Why no Jason Todd in the DCAU?

[jv2k]

I've been reading some batman comics latly, I've been kinda all over the place with it(reading some 75 ones, and the ones after Tim Drake came in 89,90) and I decided I'd read Jason Todds origin. I read one half, and I'll get to reading the second soon enough. But reading the second and 3rd robin's origins got me wondering. Why isn't there a Jason Todd in the DCAU. Why jump to Tim Drake, further more, why make the DCAU Tim kinda into Jason.

When I read the introductory issues I was kinda shocked, I mean I know that the DCAU origins tend to be different, and every Batman worker is entitled to their own creative liscense, but its just so different. I mean the DCAU Tim Drake is alot closer to Jason Todd than he is his comic counter part. So why not just use Jason Todd?

 

[cameronpoe1986]

No one really cares for Jason Todd. He was a little punk in the comics and fans hated him so bad, they all voted to have him killed off. I think that the animated shows just sort of condense these characters with 40+ years of history. Plus, if they REALLY followed the comics continuity, they would have had to kill Jason off...........and I don't think Kids WB would've liked that very much.....

 

[sdp]

DCAU tim drake is a combination of JT and TD from the comics, they wanted a younger robin that is why dick became nightwing, the whole JT would be too hardcore for a cartoon so they just skipped him and made Tim, plus no reason to have a bunch of robins, ROTJ is the DCAUs version of a death in the family.

all of that i've gotten from random interviews i've read.

 

[Jeffery Duke]

I would say SDP summed it up the best.

I know for a fact that Jason Todd and Tim Drake were meshed together because they didn't wanna have 90 Robins running around and they felt it would give them a more interesting character if he had a combination of JT and TD history and character.

 

[CyberCubed]

Isn't it obvious?

The shows timeframe is too small to introduce a whole new Robin and then kill him off. In the comics Jason was around for a few years. Bringing a new Robin into the show just to kill him a season later would be pointless. Not to mention showing a gruesome death of a hero would be too tragic for a childrens cartoon, which is why they skipped over him.

They played it safe with Tim. That way they can avoid bringing in an unpopular character as well as avoid death of a kid on a kids cartoon.

 

[Squall]

Perhaps someone could write a fan fiction/draw a comic book in which Jason Todd becomes the Robin of... Batman Beyond? Terry McGuinness will need a Robin when he gets into his 30's and older, after all, and this is the perfect place to introduce his character. (I'm probably preaching to the choir here, but remember, the comics and Timm & Co. DCAU continuity are two completely seperate things!)

 

[Style]

The real reason they didn't use Jason is that DC probably considered him "radioactive" after Death in the family, and wouldn't let them use him.

Perhaps someone could write a fan fiction/draw a comic book in which Jason Todd becomes the Robin of... Batman Beyond? Terry McGuinness will need a Robin when he gets into his 30's and older, after all, and this is the perfect place to introduce his character. (I'm probably preaching to the choir here, but remember, the comics and Timm & Co. DCAU continuity are two completely seperate things!)

You know, in 1997 I actually wrote a fan fiction about how during the "lost" years between BTAS and TNBA, Bruce actually did train Jason Todd as his Robin, and they worked together for about a year, when Batman found Jason murdered. I explained that after his death, Batman sort of covered up his existence out of shame. Dick didn't know about him because he was out of the country, and Barbara didn't because she wasn't really working with Bruce at the time, she was still and interloper and didn't really know that there was a Robin change over. (Obviously, this was before "Old Wounds," when it was explained that Barbara started working with Bruce immediatly at the onset of the "lost years" era.)

The main bulk of the story was about a fresh new lead to the murder popping up, (Batman never knew who did it,) and him, being wracked with guilt, shame, the feeling of helplessness over being unable to prevent Jason's death, going sort of crazy in the investigation, threatning to kill people and stuff. Meanwhile, Nightwing, Batgirl and Robin having to catch up with him, reign him in, and solve the mystery of "Jason Todd, the lost Robin."

Hey, what do you want from me? I was just 13. Too bad it doesn't exist anymore though. Would have liked to take a second look at it...

 

[Anthonynotes]

As others noted, it'd probably be too confusing and convoluted to throw in Jason. Though wonder what they could've made of his pre-Crisis origin (which was a ripoff of Dick's origin---Jason's acrobat family, the "Flying Todds", were killed off by Killer Croc, who was also IIRC making his debut; Batman decides to take him in as a replacement for Dick, who'd become Nightwing recently...)... (shrug)

 

[bskcase]

I don't think the powers that be wanted to actually kill somebody in the DCAU. If there was a Jason Todd, then that meant that he would have eventually died and Tim Drake would have to move in.

If memory serves me right, I don't think any DC hero has actually died in the DCAU yet. Aztec is around.

Plus, if you recall, Tim Drake became popular around the time. He really caught on as a Robin of his own instead of a Grayson clone. Drake really stood out.

 

[S.C.B]

I think I read in an interview somewhere that they didn't use him because people would be expecting him to die - it's kind of a Gwen Stacy in Spider-Man thing.
That, and I don't think the censors would allow the Joker to beat a kid to death with a crowbar on T.V...

 

[adoptedBatpuppy]

Are there more then three Robin's? If there is it would get to confusing for the little kids who watch Batman Adventures!

 

[Trevor Balena]

Are there more then three Robin's? If there is it would get to confusing for the little kids who watch Batman Adventures!

If we're just talking about the main comics continuity, there was recently a fourth Robin, Stephanie Brown. However, she didn't last very long -- she was killed, and Tim Drake assumed the role once again.

 

[Style]

If we're just talking about the main comics continuity, there was recently a fourth Robin, Stephanie Brown. However, she didn't last very long -- she was killed, and Tim Drake assumed the role once again.

What was Tim doing in the mean time? Did he give it up? Did Batman famously "fire" him? What was the deal?

 

[staticblue]

What was Tim doing in the mean time? Did he give it up? Did Batman famously "fire" him? What was the deal?

at the time, Tim quit because he was mad at Bruce. I dont know completely why, but Tim and Stephanie were on again off again at the time. She was also a vigilante called Spoiler but she was completely awful at it. When Tim quit, she asked to become the new robin, as a way to become a better hero. unfortunately, her crappy crimefighting got her killed.

 

[Ed Liu]

Howdy,

If I can flip the question for a moment here, why should there be a Jason Todd in the DC Animated continuity? There has only been 1 Clayface instead of the 4 or 5 from the comics, for instance.

-- Ed/Ace

 

[jv2k]

The thing about clayface was they didn't use one and then skip an incarnation.

 

[CyberCubed]

If we're just talking about the main comics continuity, there was recently a fourth Robin, Stephanie Brown. However, she didn't last very long -- she was killed, and Tim Drake assumed the role once again.

I always found it pathetic that the writers introduced a 4th Robin just to kill her off so quickly.

But oh well that's comics for you, sometimes I wonder if these writers are trying to intentionally drive a franchise into the ground.

 

[Harper]

I always found it pathetic that the writers introduced a 4th Robin just to kill her off so quickly.

But oh well that's comics for you, sometimes I wonder if these writers are trying to intentionally drive a franchise into the ground.

I agree. Not to get too far off topic, but I really would've liked the female Robin to stick around a while longer.

Also, I know Robin is off limits to The Batman because of TT, but it might have been cool to shake things up with a Stephanie Brown-type Robin rather than jumping into Batgirl.