Comic Review: Red Hood And The Outlaws #1 (DC Comics)

With everyone in the Batman mood, I thought that I would continue the Bat-theme of this week with a Batman comic that some of you may not have heard of. It's Red Hood And The Outlaws #1 by Scott Lobdell and Kenneth Rocafort, which came out last year in September with The New 52 initiative that DC has going. Jump past the break to see what I thought about this comic.

With DC's new 52, I was trying to limit which comics I read and which ones I passed on. Honestly, if I had the money, I would have read them all. Even though it is a Batman related property, I haven't been a big fan of Jason Todd, so I passed on it for now. Yet, today I was browsing through comics on Comixology and this comic along with its $0.99 price tag convinced me to try it out.

In this comic, we have Jason Todd, who was once Robin but is now parading around as Red Hood. Joining him is Green Arrow's former sidekick Roy Harper and the alien princess Starfire. Together, these misfits band together to form a team that specializes in the tasks that lie in the morally gray area. I remember when this comic came out it got a lot of bad press for its portrayal of Starfire. It is not the cartoony Starfire shown in Teen Titans, that is for sure. While there are a few moments where I wish she was more of a stronger woman figure, she has been given some skimpy outfits by artists for quite a long time now. So her personally does not really shock me that much. Plus, as a band of misfits, she works in this group.

I like this comic. To me, it seems to be of the same sort as the Secret Avengers title that Marvel has - the black ops group that does the deeds that the A list super heroes can't be seen doing. It isn't perfect - for instance as much as Jason Todd makes it seem that he is trying to get away from the Batman, he runs around with a big red bat on his chest. Even with its minor flaws, it is an interesting story that has captured my attention.

IN CONCLUSION: Buy this comic. The first issue is less than a buck, so what do you have to lose? I've already went ahead and bought the second issue, and I'm sure I'll be buying the third issue really soon as well.

Did you enjoy this comic? What other Batman comics should I review this week?