7 Most Famous (But Meaningless) Superhero Deaths

By Noel Thorne / May 25, 2013

6. Jason Todd/Robin (1988)

Jason Todd was never a popular character from his first appearance in 1983 stealing the hubcaps off of the Batmobile to his death 5 years later at the hands of the Joker, Jason never connected with the fans in the way that Dick Grayson did. So it made sense, in a way, to get rid of the second Robin and turn it into a publicity stunt too. In the lead-up to his death, Jason went to look for his unknown mother who could be one of four candidates, all of them in the Middle East/Africa. In a convenient turn of events, the Joker also went to the Middle East/Africa on a tour of his own, to obtain a nuclear weapon Batman of course followed. Joker, Jason, and Jasons mother cross paths and, in one of the most famous scenes in Batman history, Joker brutally beats Jason Todd nearly to death with a crowbar. He ties up Jason and his mother in a warehouse filled with explosives and sets the fuse. DC then set up two phone lines for fans to decide the fate of Jason Todd one number to vote death, one number to vote life. The result was close with Jason receiving the death verdict 5,343 votes to 5,271, and Jason died in the explosion.

Years later Jason would return from the grave with the Infinite Crisis storyline. Superboy-Prime alters reality and the temporal ripples he causes brings Jason back to life. Judd Winick rebooted the character, reintroducing him in the role of the Red Hood in 2005s Under the Red Hood. He currently has his own New 52 series, Red Hood and the Outlaws. Death? In a world with Lazarus Pits? Makes you wonder if the most recent Robin death will last Where can I read about the (supposed) death of Jason Todd? Batman: A Death in the Family by Jim Starlin and Jim Aparo