Red Hood Finds His Wingman In Red Hood: Outlaw #30
by Josh Davison
[*Mild Spoilers Ahead!]
Red Hood has crossed over into Mexico to seek out Hierve el Agua, an abandoned prison that may be a headquarters for the Underlife. The location looks completely deserted at first glance, but Jason soon discovers evidence that Artemis may have been here at some point. Stranger still, Red Hood is ambushed by someone wearing his old Wingman costume, and this Wingman has a request for the Red Hood.
Red Hood: Outlaw #30 brings a pair of strange blasts from the past for Jason Todd in the form of the Artemis and Wingman leads.
The Wingman actually takes a stranger turn than expected. At the risk of spoiling a little, he’s actually seeking help from Red Hood. He claims there are factions in Gotham City that want back the more brutal and permanent from of justice that Red Hood brings. I’ll be honest; I really wasn’t expecting that to be Wingman’s motive.
An unnecessary amount of the runtime is devoted to recap, and that does drag down the book a bit. If you’ve been following the recent issues of Red Hood, then you’ve already seen much of what is shown in this book.
That said, a fair amount of new story is told, and I understand the fear that someone might hop onto the book and be completely confused by the story. So, I can’t be that critical of the recap.
Pete Woods’ artwork suits Red Hood quite well, as it brings a style that is both energetic and a little cartoonish. The book is going for a grittier angle, but it still has the Scott Lobdell sense of humor. Woods’ artwork can convey both, so it’s an excellent fit. Rex Lokus brings a heavily-contrasting color palette that captures both tones and builds atmosphere quite well.
Red Hood: Outlaw #30 is a little slow due to all of the recapping, but it is a fairly entertaining comic with a few strong moments. While it is flawed, I still found myself enjoying most of it quite a bit. If you like Jason Todd as much as I do, you’ll likely enjoy this book and should feel free to pick it up.
Red Hood: Outlaw #30 comes to us from writer Scott Lobdell, artist and cover artist Pete Woods, color artist Rex Lokus, letterer A Larger World Studios’ Troy Peteri, and variant cover artist Philip Tan with Jay David Ramos.
