Warning: contains spoilers for Red Hood: The Hill #2!Gotham City is a huge place packed with dangerous villains, so it makes sense that as each of the Bat-Family graduate from sidekick status, they tend to get their own area to protect – all except Red Hood. Batgirl famously protects Burnside and Tim Drake got the suburbs of Gotham, while Nightwing and Damian Wayne went further afield with the nearby city of Blüdhaven and the distant Lazarus Island respectively. The only character who didn’t get their own official ‘territory’ is Jason Todd, but it seems DC is finally changing that.
Jason tends to be a globe-trotting hero, usually falling back into Batman’s shadow when he’s in Gotham. DC is finally going to try addressing this in the upcoming Red Hood: The Hill by Shawn Martinbrough and Sanford Greene. This comic is moving Jason out of central Gotham and putting him in the Hill. Newly released solicit info for the second issue (below) makes it clear that Jason will have his own supporting cast on the Hill, rather than remaining chained to the Bat-Family.
Red Hood: The Hill #2 (2024) | |
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| Release Date: | March 12 |
| Writers: | Shawn Martinbrough |
| Artists: | Sanford Greene |
| Cover Artist: | Sanford Greene |
| Variant Covers: | Riley Rossmo |
Jason Todd (a.k.a. Red Hood) and Dana Harlowe (a.k.a. Strike) find their relationship strained in more ways than one. While in costume, Red Hood – as well as other members of The Watch – urges Strike to give up the vigilante life, and in their civilian lives, seeds of jealousy begin to drive a wedge between Jason and one of his oldest friends. Meanwhile, Demetrius Korlee Jr. and the villain known only as Suluku both have their own sinister schemes for the town, but what will happen when they converge? Things are heating up in the Hill! When it all boils over, will anyone be safe? | |
This is a major step for Jason moving out of Batman’s shadow, especially since successful Bat-Family solo series tend to see the heroes getting their own area to patrol without the Dark Knight breathing down their necks. There’s no better example than Nightwing, who is currently starring in one of DC’s best series after once again making Blüdhaven his home.
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Jason Todd has always been the black sheep of the Bat-Family. He tried his best as a Robin, but unfortunately, Jason ended up getting killed by the Joker. This was considered the end of his story for a long time, but two decades after Jason was killed off, DC decided to bring him back. He returned as the villainous Red Hood and was a recurring antagonist to both Batman and Nightwing. However, after the events of New 52, Jason was again changed from an antagonistic force to an anti-hero trying to find his place in the world. While Jason spent time with multiple incarnations of the Outlaws, he never truly settled into a clear status quo of his own.
Red Hood has been the star of several comic books, but they’ve always been team-up books that never really gave Red Hood his own lasting supporting cast, especially in recent years. Whether appearing in Task Force Z or Joker, Red Hood was on a specific mission, not actually shaping a life that could sustain long-term stories. In contrast, his mentor Batman has such a well-established presence that most casual fans even know the name of his butler.
After years of essentially being a Batman supporting character, it seems that DC is taking a serious swing at Red Hood being his own hero – the kind whose series lasts more than a dozen issue, and introduces compelling new characters rather than borrowing them from elsewhere in the DC Universe. Despite a rocky road to fame, Jason Todd has many, many fans, so hopefully Red Hood‘s status quo will get the support it needs to continue indefinitely.
Red Hood: The Hill #2 is on sale March 12 from DC Comics!
