Clownhunter

CREATORS: James Tynion IV, Jorge Jiménez

FIRST APPEARANCE: Batman #96 (August, 2020)

Bao Pham lived in the Gotham Narrows with his parents, until they were eventually murdered by the Joker. He was a fan of the vigilante Batman as well as the superhero Wonder Woman, whom he often dreamed of hugging as a reassurance that things will be fine, in contrast to his dreary monotonous life. About five years after his parents' death, the Joker set his goons upon Gotham City for a final war with Batman. On the third day of this Joker War, Bao saw Joker's thugs setting fire to a nearby comic store and started believing that Batman hadn't really saved anyone, letting Joker live whenever he was defeated.

Deciding to take things into his own hands as the "Clownhunter", he started killing Joker's clown gang wherever he found them, something his neighborhood supported. As his body count grew, the Joker personally sent a gang of four reputed goons - Snap, Krakle, Pop and Big Ed. Clownhunter killed three of them and personally got down to face the leader Big Ed. As the two fought, his mask fell off and Ed realized he was just a kid, before viewing the Batarang and realizing he had idolized Batman. He told him that killing others wasn't for him and Bats didn't kill. Bao however stated that Batman had failed to save everyone from Joker's clowns.

Batman encountered Bao's dead parents that the Joker had turned into zombified versions of himself using the Designer's chemical formula and set them upon the vigilante in the Monarch Theater, in order to mentally manipulate him. Batman however escaped after setting the theater on fire. This infuriated Clownhunter, especially after learning that it wasn't certain Joker had died after his defeat. He was approached by Batman personably, whom he got into an argument with over killing Joker's men. Batman then told him to get professional help, giving him the card of Leslie Thompkins and warning he'll come after him if he continues down his path.