#I also found a copy of Flashpoint for $3

[sing-me-under]

Now that I’m finally catching up on reading the comics with Damian, I think I must admit that he’s probably my favorite bat boy. I want to hug him. He deserves a hug. Stephanie is still my favorite bat all around, but Stephanie AND Damian together just makes me very happy.

[heroesriseandfall]

Jason Todd & Chronic Pain

I scrounged for the panels I know from Rebirth about Jason still having lingering pain and injuries from when the Joker killed him. We know Jason had substantial injuries and brain damage when he was resurrected, and Talia healed that with the Lazarus pit. But here’s some I know of being mentioned even after Talia healed him with the Lazarus pit.

The first I know of is when evil future Batman Tim targeted Jason’s hip because of a Joker-related injury that he claimed would eventually become debilitating for Jason. This move does take Jason out of the fight so it definitely seems like evil Tim successfully aggravated the injury.

Detective Comics #968 (Jan 2018) — earlier in #966 Batman Tim also mentioned future Jason would eventually lose an eye and a leg while fighting assassins.

More recently, regular, not-evil Tim referenced it while evaluating how to fight a Clayface Jason mimic:

Tim Drake: Robin #3 (Jan 2023) — Tim says the pit brought Jason back, which has sometimes been a thing. Originally Jason was only healed by the pit after he’d already been resurrected by something else.

This next one was black label, so it may or may not be canon (the creative team claims “it’s up to reader interpretation” and disagree on whether they personally think it is canon). I’m not a fan of the comic but it did pretty clearly indicate Jason had chronic pain from the Joker:

Batman: Three Jokers #2 (Nov 2020)

(There might be more than these—my reading of post flashpoint comics is kinda random and incomplete compared to my reading of post-Crisis. In post-Crisis though I think they mainly put emphasis on Jason’s destabilized mental health and didn’t really bring up physical aspects IIRC. His brain damage seemed healed and yet he seemed more affected after the pit than other one-time-in-the-pit characters like Dinah Lance or Cass Cain were.)

They haven’t bothered explaining how the pit didn’t heal them so far as I know (the pits kinda work to authorial convenience anyway). My route is usually to blame any weird Jason stuff on the strange, multiversal circumstances of his resurrection, but versions of his origin where he’s only brought back by the pit might not jive with that (which includes some Rebirth IIRC).

In any case, I do hope more writers pick up on this more and I love to see when it’s expanded upon a bit in fandom. I would already consider Jason’s mental health to be a disabling issue for him but it’s neat sometimes to have writers recognize chronic pain-related issues among DC characters. (I’d love to also see more expansion of Bruce mentioning he experienced chronic pain…it pops up every so often but rarely if ever in depth.)

Alt text is copied and expanded upon under read more below.

ID 1: Two panels from Detective Comics #968 showing Jason Todd as Red Hood leaping to fight evil future Batman Tim Drake. Jason says, “Sorry, Timmy, I don’t believe in Santa Claus.” Batman Tim slams his staff directly into Jason’s right hip joint, sending him flying back, and says, “Jason. In a few years you were going to learn that one of your bones never set right after the Joker killed you. There’s a growing debilitating bone spur in your hip joint. There, I found it for you you’re welcome.” They’re both in the batcave.

ID 2: A cropped panel from Tim Drake: Robin #3 showing a red narration box for Tim Drake which says: “The Lazarus Pit may have brought Jason back from the dead, but he’s still sensitive where The Joker killed him.”

ID 3: A comic page from Batman: Three Jokers #2. A Joker leans in Jason Todd’s face, looking intense and serious. The Joker says, “Who is the Joker, really? We’re going to find out.” The word “out” is written in an extended sing-songy way. The Jokers put Jason’s Red Hood helmet over his head but they’ve decorated it with a wide Joker-style grin. The two Jokers laugh, then one says, “We’ve spent considerable time trying to best answer that question: who is the Joker? We found that judge. A serial killer. A surgeon. All rather predictable and uninspiring. And then there’s you. Tell me something. Why would you put on that helmet and call yourself Red Hood after what we did?” Jason, who is sitting naked tied to the wooden chair, says, “Come on. Is every one of you copycats gonna ask me the same thing? It’s a joke.” One of the Jokers holds up a crowbar as the other says, “A joke? We left you with brain damage and permanent nerve pain. Physical and emotional trauma so severe that the only relief you ever find is when you inflict pain on others.” The Joker holds the crowbar by Jason’s head. “You and me, boy…..We’re more alike than you’d care to admit.”

ID 4: A comic page from Batman: Three Jokers #2 showing Jason Todd with no shirt on and small bandages on various parts of his arms and face. He looks at a calendar on a wall and reads the crossed out days that have physical therapy sessions written on them. He sees a stack of various healing and exercise books. The top book is titled Chronic Pain Management by Dr. D. Kresan. He picks it up. Barbara Gordon as Batgirl enters a different, dark room through a window.

ID 5: A comic page from Batman: Three Jokers #2 showing Barbara Gordon as Batgirl entering her own bedroom. She says, “Jason?” She sees a book on her bed titled “Chronic Pain Management” by Dr. D. Kresan. Jason says, “Barbara?” and walks out of the attached bathroom with only a towel around his waist. Babs says, “I figured you’d left.” Jason says, “I hope it’s okay I used the shower and I…I didn’t mean to go through your things. The closet door was open and that book looked…useful.” Babs says, “It was. Are you okay?” Jason has small bandages and bruises on his face as he says, “I don’t think I’ve ever been okay.” Babs looks concerned. Jason continues saying, “What the Joker said…about how I’ve been on the path to being like them for years…they’re not wrong. I don’t want to be like them though. I really don’t. You believe that, right?” Babs says, “I’m willing to.” Then Jason says, “Can I ask you something?”

[multiverseforger]

Curtis "Curt" Metcalf is a genius inventor who, in his Hardware identity, uses a variety of high-tech gadgets to fight organised crime. A central irony of the series (of which Metcalf is fully aware) is that Metcalf's employer, respected businessman Edwin Alva—who provides the resources Metcalf uses to create Hardware's hardware—is secretly the crime boss whom Hardware is trying to bring down.[1]

Metcalf was a working class child prodigy who was discovered aged 12–13 by a big-time businessman, Edwin Alva Sr., who with the blessing of Curt's parents, enrolled Curt in A Better Chance, "a program intended to get minority students into elite prep schools".[3] Curt proved to be much smarter than all the other prep school students, graduating at age 14, and earning his first college degree at age 15. Alva paid for Metcalf's whole college tuition up to six additional college degrees, in exchange for Metcalf coming to work, after graduation, in Alva Industries' "Inspiration Factory" program, with his "own lab, entirely too big a salary, and mandate to indulge [his] curiosity by investigating whatever struck [his] fancy"; Metcalf's inventions made Edwin Alva Sr. many millions of dollars.[3]

After a few years, and wanting a share of profits earned by his inventions, Metcalf asked Alva for a "royalty point or two". Alva's answer was: "Curtis let us dispense with any misconceptions you may be labouring under. You are not family. You are an employee. Neither are you heir apparent. You are a cog in the machine. My machine. You are not respected, Curtis. You are merely useful. You may go now".[3] Metcalf's first thought was to quit, but his contract forbade him from working for any competitors: "If [he wanted] to work in [his] field [of expertise], [he] had to do it for Alva".

Metcalf thought that with some advanced hacking, he could find something on Alva to use as leverage, but found that almost everything about Alva was "Stone Cold Crooked":

Metcalf: "It took me weeks to put it all together, but the evidence was clear and incontrovertible. Edwin Alva Sr. is at the center of an incredibly complex web of corruption. My benefactor and role model, the economic savior and humanitarian pillar of the city of Dakota has connections to organized crime. He launders tens of millions of dollars in drug money, he has most of the city and state government in his pocket, he illegally manufactures weapons and sells them to foreign governments".[3]

Metcalf decided to stop Alva first by anonymously sending "copies of evidence to the FBI, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the state and local police, several newspapers and, just for fun, Hard Copy and A Current Affair".[3] Then he waited a while for the fireworks, but learned that Alva was too big, beyond the reach of the law. But Metcalf decided that maybe Alva wasn't beyond his own reach; so with Alva's own equipment and resources, Curt created "Hardware - the High Tech Creature of the Night, who's been checkmating Alva's illegal operations for the last ten months is, in a way Alva's own creation".[3]

So just about every night Metcalf dons a selection of his many high tech gadgets (which he hides away in an abandoned basement/bomb shelter connected to his private lab) to track down and destroy all of Alva's illegal business operations and Alva's factories where weapons of war are manufactured: "This used to be a bomb shelter. Now it's where I keep all the stuff I've scammed from Alva. He's turned the city upside down looking for Hardware. I live in his basement".[3]

Hardware works with many other superheroes over his career, such as Blood Syndicate and Icon. He even teams up with a few that he considers fictional, such as Steel and Superman. In one instance, he assists in the evacuation of Utopia Park, a newly built theme park, which is being destroyed by riots.

DC UniverseEdit

Following the death of Darkseid (as chronicled in Final Crisis), the space-time continuum was torn asunder, threatening the existence of both the Dakotaverse and the mainstream DC universe. The being known as Dharma was able to use energies that he harnessed from Rift (upon that being's defeat in Worlds Collide) to merge the two universes, creating an entirely new continuity. Only Dharma, Icon, and Superman are aware that Dakota and its inhabitants ever existed in a parallel universe.[4]

In the revised continuity, Hardware and the other Milestone characters have apparently always existed in the DC Universe. The first non-Dakota heroes he encounters are the Justice League of America, whom he meets while aiding the Shadow Cabinet in kidnapping Kimiyo Hoshi, and stealing the remains of Arthur Light.[5]

During the mission, he defeats Red Arrow, and expresses an attraction to Vixen. After attempting to flee the Justice League Satellite with Light's shrunken corpse, Hardware is surprised and beaten into unconsciousness by Hawkman.[6] It is later revealed that, during Hoshi's brief period of captivity, Hardware gave her a new costume which can collect and assimilate light energy. Due to this new function on her suit, Hoshi is able to regain her powers and Dr. Light's identity after Curtis gives her Arthur's remains.

Soon after, Hardware teamed up with Blue Beetle in order to stop SYSTEM smugglers from selling stolen Alva Industries technology to the notorious Intergang. The pair of heroes were ambushed by one of the smugglers wearing advanced SYSTEMatic powered armor designed by the new Gizmo, an ally of SYSTEM. Hardware begrudgingly realized he needed the Beetle's help to defeat the smugglers and capture the stolen weaponry. Despite his initial dislike of Blue Beetle, Hardware and the young hero part on friendly terms after successfully rounding up the smugglers.[7]

Hardware later appears in the aftermath of the JLA's dissolution following Final Crisis. After raiding the hideout of Dakota crime lord Holocaust, he is forced into helping the remaining Justice League members track down Dr. Light, who went missing while chasing Shadow Thief and Starbreaker.[8] Using a tracer installed in her costume, Hardware is able to track Dr. Light and the others to the Shadow Cabinet's HQ, Shadowspire. There, Hardware and the League confront Starbreaker, who has transformed into a massive being made of energy after consuming Dharma's blood.

During the battle, Hardware is successfully able to persuade young hero Firestorm from killing Shadow Thief, a feat that impresses Vixen. Thanks to the energy collectors in Dr. Light's suit and some assistance from John Stewart of the Green Lantern Corps, the group is able to defeat Starbreaker once and for all.[4]

Another new beginningEdit

Following the events of Flashpoint, Hardware becomes a mentor of sorts to Static, who has now left Dakota and moved to New York City. He provides the youth with a modified flying disk and a new costume which possesses a holographic interface that allows them to communicate over vast distances. He also gets Static a job as an intern at the New York branch of STAR Labs.