Some Jason Todd/Red Hood-centric Fanfic Recs.
Figured I’d throw up some fanfic recs up in here. I read fanfic like it’s crack so I’ve got a few in my pocket here. Probably a lot of people have had these on lists before but what can I say, quality is quality.
Let’s do this in parts. I’ll do Gen Fics here and shipping ones in another post.
Part 1: Gen fics/Low Romance fics. (If there’s a pairing it’s subtle and not explicit at all).
Jason Todd: The Not-So-Outlaw by GoAwayOlivia: One of the best Jason-centric fics ever in my opinion. Is mostly a New 52 version of Jason in which he and the OG Outlaws save the world and in doing so Jason accidentally has his lifetime of traumatic memories shared with Superman and ends up getting a pardon for all his crimes as Red Hood and is convinced to go back to Gotham and take his life back. Queue inevitable meddling from Tim.
Batman: Arkham Compendium by LananiA3O: The definitive Jason Arkham Knight-verse series. There’s a fic for the before, the after, it’s comprehensive and oh so amazing, chronicling Jason’s time as Robin, his captivity with the Joker, his preparations for invading Gotham, his return to the family and his recovery from trauma. The way it handle’s Jason’s relationship with Dick, Tim and Barbara and his mental health and recovery is especially amazing. It’s basically worth watching an Arkham Knight let’s play just to read this fic.
All the Roofs of Uncertainty by Kieron_ODuibhir: Another great Jason reconciliation fic based on the Pre-Crisis Jason. In this one, Dick is critically injured during a world-wide invasion, and the one who finds him happens to be Red Hood. While getting him help from the JLU’s field hospital, he ends up interacting with the batfam and a bit of soul-searching ensues.
Cigarette Smoke and Snark by ScaryScarecrows: Set in the Arkham verse but also fuses a lot of comics Jason. His personality is especially closer to Rebirth Jason. Just a series of one shots, and a few connected arcs, most of them with dark humor and a bit of angst. The real gold in this fic that makes it different and a must read though is the Militia fics, which detail Jason interacting with his Militia in heartfelt and hilarious situations.
Misadventures of the Baby BatBros by PrettyMissKitty: An AU fic where Jason and Dick befriended Tim as a kid before Jason died. This one is ongoing, but it has amazing versions of both Tim and Jason. What I especially love about this fic is that it really takes the time and effort to point out and highlight Jason’s strengths and what made him a great Robin, and also has the most adorable version of baby Tim ever. Jason calls him a ‘a goddamn baby seal’ like come on. There’s also some fics that pick up after Jason comes back including a reconciliation fic and a very interesting body-swapping fic. Has hints of JayTim but it’s very light and wholesome.
show me yesterday, for i can’t find today by redtruthed: Robin Jay and Red Hood Jay time travel and switch places when Jason comes up against screw-up villain the Time-Twizler. Angst, post-reconciliation and a bit of timeline-fixing ensues as the Batfam is confronted with the younger Jason, and the younger Batman helps reaffirm that older Jason is still loved. Really great depiction of past Batman and both Jasons in particular, it’s got the feels.
Jason Todd - Collector of Strays by whatomen: Also ongoing, this one is a mix of New 52, Rebirth and some hints of Arkham Knight Jason. Basically details Jason coming back to Gotham (pre any reconciliation, the bats still see him as an enemy and he still hates them) and then systematically failing to mind his own business, working his way up from adopting a dog, to a cat, to some kids and then it all starts to crumble around him as Oliver Queen and the bats start to get involved. What makes this fic special, to me, is actually his close relationship with New 52-version Roy and the perfect Oliver Queen, not to mention showing off how put together Jason can actually be while barely holding himself together.
Dark Angels and Demon Brats by RandomReader13: An ongoing AU wherein Jason is still with the League of Assassins and he develops a close relationship to Damian and his cousin Mara as a teacher/bodyguard/champion/brother. What’s particularly great about it is the way it depicts Jason with Damian, Mara and Talia in a way that feels really heartfelt as well as interesting and makes a point of using Arab words and phrases between them all.
Nests and Cages by LanternWisp, A freaking amazing AU that is heavily pre-crisis Jason, that features his fall as Red Hood, his private and public reconciliation with Bruce and the batfam, insight that he is actually Shiva and a certain martial artists’s son and Cass’s half brother, and his reintroduction to Gotham as Red Bat. Aside from the freaking awesome revelation of his parentage in this story, what make sit amazing is the way Jason reconciles with and accepts both Bruce and Talia as his soul-parents, you might say, as well as makes peace with his biological heritage. Not to mention it gives Jason a slick new power and has a hilarious interlude from the perspective of a Gothamite who is so done with the Wayne lovechild cover-up drama.
Piece By Broken Piece by M00n_Slippers: Shameless plug for my own ongoing fic, which is mostly Rebirth-based with references to New 52 and pre-crisis events. It features Dick inviting Jason to the Run-Offs ex-villain support group, and pretty much focuses on Jason’s traumas and psychology. What I think sets this fic apart is the relationship between Dick and Jason and the misconceptions both of them have about each other.