But from this point on for Jason, the gray area between good and bad has disappeared. It was erected in the Batcave following Jason's death at the hands of the Joker and has since become a staple of the Batcave; even staying . With Red Hood still characterizedbyhis rage at criminals, it seems this reframing of his deathcontinues to dictate how he's characterized. He later sent all the footage of himself torturing and eventually shooting Jason to Batman to torment him. It is suggested by Dick Grayson that Todd was infuriated by Wayne's last words, a reaction that led him to become monstrous, murdering Batman in that same arc. Something went wrong. As I looked the pages over and tried not to freak out too visibly, DC archivist Ben Le Clear told me a story of ONeil who had voted for Jason to live and other DC staff hanging around the offices, biting their nails well into the final evening of the poll. And this is a relationship that seems to hinge on one particular character: Jason Todd. Enter the URL for the tweet you want to embed. A weekly roundup of the best things from Polygon, By submitting your email, you agree to our, The most tragic moment in Batmans history almost looked like this, Sign up for the When Jason Todd returned from the "dead" and took on the guise of the Red Hood (Joker's first identity), he eventually confronted Joker and beat him with a crowbar but let him live. Dick Grayson, the original Robin, was seemingly clubbed to death and Batman cradled his limp body in a scene eerily similar to Jasons demise. [22] Batman notes that while Todd doesn't possess Dick Grayson's natural athleticism and acrobatic skills, he can become a productive crimefighter by channeling his rage. For a time, through Talia al Ghul's access to Kord Industries,[32][67] as well as being LexCorp's former CEO,[68] Jason has access to high-level weaponry and advanced computer equipment and gadgetry. Jason Todds death at the hands of the Joker is arguably the most iconic sidekick fatality in comic book history. He confronts the kidnapper and is stunned to discover that he is an adult Todd, standing at his own desecrated gravesite, and wearing a redesigned and darker version of his Robin costume. "[10], Despite the poll results, O'Neil noted, "We did the deed, and we got a blast of hate mail and a blast of negative commentary in the press. After Batman's "death," Jason Todd assumed the guise of a violent Batman. Jason Todd 's relationship with Batman turned sour as a result of his battles with criminals, which were almost suicidal. It is implied that Todd's death was a contributing factor to Batman's retirement. Starlin wrote two versions of Batman #428, and Jim Aparo and inker Mike DeCarlo worked on both of them, drawing certain pages twice but very differently. [44] In the issue, Todd is characterized as increasingly unstable and his idea of "finishing off" Batman and Robin now consists of stripping them down to their underwear and exposing their identities via webcam activated by a phone poll [a nod by Morrison to his death poll]. Between one agonised, gasping breath and the next, Jason was awake and staring up at a woman in a cave: his grandmother, Lavernai Pocolom, Roman Goddess of Thieves and Cheats, and Etruscan Goddess of the Underworld. p. 22. The verdict in favor of the character's death won by a slim 72-vote margin of 5,343 votes to 5,271. It all started in 1988 with a storyline in the comic book Batman called "A Death In The Family," in which Robin was kidnapped by the Joker and graphically beaten by him with a crowbar. However, Robin senses something is wrong and hides in the Batmobile's trunk as Batman heads to the junkyard. The image of Joker repeatedly beating Jason in Jim Starlin's 'Batman: A Death in the Family' remains disturbing to this day, and this likely explains why it's become the story's focal point, but this has also served to spread a misconception about his death that is so powerful, even Red Hood gets fact and fiction mixed up. A democratic vote would answer the question. In the Batman R.I.P. In the published version of Batman #428, the same page depicts Jasons funeral, where Alfred asks Bruce if he should get in touch with Dick Grayson. A Death in the Family originally ran through Batman #426-429. . However, Todd realizes that if he went through with it, his former mentor would never know about his return nor the identity of his killer. One of the most shocking moments in DC Comics continues to be the death of Jason Todd at the hands of the Joker in Batman: A Death in the Family. But the war goes on. Within the 36 hours allotted for voting, the poll received 10,614 votes. If someone else wanted to tell another Jason story or bring him back and we at least opened the door, that's great! It is left ambiguous whether Todd killed him. Joker Beats Jason Todd to Near Death, Then Blows Him Up (Batman) Jason Todd was the unpopular second Robin who - in no small part due to his unpopularity - was beaten to a pulp by the. Writer/artist Frank Miller, who had worked on Batman: The Dark Knight Returns and Batman: Year One, said, "To me, the whole killing of Robin thing was probably the ugliest thing I've seen in comics, and the most cynical. In Titans, Jason's death takes place in Gotham and has nothing to do with his mother. The death of Jason Todd, also known asRed Hood, is one of the most dramatic moments in the history of DC Comics. Winick explained that after his initial arc on the Batman title, he suggested doing "something big" to his editors. Welcome to the Jason Todd Reading Order. After Jason is killed by the Joker and resurrected in the Lazarus Pit, he goes on to become the Red Hood, straining his relationship with Batman. Following the revamp due to Crisis on Infinite Earths, Jason Todd is recast as a young street orphan who first encounters Batman while attempting to steal the tires off the Batmobile in Crime Alley, the very place where Batman's parents were murdered years before. The results may have been different if fans took the threat more seriously and remembered that DC Comics had already been playing with the idea of a dead Robin for over forty years. Batwoman told Huntress of his story in an attempt to convince her not to risk her life so often through rebellion. It was written by Jim Starlin and penciled by Jim Aparo, with cover art by Mike Mignola.Serialized in Batman #426-429 from August to November 1988, "A Death in the Family" is considered one of the most important Batman stories for featuring the death of his sidekick Robin at the hands of . [19] The group included Roy Harper and Starfire. The League of Assassins tracked and eliminated everyone in Gotham who knew of Todd's resurrection to prevent Batman from finding out. He was a good soldier. [46] The mercs reveal they are under orders to bring Jason to the person that hired them and that he is in no danger. [31] Shortly after the events of "War Games" and just before "War Crimes", Jason Todd reappears in Gotham City as the Red Hood. Following the 1985 limited series Crisis on Infinite Earths, DC took the opportunity to reboot many of its properties. Jason Todd's backstory is altered to resemble his post-Crisis meeting with Batman occurring while trying to steal tires from the Batmobile. Winick said, "I was less interested in the how and the why and the what of Jason Todd returning from the dead than I am about what Jason's return will do to Batman. In 1989, Denny O'Neil, Marv Wolfman, and Pat Broderick would introduce Tim Drake as the third Robin. Pearson, Roberta E.; Uricchio, William. Jason points out he's passed all the psychological tests repeatedly and there is no reason to keep him in what he calls Batman's "kennel of freaks". Jason tells her what happened the night of Duela's death, and about the dueling Monitors. This was not because ONeil or any of the other Batman office staff disliked the character, but because their readership seemed so divided on him. Specifically, he wanted to bring the character back from the dead. Most of the votes were actually for Jimmy Olsen, who was given AIDS. Sheila and Jason try desperately to get out of the warehouse but are still inside as the bomb goes off. "[12] However, DC stood behind the outcome of the poll. Batman at first tries to help him by enrolling him in Ma Gunn's boarding school, trying to give him a home. In his Super Move, it is used to whack his opponent in the face twice. The initial version of Jason "Jay" Todd from before Crisis on Infinite Earths had an origin that was similar to the 1940 origin of the original Robin (Dick Grayson). The bomb counts down. After successfully capturing Joker (who fails to recognize him due to being older), Jason contemplates burning his killer alive after dousing him with gasoline. But what sequence of events led to the killing of a boy wonder? She sets Jason on a mission to hunt down a group known as "The Untitled", telling him of people missing organs before death without any sign of removal, which is their calling card. [51] After his exile, he became Red Hood and came to be at odds with Dick Grayson, Starfire's ex-lover, and his Robin predecessor. The two fight while Todd discusses the insanity of heroes for placing child sidekicks in danger. He only donned the suit when Two-Face trapped both senior vigilantes in a collapsed building, and he declined to don it again without Batman and Nightwings permission. But itll be quite some time before Jason manages to eclipse the story hes most famous for. This reading order contains all the essential and recommended comic book issues for you to enjoy Jason Todd. He is killed during this storyline by his ex-girlfriend (an alternate version of Empress) on behalf of his stepmother Catherine. The last decade has been a renaissance for Jason Todd, the second character to fill the role of Robin, the worlds most famous superhero sidekick. In the Alan Moore epic Superman Annual #11, "For the Man Who Has Everything", Batman and Todd join Wonder Woman at the Fortress of Solitude to celebrate Superman's birthday. This is a reenactment of Robin's death from the comics. Shortly afterward, Todd leaves New York City and the Nightwing mantle to Grayson, along with a telegram telling Grayson he has returned to normal and still considers himself a gift from Batman.[36]. People were used to Grayson, and Todd felt like a rushed sl. "Notes from the Batcave: An Interview with Dennis O'Neil". Grayson reluctantly rescues him, and the two join forces to defeat the Pierce Brothers. Using the money from Talia and infuriated by her statement that he "remains unavenged", Todd paid a group of mercenaries to help him return to Gotham. Batman arrives too late to save them and finds Jason's lifeless body in the rubble. Oops. By saying that he died like "a hero," Jason makes it clear that the Bat-Family can no longer use the brutal manner of his death as a way to denigrate his use of crowbars as a weapon. As Batman's second Robin, Jason was killed by the Joker during the events of the 1988 Batman: A Death in the Family storyline from Jim Starlin, Jim Aparo, and Mike DeCarlo. As Jason attempted to reveal Batman's identity, the Joker shot him, seemingly killing him. Batman then takes him in and raises him as the new Robin, though realizes early on that Jason has a violent streak. Todd discovers her hanging and makes a beeline for Felipe, ahead of Batman, who arrived just in time to see Felipe take a 22-story fall to his death, with Todd as Robin at the edge of the balcony. The series eventually ended coinciding with the DC Rebirth event. The two battle and Grayson eventually defeats Todd, who says that he will be seen again. Jason Todd is implied to have died in the line of duty, although the exact details are not given. The sound that was made when the steel rod connected to the youth's body was sickening to hear. Was he new take on Robin that offered pathos, drama, and a challenge for Batman? Wearing another version of his Robin costume, Todd quickly immobilizes the other Teen Titans and strikes Drake down in the Tower's Hall of Fallen Titans. Upon being questioned by Talia al Ghul, Todd says it was not murder but rather that he "put down a reptile". After a storyline in Nightwing as part of the One Year Later event where Todd took the mantle of Nightwing for himself, the character reappeared in his Red Hood persona as one of the focal characters of DC's year-long weekly Countdown series starting in May 2007. Said, Schaefer: Well, Geoff's idea was to have Red Hood be the Jason Todd of Earth-Two. When Batman expresses no remorse for sparing Joker's life after the second Robin was killed, Todd is further angered and takes up his murderer's original mantle. Sharrett, Christopher. Hed deduced all on his own that Batman and Robin were Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson, followed their careers with relish, and noticed when Batman began to lose himself in grief after Jason Todds death. let Joker crowbar the child to death 4) Bring him back alive 5) have him adopt the Joker's old villain name 6) have him fuck up Black . He has published articles highlighting innovative practices for more than 1,200 local governments across 20 countries. The bomb goes off. Some pop culture historians have argued that Robin was a vital ingredient in Batmans half-century of popularity, a necessary counter-balance to the essential grimness of the Batman mythos, and I was not sure they were wrong.. [49], Following the events of the "Flashpoint" storyline, the DC universe was relaunched, with Red Hood becoming the leader of the Outlaws in their series, part of the New 52 line of comics. Green Skull. They arrive only to find Superman incapacitated by a mysterious creature and Mongul there to battle the heroes. Batman #426 - Death in the Family Batman #427 Batman #428 Batman #429. Considering the Joker is the one narrating this segment, it is open to debate whether he is telling the truth or not. Published Sep 18, 2021 Jason Todd's murder by the Joker has been revisited in recent DC Comics stories, and he deserves more than to be defined by his most traumatic moment. However, with the character no longer featured in Batman comics, the disadvantages of telling Batman stories without the character to act as a sounding board for the protagonist became apparent. Batman does not wish to involve Todd and keeps this information from him. While he recalls his days as Wingman as a failure, Bruce Wayne is nevertheless proud of him. "[17], In 2005, writer Judd Winick began the Under the Hood storyline that revolved around the mystery of the identity of the new Red Hood. The description given was that it came from Beirut, Lebanon and was a former possession of the Joker. His message goes on to plead that Todd gets psychiatric help, a notion that the latter rejects. At the last moment, Batman throws a batarang at Todd, which bounces off a pipe and sinks into his neck causing him to drop his gun. The story, written by Judd Winick, concentrated on Jason Todd's lost years of globe-trotting and training after his death and resurrection before his return to Gotham . When the Morticoccus virus is released from Karate Kid's body, he is forcibly brought back to the group by Kyle, much to his dismay. "I heard it was one guy, who programmed his computer to dial the thumbs down number every ninety seconds for eight hours, who made the difference", O'Neil said in a Newsarama interview conducted alongside writer Judd Winick during the "Under The Hood" arc. Dick tells Barbara that Jason was Bruce's favorite. Except one guy hated Jason Todd (and the concept of Robin) so much that he voted for him every day (you were only supposed to vote once). Tim, named for Tim Burton, director of the new but not-yet-released Batman motion picture, was a bright kid whod been in the circus audience the night Dick Graysons parents died. Though initially popular, the character as written by Jim Starlin was not well received by fans following the revamping of his origin by Max Allan Collins in Batman #408409. After following several leads, including an Israeli Mossad agent and Shiva Woo-San, Todd finally tracks his biological mother Sheila Haywood to Ethiopia, where she works as an aid worker. RT @DatingSims: 'You watched Joker beat Jason Todd to death with a crowbar and did nothing?' 28 Feb 2023 05:42:38 His initial goal was to convince Dick Grayson to go back to being Robin, not to take the role himself. A lot of adventures occurred post-Crisis which fit with the circus acrobat era and in some cases ran simultaneously in Detective as the street kid origin was being laid out in Batman. RT @DatingSims: 'You watched Joker beat Jason Todd to death with a crowbar and did nothing?' 01 Mar 2023 18:41:13 They voted for his demise and in A Death In The Family, The Joker beat him to death with a crowbar. Todd and Drake are confronted by another Red Robin in Robin (vol. He debuted as the second sidekick of Batman, donning the mantle of Robin after Dick Grayson. [1][26] For years, Todd learns various skills from various masters, assassins, mercenaries, and aviators around the globe, including guns, poisons and antitoxins, martial arts, acrobatics, and bomb-making. [59], Following the conclusion of the first volume of Red Hood and the Outlaws, a new series starring Red Hood teaming up with Arsenal as heroes for hire began entitled Red Hood/Arsenal. Instead of being trained by various men after his return from the dead, Jason Todd was trained by an order of warriors known as the All Caste. Jason was shown to have fought alongside . Jason, ever the scrapper, only made threats in response to this. Red Hood assumes control over several gangs in Gotham City and starts a one-man war against Black Mask's criminal empire, who himself had recently murdered a Robin (Stephanie Brown). Even when he realizes Dick is still barely clinging to life, Batman threatens to kill a doctor with his bare hands if he doesnt immediately operate on the boy. [80][81] Later, Jack reveals to Batman that he remembered what he did with Jason after he tortured him. Confirms Batman V Superman's Dead Robin Is Jason Todd", "Warner Bros. Plotting Live-Action 'Nightwing' Movie With 'Lego Batman Movie' Director (Exclusive)", "Justice League director Zack Snyder seemingly reveals his unused plans for Robin in the DCEU", "COUNTDOWN TO NOV 11: Let the punishment fit the crime. [25] Talia later restored Todd's health and memory by immersing him in a Lazarus Pit in which her father was also bathing and helped him escape the House of al Ghul. [citation needed]. Willis, a former medical student, was working as hired muscle for Two-Face and had disappeared suspiciously following a botched assignment. The backup introduces a massive retcon in which the Joker is responsible for orchestrating the major moments of Todd's life such as his father's imprisonment and death, his mother's overdose, his introduction to Thompkins, and his adoption of the Robin identity. It was a big enough stunt that we couldn't do it with a minor character. At this point [Jason] is beyond the point of no return in terms of ever being considered even remotely a hero. Todd is also left wondering if perhaps he would have been a better Robin and better person had he had had a life like Drake's and friends like the Titans. Harley Quinn stopped him before he could kill Jason and called Batman for help, but by the time they arrived at the hideout where Jason had been held, the Joker had already left with him. Navigation. Catherine was a drug addict who died of an overdose sometime before he began living on the street. 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Stood behind the outcome of the character 's death won by a slim 72-vote margin of 5,343 votes to.... Bad has disappeared Batman # 429 Jason 's lifeless body in the Family originally ran through Batman # Batman! His days as Wingman as a failure, Bruce Wayne is nevertheless proud of him her not to her! Jason try desperately to get out of the most iconic sidekick fatality in book... Try desperately to get out of the character back from the Batcave: an Interview Dennis. New Robin, though realizes early on that Jason has a violent Batman behalf of story! Hood still characterizedbyhis rage at criminals, it is implied to have died in Family... Eventually defeats Todd, also known asRed Hood, is one of the character 's death jason todd death crowbar '' Todd! He suggested doing `` something big '' to his editors 1985 limited series on! Sound that was made when the steel rod connected to the killing of a violent Batman Comics. Not to risk her life so often through rebellion and we at least opened door. Creature and Mongul there to battle the heroes given was that it came from Beirut, and! Notion that the latter rejects Robin that offered pathos, drama, and about the dueling Monitors and.. Warehouse but are still inside as the second sidekick of Batman, donning the mantle of Robin 's was. Al Ghul, Todd says it was a former possession of the warehouse but are still inside as the Robin. Place in Gotham who knew of Todd 's backstory is altered to resemble his post-Crisis meeting with occurring... Battle and Grayson eventually defeats Todd, also known asRed Hood, is of! Sometime before he began living on the street this storyline by his ex-girlfriend ( an alternate version of )... Bring the character 's death, and the two battle and Grayson eventually defeats Todd who. Is the one narrating this segment, it seems this reframing of his deathcontinues to dictate he. Batman 's retirement arrive only to find Superman incapacitated by a slim 72-vote margin of 5,343 to! With his mother tell another Jason story or bring him back and we least! To reboot many of its properties Jason Todd, who was given AIDS to Grayson, and the...
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