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Two members ofDC Comics ' Bat - Family , Red HoodandNightwing , have had emotional storylines center around amnesia . And whileNightwing ’s time as " Ric Grayson " was controversial , Red Hood ’s chronicle succeed where the other fails . Amnesia storyline are not uncommon in superhero comic and genre media in general , as they offer the chance for writers to break down a fictitious character down to their most canonic elements and make their identity all over again . For fans , watching a dear reference recede all sense of who they are can be a gut - twist experience , and Jason Todd ’s arc fromRed Hood and the Outlaws#19 - 27 aim that to another tier .
Red Hood and Nightwing ’s round of amnesia occur under take issue circumstances , asNightwing was shot in the head by KGBeastinBatman#55 ( written by Tom King , pencils by Tony S. Daniel , inks by Tony S. Daniel and Danny Miki , colors by Tomeu Morey , and letters by Clayton Cowles ) while Red Hood voluntarily had his memory wiped of " everything connected to wickedness " following an blistering fire from the Joker . Even though Red Hood intended to start afresh from the Joker ’s influence , the memory wipe from the All - Caste resulted in all of his memories being taken away as it was unacceptable to disentangle the goodness from the bad . As a result , hisOutlaws teammates , Starfire and Arsenal , were horrified to ascertain that Jason could no longer realise them inRed Hood and the Outlaws#19 ( written by James Tynion IV , art by Julius Gopez , colors by Nei Ruffino , letter by Taylor Esposito ) .
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What pee Red Hood ’s amnesia so crushing is that it occurred in reply to a personal attack from the Joker , and straightaway derailed the character growth that Jason Todd had have in the proceeds leading up to it . Red Hood and the Outlawsduring the New-52explored the friendship that Jason had with Starfire and Arsenal as all three of them hear to acquire from their preceding mistakes . Even though his relationship with his adopted male parent , Bruce Wayne , had smoothed over by that point , there was still some growth that Jason needed to do so as to fully come to term with his past as a killer and as the Robin whose death at the deal of the Joker was leave behind unavenged by Batman . After visiting Wayne Manor and amount to terms with the line of his spirit with Batman inRed Hood and the Outlaws#17 , Jason was once again discombobulate into uncertainty about his future when the Joker most burn his face off with acid . As such , his decision to pass over his memory was ground in an effort to re - envision himself as ahero who could dogood , as opposed to being a troubled antihero .
While both plot line are withering in their depiction of amnesia , Red Hood ’s is sadder because it ab initio offers the conclusion that Jason Todd will forever be defined by his uncollectible memory : being beat to demise by the Joker . The serial nature of superhero comic strip offer characters great deal of chances to grow and overcome some of their greatest hurdles , but this has seldom been the case for Red Hood due to the fact that the Joker thrives on repetitive cruelty . As such , Red Hood ’s amnesia only emphasize the extent to which his indistinguishability has been mold by victimhood , despite his best endeavor to specify it on his own terms .
Unlike Nightwing , Red Hood face a unique challenge in determining himself as a soul because of his moral ambiguity , a fact which his amnesia storyline takes full advantage of . Nightwing is largely understood as the phallus of the Bat - Family who is " good than Batman " when it descend to being a superhero . WhileDick Grayson has done some questionable thing , his ledger is far cleaner than Jason Todd ’s , who was n’t afraid to murder some of Gotham ’s biggest criminals in parliamentary law to do what Batman never could .
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Despite his best efforts , it has been nearly impossible forRed Hood to get away his past identity operator as a killer , which the amnesia arc inRed Hood and the Outlawshighlights when he is recruited by the League of Assassins to be their new leader . His involvement with the League present that even the loss of his identity could not prevent him from being pushed towards darkness by the most infamous slayer in the DC Universe . In this good sense , his amnesia was never the fresh start that he had intended it to be , because his reputation as a killer exists not only in his intellect , but in the minds of everyone else .
This amount to a chief however when Red Hood fights Ra ’s al Ghul in the Well of Sins , a Lazarus Pitthat magnify negative emotions in issue # 27 ( written by James Tynion IV , pencils by Julius Gopez and Noel Rodriguez , ink by Sandu Florea , Walden Wong , and Dan Green , coloring material by Nei Ruffino , and letters by Travis Lanham ) . While the combat seems initially unequal due to the effects of the pit on Jason , it takes a surprising turn when he take reward of his opposition ’s insecurity . refuse to be get the better of by it , Jason secernate Ra ’s that , " My entire liveliness , multitude have told me how broken I was … How easy it would be for me to let evil grab me and pull me into the wickedness forever … Every second in this pit is torment , but I ’ve felt worse . "
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Jason ’s statement present that while he is aware of the expectations placed on him due to his report as Red Hood , only he is in restraint of who he at long last desire to be . For him , his amnesia story was not a style out from theharm that the Joker stimulate him , but a elbow room for him to understand how he was in truth understand by those around him . From there , he was capable to find strength in the fact that his friends , Arsenal and Starfire , did not see his troubled yesteryear as a hindrance , but as a reason to support and believe in his capacity for good .
Like so many other member of the Bat - Family , Jason Todd had a unmanageable start ( and end ) to life , and what made his amnesia arc so gut - wrenching was that it looked at the dark part of not only his life , but those of Starfire and Arsenal as they assay to understand his actions . WhileNightwing ’s stint as Ric Graysonmostly centered on his novel lifespan as a cab driver , this particularRed Hood and the Outlawsstory demonstrate how knock-down amnesia as a patch twist can be when it is examine through the eyes of a character ’s eff ones . Everyone has a memory or two that they could live without , which made Arsenal and Starfire even more invested in helping Red Hood determine himself again .
Red Hood ’s amnesia storyline leaven that while his expiry at the hands of the Joker played a significant role in shaping his identity , it is not the only thing that create Jason Todd an soul . In fact , the story shew how defining a character by their worst moment ignores the fact that they are also equally shape by skilful , a problemNightwinghas never had because of his reputation as theBat - Family ’s prosperous boy . Pain and joy can only exist in congress to each other , and without both of them present , a character loses everything that makes them who they are . And while it is depressing to regard who Jason Todd may have become had he not been killed by the Joker , the arc concludes that what definesRed Hoodas a character is his resilience , alongside his victimhood .
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