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geekonaleash · 2 years

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Sorry! Pre-Crisis, before the new 52 and the new52? How does one know what is canon and not?

Alrighty, time for a crash course in DC continuities as related to Jason Todd! Don’t get caught up in the events themselves–they’re just landmarks for the “resets” of the DC universe.

Before I get into this, I’d like to point out that comics often change their canon as time goes on, either to modernize it or re-envision existing characters/plots. These changes are referred to as “retcons” and make comics pretty damn confusing sometimes, especially when some writers ignore retcons while others adopt them. It’s kinda messy, but as far as Jason is concerned, I think I’ve figured it out.

Pre-Crisis: The original DC timeline, before the Crisis on Infinite Earths event that took place in 1985-1986.

This one’s a bit tricky when it comes to Jason. I refer to Pre-Crisis Jason as the one depicted from Batman v1 #357-400 for simplicity’s sake, but technically, the Crisis ended before #400. Legends, which took place specifically in Post-Crisis, occurred in #401-403, and Year One, a retcon for Post-Crisis Batman, occurred in #404-407. We finally meet what most consider to be Post-Crisis Jason Todd in #408.

Pre-Crisis Jason Todd served as a replacement for Dick Grayson once he became Nightwing. This Jason was a naturally blond (a clear differentiation from Dick) former acrobat whose parents were killed in front of Bruce (pretty much identical to Dick). Some key plots for him were a woman named Nocturna trying to adopt him, joining the Teen Titans (New Teen Titans v2 #18-21, 24-31), having a crush on a classmate named Rena who wanted to experiment with drugs, and wearing a weird outfit.

Basically, if you read a comic that takes place before June 1987 that features Jason, then it’s what most would consider “Pre-Crisis.” I don’t really talk about this Jason much because he’s not my true sonthe Jason that I’m a fan of. If you like him, then you can include all his appearances as canon for Pre-Crisis Jason. As far as I’m aware, they’re consistent and don’t openly contradict each other.

I don’t consider any of this canon to carry into Post-Crisis canon, simply because I find it impractical to reconcile how different their respective origin stories and personalities are. For example, while Jason flirted with Rena in Pre-Crisis, he had no real friends whatsoever (Batman Annual #12) in Post-Crisis, because he’d grown up very differently and thus had a different personality. They’re…basically different people who share the same name/role, as far as I’m concerned.

Post-Crisis/Pre-Flashpoint-Pre52: The second DC timeline, after the Crisis on Infinite Earths event, and before the Flashpoint event that created the New52. Covers 1986-2011. This is the Jason that I’m talking about most of the time.

This one’s…also tricky when it comes to Jason, actually. He’s one of the most inconsistently written characters in comics, so in order to make sense of him, you often need to ignore several arcs.

Jason debuted in Batman #408 in June 1987. In the Batman title itself, Jason was depicted in a fairly consistent manner. After he initially lashed out at Two-Face in #411, he calmed down for a bit, up until Starlin took over in #414 (in which Jason didn’t actually appear).

Running alongside Batman was Detective Comics (#568-582), which I don’t consider canon for him. It was essentially written as if Robin was still Pre-Crisis Jason, to the point that he didn’t know what a prostitute was (Detective Comics #570) and ordered milk at the bar, despite having lived in Crime Alley, where prostitutes worked in broad daylight (Batman #409). To make matters worse, his death wasn’t even acknowledged until Detective Comics #606, which took place ten months after he’d died in the main Batman title, in Batman #428.

For Pre-Resurrection Jason, I consider the following issues to be canon:

Batman #408-429, Annual #12, #13: Jason’s main storyline. He doesn’t appear in every issue, but he is portrayed consistently and his behavior changes over time rather than abruptly. Jason dies in #428, but the arc ends in #429. Annual #13 takes place after his death and includes a story involving him and Babs (as Batgirl) teaming up.

Batman: The Cult: A side story to Starlin’s run on Batman.

DC Retroactive: The 80s: It’s just a cute little story written well after the 80s, but which depicts Jason fairly well. Definitely worth a read!

Gotham Knights #34: The Delusions of Alfred Pennyworth is featured at the end of the issue, taking place a bit after Jason’s death.

Gotham Knights #43: A retcon introduced in 2003 that includes another team-up between Jason and Babs (as Batgirl), which takes place shortly after Batman #424, in which Felipe dies and Bruce doesn’t know whether or not Jason killed him.

Some people (including myself, once upon a time) thought that New Teen Titans v2 #18-21 and 24-31 was canon for Post-Crisis, but it technically isn’t, and it isn’t referenced anywhere afterward. It’s still a fun read though!

After Jason’s death in Batman #428, he was mentioned by countless writers as the “bad Robin” who was responsible for his own brutal murder. The narrative essentially blamed a teenager for “getting himself killed.” The writers and characters neglected to mention that Jason died while trying to save his mother, and his disobedience was based on his love for her. I explained the whole shitshow here, if you’re curious. One such retcon was written by Chuck Dixon in Nightwing #104-106, which I heavily criticized here. I suggest avoiding it, because Winick ignores this retcon anyway.

If you’d like to read some extra material before Jason is resurrected, you can also read Gotham Knights #43-45. While this was technically a retcon and written decades after his death, I consider it mostly IC. Hindsight allows it to make some keen insights, particularly about Jason and Babs.

After Jason is resurrected by Judd Winick (writer), things get…messy, again. My general advice is to follow Winick’s writing. If you try to reconcile all of Jason’s appearances post-resurrection, then the only reasonable conclusion is that Jason has multiple personalities. If you simply include Winick’s writing, then Jason has a comprehensible character arc and personality.

For Post-Resurrection Jason, I consider the following issues to be canon:

Red Hood: Lost Days #1-6: Written well after Under the Hood, but takes place before it. Written by Winick.

Batman: Under the Hood (#635-641, 645-650 & Annual #25): The main arc of Jason’s return. A movie, Under the Red Hood, was created based on this arc. It’s mostly accurate, but I do have some complaints. Written by Winick. Annual #25 is partially retconned by Lost Days. Since both were written by Winick, I consider his retcon in Lost Days to be the canon version.

Teen Titans v3 #29, #47: Neither are written by Winick, but they’re mostly consistent with his characterization. #29 is pretty essential to understanding the dynamic between Jason and Tim. #47 is skippable but shows an interesting scene between Donna and Jason.

Green Arrow v3 #69-72: Continuation of Jason’s canon from Under the Hood. Features interactions between Jason and Mia Dearden. Written by Winick.

Outsiders v3 #44-46: See above. Features interactions with Dick Grayson. Written by Winick.

Batman and Robin v1 #23-25: It’s important to note that this was written after arcs such as Robin v2 and Battle for the Cowl, in which Jason is depicted as incompetent and amoral. It seems apparent that Winick tried to overcompensate for that. Jason easily outsmarts Dick and Damian, but I consider that victory the least he deserves after how Tony Daniel and FabNic wrote him. Written by Winick.

Li’l Gotham #2, 10, 12, 17, 20, 21, 24: This isn’t technically canon, but who doesn’t want to read some fun all-ages comics involving the Batfam?

Batman: Hush was written before Winick officially decided to bring Jason back, but is part of that plot. It’s explained by simply reading Lost Days and Under the Hood, so you don’t really need to read it.

His numerous appearances in Countdown to Infinite Crisis are technically canon, but his characterization was so inconsistent and the plot was so confusing that I personally ignore it for my own sanity. However, this is where Tim Drake gets the idea for his Red Robin costume–it was Jason’s costume that an AU Batman gave him, which he ditched after the crisis ended.

We do not speak of Nightwing: Brothers in Blood here. This is where references about Jason “stealing” Dick’s identities and being a “tentacle monster” come from.

Robin v2 #177, 182-183 is absolute garbage and I loathe it more than any other Jason appearance, for reasons which I elaborated upon here. However, this is where references about Jason wanting to work with Tim and using children as gun fodder come from.

Batman and Robin v1 #1-5 is Morrison being Morrison, writing Jason as the red-headed stepchild despite him never actually having red hair (he was blond, Morrison). This is where Sasha comes in. The whole arc makes me uncomfortable regarding Sasha’s recruitment and seems wildly OOC, but again, it’s technically canon.

Battle for the Cowl is universally known as incredibly OOC for nearly every member of the Batfam. The majority of the fandom pretends that it doesn’t exist. This is where references about Jason shooting Damian in the chest and becoming death metal Batman come from.

Post-Flashpoint/New52: The most current DC timeline, after the Flashpoint event. Covers from 2011-now.

Following the Flashpoint event, Red Hood and the Outlaws came into existence, featuring a team-up between Jason Todd, Koriand’r, and Roy Harper. Each character’s background was heavily altered from their Pre-Flashpoint counterparts. Red Hood and the Outlaws #6 retcons #1′s portrayal of Jason and Kori’s relationship.

Following RHATO’s cancellation, Red Hood/Arsenal came into existence and Kori left for her own solo title, Starfire.

Jason was a major part in the Death of the Family event, often showed up in Batman Eternal, and is currently a main character in Batman and Robin Eternal. As is evident by those titles, Jason is much closer to the Batfam in New52 continuity.

It’s notoriously unclear in the New52 as to what is and isn’t canon from Pre-Flashpoint, and sometimes DC changes their mind as to what’s what.

What I can say is that Jason’s origin story and characterization is very different–the way he met Bruce (jacking the Batmobile’s tires vs. stealing drugs from a clinic), why he was hired as Robin (he helped Batman on a case vs. Leslie Thompkins told Batman to take him in), his personality as Robin (somewhat similar, but New52 Jason was more aggressive from the start), the circumstances surrounding his death (his biological mother tricking him vs. the Joker tricking him in a long game that had started when Jason’s dad was arrested), where he went after being resurrected (a hospital–>the streets–>Talia’s vs. with the All-Caste), Talia’s role in his resurrection (finding him because she wanted Bruce to be happy vs. stumbling across him while trying to learn Ducra’s teachings), his relationship with Tim Drake (hating him more than anyone else vs. being closest to him within the Batfam), choice of weaponry (his kris given to him by Talia and guns vs. guns and his Blade of All from his own blood)–okay, I’m going to stop there. Basically, consider Pre52 canon to be out of continuity for the most part in New52.

Any questions? Anything that I missed? Any errors?

#jason todd #batman #bruce wayne #red hood #dc comics #damian wayne #dick grayson #tim drake #robin #nightwing #red hood and arsenal #arsenal #redhood and the outlaws #roy harper #jason todd origin stories

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