Warning! Spoilers for Batman: Urban Legends #2 below!
Red Hood and Batman's complicated relationship has long been one of the most intriguing aspects of the characters in DC Comics. However, after Jason Todd and Bruce Wayne come into conflict over the vigilante's mentality on killing, Red Hood reveals that Batman is just another failed parent in a long line of disappointments for the antihero.
After the former Robin was killed by the Joker and was later resurrected via the Lazarus Pit, Jason Todd became the violent hero known as the Red Hood. He couldn't forgive Batman for not only allowing him to die but refusing to kill the Joker for murdering him. Batman doesn't kill - even when those closest to him are murdered. As a hero, the Red Hood has thrown Batman's rules out the window and created his own - which has led to him killing a number of villains over the years. In Batman: Urban Legends, Jason kills the father of a young boy, which captures the attention of Batman.
In Batman: Urban Legends #2's story "Cheer" by Chip Zdarsky, Eddy Barrows, Eber Ferreira, Julio Ferreira, Marcus To, Adriano Lucas and Becca Carey, the Red Hood kills the father of a young boy who's currently in his custody after his mom overdosed on drugs. Jason was angered by the man not caring about his wife or the well-being of his child and in his rage, shot him. Batman confronts Jason in his apartment and tells him he warned him about killing and guns. The two fight and when Batman knocks Red Hood to the ground, Jason realizes Bruce is just another failed parent.
While Red Hood is frustrated by the situation, his words still ring true. He sees Batman and Bruce Wayne as a holier-than-thou hero who views himself as an arbiter of Justice. When in reality, Bruce failed Jason by not avenging his death and breaking his own rules of killing. How many lives have been taken by the Joker which could have been prevented if Batman bent his rules - even just in the one situation?
Batman is a failed parent, especially to Jason. His inaction cost him his life at the hands of his greatest villain. He's the reason the Red Hood exists. Robin died on his watch and Bruce didn't do enough to ensure it would never happen again. So, while the Red Hood is wrong for killing, he's not wrong for seeing Batman has another failed parent because that's what he is to Jason. Batman: Urban Legends #3 is in stores now.