7 Times Comics Made Terrible Heroes Great

6. Jason Todd Gets A New Origin

There isn't a retcon as famous, or as influential, as DC's Crisis on Infinite Earths. It kickstarted the most recognisable version of the DC Universe and fundamentally changed the worlds of Batman, Superman, and countless others. For Supes', this change manifested most notably in the demise of Supergirl, but he also lost some of his more other-worldly powers that had developed during the preceding two decades; for Bats it came with Jason Todd.

Before the first Crisis, Jason Todd was practically indistinguishable from the first Robin, Dick Grayson, both in terms of backstory and personality. Like Grayson, his parents were circus performers who were murdered while in the act of performing, and he wore Dick's costume, and emulated his look and characteristics down to the most uncanny detail.

This quickly made Jason something of an unpopular figure, so when Crisis presented an opportunity to create a blank slate, DC grasped it with both hands. Jason was immediately rebranded as a rebellious figure born from poverty, first encountering Batman while in the act of stealing the Batmobile's tyres, and couldn't have differed more than his predecessor.

Regardless of the controversy that would accompany the character's death and subsequent return, there's no denying that this origin was both definitive and distinguishable - there'd be know confusing the Robins now, and the backstory has gone on to inform every depiction of the character since.