 2000AD prog #149, Judge Death is Judge Dredd’s most dangerous foe. Hailing from another dimension and possessing a vast arsenal of necromantic powers, Judge Death is literally death incarnate. The Batman Who Laughs was created by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo in 2017’s “Dark Days: The Casting” #1. Meant to represent an alternate Earth’s corrupted version of Batman, The Batman Who Laughs quickly became one of DC’s most fearsome villains.

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The Origins Of The Batman Who Laughs And Judge Death

Judge Death is not from Judge Dredd’s Earth. He originally came from a parallel dimension that was very similar to Dredd’s, where a human named Sidney De’Ath became a Judge but quickly became infamous for enforcing the death penalty for all illegal activity. This passion for killing drew three fellow murderous individuals to his side. Sidney’s desire to spread as much as death as possible resulted in his transformation into the undead nightmare known as Judge Death. As the other Judges underwent their own transformations they became The Dark Judges and swiftly snuffed out all life on their planet. Their Earth became the necropolis called Deadworld. An unexpected accident transported Judge Death to Dredd’s world and The Dark Judges followed.

The Batman Who Laughs is Batman, though, is not the Batman DC’s fans know so well. Coming from Earth-22 in the Dark Multiverse, The Batman Who Laughs is the result of a Batman who was transformed by the Joker. When Earth-22’s Joker killed many of Batman’s villains, released his toxins into Gotham City, and killed countless parents in front of their children, Batman lost control and killed the Joker. This released a concentrated toxin that infected Batman and turned him into The Batman Who Laughs, combining Batman’s incredible prowess with the Joker’s murderous tendencies. When the Dark Multiverse invaded the DC Multiverse, The Batman Who Laughs became a key player.

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The Batman Who Laughs and Judge Death Share A Look And So Much More

It’s immediately obvious that The Batman Who Laughs looks like Judge Death. Tall and gaunt, dressed all in black leather with chains and buckles, half of his face hidden behind a spiked metal visor, The Batman Who Laughs strikes an imposing, yet familiar figure. While Judge Death’s appearance is a perversion of a standard Judge’s uniform and The Batman Who Laughs wears a black trench coat with a high collar, it’s the hidden faces and unnatural grins that really tie them together. Replacing Judge Death’s helmet grate with spikes does little to hide their similarities since their pale white skin and foul grins match perfectly.

2000 AD regularly called Judge Death “The Alien Super Fiend.” In 2020’s Year of the Villain: Hell Arisen #1 (by James Tynion IV and Steve Epting) The Batman Who Laughs is referred to as the “Fiend From the Dark Multiverse.” Both characters are from alternate dimensions where death reigns supreme and are the evil inversions of their respective heroes, so the title is very similar to Judge Death’s. As unkillable, extradimensional horrors that have threatened and consumed entire realities, it’s obvious that they share a bit more than just an affinity for black leather.

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The Batman Who Laughs And Judge Death Are The Ultimate Incarnations Of Chaos And Destruction

The fact that The Batman Who Laughs is Judge Death’s DC reflection is interesting since Judge Death actually visited Gotham in 1991’s Batman/Judge Dredd: Judgement on Gotham (by John Wagner, Alan Grant, and Simon Bisley) where Judge Dredd and Batman teamed up to stop the Dark Judges. Even more interesting, the Joker became a Dark Judge in that story and helped wreak havoc alongside Judge Death. While The Batman Who Laughs is interesting and well-designed, the idea behind was explored previously, and in greater detail. The Joker acquired supreme necromantic powers in this story and, unsurprisingly, unleashed them on Gotham. The Batman Who Laughs feels perilously similar, just stripped of his ties to Judge Dredd’s mythology.

For all of their nightmarish powers, The Batman Who Laughs and Judge Death are also victims of their own hubris. Judge Death gloats and oozes arrogance as he wreaks chaos yet always loses to Judge Dredd and Judge Anderson. The Batman Who Laughs, even when imbued with the limitless power of Doctor Manhattan or Perpetua, was defeated by DC’s heroes. They’re among the toughest foes their respective heroes ever fought, but The Batman Who Laughs and Judge Death also share another very important trait: they are fallible and far from the gods of decay they think they are. Darkness is meaningless without light and both villains consistently prove that the deepest shadows can be dispelled by the tiniest candle. The Batman Who Laughs and Judge Death share many qualities, but success isn’t one of them.