Too Good To Miss—Batman: A Death in the Family
Four Batman comics from 1988 that changed everything about Batman, his villains and his sidekicks.
Written by Jim Starlin, the story of ‘A Death in the Family’ follows the second Robin recruited by Bruce Wayne to be Batman’s sidekick.
Dick Grayson became the first Robin in 1940. Over forty years later, Dick retires and goes to college and joins the Teen Titans. I know what you’re thinking, “He joins the Teen Titans at the age of 55?” But just remember, time works differently in comics.
After Dick leaves, Batman is without Robin. Jason Todd is a homeless, living on the streets of Gotham. He attempts to steal the wheels of the Batmobile. Batman adopts the boy and trains him to become Robin, except, Jason Todd is a very different type of Robin.
Unlike Dick Grayson who was a child of the forties, Jason Todd is a child of the eighties. He is more of a modern teenager. He can be reckless, a little fun loving and has intense emotional reactions. Jason Todd is what we would expect from a teenager. He needs support and he needs help. Unfortunately, none of these are good characteristics for a vigilante crime fighter.
The ‘A Death in the Family’ storyline creates a problematic situation for Jason and Bruce. There is conflict between Batman and Robin. Batman gives orders, but Robin jumps into a fight. Not happy with Jason’s behaviour, Bruce grounds him. At which point, the none to happy Jason finds out that the woman he thought was his mother was actually his step-mother. Having felt the loneliness and isolation of an orphan, Jason now has the chance to have a family.
Using the computer in the Batcave, Jason discovers three possible candidates. And so begins Jason’s quest across the world to find his mother. Except there are a few complications. Jason’s search throws him into a Israeli secret service investigation, a terrorist training camp, the sale of a cruise missile and an international espionage instigated by The Joker.
In addition to a son looking for his mother, there is international politics, conflict between Batman and Robin, a good dose of Joker insanity and some great conflict between Batman and The Joker. The story gets a little political, which is surprising. The artwork is great with clean lines and well defined figures of Batman and The Joker.
If you are interested in Batman, this is a must read. It is a defining moment in Batman and The Joker’s relationship as well as giving great insight into what will happen nearly twenty years later with the Under the Hood story.
And just to make it even more interesting, when the story was first published, readers were given the opportunity to phone in and vote to decide whether Robin should live or die. No spoilers here, but it is worth saying, the vote was very close.
Pick up your copy of A Death in the Family (this is an affiliate link which will provide me with a small income, but won’t cost you any more).
There's a "t" missing in "Jason finds out that he woman he thought".