The Joker and Harley Quinn flee a botched attempt at a robbery, pursued by Batman and Batgirl. Joker's money problems come up constantly during the battle, as they cannot afford ammo for their gun, acid for Joker's boutonniere, or gas for the getaway car, and the Joker can only afford one ejector seat, which he uses to escape from Batman. In the meantime he ditches Harley, who is arrested and taken to Arkham Asylum. The Joker retreats to his low-income apartment and gets a sudden burst of glee when he reads a letter revealing that one of his criminal enemies, Edward "King" Barlowe, has passed away and left a staggering fortune of 2500 million to him.
The first thing Joker does with his money is assemble a team of shady lawyers and psychological experts who are able to erase Joker's criminal records and have him declared sane. Nightwing and Batgirl keep watch on Joker when a "going legit" party is held for him at the Penguin's Iceberg Lounge. To their chagrin, they wind up saving Joker when a disgruntled former bodyguard of Barlowe attempts to kill the clown. Joker continues to enjoy his new wealth. At Arkham, Harley is confident that Joker will eventually set her free, only to be outraged when she learns that Joker is holding auditions for a new "henchgirl". She makes an escape from Arkham, using the laundry chute. The Joker soon hires a new hench-girl, whom he dubs "Fake Harley."
Problems soon arise for the Joker when he learns that he owes the Internal Revenue Service a large inheritance tax. When he opens his vault to gather the necessary cash, he finds that all of his remaining money is counterfeit. He also finds a videotape.
On the tape, Barlowe leaves a message from his deathbed, explaining that the inheritance was a scam to get Joker into exactly the fix in which he now finds himself: having to choose between going to jail for tax evasion or else admitting that Barlowe fooled him, thus becoming a laughingstock in the underworld. Barlowe finishes by cackling that he had the last laugh on his old rival after all - causing Joker to shoot the television in rage.
Joker chooses a third option, returning to crime to rebuild his fortune, but decides to commit normal crimes so that no one suspects he is behind them.
Joker attempts to steal a load of money from the Gotham Mint as it is transported by boat. So that no one will notice his absence, the Joker hires one of his thugs to pose as him in the Iceberg Lounge. But Batman sees through the disguise and interrogates the thug until he reveals Joker's scheme.
Batman, Batgirl and Nightwing are able to successfully capture the Joker, Fake Harley and their goons, even though at one point Joker tries to commit suicide as an alternative to losing his money. In the paddywagon, Joker is ready to laugh off the whole fiasco, but he finds that the police officer supervising him is actually Harley in disguise, and she repays his disloyalty by beating him with a nightstick.
