As Jason Todd continues his journey to uncover the criminal group known as the Underlife, his mission takes him to Mexico. After a battle alongside Batwoman against a group of genetically modified Solomon Grundy clones, Jason got the lead he needed leading to a place called Hierve el Agua. But what awaits Red Hood inside could shake the outlaw to his core.
(Spoilers Incoming)
As Jason crosses the border into Mexico, he encounters an old woman. When he asks her about Hierve el Agua, she immediately tries to dissuade Jason from going there. She tells him, “No! Por Favor…No one goes there! No one with a soul!” In all his edgy glory, Jason replies “Then I should be fine.” On his drive there, Jason reflects on everything that has brought him to this moment. This mission started with his late best friend, Roy Harper. But now Roy is dead, and the mission is Jason’s alone. As he believes, he owes it to Roy to finish this fight once and for all. He arrives at the prison and finds bodies and skulls on display at the entrance, but it doesn’t make a difference. He dons his Red Hood gear and enters to find a giant blood splatter and no one in sight. He initially thinks this was done with a sword, but then realizes that it must have been done with an axe. An axe similar to the one used by his now missing teammate, Artemis. However, Jason doesn’t know that both Artemis and Bizarro are trapped in an alternate dimension fighting to escape. Back in this dimension, Red Hood is immediately snapped back into focus after being attacked from behind. His attacker reveals himself as Wingman (a former alias of Jason). As Jason tries to fight back, he is quickly incapacitated.
Red Hood wakes up later tied to a chair. As Jason tells Wingman that there’s no way he’s going back to Gotham, Wingman stops him. “You’re confused. I’m here to beg you to return, of your own volition. There are interested parties who believe you are needed there.” This shocks Jason, who then tries to ask why Wingman chose that identity. Before Red Hood could even complete his question, Wingman is hit in the side of the head with a brick. Then a few more bricks fly at Red Hood, but don’t hit him. In fact, these bricks are used to break him free of the chair. As he begins to move through the prison, Red Hood comes across more of the Grundy clones and a bio-lab. He walks into another room and finds someone he (and the readers) hasn’t seen in a long time: Bunker. The former Teen Titan (that can create and project psionic bricks) is trapped in a pod connected to a bunch of wires. As Jason tries to release Bunker, a man steps out of the shadows. What Jason doesn’t know is that this man has a connection to the outlaw. This man is Jason Todd’s father.
We have the set up for a much bigger story now for Jason. Not only did they pull in Bunker, who no one has seen since New 52’s failed Titans, but we also finally saw Artemis and Bizarro. Now that we know the two of them are alive, I’m sure it’s just a matter of time before they return and rejoin Red Hood. Honestly, they can take their time coming back. As much as I enjoyed the Dark Trinity working together, seeing Jason carry the title by himself is something I’ve wanted for a long time. However, seeing the team reunite and resolve a few issues that were left open will be a satisfying moment. And let’s face it, Jason needs somebody there with him. After Roy’s death and his falling out with Batman, Jason has taken his brand of violence to the next level. I think the return of his teammates would be what Jason needs to balance him out again.
Unfortunately, that balance is in serious jeopardy now. Jason has thought his father dead for years. When he found out that Penguin was responsible for the loss of his father, Jason snapped. Not only did he reveal his identity, he shot Penguin in the head on live tv. This directly led to the fight between Batman and Red Hood that fractured their relationship. Now that Jason is about to come face to face with the father he never got a chance to know, what is about to happen? There’s no way that Jason can get out of this unscathed, mentally or physically. Not only is he about to meet his father, it seems his father is connected to the Underlife. What will Jason do when confronted with the fact that to fulfill his best friends dying wish, he’ll have to take down his own father? Red Hood always pushes the limits of violence and brutality, but can he push it even further and defeat his own father?