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Warning : take spoiler forTask Force Z # 8 !
DC has finally resolved the budding will - they , won’t - they romance betweenRed HoodandBatgirlby pretending it never happened . The possibility of a wild-eyed family relationship between Jason Todd and Barbara Gordon has been suggest at multiple clock time , but recent event suggest DC wants sports fan to forget it floated this idea prior to itsInfinite Frontierreboot .
Jason and Barbara have worked together for years , sinceJason Todd became the second Robinwhile Barbara run as Batgirl . However , the Joker famously end both of their first stint as heroes : he killed Jason inDeath in the Family , and not long after , shot Barbara inThe Killing Joke , pull up stakes her without the mobility to stalk the Gotham night . These share experiences became the light that ignited a potential family relationship between the two . InBatman Eternal , Barbara ask Jason to stay in Gotham so they can be together , but Jason refuse , saying that he’ll“never be Dick Grayson . ”More recently , inBatman : Three Jokers , the twosome portion out a buss andJason confesses his sexual love in a notethat never actually reaches Barbara .
associate : Even Red Hood is Calling Out How DC Keeps Changing His Character
Despite all these hints at a human relationship , Jason and Barbara finally pigeonhole out any flicker between them and reaffirm their friendship inTask Force Z # 8,written by Matthew Rosenberg and drawn by Jack Herbert , Jesus Merino , and Vicente Cifuentes . WhenJason sneak into the new Batcaveto retrieve a sample of Lazarus Resin , he find Barbara waiting for him . Jason tries to take advantage of their shared experiences and gain sympathy , but Barbara immediately chides him for making everything about his past tense and states,“What bechance to you was a long time ago and nothing to do with me . ”The pair then explicitly stress three times within the next two gore that they consider each other protagonist , with no suggestion of a romantic connexion .
Barbara ’s refusal to sympathise with Jason about his dying directly conflicts with their conversations inBatman : Three Jokers . In that series , their main item of connexion is the harm they share as a result of the Joker ’s actions , and how their recoveries differed . Barbara notice that she had a secure support system around her while she recover , and expresses her sorrow that Jason had no one to help him heal fromhis Joker - induced trauma . The story ends with Jason offering to abandon his Red Hood identity for Barbara , though sadly she does n’t get his substance , tease that their kinship could potentially be rekindle in hereafter . However , Barbara shows zero interest in empathize with Jason in this way inTask Force Z # 8,thus removing one of their more personal connections .
cut this relationship is a beneficial move for DC . Despite their shared story and wild-eyed tension , Barbara Gordon ’s most famous and long - standing relationship is with Dick Grayson , who just so happens to be Jason Todd ’s take brother . This gives any romance between Jason and Barbara an uncomfortable inter - family dynamic that would never truly fade , peculiarly given that at one breaker point , Batgirl even splice Nightwing . Even with their apportion experiences , watching Jason and Barbara engage in Romance language would in all likelihood leave behind a false taste in readers ’ mouths , especially since her connection with Dick is such a fan - favorite . Jason and Barbara ’s confrontation inTask Force Z # 8gave DC the perfect opportunity to nod to any semblance of romanticistic potential still dawdle between the vigilante , but the story instead repeatedly confirms a platonic relationship .
Of naturally , one can never say never , especially when it comes to comics . It ’s entirely possible that DC could decide to play Jason Todd and Barbara Gordon together at some spot further down the route , just as any pairing is technically possible over a long enough sentence frame . However , their late conversation suggests that DC has no intent of follow up on this avenue in the near future , and would rather sports fan forget thepotential human relationship that was teasedbetweenRed HoodandBatgirl .
Next : The Bat - Family Is Obsessed With Nightwing and Batgirl ’s Romance , Too
Task Force Z # 8is useable now from DC Comics .
