Top 10 Moments In Batman: Under The Red Hood (The Animated Movie)

July 27th, 2020 will mark Batman: Under The Red Hood‘s tenth-anniversary. Brandon Vietti’s animated film was an adaptation of the original comic storyline of the same name. The comic book series revolved around a new mysterious villain that carried the old moniker of the Red Hood. He arrived with seething strategic prowess and guns-blazing. The question remained. Who was under the red hood?

What followed was a tragic animated film that dealt with Batman’s guilt, morality, and past. It maintained an immense amount of personal drama. It also showcased a bombastic spectacle of excitement that rivaled the live-action Batman films.

10 Crime Film Vibe

Batman and Gotham City have always been a marriage of character and setting within reality. Urban crime and human decadence reverberated throughout Gotham. That mob mentality could take place in any real-life metropolitan area. Batman: Under The Red Hood demonstrated this eroded essence in the form of a turf war. A new player entered the drug distributing ranks by the name of the Red Hood. His crosshairs were set upon Gotham’s top tier drug kingpin, Black Mask. Cold-blooded threats led to vicious actions that included beheadings, bombings, and hitman recruitment. Gotham City neighborhoods were caught in the crossfire between these two warring merciless monarchs.

9 Black Mask

Wade Williams voiced Black Mask with fervid bravado along with hints of comedic rage. This villain was not to be messed with along with his drug crime syndicate. Throughout the animated film, Black Mask’s iron hand grip upon Gotham City weakened. This was due to the Red Hood’s newfound presence. This criminal on criminal strong-arming stressed and pushed Black Mask to the brink of a breakdown. The Red Hood’s influence, strength, and weapons expertise made him a formidable foe against Black Mask. It has never been wise to make a dangerous man look foolish. The Red Hood managed, however.

8 Red Hood’s Criminal Takeover

Jensen Ackles of Supernatural fame voiced the Red Hood. His confidently succinct delivery along with his dominating presence made him an intimidating character. It was believable that he could strong-arm a drug kingpin, battle hitmen, and outsmart the Dark Knight. Beneath those layers of violent efforts was a much more personal war.

This turf war against Black Mask was a smokescreen for an element festering within the Red Hood. That weeping septic within him was attributed to his caustic past along with a buried relationship with Batman. The subtle hints were worn literally and figuratively upon the Red Hood.

7 Red Hood Lineage

The Red Hood. That name could be a statement to Batman. This was a grim reminder to quite possibly his greatest failure. The moniker of “Red Hood” was one that had been adopted by numerous criminals. One managed to cross paths with Bruce Wayne’s alter ego at the Axis Chemical Factory. This timid and bumbling criminal under the red hood knew he had no chance against Batman. The fear induced within him along with his flowing cape led him to take a tumble into a vat of chemicals. Batman’s failed attempt to save the criminal gave birth to his ultimate adversary…the Joker.

6 Joker Unchained

Batman: Under The Red Hood exhibited the Joker as the force of chaos he truly was and always has been. John DiMaggio, best known as Bender from Futurama, provided the voice to the Clown Prince of Crime in this animated adaptation. His howling cackle fanned the fire to his demented performance. This version of the Joker took no prisoners and followed his rules of anarchy. His murder of Jason Todd opened the animated film with pummeling crowbar flogs. As his Red Hood successor rose to power, the Joker was recruited to bring down Black Mask’s competition. Black Mask had no idea what he had unleashed.

5 Red Hood’s Justice

Crime was the disease. The Red Hood was the cure. That was the Red Hood’s ideology regarding his sense of justice. High ranking wrongdoers earned the right to be executed. The Red Hood was their executioner. Crime ceased when the criminals were six feet under. This sadistic equity contrasted that of Batman’s ethical formula.

That contrast sparked fiery friction between the Red Hood and Batman. As Batman’s fury flared, he uncovered more details regarding the Red Hood that shook him to the core. A portion of Batman’s past he thought was buried was about to resurrect and haunt him in the flesh.

4 Red Hood Vs. Batman

A new unhinged version of Batman was running the streets of Gotham. That man was the Red Hood. The physical altercations between the Red Hood and Batman were knock-down-drag-out brawls that stemmed from a murky kinship. The familiarity between their fighting styles drew Batman’s attention. Physical skirmishes soon morphed into personal battles as Batman uncovered the Red Hood’s true identity. He was Jason Todd, the second Robin who was thought to be deceased due to the Joker’s wrath. Batman’s heart heavy attempt to reach Todd fell on deaf ears. Jason was now past the point of no return.

3 Batman’s Shown A Mirror

“He burns the kingdom you protect,” Ra’s al Ghul professed to Batman. That statement resonated immensely in the animated film. Batman: Under The Red Hood held up a mirror to the Dark Knight in the form of Jason Todd, the new Red Hood. Over time, the character of Batman drew controversy regarding his methods of justice. Red Hood questioned Batman’s antiquated sense of morality and stressed the shortcomings of his idea of equity. Todd brought up the point that not punishing the guilty created more hysteria and heartbreak. Jason Todd was the personification of that. Batman not eliminating the Joker cost Jason his life.

2 Jason Todd

Jason Todd was a long lost son to a failed father. That same father cost Jason his life due to his strict moral standpoint. That was a recipe for a tragic character drowning in complexity. Audiences would think that Batman’s guilt would subside Jason’s fervid fury but it instead fueled it. Jason hated the fact that Batman continued existing without avenging his death. His sense of heroism decomposed thanks to the evidence of the Joker being alive. This rancid reality made Jason’s standpoint much more understandable and viable. The Prodigal Son had returned with a vengeance against his father and murderer.

1 Full Circle

Jason Todd’s overarching mission was revealed towards the end of the animated film. His drug territory siege against Black Mask was a red-herring for his ensuing vengeful mission. He contemplated the idea of pressing Black Mask’s drug syndicate so hard that Black Mask would be desperate for rabid recruits. That rabid recruit was Jason’s true target, the Joker. Jason’s master plan was now ablaze with his former father-figure at the center.  A harsh reset placed Batman in the same situation that began this entire ordeal. Jason. A bomb. The Joker. This time Batman had to make it right, no matter what.

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