The Batman Family: Jason Todd, The Failed Robin

Jason Todd:
Jason Todd, son of a criminal father and a drug addicted mother, lived life mostly on the streets. Nobody was there to provide for him, so he made money stealing the tires off of cars and selling them. Not much of a living, but enough for one small boy living in Gotham. After stumbling upon the Batmobile one night, he thought he had hit the jackpot, and in a way he did. Batman caught him trying to steal the tires of the car and took pity upon the boy. Since Dick Grayson had recently left the role for Robin was vacant, and Bruce could use another one. Thus, Jason became the next Robin. Though he wasn't exactly like the last Robin. He had a very aggressive nature about him and didn't share the same cheery disposition as the former Robin. He could never understand why Batman would never just kill the Joker after all he had done, and had yet to do. . .

Jason Todd returns Red Arrow's gear to him.

Death in The Family:

Death in the Family.

One fateful night, Jason had had enough of the Joker. He went after him without Batman, who was previously occupied with Ras Al Ghul, (who had hired the Joker as a distraction). But Robin was no match for the Joker, who tied him up in a warehouse and senselessly beat him with a crowbar. Batman raced to save Robin, but was too late. The Joker had placed bombs in the warehouse, told Robin to be a "good boy" and left as the warehouse went up in flames, leaving Jason dead and Batman grief stricken forever. Batman had failed.

Joker beats Robin in Under the Red Hood

The Red Hood:
But like all comic book heroes, they can't actually be dead. This one wasn't such a happy occasion though. Ras Al Ghul, feeling terrible for the loss of Robin, decided never to make war with Batman
again and try to revive Robin. He stole the corpse and dipped him into the Lazarus pit, (a natural spring used to keep Ras Al Ghul alive for hundreds of years). The pit worked but left Jason's mind tattered and his face deformed, or so we thought. Jason made his way back to Gotham under a new guise, The Red Hood, (the former identity of the Joker). Angry at Bruce for not killing the Joker, he set out to control the crime in Gotham. "That's what you never understood, you can't fight crime. I'm controlling it." He said to Batman. After much conflict, Jason captures the Joker, then beats him senselessly with a crowbar, and then waits for Batman to arrive. He reveals his identity to Batman and confronts him. "Why. . .why on earth is this man still alive? I thought I'd be the last person you'd let him hurt. I'm not talking about Scarecrow, or Penguin, or Dent, I'm talking about him. . .because. . .because if it was you he'd killed, if it was you he'd beaten to a bloody pulp, if he had taken you from me, I would have done nothing but search the planet for this pathetic pile of evil death-worshiping garbage and sent him off to Hell." (Batman: Under the Red Hood). Jason holds a gun to the Jokers head and throws one to Batman. "If you want to save him, you'll have to shoot me right in my face." He said. Batman won't do either. Batman refuses, and Jason takes a shot at him, Batman dodges, disarms Robin and saves the day. But Jason thought ahead, he planted bombs in the old apartment where they were having this confrontation. Batman shields both the Joker and Jason from the blast, saving Joker and as the dust settles, Jason is gone.

Batman walks away from Jason and the Joker

The Red Hood Returns:

Jason, who had survived the blast, had a long run taunting the Batman and Nightwing. He would patrol New York, dressed as a murderous Nightwing, killing the criminals on the streets. Later he would give that up and start a new career in a new city, always killing his enemies, then he was finally committed to Arkham Asylum by Batman, (though he passes every sanity test). He is later relocated to Blackgate Prison where he continues to kill the criminal inmates in there and eventually break free. But I suppose a spark of good came over Jason. In the current comic book timeline he is trying to mend the damage he is caused and make up for his sins. He keeps the Red Hood, but now emblazoned across his chest is a red Bat-logo. He is once again a symbol for justice as he leads a team of wayward metahumans called The Outlaws.