Red Hood Would Make a Better Batman Than Fans Realize
Jason Todd, the hero best known as Red Hood, is frequently considered the black sheep of DC Comics’ Bat-Family. As such, his name is pretty low on the list of possible successors to the Batman mantle, should Bruce Wayne leave it behind once more. But despite what anyone - including himself thinks - the Red Hood would actually make a pretty good Batman.
Batman and Red Hood have had their fair share of conflicts over the years. After all, when Jason first returned from the grave, his more brutal methods instantly set him apart from his adopted father. But as time has gone on, Jason’s relationship with Batman and the others has changed drastically for the better, and a in turn in the cape and cowl could take that change even further.
When the Red Hood first debuted, he launched a vendetta on Gotham’s criminals that sent countless to the morgue. And after Batman’s death in the pages of Final Crisis by Grant Morrison and J.G. Jones, a more unstable Todd does lay claim to the Batman mantle, brutally executing criminals in Bruce’s name until he’s brought down by Dick Grayson in Battle for the Cowl by Tony S. Daniel. But once Nightwing steps up to fill the Batman identity, Jason once again dons the Red Hood mantle - this time taking a sidekick of his own and using social media to reframe himself as Batman’s opposite and Gotham City’s own version of the Punisher. While he reforms years later, there’s still a lot of history between Jason and the Batman identity.
Clearly, Bruce and Jason aren’t necessarily always on the best terms, but that’s a major reason why Jason donning the cowl would be so impactful for both characters. Taking over for his adopted father - this time with the blessing of the Bat Family - would give Jason new insight into Bruce’s psyche while bringing his redemption arc full circle. The Red Hood has come a long way since his previous turn as a “Batman,” and he even recently giving up his guns, but he’s still harsher than the rest of the Bat Family and does still believe that some criminals need to die.
This darker outlook would make Jason’s time as Batman all the more interesting, as his struggle to uphold the Batman myth would probably motivate him not to cross that line. After all, he returned wanting to prove Batman obsolete and ineffectual, and this would give him the opportunity to see the pressure Batman faces for himself. Meanwhile, seeing that Jason stood for him while he was away would help Bruce appreciate his second son all the more. Such an experience would do wonders in bridging the gap between two of Gotham’s most bull-headed heroes.
Recent teases of the Death of the Justice League imply that Batman’s end is coming all too soon. While the Red Hood isn’t the most obvious replacement, he may be the best one currently available. Nightwing has taken over the role before, but ultimately being Batman isn’t what’s best for Dick Grayson. Meanwhile, fans have seen through various future iterations that Tim Drake’s time has Batman nearly always ends with him as a villain. And although Jace Fox has already proven himself a worthy successor to Batman’s mantle, his relocation to New York City leaves Gotham without a Dark Knight of its own.
The Red Hood’s time as Batman would ultimately be short-lived. After all, Bruce will no doubt return and Jason is far too much his own man to stay living in his adopted father’s shadow forever. But with Death of the Justice League potentially taking Bruce Wayne off the Bat Family table, maybe it’s time for the Red Hood to become DC Comics’ new Batman of Gotham - if only for a little while.