Related
One of the most scandalous moments inDC Comicscontinues to be the end ofJason Toddat the hand of theJokerinBatman : A Death in the Family . As the 2d individual to take on the Robin mantle , Jason Todd grew to be a vastly dissimilar character from his predecessor , Dick Grayson , withfans narrowly voting to kill him offin a poll prevail by DC ahead ofBatman#428 by Jim Starlin , Jim Aparo , Mike DeCarlo , John Costanza , and Adrienne Roy . it would have been previously unimaginable for one of Batman ’s wards to be drink down off for good and left unavenged by the Dark Knight . Though loss is a defining trait for scores of other characters besides Batman , Jason ’s death was impactful because he was n’t a parent or shielder figure to the hero , but his own adopted son . found on the manner in which Jason was kill , the issue is arguably the greatest good example of the Joker ’s inhuman treatment : he was beaten to decease with a crowbar before the construction he was held captive in was blown up . Coupled with the fact that Jason was still a nestling , the ferociousness of his death have it even more upsetting to weigh .
However , perhaps the only matter more upsetting than Jason Todd ’s initial death is the way that his lineament has been ineffectual to escape this storyline more than three decades after its publication . Though he is far from the only Bat - Family extremity to have something awfulat the hands of the Joker , Jason ’s destruction has cast a long shadow over his already jumpy publication history . Even after being resurrected as the vigilante Red Hood , Jason Todd has continuously been placed in plotlines and narration that revisit or even act out his most traumatic moment with the Joker . Withrecent stories such asBatman : Three JokersandSuicide Squad : Get Joker!focusing on Jason ’s ire towards the Joker , this problem has never been in greater focus .
associate : Three Jokers Forces Batman To confront His Two GREATEST Failures
By return time and time again to the worst moment in his life-time , DC Comics fails to raise Jason Todd beyond his own victimhood at the work force of the Joker . Considering that the character has contend with carving out his own meaningful place in the DC Universe , this over - emphasis on his violent last is worrisome for a number of reason . Not only does it upgrade a limited characterization of him as the " bushed angry Robin , " but it also empower an melodic theme that victims are never able to sincerely grow beyond their psychic trauma . It negates the more hopeful aspects of his role and his personalgrowth in other voice of the DC Universein order to remind readers of something they already lie with : that the Joker is an awful man being who has done dread things to people who did n’t deserve it .
If superhero comic strip have designate fans anything over the class a century , it is that people are more than the worst affair that has ever happened to them . This is on the button why characters like Spider - Man and Superman have been so beloved by fans around the world : amidst the vast going that they have experienced , they are also able to incur the strength and motive to help others . Whilethey could not fend off their personal disaster , they still exhibit the agency to forge their own track leading them away from their own iniquity . While Jason Todd is an antihero , he is still a human being , and he should still be afford the chance to be more than the victim of one man ’s actions .
Related : Batman Admits His dandy Failure Is n’t Jason Todd ( Anymore )
By moving aside from the Joker ’s sadism , Jason Todd has the opportunity to define himself on his own condition , just like Spider - Man and Superman have before him . It would be incredibly strange if every Spider - Man tale depict Uncle Ben ’s murder , or if every Superman comic opened with the destruction of Krypton , because fans know these two Hero beyond the sad parts of their backstories . This is exactly why callously revisiting Jason Todd ’s destruction is so bewildering : sure as shooting there is more that can be found in imagining a future for the lineament thanadding in even more gory detailsto an event that happened more than a quarter of a century ago ?
On the surface , the reemergence of Jason Todd ’s last in DC Comics could be consider as a reflection of how small things have changed in American comics since 1988 , but this obnubilate the progress that has already been made . Batman : Urban Legendsgave Red Hood his best story yet , and it even moderate an emotional flashback to his dying that wisely quash making a spectacle of the Joker ’s pitilessness . Because of the serialized format of superhero comics , Jason Todd is poise in the futurity to move beyond the framework that was never in place to do good his character . With his storey being uninterrupted , there is space for more story to play up the joy alongside the pain of being a vigilance man , making Jason Todd ’s issue history a dynamic reflection of the genre ’s sterling strengths . It only requires floor that depart from the usual suspects that have haunted Jason ’s potential drop as a quality .
There is no benefit to watching Jason Todd get circumvent to death with a crowbar again and again by a cackle Joker . It reveals nothing substantial about either character , lessens theshocking effect that it had inA demise in the Family , and assigns a spirit level of callosity that is incongruent with Jason Todd ’s worked up nature . alternatively , it cut into into a spectacle of helplessness for which it provides no meaningful analysis on .
More than any other member of the Bat - Family , Jason Todd has an acute apprehension of how villains like the Joker thrive on their victims ' helplessness . His decision to becomeRed Hood ponder his rejection of the Joker ’s actions . As such , circle back to Jason Todd ’s death without elevating it beyond the cruelty thatA Death in the Familyfirst depict ultimately make him as helpless as he was in 1988 , ineffective to escape the trauma that ’s stalk his character for decades . And this is perhaps an even worse circumstances forJason Toddthan the one he had originally experienced with theJoker .
Next : Even DC ’s Heroes Think Red Hood Was An Awful Robin
