The thing is, I am sure any new writer for these characters is thinking the same thing. And I think the answer is reducing any character to their core. The things that never change. Unless you want to make a point.
Bruce will always be a principled, tortured soul with a deep hope to save the people of the place he lives in. He will always have a soft spot for children. He will always seek justice and believe that goodness is in each and every person.
Now you can lean into the different aspects of that characterisation depending on the story you want to tell. A broken man trying his best, broken and alone because a tragedy of one kind or another ripped his family from him? A man loving his children and finding a new family? A man so principled and focused on seeking justice that he falls short in other parts? A man ready to forgive and trust too fast and getting tricked by it? All are valid ways to write him and polarized options in and off itself.
And the best part is any character arc, everything in the environment, can shift him from one to the other.
And the same can be done for Jason. Jason seeks fairness. He seeks love. He seeks a place to belong. He seeks a purpose. He will always do that. It is fundamental to his character that his standing and understanding of himself is uncertain.
And you can take that in any direction. He concentrates on fairness? You have a more anti-hero/vigilante type of him. He concentrates on love or a place to belong? He is ripe for grabbing by people like the League of assassin's and Waller. He seeks a purpose? He can range from hero to criminal lord, depending on the purpose he found.
And here is the best part: depending on what happens, on the environment and story beads, his search can change.
Now, for writing fanfiction (or RP-ing) you need to keep in mind that those characters are not in a vacuum but are shaped by the events that lead up to anything. I am uncertain what had happened to Batman between Jason's death and return, but there was at least one event where his principles and hope were tested through the no-man's land arc. And the Batman we find when UtRH comes around is a broken man clinging to his principles because that is all he has left. Especially after Jason had put him through an emotional rollercoaster.
And the Jason we met came from the search for love and a place to belong into betrayal. He was searching again for a place to belong and for love and was taken in by the league of assassins. And then he returned, a purpose tangled up into the search for love and belonging and the raging against the unfairness of everything.
Now take these characterisations and conclusions with a grain of salt, the most I have read about the characters in any capacity is Wayne family adventures and New 52. Which is not the best or most diverse but the most jarring selection in terms of characterisation.
The point is, you do not need to rewrite canon. You just decide on what point of the canon is in their mind and how everything happening is influencing the focus of their core characterisation. Batman, who breaks and looses his his family to his principles, could reasonably start with making amends and returning to the softer Bruce who did spend a lot of time with his children, who did skip patrol to care for a sick Jason. Batman who almost loses control because he let his principles soften, could return to focusing on that.
Jason who feels lost in belonging could go out searching for it, Jason who searches for a purpose could take a look at the rising violent crime and return of drug deals towards children and return to become a crime lord, despite having the love of Bruce and knowing he is loved.
In the end you are writing a story or collaborating on writing one when you RP. Write what feels right and would make the most fun/is the most interesting to read
romaincrisis
