Red Hood Just Betrayed Everything He Stands for... By Joining the Joker

There are few characters in comics who have a more antagonistic relationship than Red Hood and Joker, which is why this new twist is so shocking.

The Joker has made plenty of enemies over his time haunting Gotham City, but there are few people he's made angrier than Red Hood. That's why the latest reveal from DC is so shocking, as it turns out that Red Hood is going to potentially team up with the very man who killed him. As two Jokers wage war on each other, one of them comes to Red Hood, promising him the one thing he wants the most: To kill the real Joker once and for all.

Throughout Joker: The Man Who Stopped Laughing, a major battle has been going on in Gotham City over the mystery of there being two Jokers. Each one believes the other to be a fake and wants nothing more than to destroy the impostor for ruining their reputation. The problem is, neither the Jokers nor the readers are actually sure which is real and which isn't.

Both have a good claim to the title, but when one Joker is accused of actually being a man named John Keyser, he loses faith in himself. In Joker: The Man Who Stopped Laughing #12 by Matthew Rosenberg and Carmine Di Giandomenico, this results in John turning to the only other person who wants Joker dead as much as he does: Red Hood. While Red Hood is apprehensive, John is able to give him a deal it seems the former Robin can't turn down.

Red Hood Teams Up With A Potential Joker

The Red Hood and Joker have been vicious enemies ever since the Joker killed Jason Todd. Ever since Jason came back to life and adopted the mantle of Red Hood, the one villain he has shown continual brutality towards has been the Joker. Red Hood has made it clear that, given the chance, there's nothing he'd like more than to finally put down the Clown Prince of Crime. But the appearance of two Jokers has made it especially difficult for Red Hood to track down the Joker who is actually responsible for his death. That's one of the reasons John Keyser's offer to Jason is so tempting.

Recently, Batman forced Red Hood to obey his no-kill rule by using a machine to edit Jason's brain chemistry. Now, any time Jason is in a stressful situation, he shuts down due to overwhelming fear. In order to get around this, John Keyser has dosed Jason with Joker Venom. While this solution isn't permanent, instead of shutting down, Jason simply finds fear funny now. This allows Jason to continue being a hero and more importantly, it means he can still kill the Joker. Since the Joker wants John Keyser dead, the two teaming up means they will be brought into a direct conflict with Joker eventually. All Red Hood has to do is follow John Keyser's lead.

Could Red Hood's Partner Be The REAL Joker?

Since the story has been unclear about the true identity of the Joker, it's entirely possible Red Hood is teaming up with Joker to kill someone else. This would be absolutely unthinkable for Jason Todd and would be a very dark time in the character's history. While it's unclear exactly what the finale of this story will bring, one thing is for sure: Red Hood is currently trapped between two Jokers with no way out.