Red Hood: Outlaws Volume Three

Red Hood: Outlaws

by Patrick R. Young, Nico Bascuñan (illustrator)

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Comics, Dc Comics

208 pages, Paperback

Published December 3, 2024

About the author

Patrick R Young is a Writer, Producer, and Director based out of Los Angeles. After graduating from USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, he co-founded the production company BIG BAD FILM with partner Powell Robinson. Under this banner he wrote and co-directed the feature horror film BASTARD.

Reviews

[Rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5, this one was all over the place and felt way less character/friendship-driven than previous volumes. Also have no idea why they continue with the romance, especially after the reveal? Who asked for this, ugh.

[akiiKOMORI reading · Rating 3 out of 5]

WHAT DO YOU MEAN THERE'S A VOLUME 4!?
I mean that's great that there's more but I thought the series was done, or maybe it's on hiatus, I really need to check the webtoons.
This one surprised me a bit but like the other volumes it's extremely episodic, where each volume is one problem, which I enjoy.
Still like it better than the Zatanna books :P

[Cassandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Since I read the Red Hood: And the Outlaws series on Webtoon, I decided to review all five “books” on here in one collective review.

Overall, I’m giving the series 4-stars but I will be candid- the very beginning, the overarching vibe, and the ending are the strongest points. (Also, ep. 54 was high art.) The middle was a bit messy and the characterization felt scattershot at times.

I’ll break it down.

The Good

- The artists are standouts in this one. They manage to juggle a uniquely Webtoon art style/aesthetic with a more traditional superhero comics form and structure in a seamless way. A lot of stories struggle to find their rhythm artistically, and this story was not one of them. The pacing was good, the color was vibrant, and even with the shifts between artists being noticeable, the overall vibe of the comic was consistent. It was beautiful to read at all times. (Again, ep. 54. If you know, you know.)

- I am such a simp for the Jason Todd, Artemis, and Bizarro trio. I love all three of them and adored them getting another series, especially one that did a great job of writing their group friendship dynamics. The banter was straight-up sitcom style, and I loved it. Young understood how the characters needed to interact with each other from the first panel and delivered.

- The series made sure to give all three outlaws equal attention instead of just being Jason Todd & Friends (TM). I really appreciated this because Bizarro is one of my favorites, and he never gets the spotlight. I also feel like most of the Red Hood comics don’t give Artemis enough attention, either. The series worked to remedy that and I appreciated it. (This is, paradoxically, one of the series’ struggles, too, so bear with me. I’ll get to that later.)

- Minor spoiler, but the Batman & Jason dynamic was right on. Especially in the later half of the series (if you’ve read it, you know what I’m talking about here). The EQ score between them is still a negative number, but I appreciated how their past and present relationship was handled. It felt both in line with canon and fanon, a hard balance to achieve, but a beautiful one to read.

- Again, this is both a highlight and downfall, but the characterization of Jason Todd was solid. He was moody. He was erratic. And he was still reminiscent of the doe-eyed young child who wanted to save the world. There were a few moments where I think the writer forgot that even though Jason plays dumb, he is not actually dumb (there was a “dumb jock” moment or two that felt out of line for someone who made a career out of organized crime), but they were few and far between. Overall, Jason was done well.

The Struggles

- Even though I love Artemis and Bizarro, I felt like this series tried to give all three characters “equal screen time” and it fell short in this mission. It did, in fact, give all three characters the same attention but I felt like Jason’s plot line and characterization was given the most creative consideration and attention while Artemis’s and Bizarro’s plot arcs were rather surface level and scattered.(This says something because there were often moments where I wondered if the writer fully understood the mental gymnastics of Jason Todd, either. Maybe I just have weirdly high characterization standards?).

- The romance between Artemis and Jason was off kilter, too, at times (again, in the middle). It felt too sudden, too fast, with no build up or serious tension. I know, I know- their chemistry is supposed to be implied because they’ve always had a “will they, won’t they” thing going on. Unfortunately, their relationship just felt off at times. I think it might be because they, individually, felt off at times, but I digress. The romance should’ve been a perpetual space for squealing and “oh my god, cute!” and instead, often left me going “wait, what”.

- My biggest critique is that the middle of this series was kind of a mess. So much of comics relies on the implied- gaps of time rushed through, boring events skipped, journeys and missions boiled down to a few key panels. Unfortunately, the middle of this series felt like a holey patchwork quilt- an assortment of scenes missing key connective tissue. I was able to follow what was happening, but I can see why it left lots of people confused. We would be following Jason present day, and then it would switch to Artemis in the past, and then someone was dreaming, etc. You get it.

While I slid into the negative at the end, don’t let that deter you from reading.

Overall, I had so much fun. I enjoyed the shenanigans, the group banter, and the art of this series immensely. While it wasn’t without its flaws, I would still recommend it. I can look past a chaotic middle for the overall energy (and synergy) of the comic and this one had great energy from the start.

Long live The Outlaws.

[Joanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25/5🌟
As confusing as this was, I deeply enjoyed it. Volume three continues straight from the previous volume, beginning with Artemis in this new alternate reality kind of space. Still unsure what that was about because.. we learn that the last few episodes have been a simulation set by Bruce. This part of the comic really ticked me off because you offer your son this sort of ‘redemption’ to gain respect and to live in Gotham, a second chance and you.. didn’t trust him? Made him and his companions live in a simulation of what was happening and only waking up when Jason apologizes to Bruce, and makes his newest kill in a long time. In my opinion, I don’t think this was fair, setting them up for failure. I understand that Bruce likely wanted Jason to prove that he had changed and somehow take Lex Luther into custody but he was literally the president so.. I understand both sides of the story but that doesn’t make the simulation any less disrespectful to Jason and the company he unknowingly dragged into it. They were promised to be the justice league for a period of time, whilst they were practically studied and treated like a joke and now are again left with a bounty on their heads and no resources or respect.
This whole simulation thing raised some very important questions for me at the end, because how much of it was truly real? Were these things happening as a live simulation? Were they tools to the Justice League, used to figure out how to deal with the situation at hand unknowingly? As the reader, I feel like I don’t even know. Betrayed maybe. Bonus question—what is up with Jason’s hair, like actually?? He woke up and suddenly the white streaks were there along with the obvious stubble/beard.. does he dye it? Was it an after effect from the Lazarus Pit? Why is it only introduced now AND in the stimulations flashback??
So many questions that I hope are answered in the next volume..

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Outlaws series’s third volume, presented by Patrick R. young and Nico Bascuñan, comes crashing down to earth. The Outlaws chance at being the Justice League was little more than a trick played by Batman. Having stuck Artemis, Bizarro, and Red Hood into a simulator, the Dark Knight believes that none of them are worthy of taking on the responsibilities of being heroes. Angry at having been bamboozled, the Outlaws have little time to plan a rebuttal - the bounties on their heads have all been reactivated. Aided by the sole remaining Leaguer on the Watchtower, Martian Manhunter, the team must battle a bevy of bounty hunters out to collect. Ranging from heavy hitters like Lobo and Cheshire to obscure names such as the Beard Hunter, it will take a group effort for everyone to make it out of this tussle alive. Young’s revelation that “it was all a lie” is a gut punch that steals much of the steam from this series. Though feeling real to the deceived Outlaws, the twist feels more cruel to the readers enjoying a look at what could have been with DC’s Dark Trinity. The battle royale is still a visual treat thanks to Nico Bascuñan‘s artwork, but it cannot beat out the overused dream trope here. Red Hood: Outlaws Volume Three misses a step with its reveal, but is still a gem in the Webtoons category of DC Comics tales.

[Maddi Spletter · Rating 2 out of 5]

I HATED that the world was a simulation. It is such a cop-out when it comes to stories and driving characters. The only time I have ever seen it used well is in Young Justice. I love Bizarro and feel so bad for him. I also hate that they then basically got rid of a queer story line because of what happened in the simulation. I also do not feel like it is explored enough that the league put the Outlaws in a simulation. Like really? What about autonomy and consent? Granted neither of those really exist in DC works. Only reason I am going to read vol 4 is to keep learning about Bizarro.

[deadlikeapigeon · Rating 3 out of 5]

It would have been 4 stars if it wasn’t for the romance, it’s all over the place specially after the reveal that it was all fake. Aside from that I loved bizarro, my poor man and Jason, ESPECIALLY The flashback in episode 25 “should Batman keep the new robin?” My Shayla 💔. I’m kinda disappointed that he killed lex, because that destroyed all the character development. This is from episode 21 to episode 30 on Webtoon, I’m not sure it’s the same on paperback

[Bramble · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like the twist that everything was a simulation. Once again Batman not trusting the Outlaws and specifically Jason to do a good job. But they really did a better job than the Justice League because of how they handled Eury. It was a sad end for her.

[Steven desJardins · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had good luck with another Webtoons collection, so I thought I would give this one a try. Boring characters, boring concept, boring plot. Bah.

[John Reimer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun small read

[josie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Between the crazy time skips with little to NO context, the sudden change of the art style/ quality and biz being sad the whole time I'm not sure if I like these chapters..!

[brianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

*spongebob voice* they were fake?

[Fran Gándara Hofbauer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me gustó, aunque de repente era algo confuso jajajaj pero muy entretenido 💕

[Marsh Myers · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have combined my reviews of Vol. 3 through 5 into one which can be found here: https://www.marshmyers.com/bookshop-u...

[KATD · Rating 4 out of 5]

THAT WAS EVIL