Jason Todd

Jason Todd

Jason Todd as the Red Hood, from Batman #638 (June 2005). Art by Doug Mahnke and Tom Nguyen.
Publication information
Publisher DC Comics
First appearance as Jason Todd:
Batman #357 (March 1983)
as Robin:
Batman #366 (December 1983)
as Red Hood:
Batman #635 (February 2005)
as Nightwing:
Nightwing (vol. 2) #118 (May 2006)
as Red Robin:
Countdown to Final Crisis #14 (January 2008)
as Batman:
Batman: Battle for the Cowl #1 (May 2009)
as Wingman:
Batman Incorporated (vol. 2) #1 (July 2012)
Created by

Don Newton (artist)

In-story information
Full name Jason Peter Todd[1]
Team affiliations Batman Family
Batman Inc.
Teen Titans
Challengers From Beyond
The Outlaws
League of Assassins
Partnerships Batman
Arsenal
Starfire
Rose Wilson
Damian Wayne
Scarlet[2]
Notable aliases Red Hood, Nightwing, Red Robin, Batman
Abilities

Jason Todd is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by DC Comics.

The character first appeared in Batman #357 (March 1983)[3] and became the second character to take up the Robin identity, sidekick to the superhero Batman. Though initially popular, following a revamping of his origin by Max Allan Collins, the character as written by Jim Starlin was not well received by fans. For 1988's "Batman: A Death in the Family" storyline, DC Comics held a telephone poll to determine whether or not the character would die at the hands of the Joker, Batman's nemesis. He was killed off by a margin of 72 votes (5,343 for, 5,271 against). Subsequent Batman stories dealt with Batman's guilt over not having been able to prevent Jason Todd's death. In 2005's "Under the Hood" story arc, the character was resurrected, becoming the second character to take up the Red Hood alias and assuming a new role as an antihero who resembles Batman in many ways, except with a willingness to use lethal force and weapons.[4]

In 2013, ComicsAlliance ranked Jason Todd as #23 on their list of the "50 Sexiest Male Characters in Comics".[5]

Publication history

Cover to Batman #368 (December 1983). Depicting the first pre-Crisis debut of Jason Todd as Robin.
Cover to Batman #408 (June 1987). Depicting the first post-Crisis meeting of Batman and Jason Todd.

By the time Len Wein took over as editor of DC Comics' Batman titles in 1982, Dick Grayson had largely moved on to starring as the leader of the young superhero team the Teen Titans in DC's New Teen Titans title. 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.[6] Jason Todd was created as Dick Grayson's replacement as Robin but was almost a complete clone of the first Robin until Crisis on Infinite Earths.The character debuted in Batman #357 (March 1983) and made his second cameo appearance in Detective Comics #526 (May 1983), but it wasn't until later that year when he would appear in costume as Robin in Batman #366 (Dec 1983) when he showed up towards the end of the story to help Batman fight the Joker.

Following the 1985 limited series Crisis on Infinite Earths, DC took the opportunity to reboot many of its properties. The character was completely revamped and the new version of the character was not well received by fans. Dennis O'Neil, who took over as Batman editor in 1986, said, "They did hate him. I don't know if it was fan craziness—maybe they saw him as usurping Dick Grayson's position. Some of the mail response indicated that this was at least on some people's minds."[7]

"A Death in the Family"

In 1988, Dennis O'Neil suggested that an audience might be attracted to the comics by being offered the opportunity to influence the creative process.[8] Settling on the idea of telephone poll via a 1-900 number, O'Neil had decided due to discussions with DC Comics president Jenette Kahn that the poll should not be wasted on something insignificant. O'Neil settled on using the poll to determine the fate of the second Robin. O'Neil said, "The logical candidate was Jason because we had reason to believe that he wasn't that popular anyway. It was a big enough stunt that we couldn't do it with a minor character."[9] Even though Jason Todd was unpopular with readers, O'Neil could not decide what to do with the character, so he opted to present the choice to the readership.[8]

The vote was set up in the four-part story "A Death in the Family" that was published in Batman #426–429 in 1988. At the end of Batman #427, Jason was beaten by the Joker and left to die in an explosion. The inside back cover of the issue listed two 1-900 numbers that readers could call to vote for the character's death or survival. Within the 36-hour period allotted for voting, the poll received 10,614 votes. The verdict in favor of the character's death won by a slim 72-vote margin of 5,343 votes to 5,271.[10] The following issue, Batman #428, was published featuring Todd's death. Years later, O'Neil would admit hundreds of votes in the "Jason Dies" line came from a single person, adding a large degree of uncertainty to the honesty of results regarding a poll designed to determine the character's popularity. "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.[11] Based on O'Neil's information, that figures out to 320 votes over eight hours from one person or roughly six percent of the death line's total calls. O'Neil would later repeat the claim with further specifics: "I heard it was a lawyer who was using a MacIntosh and lived in California—I obviously don't have hard information on this, but I heard someone out there programmed his computer to dial it every couple of minutes, and since there was only about 65 votes that made the difference, if that story is true, that guy, that guy killed Jason Todd!"[12]

Interior art of Batman #428 (1988): "A Death in the Family". Art by Jim Aparo.

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."[13] A few comics creators voiced their displeasure at the event. 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."[14] However, DC stood behind the outcome of the poll. O'Neil was quoted on the back cover of A Death in the Family trade paperback collecting the story with Todd's death as saying, "It would be a really sleazy stunt to bring him back."[15] O'Neil would later regret his comment.[16]

There was a degree of discontinuity between the Batman and Detective Comics titles with regards to the portrayal of Jason. A great deal 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. This led to a blackout of almost any Robin appearances in Detective. This became especially apparent after his death. Eleven months passed between Jason's death in Batman #428 and the first mention of his passing in Detective Comics #606.

In 1989, Denny O'Neil, Marv Wolfman and Pat Broderick would introduce Tim Drake as the third Robin. Mindful of the poor reception Jason received from readers, O'Neil arranged for a more nuanced introduction in which Tim first introduced himself to Dick Grayson and impressed the former Robin with his skills and was revealed to share a history with Grayson. Batman himself would slowly grow to accept Tim as his new partner, although the memory of Jason would continue to play a heavy part in his behavior towards partners and how Batman trained Tim in the months building up to his official appearance as Robin.[17][18]

"Hush" and reintroduction

Jason Todd as Red Hood, from Batman Annual #25. Art by Shane Davis.

Prior to the release of Batman #617 (September 2003), a page of art from the issue by artist Jim Lee circulated the Internet, apparently revealing the mystery villain Hush, who was the focus of Lee and writer Jeph Loeb's "Hush" storyline, as a resurrected Jason. The following month's Batman #618 (October 2003) revealed that the appearance of Todd was in fact a ruse by the villain Clayface under the direction of the Riddler and Hush. Loeb explained, "I always liked Jason, liked the idea that Batman had a Robin who died in the line of duty and how that would motivate anyone to continue their quest. It would also be the most recent, most painful thing he had to endure. That's why Hush played the card—to get inside Batman's head... But 'Hush' wasn't about Jason—Jason was a pawn to be moved around the table... If someone else wanted to tell another Jason story or bring him back and we at least opened the door, that's great!"[19]

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 character's identity was revealed as Jason Todd in Batman #638. Winick explained that after his initial arc on the Batman title, he suggested doing "something big" to his editors. Specifically, he wanted to bring the character back from the dead. 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. Now."[19] The explanation for the character's return was revealed in Batman Annual #25 (2006). 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.

"Battle for the Cowl"

In the Batman R.I.P. follow-up storyline Batman: Battle for the Cowl, Jason Todd is featured as a gun-wielding vigilante. Commenting on the direction and utilization of Jason Todd in the storyline, writer and artist Tony Daniel has stated that, from this point on, Jason is a "bona fide" villain:[20]

“ At this point [Jason] is beyond the point of no return in terms of ever being considered even remotely a hero. What I wanted to do here is put him in a place that he can't come back from. The things that he does here in Battle for the Cowl are things that can never really be forgiven. The only outcome would have to be imprisonment or something worse. But from this point on for Jason the gray area between good and bad has disappeared. It's crystal clear now that he is on the dark side. ”

Todd battles the Batman Family one by one until he is defeated by Dick Grayson taking up the mantle of Batman. However, before falling from a train into a dark abyss, he gives an ominous warning that he will be seen again.

The Outlaws

Jason Todd as Red Hood, from Red Hood and the Outlaws #1; art by Kenneth Rocafort.

On June 6, 2011,[21] as part of DC Comics' line-wide revamp initiative, it was announced Jason Todd will headline his own title in the guise of the Red Hood. Todd acts as leader of the Outlaws, a group of antiheroes that "have several different exciting characters from the DC Universe – some we've seen before and some we haven't," Batman Group Editor Mike Marts said.[21] The group includes Roy Harper and Starfire. Red Hood and the Outlaws debuted in September 2011, written by Scott Lobdell and with art by Kenneth Rocafort.[21] The series has focused on Jason Todd's redemption, and introduced a simplified version of his origin story as the Red Hood in Red Hood and the Outlaws #0, a special prequel issue between #12 and #13.

Fictional character biography

Pre-Crisis on Infinite Earths

The initial version of Jason "Jay" Todd from before Crisis on Infinite Earths had an origin that was virtually identical to the 1940 origin of the original Robin (Dick Grayson).[6][22] Originally, he is the son of circus acrobats, Joseph Todd and Trina Todd, killed by a criminal (Killer Croc) and is later adopted by Bruce Wayne.[23] Distinguished by strawberry blond hair, Todd is wearing various pieces of Dick Grayson's old childhood disguises as costume to fight crime until Grayson presents him with a Robin costume of his own. At that point, Todd dyes his hair black, and in later stories blossoms under Batman's tutelage.

For a time Natalia Knight, the criminal also known as Nocturna, Mistress of the Night is a stabilizing influence in his life; she becomes his surrogate mother and even adopts the young Todd. Catwoman would be a frequent guest star during this era as she wrestled with the role of hero and as a love interest for Batman which led to clashes with the boy feeling left-out.

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. They arrive only to find Superman incapacitated by a mysterious creature and Mongul there to battle the heroes. Todd as Robin saves Wonder Woman, Superman, and Batman from Mongul by unleashing Mongul's own hallucination-causing creature on the tyrant himself.

Todd also tackled the drug problem in his school, hauling in the local dealers who were muscled up with Two-Face. One of the more memorable moments of this era occurred in Detective Comics #569 when Batman forbade Jason from using "Holy!" puns.

Post-Crisis on Infinite Earths

Origin

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 Dark Knight's Batmobile in Crime Alley. The son of Willis Todd and Catherine Todd, Jason lives on the East end of Gotham in the Park Row district called Crime Alley. Catherine was a drug addict who died of an overdose some time before he began living on the street. Willis was working as hired muscle for Two-Face and had disappeared suspiciously following a botched assignment. Bruce Wayne sees to it that Todd is placed in a school for troubled youths which turns out to be Ma Gunn's School for Crime. Jason earns the Robin mantle a short while later by helping Batman apprehend the gang of thieves. However, Todd does not wear the Robin costume (an improved version of the classic) until six months of training.[24] Batman notes that while Todd doesn't possess Dick Grayson's natural athleticism & acrobatic skills, he can become a productive crimefighter by channeling his rage. He also believes that if he doesn't help the boy, Todd will eventually become part of the "criminal element".

In the revamp period, Todd is portrayed as the "rebel" Robin. He smokes, swears, and fights authority. He is prone to defying Batman's orders, sometimes to success (bringing in the Scarecrow singlehandedly) and sometimes failure (botching a raid on a drug lab by jumping the gun too soon). Todd also aided Batman while Gotham City was temporarily overrun by Deacon Blackfire as shown in Batman: The Cult.

The most controversial moment prior to his death occurred in Batman #424 when serial rapist Felipe Garzonas escapes prosecution due to his father's diplomatic immunity. One of his victims, a girl named Gloria, hangs herself amid the threat of a third rape from Felipe. 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. Todd maintains "I guess I spooked him. He slipped." This highlights an earlier exchange in Batman #422 where he uses excessive force on a pimp about to slash one of his working girls and Todd asks Batman if it "would've been such a big loss if I had (killed him)?". Whether Todd pushed the rapist from the roof is never known.

In Batman #425, the Dynamic Duo is challenged by Felipe's father when he kidnaps Commissioner Gordon in retaliation for his son's death. Batman is instructed to meet the kidnappers at a city junkyard and to bring Robin. Batman does not wish to involve Todd and keeps this information from him. However, Robin senses something is wrong and hides in the Batmobile's trunk as Batman heads to the junkyard. There, Batman is unable to reach Gordon, surrounded by Garzonas' men, and Todd intervenes, saving Batman from a close call. Machine gunfire breaks out and Gordon is wounded in the arm. All of the henchmen die, and Garzonas is finally crushed by a pile of junk cars. Batman speaks to Todd of consequences to actions while the boy stares at the dead and the wounded Gordon for a moment before walking off.

Death

In 1988's "A Death in the Family" storyline, Jason Todd discovers that Catherine Todd was not his biological mother, and runs away to find the woman who gave birth to him. After following a number of leads, including an Israeli Mossad agent and Shiva Woo-San, Todd finally tracks his mother Sheila to Ethiopia, where she works as an aid worker. While Todd is overjoyed to be reunited with his real mother, he soon discovers that she is being blackmailed by the Joker using her to provide him with medical supplies. Sheila herself has been embezzling from the aid agency and as part of the cover-up, she hands her own son, having arrived as Robin, over to Joker. Joker beats the boy brutally with a crowbar, and then leaves him and Sheila in the warehouse with a time bomb. Sheila and Jason try desperately to get out of the warehouse but are still inside as the bomb goes off. Batman arrives too late to save them, and finds Jason's lifeless body in the rubble. Sheila lives just long enough to tell Batman that Jason died trying to protect her. The bodies are taken back to Gotham City for burial. Todd's death haunts Batman, and he considers it his greatest failure. He keeps the second Robin's uniform on display in the Batcave as a reminder. The murder of Todd, along with the shooting (and paralysis) of Barbara Gordon in Batman: The Killing Joke, intensifies Batman's obsession with Joker.

Return from the Grave

Interior art of Batman #617 (2003). The apparent return of Jason Todd. Art by Jim Lee.

Years later, while trying to discover the identity of a mysterious figure plotting against him, Batman discovers that Tim Drake (as Robin) has been kidnapped. When he confronts the kidnapper, he discovers, much to his surprise, that the kidnapper is apparently an adult Todd, standing at his own desecrated grave site. Batman subdues this mystery "Jason" and discovers that it is only Clayface impersonating Todd, concluding that "Jason's" greater physical age was to hide the flaws in Clayface's impersonation by allowing him to partially mimic Nightwing's combat skills; duplicating Drake's movements would not work as his movements were too familiar, but Batman's less regular contact with Nightwing would make him unsure. However, Todd's actual body is missing from its grave.[25]

It is later revealed that he had indeed died at the hands of the Joker. However, when Superboy-Prime alters reality from the paradise dimension in which he is trapped—his punches against the barrier keeping him from the rest of the universe causing temporal ripples—Jason Todd is restored to life, breaks out of his coffin, and is eventually hospitalized; having wandered so far from his grave before his discovery, no connection was ever drawn between the two events, with groundskeepers covering up the disturbed grave rather than report it, and Batman's security systems was only meant for someone from outside the grave. Todd never turns up on any missing persons reports—as he was never 'missing'—nor can he be identified since no prints are on file for him. After spending a year in a coma and subsequently another year as an amnesiac vagrant after escaping the hospital, he is taken by Talia al Ghul after a small-time crook recognizes him as Robin due to his combat skills on the street.

Talia took Todd in out of her love for Batman, while Ra's al Ghul was interested in the secret behind his resurrection. The League of Assassins tracked and eliminated everyone in Gotham who knew of Todd's resurrection to prevent Batman from finding out. They also interrogated Joker's henchmen who were with him during Todd's murder, in hopes to find out how the boy could have survived.[26] 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. It is suggested by Ra's that the power of the pit resulted in Todd's mental instability. Ra's refers to Todd as a "curse" and a "pestilence" unleashed on the planet, saying that madness may affect him in "hours, months, or decades".

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. Upon arriving, he enacts a plan to get revenge on Batman due to Todd convinced the Dark Knight deserves to die for failing to avenge his death.

The Lost Days

Jason Todd creates a false arms trafficking of advance military arsenal, knowing that Batman would respond. This provides Jason an opportunity to plant a bomb beneath the Batmobile while Batman is on a stakeout for the arms deal. Batman enters the car and is at Jason's mercy, detonator in hand. However, Todd realizes that his former mentor would never know about his return nor the identity of his killer. Todd decides to kill Batman directly by traveling across the globe in search of a similar, yet deadlier type of training as Bruce Wayne received to prepare for that day.[1][27] 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. Upon learning that the man training him in lethal combat is also the leader of a child sex slave ring, Jason frees the latest shipment of children and takes them to a local embassy, then returns to the training compound and poisons his new mentor for his crimes. Upon being questioned by Talia al Ghul, Todd says it was not murder but rather that he "...put down a reptile."[28] Jason has since repeated the same pattern of killing his teachers when finding them guilty after he has finished with his training.

During his journey, Jason discovers his Robin replacement was Timothy "Tim" Drake, which further torments him. He also learns that the man teaching him bomb-making is involved in a Russian mafia-backed deal meant to push the resources of British law enforcement away from mob crime and onto Islamic extremist terrorism with a framed bombing plot. Todd manages to hunt down the gang and safely detonate the bombs. Ironically, the only surviving member of the gang offers Jason the possibility of a large government payday in exchange for his life, because he knows where a very wanted man is. That wanted man turns out to be the Joker.[28][29][30]

After learning of the Joker's arms deal in Los Angeles for another terrorism plot, Jason begins to stalk the villain as a masked assassin. After successfully capturing Joker (who fails to recognize him), Jason contemplates burning his killer alive after dousing with gasoline. However, Jason realizes that he does not simply want Joker to die, but desires to punish the villain with Batman. Jason spares Joker and decides to wait for the right opportunity. Jason also admits to Talia that he has already deduced that the reason she finances his training is to stall him from killing Batman, but he has no desire to kill his former mentor anymore. Talia then gives Todd the idea to be the Batman that Gotham needs. She also hires the same carpenters who built Jason's casket and had them build a replica of it (the original was destroyed when Jason emerged from it). Todd enters into a pact with Hush and the Riddler. He confirms to Hush that Riddler is correct that Bruce Wayne is Batman. As Hush, Riddler and Jason collaborate, Jason initially confronts Batman at his own gravesite. Jason then switches places with Clayface in order to observe Batman from afar. 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. After she initiated a takeover of Kord Industries for him, Talia gives Jason a flame dagger (a replica of the one Ra's al Ghul often carried) and a red helmet as gifts, and they become his signature weapon and mask.[1][31]

Red Hood

Shortly after the events of "War Games" and just before "War Crimes", Jason Todd reappears in Gotham City as the Red Hood.[32] He hijacks a shipment of Kryptonite from Black Mask, and in the midst of a battle with Batman, Nightwing and Mr. Freeze, Red Hood gives them the Kryptonite back, and tells them he has gotten what he truly wanted: a "lay of the land". Shortly afterward, Red Hood finds the Joker (driven out of Gotham by Hush) and beats him with a crowbar just as Joker had beaten Jason. Despite the violence of the beating, Jason spares Joker, intending to use him later against Batman.

Red Hood assumes control over several gangs in Gotham City and starts a one-man war against Black Mask's criminal empire. Overall, he strives to take over Gotham's gangs, control their activities, and to kill Joker in revenge for his own death. In his new role as Gotham's most powerful crime lord, he repeatedly comes to blows with Batman and several of his allies. A Robin mask is found in the Batmobile, which never belonged to Dick or Tim, but is of the style that Todd wore as Robin, suggesting that he'd been stalking Batman.[33] After their encounter in the cemetery, Batman becomes obsessed with the possibility of resurrection from the dead, and seeks advice from allies such as Superman and Green Arrow, both of whom have died and returned to life. Around this time, Batman discovers that the empty coffin buried at Jason's gravesite is a replica of what he bought. Nevertheless, Batman keeps Jason's Robin costume in its memorial display case in the Batcave; when Alfred Pennyworth asks if he wants the costume removed, Batman sadly replies that the return of Todd "doesn't change anything at all".[34]

Acting on his obsession with Tim Drake, Todd breaks into Titans Tower to confront the third Robin, thus revealing the truth of their first encounter at the cemetery to his successor. Wearing an altered version of his own Robin costume, Todd quickly immobilizes the other Teen Titans and strikes Drake down in the Tower's Hall of Fallen Titans. Furious that no memorial statue was made for him (despite his short tenure as a Titan), he demands that Drake tell him if he is really as good as Todd has been told. Drake says "Yes" and passes out. As he leaves, he tears the 'R' emblem from Drake's chest, though later admitting that Drake has talent. Todd is also left wondering if perhaps he would have been a better Robin and better person had he a life like Drake's and friends like the Titans.[35]

Todd eventually kidnaps and holds Joker hostage, luring Batman to Crime Alley, the site of their first meeting. Despite their now-antagonistic relationship, Batman desperately wants to help Todd, and intends to atone for his own failures. Todd asks Batman why he has not avenged his death by killing Joker, a psychopath that has murdered countless people and crippled one of their best friends, and simply "doing it because he took me away from you". Batman then admits that he has often fantasized about taking the Joker somewhere private to torture for weeks before finally killing the maniac, but refuses to go to that place. Todd offers Batman an ultimatum: he will kill Joker unless Batman kills Todd first. Holding Joker at gunpoint, he throws a pistol to Batman and begins to count to three while standing behind Joker, leaving Batman with only a headshot if he wants to stop Todd pulling the trigger. At the last moment, Batman throws a batarang at Todd, which hits his hand and causes him to drop his gun. Joker takes advantage of the situation, detonating nearby explosives that engulf the platform and send them plunging into the bay.[1]

Nightwing

Jason Todd resurfaces following the "One Year Later" period, patrolling the streets of New York City as a murderous version of Nightwing. However, Jason shows no intention of giving up the Nightwing persona when confronted by Dick Grayson, and continues to taunt his predecessor by wearing the costume and suggesting that the two become a crime-fighting team. Not long after the two Nightwings meet up, Todd is captured and imprisoned by local mobsters Barry and Buddy Pierce. Grayson reluctantly rescues him, and the two join forces to defeat the Pierce Brothers. 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]

Red Hood again

Jason Todd resumes his persona as the Red Hood and appears in several issues of "Green Arrow" alongside Brick as part of a gun-running organization, which brings Batman to Star City. Jason's true motives are shown in the third part as he kidnaps Mia Dearden in an effort to dissolve her partnership with Green Arrow, feeling that they are kindred spirits, cast down by society and at odds with their mentors. The two fight while Todd discusses the insanity of heroes for placing child sidekicks in danger. Mia is deeply troubled by the discussion, but ultimately decides to remain with Green Arrow.

At the start of Countdown, Todd rescues a woman from Duela Dent — the Joker's daughter.[37] After a Monitor shoots and kills Duela, he attempts to kill Jason, but is stopped by a second Monitor. This second Monitor apologizes to Jason before they both disappear, leaving Jason alone with Duela's body. Later, at Duela's funeral, Jason hides until all of the Teen Titans have left except Donna Troy. Jason tells her what happened the night of Duela's death, and about the dueling Monitors. He knows that both he and Donna Troy have come back from the dead, even already deducing that his resurrection has something do with Alexander Luthor, Jr.'s plans during Infinite Crisis, and wonders which of them is next on the Monitor's hit list. The two are then attacked by the Forerunner, but before she can kill them, the apologetic Monitor stops her, and recruits Jason and Donna for a mission to the Palmerverse, a section of the Nanoverse discovered by Ray Palmer, in an attempt to find Palmer. During the trip, Jason takes it upon himself to name the Monitor "Bob". Jason seems to have a romantic interest in Donna, and is shown to be visibly disgruntled when her old boyfriend Kyle Rayner joins their group as they take their tour to the 52 Earths which comprise the Multiverse.

Red Robin

Jason Todd in the Red Robin costume.

A teaser image released to promote Countdown showed a figure resembling Red Robin among assembled heroes in poses symbolic of their roles in the series. After a series of contradictory statements about this figure, executive editor Dan DiDio firmly stated in the July 2007 DC Nation column that the figure is Jason Todd. The Red Robin costume, originally designed by Alex Ross for the 1996 Kingdom Come limited series and worn by the Earth-22 Dick Grayson, is seen in Countdown to Final Crisis #16 in the Earth-51 Batman's base of operations; it is revealed that Earth-51 became the peaceful world it is because the Batman of this Earth killed all the supervillains after his Jason was killed by the Joker. In issue #14, Jason dons the Red Robin suit—described by Earth-51's Batman as something he was going to give Todd's counterpart when he was older—and goes into battle alongside Earth-51 Batman. During a battle with a group of Monarch's soldiers, Earth-51 Batman is killed by the Ultraman of Earth-3, deeply affecting Jason. In his grief, Todd kills an alternate version of the Joker, also involved in Batman's killing, who then mocks his loss, vacating alongside Donna, Ray and Kyle to the planet Apokolips before Earth-51's destruction.

After the group is sent back to Earth, Todd leaves the group and returns to his crimefighting ways. 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. When the Challengers return to New Earth, Todd disposes of his Red Robin costume and abandons the rest of the group, though they go on to declare to the Monitors that they are now the monitors of the Monitors. Todd and Drake are confronted by another Red Robin in Robin #177, whose identity is initially a mystery but later turns out to be Ulysses Armstrong. Due to a combination of Red Robin's involvement and a gun-toting gang member, Todd was shot in the leg and arrested by police. Upon the resolution of the gang war in Gotham, Drake under a pseudonym visited Todd in prison to give him the Justice League access code to release himself from prison. Todd is booked under a pseudonym (John Doe), due to there being no identifiable prints on file for any member of the main bat heroes as well as Jason is still legally dead.[38] Following his escape, Todd continues on the mend, and is summoned by Tim Drake to come to the Batcave, where Batman has left a Last Will and Testament statement for him. After hearing the statement in private, Todd prepares to leave, not revealing what he was told, although he does pause before his old costume and the tattered remains of Batman's, he is clearly sad.[39]

Batman

Jason Todd reappeared in the "Battle for the Cowl" series. Dressed in a version of a Batman costume, Todd is also living/operating out of an abandoned Gotham subway system. His inner monologue reveals that he had always wanted to eventually replace Batman, and thinks it was a bad idea for Batman to become a public figure, rather than an urban legend.

After stabbing Tim Drake in the chest with a batarang, he and Dick Grayson battle down in the subway.[40] Nightwing still wants to save Todd, but Todd refuses the offer, and instead allows himself to fall off a speeding subway into the Gotham River, while stating they would see each other again soon. This allowed Grayson to officially take up the mantle of Batman.[41]

It is later revealed in Battle for the Cowl that Bruce Wayne's last words to Jason were of regret at how he had obviously overlooked the young man's deep emotional problems. He thought he could do what could never be done for him and 'make him whole'. His message goes on to plead that Todd get psychiatric help, a notion that the latter rejects. It is suggested by Dick Grayson that Todd was infuriated by Wayne's last words, a reaction that led him to becoming monstrous, murdering Batman in that same arc. Plus, it aggravated his hatred towards the Bat-family, as he repeatedly attempts to kill members of it.

Red Hood and Scarlet

In the second story arc of Batman and Robin by Grant Morrison and Philip Tan, Jason Todd retakes the Red Hood mantle after losing his bid to become the new Batman. With the goal of making the very concept of Batman obsolete, he puts a lot of effort into public relations: he drastically alters his Red Hood costume to look more like a traditional superhero outfit, recruits his own sidekick Scarlet. In their war on crime, Red Hood and Scarlet freely kill criminals, villains, and anyone who gets in their way, even the police. He leaves behind a calling card which states "let the punishment fit the crime." He describes his vendetta against Grayson as "the revenge of one crazy man in a mask on another crazy man in a mask."[42][43]

Todd has reappeared with red hair, claiming that he is a natural red-head and that Bruce Wayne had him dye his hair black in order to look like Dick Grayson (as in his pre-Crisis origins). He also claims the white streak of hair that he got is from being resurrected in the Lazarus Pit though the white streak disappears again.[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 own death poll]. A fight between Batman, Robin, and the Flamingo- a foreign hitman hired by a Mexican carlet after Red Hood killed their operative in Gotham- ends with Jason burying Flamingo in debris with a bulldozer. Flamingo is assumed dead, although Commissioner Gordon reports that his body can't be recovered from beneath the rubble.

Grayson offers to rehabilitate Todd who, in a moment of clarity, tells Grayson it's too late for him, and how he tried to be what Batman wanted, "but this world...this dirty, twisted, cruel and ugly dungheap had...other plans for me." He then proceeds to fall back into his hero persona, ranting how he did what Batman never did. He "...defeated his archenemy." Todd is arrested by Gordon who informs him that the reason he has always worked with Batman is that Batman never violates the law "where it counts". As Gordon leads him away, Todd tauntingly asks Grayson why he hasn't put Wayne's corpse into a Lazarus Pit to bring him back, citing his own resurrection from its bath. Scarlet flees Gotham, her mask finally falling from her face as she exits the city limits.[45]

Jason files an appeal to be moved from Arkham Asylum where he's been held for observation for the last several months. Bruce Wayne as Batman visits him there to inform Jason he's in Arkham for his own protection. 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 is transferred to a Gotham prison and upon his arrival, the suicide rate spikes amongst top incarcerated crime figures there. Several homicides occur due to many botched attempts on Jason's life by inmates with a grudge against Red Hood's tactics. Jason escalates things further by poisoning the cafeteria, killing 82 and sickening 100 more inmates. He is immediately transferred back to Arkham but is broken out of the paddy wagon by a group of mercenaries.[46] The mercs reveal they are under orders to bring Jason to the person that hired them and that he is in no danger. Jason breaks free and fights them off all the same as Batman and Robin arrive. Once the hired guns are subdued they reveal their employer has captured Scarlet, Jason's former sidekick. Dick, Damian, and Jason go to one of the Red Hood's weapon caches where he assembles a composite costume made from his biker and "superhero" Red Hood attire. The three intend to rescue Scarlet.[47] After Batman and Robin defeat the mercs, Red Hood rescues Scarlet and escapes using the helicopter. Batman and Robin attempt to chase him, but Red Hood tells them that he planted bombs over Gotham City months ago. Scarlet desires to stay with Red Hood as his partner. Red Hood and Scarlet head towards an unknown destination.[48]

The New 52

Origin

Jason's new origin is revealed in a special zero issue, which changes the manner in which Batman first met Todd (stealing medicine from Leslie Thompkins, after she had treated him from a brutal beating). The back-up 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. Considering the Joker is the one narrating this segment, it is open to debate whether he is telling the truth or not. Though only lightly touched on, his resurrection is also simplified: he is resurrected after he is placed into the Lazarus Pit by Talia al Ghul.[49]

The Outlaws

Following the events of the "Flashpoint" storyline, the DC universe was relaunched, with Red Hood becoming the leader of the Outlaws in their own series, part of the New 52 line of comics. The team also includes Starfire and Roy Harper. 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.[50] He was a part of the order for an unknown amount of time before he was exiled, partly of his own will.[51] After his exile, he became Red Hood and came to be odds with Dick Grayson, Starfire's ex-lover and his Robin predecessor. He soon tires of Gotham and leaves, gathering the group together; after breaking out Roy from a Middle Eastern prison, he brings Roy up to speed on things. The two start on very friendly terms. Roy and Starfire are in a sexual relationship. However, Starfire makes it clear to Roy that it is only physical, with no emotional ties. Essence, a fellow exiled member of the All Caste whom Jason knows, appears to him, but is invisible to others. 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. To top it off, Essence shows that the order of the All Caste, the people most qualified to handle the situation, have been slaughtered, leaving her and Jason as the only known survivors.[52] After finding out he's no longer the killer he once was, Jason brings his group to the All Caste headquarters, the Hundred Acres of All, where they discover the bodies are returning to life as zombies. Jason is forced to destroy the bodies of his teachers and friends. Afterwards, he pays his respects, swearing vengeance for them.[51] He is led on a wild goose chase across the globe. Eventually, he comes across an Untitled, who was in hiding, who tells him that they were set up, but still fights him. Jason kills the creature, strengthening his resolve.[53]

Todd has also been revealed to be a member of Batman, Incorporated, initially operating under the name of Wingman, an agent based in Europe. Wingman temporary allies himself with Damian Wayne, who is using the name "Redbird" at the time. Batman, Inc is at war with an organisation named Leviathan, headed by Talia al Ghul, Damian's mother and the woman responsible for reviving Jason, but in the present she seeks to destroy Batman and has put a bounty on their son's head. Alfred Pennyworth refers to Jason as wanting "to be redeemed" through his membership.[54] Later, however, the Wingman ruse is exposed and Todd returns to being Red Hood. While he recalls his days as Wingman as a failure, Bruce Wayne is nevertheless proud of him. Following the events of Death of the Family, Bruce and Alfred care for a sick Jason in the Manor, culminating in a warm embrace between Jason and his father figure as he regains consciousness, suggesting that their animosity might finally be put to rest.[55] After Jason recovers and in the wake of Damian's death, Batman partners with Jason for the first time since Jason's days as Robin. Batman brings Jason on a mission in Ethiopia to punish some of Damian's other would-be assassins, and while there he also takes him to the place of his death in the hopes Jason can provide insights into his resurrection so that he might apply the method to Damian. Jason is hurt by Batman's manipulation, and the two share harsh words and exchange blows, shattering their newfound relationship.[56] Later however, the pair come together, united by the ties of family. Jason teams up with Batman, Batgirl, Cyborg and Red Robin to rescue Damian's body from Apokolips. They are successful, and Damian is resurrected, sharing a warm reunion with Jason and the family.[57]

Following the traumas of Death of the Family, Damian's death and his betrayal by Batman, Jason returns to the All-Castle and has his memories wiped so that he may be at peace. He is 'rescued' by Starfire and Arsenal, but does not regain his memories.[58] He subsequently learns of his history from Starfire's computer, which states Red Hood has made 83 confirmed kills. Jason refuses to believe from Starfire and Arsenal that he had been on a path towards redemption, and abandons his teammates.[59]

Red Hood/Arsenal

Following the cancellation 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.

Skills and abilities

To become Robin, Jason Todd was trained by Bruce Wayne, just as Dick Grayson was. Batman instructed him in acrobatics, detective work, marksmanship and martial arts. After his return, he expands on his training by learning from people of the same caliber as those who trained his ex-mentor Batman.

Through Talia al Ghul's access to Kord Industries,[32][60] as well as being LexCorp's former CEO, Jason has access to high-level civilian and military-grade weaponry including firearms such as pistols, machine guns, shotguns, etc. He also has access to explosives, rocket launchers, and advanced computer equipment and gadgetry. However, his dagger (which resembles a kris and is a replica of one of Ra's al Ghul's knives) still remains as his preferred weapon of choice for hand-to-hand combat. He also has some lethally sharpened blades based on Batman's batarang designs as throwing weapons; unlike Batman's Batarangs, they cannot explode, or do any fancy tricks. Although Jason does not possess the wealth of Bruce Wayne, his arsenal is nearly on a par with Batman's technology. Jason is not afraid to kill, making him a ruthless antihero.

Having been trained by Batman in investigation, Todd is a skilled detective. During the Under the Hood arc, he was able to locate the Joker while the Clown Prince of Crime was in hiding after suffering a brutal beating from Hush. Todd deduced his own resurrection was related to Alexander Luthor, Jr.'s plots before his death in the beginning of the Countdown storyline.

Alternative versions

Further information: Alternate versions of Robin

The Dark Knight Returns

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, which was published before "A Death in the Family", references Jason Todd. In DKR, Jason Todd is implied to have died in the line of duty, although the exact details are not given. The Joker is not stated to have been responsible. It is implied that Todd's death was a contributing factor to Batman's retirement. When Batman allows Carrie Kelley to assume the mantle of Robin, Alfred Pennyworth objects, citing Todd as a reason. Batman responds by stating "Jason was a good soldier. He honored me. But the war goes on."

The details of Jason's death will be revealed in the comic book one-shot Dark Knight Returns: The Last Crusade, by the first series' author Frank Miller with Brian Azzarello, and art by John Romita, Jr. Romita reveals that the Joker, like "A Death in the Family" story arc, will play an important role in Jason Todd's demise in Miller's Dark Knight Universe. It is scheduled to be released on February 17, 2016.[61]

Earth-Two concept

Main article: Earth-Two

In an interview for the Infinite Crisis hardcover, Jeanine Schaefer states that Geoff Johns had planned to reveal the second Red Hood as the Jason Todd of the Earth-Two universe. Said Schaefer:

“ Well, Geoff's idea was to have Red Hood be the Jason Todd of Earth-Two. So he'd be this kid, who wanted to be Batman's sidekick. He sneaks into the Batcave, and the first thing he sees as he boots up the bat-computers is... Batman murdered. And so he uses Bruce's stuff, training himself to take over for him. I think there was even talk of his possibly being Deathstroke's Robin.[62] ”

Flashpoint

Main article: Flashpoint (comics)

An alternate version of Jason appears in the Flashpoint timeline, where, among other changes, Bruce Wayne was killed as a child and thus never became Batman. Here Jason is portrayed as a former drug-addict and follower of Brother Blood who eventually turned his life around and became a priest. He still died, but was eventually resurrected and recovered from it physically and mentally.[63]

A World Without Young Justice

In this alternate time line, there appeared a version of Jason. He is black haired circus kid with criminal acrobats as parents (Willis and Catherine Todd) who worked for Killer Croc. He is killed during this story line by his ex-girlfriend (an alternate version of Empress) on behalf of his step mother Catherine.[64]

Amalgam

In the Amalgam Universe, Jason Todd became Deathlok.[65]

Batman: Arkham Knight

Main article: Batman: Arkham
The Arkham Knight on the cover of Batman: Arkham Knight #1 (February 2015). Pencils by Dan Panosian.

"[When] the idea was on the table for us to develop our own character and introduce that into Batman's world, there was so much energy and excitement around it at Rocksteady – but we really were conscious of the value of the collaboration creatively we have with DC to make sure the gameplay role the Arkham Knight has is really reflected in his appearance and his outlook and his perspective."

– Dax Ginn, marketing producer at Rocksteady Studios[66]

Jason Todd was featured in the tie-in comics. Sometime after the events of Batman: Arkham Origins, Jason Todd, after Dick Grayson decided to make an identity of his own, is selected by Batman to be the second Robin. After an unknown amount of time, Todd is captured by Joker, who sent Batman a video of his murder of Todd while, in reality, Todd was alive and tortured by the Joker for over a year in an abandoned wing in Arkham Asylum. The incident occurred when Todd is driven into a rage over discovering that Joker has bombed a kindergarten, murdering dozens of young children. Todd pursued Joker alone and fell into a trap the same evening. Shown in flashback scenes in the game, Joker breaks Todd mentally, including showing him a photo of Batman and the new Robin and telling Todd that Batman had already replaced him. Joker then claims that Todd now belongs to him and he is now the Joker's new sidekick and not Batman's. Joker is shown branding the letter 'J' on Todd's face. During his 'breaking', he even comes close to revealing Batman's true identity before he is seemingly shot in the head and killed by the Joker. However, it is revealed Joker lied about shooting Todd, and as a result of the Joker's torture, Todd began to hold immense hatred towards Batman and began to fortify the means for his revenge. Joker himself—or at least, a hallucination of Joker imagined by Batman—believes that the reason Todd never returned to "Bat-daddy" was shame. In interview tapes unlocked in the game, it's learned that the torture episodes were a "success" and Todd's perception of Batman has radically been altered, with him believing that Batman "is not about saving the innocent, he's about punishing the guilty" and that "when he has to make a choice between you, and the mission? He'll choose the mission. Every time."

Through unknown means, the Arkham Knight was able to monitor the actions of Batman and everyone else involved in the Arkham City incident.[67] After Joker's death, the Arkham Knight witnessed a brief encounter between Batman and the new Electrocutioner which resulted in the latter being quickly defeated. Afterwards, he executed the defeated criminal with a shotgun blast to the head, while explaining that men like Electrocutioner will come to believe that him and Batman are on the same side. Todd later monitored Batman, as the Caped Crusader went to the abandoned Arkham Asylum to find an override code for bombs the Joker had placed in all of Arkham City's walls prior to his death. He knew that the Joker's threat was merely a ploy to kill Batman, and that all of the explosives had actually been moved to the old Arkham Asylum. Todd attempted desperately to open the door to the room where Batman was and all of the explosives were concentrated in, claiming that he wanted to kill the Dark Knight, albeit at his own time. Despite his effort, he was unable to open the door and was caught in the explosion. He apparently tanked the explosion, as seen by his steaming shoulder and chest plate, and scavenged through the rubble of the asylum in search for Batman. Instead of Batman, he found a scrapbook titled "My Dieary" with a ripped drawing of the Joker beneath, afterwards claiming. "The night's not a complete loss".[68]

Later, Jason Todd located two Joker thugs, who kidnapped and locked a family in the truck of a car, and attacked them. One of the thugs begged him to stop, but the Arkham Knight tore out the pages of the "My Dieary" book and shoved them in the thug's mouth, before setting them both on fire, leaving the family to believe the Arkham Knight was a hero.[69]

Ever since the death of the new Electrocutioner, some members of the GCPD came to believe that Batman was "finally getting serious about these lowlifes". A few hours after Batman apprehended Tweedledum, Tweedledee, and their newest member Tweedledie, the Arkham Knight executed all three of them in the Gotham Central Holding Facility with a shotgun blast to each of their heads, just as he did to the Electrocutioner.[70]

Sometime after Bane escaped from Gotham Stone Ridge Penitentiary, Batman attempted to stop the villain once and for all, but instead found himself at Bane's mercy. Bane would've succeeded in breaking Batman's back, but Poison Ivy intervened, claiming that Batman wasn't his to kill and simply put the Caped Crusader to sleep with her pheromone gas. During the struggle between the two villains, Jason pulled Batman to safety and instead of killing him while he was unconscious, he keyed in a new signal in Batman's cryptographic sequencer in order to lead him where Jason wants him to. Once Batman regained consciousness, he attempted once again to stop Bane and Poison Ivy, only to fall right into the Arkham Knight's trap, where he sprayed explosive gel on the ground they were all standing on and blew a bat-shaped hole that sent Batman, Bane, and Poison Ivy into the sewers below the former Arkham City. In the aftermath of Batman's battle with Bane and his followers in the bowels of Arkham City, Jason found a half dead Bane under the rubble and informed him he should stay alive because he "won't want to miss what's next".[71]

Jason later continued to watch Bruce, as well as Commissioner Gordon, Tim, and Barbara, as they were discussing their plans for Jim to run for mayor. The next morning, Bruce left Wayne Manor when the Arkham Knight forced the gardener, Chauncey to give him his keys and told him to never come back to the estate. Jason then placed a hidden camera in the back of Chauncey's work trailer, so he can monitor the mansion from his hideout on the lower west side of Gotham.[72]

While practice fighting on a Batman dummy, Jason finally spotted Alfred on the monitor outside of the mansion and decided to follow him and Nightwing to see if it will lead him to Batman. Later when Nightwing was riding his nightcycle to meet with Batman, Jason took out one of his tires with a crossbow, causing Dick to crash.[73]

Before Dick regained consciousness, Jason stole his nightcycle (just as he did with the first one in Batman: Arkham Knight-Genesis) and rode it back to his hideout and than began watching Batman's battle with the Metamorph on the news. Later, Jason began loading both the nightcycle's internal memory and schematics, as well as the Batmobile's logic array into the newly built cobra tank and took it for a ride around the block, while counting how many months, weeks, days, hours, minutes, and seconds have gone by since the Arkham City incident.[74]

While Batman was fighting the seven Solomon Grundys built by the Calendar Man, Jason flew out to Central America and told Deathstroke to keep an eye out for Batman's return. Once Jason arrived at the remote mountains of Valle de las Guerras, he rode the nightcycle into the militia's fortress to inspect their preparation for Gotham's assault. Jason confronted two mini-gunners and told them that if they can kill him, the militia would be theirs to command. Despite their overwhelming firepower, the two brutes were easily defeated by the Arkham Knight, who then fired warning shots around their heads, while informing the militia that even the best mercenaries in the world are no match for Batman. Jason than told the militia that Deathstroke will be back in Central America to finish their training before riding off.[75]

Once back in Gotham, Jason was listening in on a conversation via radio between Tim and Barbara about Batman rescuing the baby kidnapped by the Calendar Man. Jason than fled the clock tower area and entered the sewers to drive off in an APC, which caught the attention of the Riddler. He drove to the old Holiday Hotel where Calendar Man was planning to kill Batman, but as soon as Jason began scanning the entrance, he set off an explosion. Jason grappled away in time, but the blast scattered calendar pages all over the roof of the building and upon finding a piece of straw, he wondered what Scarecrow was planning. Once Crane arrived at his hideout in Chinatown, he was about to test his new fear toxin on a man strapped to a table when the Arkham Knight ambushed him and injected him with his own toxin. Jason than informed Crane that they have met before and that he can't have him screwing up his plans for Batman. Scarecrow however was not affected by the toxin and told the Arkham Knight that they should work together to get what they want. Jason decided not to kill Scarecrow and instead followed Crane upstairs to where he was keeping even more test subjects, whom were mostly dead because they couldn't handle the stain the new toxin brought upon their bodies and minds. Jason than shot the last remaining victim in the head to put him out of his misery and told Crane that if he needs a stronger test subject, he "knows just the guy". Bane was than brought to Scarecrow and imprisoned while hallucinating a priest from Santa Prisca transforming into a nightmarish bat demon. Jason asked Scarecrow how long the toxin lasts and Crane replied that his old patients hallucinated for days with a single dose, but the new toxin will be never-ending. Crane also informed the Arkahm Knight that he plans for Batman to be the first to fall victim to his new toxin once it has been perfected. Jason than informed Crane that he has been planning to combat Batman for years and will be using the tunnels dug by Bane's men to smuggle the militia into the city. However he was still facing the issue of Gotham's criminal underworld interfering with his revenge, so Crane proposed the idea of convincing them to simply keep the dark knight busy while they devise a way to spend the toxin throughout the city. In order to distract Batman for the time being, the Arkham Knight released Bane(who was still under the effects of the toxin) and told the raging villain Batman's true identity and to ambush him at Wayne Tower.[76]

Bane was mostly dominating the fight between him and Batman, while Two-face, Penguin, Riddler, Harley Quinn, and Poison Ivy all observed the conflict on T.V. at Scarecrow's safe house in Chinatown. Scarecrow than introduced the villains to the Arkham Knight and despite their doubts, Crane insured them that with his new fear toxin, the Knight's weaponry, and their overall alliance, they will finally have their revenge on the Caped Crusader. The villains were still in doubt about trusting Scarecrow and the Arkham Knight, until Jason ordered Deathstroke to fire a missile from a serpent drone right at the window they were all standing by. Jason explained that this was just a small sample of the firepower that he has throughout Gotham and that he's not simply asking them to join him, he's telling them that they all need each other to finish off Batman. To further prove his strength, Jason arrived at the site of Batman's battle with Bane in an APC and lassoed the crazed brute away from the fight, stating that he served his purpose. Bane was so enraged at the Knight's interference, he begin attacking him, even managing to damage Jason's visor. During the struggle, Jason tore apart Bane's mask and finally managed to get the better of him by cutting Bane's throat, shooting him in the leg, and than tricked him into charging into an ACE chemical truck, which Jason caused to explode right in front of Bane. As the heavily burned brute laid immobilized on the ground, Jason stated to Bane that the both of them have lived through the same type of pain in the past and he never has to feel that way again. Jason than fired several bullets in Bane's head and than presented his badly burned corpse to the other villains. Before grappling away, Jason informed them that Batman will die on Halloween night and this would be their last chance to ally with him. Later, Jason met with Deathstroke and the militia in the underground tunnels to inspect their final preparations for Gotham. He also informed Slade that once Scarecrow's new toxin causes a citywide evacuation, the militia will take control of Gotham and have the city's criminals slowly chip away at Batman before finally putting a bullet in the dark knight's skull.[77]

In other media

Film

Jason Todd in Batman: Under the Red Hood as Red Hood (left) and as Robin (center and right).

Jason Todd makes his animated debut in the DC Animated Original Movie Batman: Under the Red Hood, with the Red Hood voiced by Jensen Ackles,[78] and Robin voiced by Vincent Martella (as a teenager) and by Alexander Martella (as a child).[79] Jason first met Batman when he stole the Batmobile's tires in Crime Alley. The Dark Knight then pitied Jason and took him in to take up the Robin mantle after Dick Grayson. Although Robin was fine with showdowns like with the Riddler, time passed and Jason grew increasingly violent, not understanding why his mentor did not kill the criminals they faced. When Ra's al Ghul hired the Joker to distract the Dynamic Duo, Robin seeks to kill the Joker while Batman fought the villain's goons. However, the Joker had set a trap and captured Jason before brutally beating Robin with a crowbar. The Joker then left Robin's severely injured body in a warehouse set to explode. Before Batman could get to him in time, Jason perished in the explosion. Feeling guilt for inadvertently causing Jason's death, Ra's retrieved his body and resurrected the boy with a Lazarus Pit. However, the effects drove Jason insane, escaping Ra's compound. Five years later, he returns to Gotham City under the Red Hood alias, convincing all of Gotham's gangsters to join him in overtaking Gotham's most powerful crime lord Black Mask. After encountering Batman and Nightwing, Red Hood taunting mentions the Dark Knight's secret identity, and Batman eventually learns that his former partner had returned from the dead under the Joker's former criminal identity. Red Hood then attacked the Black Mask, prompting the crime lord to break the Joker out of prison to help. This way, Red Hood could exact his revenge on the Clown Prince of Crime with out having to break into Arkham Asylum. After capturing the Joker, Jason lures Batman to an abandoned building and confronts them both; he forgave Batman for not saving him, but is angered that Batman had allowed the Joker to live, and continue murdering for years after Jason's own death; Todd thinks his own death should have been the final straw. After Batman disarmed Jason, the former Boy Wonder activated explosives placed throughout the building, which ended with Batman apprehending the Joker once more and Jason escaping into the night.

Video games

Lego Batman

Batman: Arkham

Main article: Arkham Knight
The Arkham Knight in concept art for Batman: Arkham Knight.

Jason Todd appears in the video game Batman: Arkham Knight, with Troy Baker reprising the role. Sometime after Batman: Arkham Origins but before Batman: Arkham Asylum, street orphan Jason was taken in by Batman after Dick Grayson’s departure and trained in all forms of combat as the second Robin. However, Jason was captured by the Joker. Although a video was sent to the Caped Crusader of Jason’s apparent death, the Joker lied and was revealed to have held Jason in an abandoned wing of Arkham Asylum for over a year,[82] torturing him and breaking his sanity. After the Joker showed Jason a picture of Batman with Tim Drake as Robin, Jason snapped and found himself resenting his former mentor more than anything else. Succeeding in making Jason hate Batman, the Joker set him free, allowing Todd to start planning his revenge on Batman for leaving him. Jason utilized advanced technology to develop a high-tech tactical battlesuit and equipment, forming his own army of personally trained soldiers in Venezuela. Todd soon adopted the identity of the “Arkham Knight”, the antithetical and militaristic version of Batman. Years later, the Arkham Knight discovered the Joker's death in Batman: Arkham City, leaving a power vacuum in Gotham’s criminal underworld. When crime rates plummeted without the Clown Prince of Crime’s iron grip over Gotham’s criminals, the Arkham Knight appeared in Gotham City, forging an alliance with the Scarecrow. Together, the two united all of Gotham’s masterminds, crime lords, thugs, thieves and gangsters in an attempt to rid themselves of the Dark Knight once and for all. The Scarecrow forced Gotham’s inhabitants to evacuate with the newest strain of fear toxin, allowing the Arkham Knight’s militia to take complete control over the city. In the beginning of the game, the Arkham Knight and his militia provide an escort for the Scarecrow at ACE Chemicals, protecting from Batman and the police while preparing to cover the entire eastern seaboard with fear gas. When Batman arrived, the Arkham Knight tries to kill with his chopper, only to be stopped by the Scarecrow (who wanted the Dark Knight to suffer first). Eventually, Batman reduced the chain reaction in the central mixing chamber, stopping the fear gas from being released. Later, the Arkham Knight kidnaps Oracle from her clock tower and holds Oracle hostage. When Batman tracked Oracle to a militia facility, the Arkham Knight cornered and shot Batman in the chest before leaving the scene. The villain later assists Scarecrow in escaping Simon Stagg's airship with the fear toxin dispersing machine, “The Cloudburst”. The Arkham Knight then attaches the Cloudburst to his personal tank and battles Batman in the Batmobile, only for the hero to destroy the device. When Batman broke into the militia's headquarters, the Arkham Knight once again confronts Batman in the excavator tunnels with a mining vehicle. Although the Arkham Knight destroyed the Batmobile, Batman managed to escape. The Arkham Knight eventually revealed himself as the former Robin to Batman when the hero was attempting to save Commissioner Gordon. After defeating Jason, Batman offered to help his former partner recover, but Jason stated that it was too late to help him and escaped. At the end of the game, Jason saves Batman from being executed by Scarecrow after being publicly exposed as Bruce Wayne. Jason later adopts the Red Hood persona once again to be a vigilante, albeit with extreme measures such as the use of guns and lethal force. He wears the same red helmet that he had at the end of the game's main story, but now has a white leather jacket and a Red Hood symbol painted on his chest and back. As Red Hood, he has a DLC storyline in which he hunts down and kills the crime lord Black Mask.[83]

Merchandise

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Batman Annual (vol. 1) #25 (March 2006)
  2. ↑ Batman and Robin #3-6
  3. ↑ Manning, Matthew K.; Dolan, Hannah, ed. (2010). "1980s". DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle. Dorling Kindersley. p. 201. ISBN 978-0-7566-6742-9. Jason Todd first appeared in a circus scene in the pages of Batman #357, written by Gerry Conway and illustrated by Don Newton.
  4. ↑ Countdown
  5. ↑ Wheeler, Andrew (2013-02-14). "ComicsAlliance Presents The 50 Sexiest Male Characters in Comics". ComicsAlliance. Retrieved 2015-07-28.
  6. 1 2 Daniels, Les. Batman: The Complete History. Chronicle Books, 1999. ISBN 0-8118-4232-0, pg. 147
  7. ↑ Pearson, Roberta E.; Uricchio, William. "Notes from the Batcave: An Interview with Dennis O'Neil." The Many Lives of the Batman: Critical Approaches to a Superhero and His Media. Routledge: London, 1991. ISBN 0-85170-276-7, pg. 21
  8. 1 2 Daniels, pg. 160
  9. ↑ Pearson; Uricchio. "Notes from the Batcave: An Interview with Dennis O'Neil." Pg. 22
  10. ↑ O'Neil, Dennis. "Postscript." Batman: A Death in the Family. DC Comics, 1988. ISBN 0-930289-44-7
  11. ↑ "Robin II". Titans Tower. 2005-03-31. Retrieved 2010-12-29.
  12. ↑ Batman: Under the Red Hood Blu-ray featurette, Robin's Requiem: The Tale of Jason Todd
  13. ↑ Daniels, pg. 161
  14. ↑ Sharrett, Christopher. "Batman and the Twilight of the Idols: An Interview with Frank Miller." The Many Lives of the Batman: Critical Approaches to a Superhero and His Media. Routledge: London, 1991. ISBN 0-85170-276-7, pg. 41
  15. ↑ A Death in the Family trade paperback
  16. ↑ "If I had to do it again, I would certainly have kept my mouth shut."—Dennis O'Neil, Who Killed Robin? An Interactive Whodunit, from DC Comics: A Celebration of the World's Favorite Comic Book Heroes, by Les Daniels
  17. ↑ Rogers, Vaneta (24 February 2011). "Why They Endure: Pros On TIM DRAKE's Rise Up the Bat-Ranks". Newsarama. Retrieved 28 May 2013.
  18. ↑ Batman #457 (Dec. 1990)
  19. 1 2 "Spoiler Sport: Hello Again". Newsarama.com. March 31, 2005. Archived from the original on April 15, 2007. Retrieved June 16, 2007.
  20. ↑ Phillips, Dan (April 13, 2009). "Behind Batman: Battle for the Cowl Part Two". IGN. Retrieved 2010-12-29.
  21. 1 2 3 Esposito, Joey. "Exclusive: Dick Grayson Returns as Nightwing". IGN. Retrieved 2011-06-06.
  22. ↑ Sunde, Eric (3 March 2006). "Dusting Off Jason Todd". IGN. Retrieved 4 November 2012.
  23. ↑ Detective Comics (vol. 1) #534 (January 1984)
  24. ↑ Batman (vol. 1) #410 (August 1987)
  25. ↑ Loeb, Jeph (w), Lee, Jim (p), Williams, Scott (i). Batman: Hush (2001). DC Comics.
  26. ↑ Red Hood: The Lost Days #1 (August 2010)
  27. ↑ Red Hood: The Lost Days #2 (September 2010)
  28. 1 2 Red Hood: The Lost Days #3 (October 2010)
  29. ↑ Red Hood: The Lost Days #4 (November 2010)
  30. ↑ Red Hood: The Lost Days #5 (December 2010)
  31. ↑ Red Hood: The Lost Days #6 (January 2011)
  32. 1 2 Batman (vol. 1) #635 (February 2005)
  33. ↑ Batman (vol. 1) #630 (July 2004)
  34. ↑ Batman (vol. 1) #641 (June 2005)
  35. ↑ Teen Titans (vol. 3) #29 (December 2005)
  36. ↑ Nightwing #118–122 (2006)
  37. ↑ Countdown #51 (May 2007)
  38. ↑ Robin (vol. 4) #182 (March 2009)
  39. ↑ Robin (vol. 4) #183 (April 2009)
  40. ↑ Battle for the Cowl #2 (April 2009)
  41. ↑ Battle for the Cowl #3 (May 2009)
  42. ↑ Batman and Robin (vol. 1) #3 (October 2009)
  43. ↑ Batman and Robin (vol. 1) #4 (November 2009)
  44. ↑ Batman and Robin (vol. 1) #5 (December 2009)
  45. ↑ Batman and Robin (vol. 1) #6 (January 2010)
  46. ↑ Batman and Robin (vol. 1) #23 (July 2011)
  47. ↑ Batman and Robin (vol. 1) #24 (August 2011)
  48. ↑ Batman and Robin (vol. 1) #25 (September 2011)
  49. ↑ Red Hood and the Outlaws #0
  50. ↑ Red Hood and the outlaws #3(January 2012)
  51. 1 2 Red Hood and the Outlaws #2 (December 2011)
  52. ↑ Red Hood and the Outlaws #1 (November 2011)
  53. ↑ Red Hood and the Outlaws #5 (March 2012)
  54. ↑ Batman Inc #7
  55. ↑ Red Hood and the Outlaws #18 (2013)
  56. ↑ Batman and Red Hood #20
  57. ↑ Robin Rises: Alpha #1
  58. ↑ Red Hood and the Outlaws #20
  59. ↑ Red Hood and the Outlaws Annual #1
  60. ↑ Batman Annual (vol. 1) #1 (Summer 1961)
  61. ↑ Beedle, Tim. "Dark Knight Returns: The Last Crusade: John Romita, Jr. Discusses His New Dark Knight Comic". DC Comics. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  62. ↑ Infinite Crisis Hardcover Page 258
  63. ↑ Flashpoint: The World of Flashpoint #2 (July 2011)
  64. ↑ Young Justice #44
  65. ↑ Bruce Wayne: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. #1
  66. ↑ Owen, Phil (March 27, 2014). "Meet Arkham Knight: the new Batman character created by Rocksteady". VG247. Retrieved March 4, 2015.
  67. ↑ "Get one step closer to uncovering the Arkham Knight’s identity with Rocksteady’s inside scoop". GamesTM. Retrieved March 4, 2015.
  68. ↑ Batman: Arkham Knight #1 (March 2015)
  69. ↑ Batman: Arkham Knight #3 (April 2015)
  70. ↑ Batman: Arkham Knight #4 (May 2015)
  71. ↑ Batman: Arkham Knight #6 (July 2015)
  72. ↑ Batman: Arkham Knight #7 (August 2015)
  73. ↑ Batman: Arkham Knight #8 (September 2015)
  74. ↑ Batman: Arkham Knight #9 (October 2015)
  75. ↑ Batman: Arkham Knight #10 (November 2015)
  76. ↑ Batman: Arkham Knight #11 (December 2015)
  77. ↑ Batman: Arkham Knight #12 (December 2015)
  78. ↑ "New Batman DVD to peek out from 'Under the Red Hood' – Hero Complex – Los Angeles Times". The Los Angeles Times.
  79. ↑ "The World's Finest - New Cast Details For Upcoming "Batman: Under The Red Hood"". Worldsfinestonline.com. 2010-03-11. Retrieved 2010-12-29.
  80. ↑ Parungo, Nicolo (2015-10-24). "Injustice mobile game update adds Reverse Flash, Arkham Knight, Survival Mode and more". International Business Times. Retrieved 2015-10-24.
  81. ↑
  82. ↑ Arkham Knight Novelization
  83. ↑ Kato, Matthew (July 23, 2014). "Play As The Red Hood In Batman: Arkham Knight including his also the main villain of the story Arkham Knight". Game Informer. GameStop. Archived from the original on July 23, 2014. Retrieved July 23, 2014.

External links

Wikiquote has quotations related to: Jason Todd
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, May 05, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.