A DEATH IN THE FAMILY - INFO

"A Death in the Family" is a 1988 storyline in the American comic book Batman, published by
DC Comics. It was written by Jim Starlin and penciled by Jim Aparo, with cover art by Mike
Mignola. Serialized in Batman #426–429 from August to November 1988, "A Death in the
Family" is considered one of the most important Batman stories for featuring the death of his
sidekick Robin at the hands of his archenemy, the Joker.

Jason Todd, the second character to assume the Robin persona, was introduced in 1983 to
replace Dick Grayson, who was unavailable for use at the time. Todd became unpopular
among readers after 1986, as writers began to characterize him as rebellious and impulsive.
Editor Dennis O'Neil was considering having Todd revamped or written out of Batman when
he recalled a 1982 Saturday Night Live sketch in which Eddie Murphy encouraged viewers to
call the show if they wanted him to boil a lobster on air. Inspired to orchestrate a similar stunt,
DC set up a 900 number voting system to allow fans to decide Todd's fate.

"A Death in the Family" begins when Batman relieves Todd of his crime-fighting duties. Todd
travels to the Middle East to find his biological mother, but is kidnapped and tortured by the
Joker. Batman #427 ends with the Joker blowing Todd up in a warehouse. Starlin and Aparo
prepared two versions of the following issue: one that would be published if readers voted to
have Todd survive, and another if he was to be killed. A narrow majority voted in favor of the
latter, and Batman #428 features Batman discovering Todd's lifeless body in the warehouse
ruins. The storyline ends when Batman and Superman stop the Joker from killing the United
Nations General Assembly.

The story was controversial and widely publicized; despite Todd's unpopularity, DC faced
backlash for the decision to kill one of its most iconic characters. Todd's demise had a lasting
effect on Batman stories, with Batman's failure to save him pushing the comic book mythos
in a darker direction. Tim Drake succeeded Todd as Robin in 1989, and Todd was resurrected
as the Red Hood in the "Under the Hood" (2004–2006) storyline. "A Death in the Family"
remains a popular story among readers and has been reprinted in trade paperback form since
its initial publication. Plot elements have been incorporated into Batman films, television
series, and video games. An animated interactive film adaptation, Batman: Death in the Family,
was released in 2020.