Timeline of Jason Todd's death and revival vs. events in Batman's life.

[Buried Alien]

I'm trying to come up with a timeline to correspond milestones in Jason Todd's death and return with things that were happening simultaneously with Batman. Please help me out here.

Jason is revived by Superboy Prime's time-altering punches six months after Jason died. Six months after Jason's death, what was Batman doing? Was this the period of A LONELY PLACE OF DYING, when Batman had first met Tim Drake and began training him to be the third Robin?

Six months after Jason's revival (and a full year after his death), Jason has left the hospital where he had been taken after crawling out from his grave and is living on the streets. This should be around the time that Tim Drake officially debuted as the third Robin, correct?

Two years after Jason's death, he has been adopted by Talia Al-Ghul and continuing to mend. Was Batman in the midst of the events of KNIGHTFALL during this time?

Three years after Jason's death, his body is finally fully healed and his memories fully restored after a dip in the Lazarus Pit. This probably coincided with the time of the CATACLYSM/NO MAN'S LAND period.

An unspecified period of time, probably a year, takes place wherein Jason gets additional training in preparation for his new career as the Red Hood. This must be during the period wherein Batman was mired in the MURDERER/FUGITIVE incident.

HUSH, which probably took place less than a year before the events of INFINITE CRISIS, is where Jason Todd first reappears in Batman's life.

Does that timeline work?

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

[Captain Jim]

I dunno, Ken. Since "comic book time" and "real time" never correspond anyway, I think it would be hard to say with certainty. On the other hand, what you suggest certainly sounds reasonable. But then, I try to think about Jason's return as little as possible. ;)

[Paul Dee]

I tried to roughly figure this out in my head once and just gave up. I wish the last Batman Annual had made this clear instead of rushing through the story of Jason's revival. Such a wasted opportunity.

[Super Buddies Forever]

Though Jason was actually dead during those events as we read them, wasn't he? My understanding of the punches were that they happened closer to Infinite Crisis, so it wasn't until around the Hush arc that Superman Prime retroactively resurrected Jason six months after A Death in the Family.

[Buried Alien]

Though Jason was actually dead during those events as we read them, wasn't he? My understanding of the punches were that they happened closer to Infinite Crisis, so it wasn't until around the Hush arc that Superman Prime retroactively resurrected Jason six months after A Death in the Family.

This is true, but what it means is that in the rebooted sequence of events resulting from Superboy Prime's punches, Jason's revival and recuperation was happening simultaneously with all those other events in Batman's life.

It's kind of interesting to think that during all those years that Batman went through getting broken by Bane, taking back the mantle from Azrael, the year of the earthquake and No Man's Land in Gotham, being framed for murder and forced to become a fugitive, the struggle against Hush...the former Robin that Batman thought to be dead lurked in the background, waiting to strike out at his former mentor.

And Batman, the World's Greatest Detective, knew absolutely NOTHING about it.


Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

[Paul Dee]

And Batman, the World's Greatest Detective, knew absolutely NOTHING about it.



Yeah but if DC didn't know at the time, how could Batman? :)

I do agree that it's interesting, but only as a happy accident without any intention or good planning on DC's part.

[Captain Jim]

It's kind of interesting to think that during all those years that Batman went through getting broken by Bane, taking back the mantle from Azrael, the year of the earthquake and No Man's Land in Gotham, being framed for murder and forced to become a fugitive, the struggle against Hush...the former Robin that Batman thought to be dead lurked in the background, waiting to strike out at his former mentor.

One might also say it's kind of hard to swallow. ;)

[Choppa]

Yeah Batman didn't know because Jason wasn't lurking around at that point. If you're actually trying to piece together some semblence of continuity in a Batman comic you're wasting your time, you'd have a better chance of getting struck by lightning

[brundlefly]

Yeah Batman didn't know because Jason wasn't lurking around at that point. If you're actually trying to piece together some semblence of continuity in a Batman comic you're wasting your time,

Particularly a Judd Winnick-penned one. BA, you're putting far more thought and effort into trying to logic out this scenario than Winnick did, for sure.

[Buried Alien]

Particularly a Judd Winnick-penned one. BA, you're putting far more thought and effort into trying to logic out this scenario than Winnick did, for sure.

Maybe DC should have hired me to write about the return of Jason Todd.

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

[jv2k]

Maybe DC should have hired me to write about the return of Jason Todd.

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

Well it'd be hard to make a worse explanation for him coming back so you couldn't fail. Hell a worm hold or wizard could have done it and it would have been better.

[Choppa]

They should have used my idea:

Jason is an anamoly like the ones that popped up during Zero Hour due to the crisis stuff messing with alternate worlds. Ultimately he would be gone by the end of IC and Batman would have to deal with the knowledge that if Jason had survived, it's very possible that he would have turn out this way (and did on some other earth).

[Captain Jim]

^^^

I like your idea.

[Sean Walsh]

This is true, but what it means is that in the rebooted sequence of events resulting from Superboy Prime's punches, Jason's revival and recuperation was happening simultaneously with all those other events in Batman's life.

It's kind of interesting to think that during all those years that Batman went through getting broken by Bane, taking back the mantle from Azrael, the year of the earthquake and No Man's Land in Gotham, being framed for murder and forced to become a fugitive, the struggle against Hush...the former Robin that Batman thought to be dead lurked in the background, waiting to strike out at his former mentor.

And Batman, the World's Greatest Detective, knew absolutely NOTHING about it.

So we've found Batman's vulnerability (like Superman and magic): he can't detect retcon punches. Nice. :)

[Choppa]

^^^

I like your idea.

Thanks, I think it's better than what we got

[Buried Alien]

So we've found Batman's vulnerability (like Superman and magic): he can't detect retcon punches. Nice. :)

I actually kind of like the idea that Jason had been alive and lurking for years without Batman's knowledge. Batman should be extremely knowledgeable, but not omniscient, and his "blind spot," such as it is, is probably those who are closest to him. All those years Batman, had lamented Jason's death, but nevertheless was able to take some small comfort that Jason died a hero. Now, Batman must deal with the fact that Jason is back among the living, but is definitely no longer a hero.

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

[van_line]

Maybe DC should have hired me to write about the return of Jason Todd.

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)


you can have the job if you can explain how J. Todd aged 10yrs while Dick Grayson didn't. Jason Todd was 14-15 when he started and now he is the same age as Nightwing.

[Captain Jim]

you can have the job if you can explain how J. Todd aged 10yrs while Dick Grayson didn't. Jason Todd was 14-15 when he started and now he is the same age as Nightwing.

Ooooo, good question; I hadn't thought of that. I bet Geoff Johns could explain it, though. He can explain anything. ;)

[Captain Jim]

Batman should be extremely knowledgeable, but not omniscient, and his "blind spot," such as it is, is probably those who are closest to him.

Ken, I think you're entirely correct here.

All those years Batman, had lamented Jason's death, but nevertheless was able to take some small comfort that Jason died a hero. Now, Batman must deal with the fact that Jason is back among the living, but is definitely no longer a hero.

Well, that was the selling point in Winnick's original proposal, and it sounds good on paper. So far, though, I don't think they've delivered.

[Doom]

I think the big reason why Jason could operate without being detectd for so long by the Batman is, I doubt at any stage when Batman was bringing people to the hospital he stopped and went "hmm. That comma paitent looks remarkably like what Jason would have looked like if he crawled out of a grave, half alive. Oh well, better go and track down Firefly."

That being said, I do agree with Buried Alien. Even if the execution may not have been great, Jason as the Fallen Bat-soldier really does work.

One of the stories that really someone should do is your idea about Batman's clouded perceptions of what Jason was/could have been versus what he is and compare that to how he sees the rest of his family.

Batman could perhaps see how he was in many ways wrong/deluded in how he matryed Jason (thus his continuing keeping Jason's costume in memorial. To keep the Jason of his memory alive) and look at how he treats other members of his Family (Tim, Dick, Cassandra, Barbra even Stephenie and Helana) or friends (Clark, Hal, Arthur) and have him analyze them. Make him re-evaluate the relationship with them in light of how the Red Hood has made him question what Jason was like.