At the beginning I'm talking about various punishments and threats Bruce made. That's mainly to get to a big retcon that really bothers me.
SPOILERS AHEAD
When Jason and Bruce talked about his undercover mission Bruce was against it. He made rules for Jason stating he wasn't to kill for any reason and he was going to pull Jason out if he ever deemed it necessary. The implication is that Bruce will have him arrested for stepping out of line. Arkham is mentioned by Jason so he might have been sent there in the past by Bruce. (*1) We don't know why Jason was in Arkham in this canon but it was a horrible experience. Not only would Bruce be endangering Jason physically by putting him there he'd also risk his mental health by placing him with his killer.
We have Kate who "kills" Clayface and Bruce puts together a trial with a few members of the bat family. Then here Bruce tries to take Kate's sister in and she purposely triggers his memories of his parents death to help Beth escape. He claims that if she does something else like this again she won't be Batwoman anymore. At this point she already crossed the line three times since she handed the Outlaws over to Amanda Waller. If not for Bizarro's plan they would have bombs implanted into their bodies and been forced to kill for her. But I guess that doesn't matter to him? (*2)
Damian has likewise not received any real threats at being imprisoned for his actions in the past. I bring him up here because he might currently be doing questionable things. Some believe he killed Black Mask in the TT Special and there are rumors of him torturing BM in a prison he has instead. If it's either of those we'll have to see how Bruce acts.
It seems kind of unbalanced that Jason was threatened with prison time. Now you might argue Jason shooting Penguin is worse than what Kate did (we don't know about Damian yet.) But that's not what I'm talking about. I mean the punishment not the crime itself. Something Jason was warned about before he crossed that line recently. It feels like a huge step is missing.
Do you know what's especially gulling to me? The Sanctuary retcon that King has introduced. Not that I want Jason to be in the event or used by King. It just makes no sense with how Jason has been treated and makes the bat family look like they don't care.
The Sanctuary is supposed to have been around for five years. Jason has been Red Hood for a short time so it would have been opened when he returned with the identity. We know Jason went through a lot when he died and came back. Everyone knows Arkham has a poor record and if Bruce cared about Jason he should have tried to help him deal with it. That said I do have problems with how Sanctuary is operated using only holograms and robots. I don't think that's an ideal set up for anyone suffering trauma.
But if it's a place Bruce thinks can help heroes recover and deal with their struggles why hasn't he taken Jason to it? If it does get results it would be a better place to take him than Arkham. Because in the past Jason might have been aggressive? Shouldn't the Sanctuary have the security to deal with that? They should be aware of risks presented if for example someone with powers had their PSTD triggered and accidentally used their abilities. Besides Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy will be there in HIC. Meaning Bruce will take villains that tried to murder them multiple times to heal but not his adopted son?
Why is his first instinct to have Jason arrested instead of trying to find out what's wrong and get him help? We know Jason has PTSD, Bruce should know that. Even if the Penguin situation didn't happen or has nothing to do with that it seems like something that should be addressed. What if Jason (or anyone else in the family really) was triggered during a fight? It would put his life in danger. The more I think about this retcon the more bothered I am with it.
*1 Originally with Dick as Batman he was sent to prison but Lobdell made it clear that a lot of Morrison's Red Hood plot wasn't canon. The plot didn't really make sense as Winick had Jason put in Arkham even though he wasn't insane and he claimed it was to "protect" him.
*2 I heard this was supposed to be a crossover but fell through. It still makes it look like no one cares about what Kate did.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
bruce never stated he'll have jason arrested he said i'll come after you which to most people would seem to be a threat but since this is his child it seem like what a kid would take it as a threat and a promise he should be scared of but not.
ReplyDeletethe batfamily don't care about jason not the one's that count any way. cass probably care she just found out that's her brother duke maybe care we know barbra care all the robins care they just show it differently.
maybe bruce did want to send him there but jason doesn't trust bruce and when he came back if bruce did try jason would have thought bruce was try to fix him thinking he was broken
He might not have said the word "jail" but he never bothered to clarify either. If either Bruce or Dick had him arrested previously it already proves he has a reason to distrust them because he knows they will lock him up.
ReplyDeleteBruce never threatened Damian to scare him onto the right path. He talked to him like a person and explained things. By either threatening Jason or trying to scare him with prison/loss of his family connection Bruce is doing a great disservice to Jason. It either proves Jason isn't seen as family since he's treated as less or patronizing him since his younger son is treated like an adult.
Who cares seems to change with the writers but for all intents and purposes I'm focusing on Dick, Tim, Damian, Bruce and Alfred. Mainly because I'm not reading the other books and some of those relationships are vague at present.
Sending him to Sanctuary against his will would still be better than putting him in Arkham against his will. Sanctuary is (or was since Harley and Ivy are going there) a place for heroes to recover in secret. It's supposed to give them dignity. Going to Arkham is forcing Jason to be with Batmans' villains and seeming to imply he's seen as one of them not Bruce's sons.
well since reading injustice 2 issue 67 i say bruce is a control freak who like his kids locked up so he can keep an watchful eye especially if they're disobedient he never's the one that arrest them but he doesn't intervene and he could have.
ReplyDeletebruce allowing the cops to send jason to arkham is more about control as he can keep an watchful eye on him than anything else. bruce even visited jason there with out the staff knowing pre-52 and tried to persuade him to stay there instead of being sent to black gate.
they do see him as as family especially tim who who was the one that open up the dialogue. the boys and bruce jump on to jason and tim relationship and this was when jason was murdering people in his series if dick, bruce and jason relationship fall apart i won't cry beccause it wasn't built on their terms. tim and jason would be something else
Injustice is a different canon which makes me iffy on how it's compared to the main DCU. Wonder Woman for example would never act like that.
DeleteI never bought Winick' s reasoning for putting Jason there. It didn't make much sense, was cruel and I can't see him doing it to the other kids.
My first response above was deleted when the page rebooted and I talked about Tim. He's probably the only one besides maybe Alfred making the most effort. Although he was the one asking what Jason was doing at Kate's hearing.
Besides Tim I don't think any of them handled Jason's return well. Bruce had okay moments like getting Superman to back off by vouching for Jason. But he doesn't know how to proceed forward. He orders Jason instead of talking to him.