Webtoon and DC recently expanded their joint digital comics initiative with two titles starring fan-favorite characters Zatanna and Red Hood. Red Hood: Outlaws, written by Patrick R. Young, illustrated by Nico Bascuñán, and colored by Javier Rodríguez Véjares, has four episodes published on Webtoon so far – and already, the titular team is in deep trouble.
After being hired by mob boss Franco Bertinelli to retrieve an alleged heirloom from Dinosaur Island, Red Hood, former Wonder Woman Artemis of Bana-Mighdall, and opposite-Superman Bizarro discover a booby-trapped cage full of skeletons. They retrieve the requested artifact despite these dangers, then find out their only way out has been set ablaze.
Oh, and the island has been covered in a technological net by none other than Martian Manhunter… who isn't happy about these "thieves" infiltrating the island.
Red Hood: Outlaws launched on August 14 with three episodes, and is now on a weekly update schedule with new episodes released every Sunday.
"I'm glad to finally have our work out there, but very anxious for people to get to the 'meat' of the series where we really start turning the heat up. But, any opportunity for me to share more of Nico and the team’s art is a blessing. So, I’m very #blessed at the moment," writer Patrick R. Young tells Newsarama.
"This is a very smart and aware reader base so it's been great seeing them engage with not only the obvious hunkiness of the series, but the deeper themes that we're setting up for future turmoil. Everyone's passion has bled through into our lives in different ways and I can't wait to see just how excited and sad we can make them all."
Artist Nico Bascuñán adds, "We have passed the point of no return. And without any doubt, I've been very touched and moved by the people's response. It is very gratifying that so many sleepless nights and many many hours invested on those panels are being appreciated by the fans."
Heading into episode 5, which will be available August 28, readers will see even more Martian Manhunter. Check out a preview below.
"Our whole series is very intentionally cinematic and all the main players get their little flashes to shine, so episode 5 is J'onn's flash," Young says. "We wanted to make sure everyone sees these characters as more than just big muscled fighters, but as vulnerable personalities with their own inner desires."
Young teases that the team "may not have larger plans for J'onn, but my initial pitch to DC and Webtoon was Red Hood on Dinosaur Island gets hunted by Martian Manhunter like the Predator after an Indiana Jones-esque heist. So, that’s what we’ll all get to see first."
"As Patrick says, we tried to approach it as cinematic as possible," Bascuñán says. "He’s in fact a great filmmaker so we try to narrate this comic in a slightly different way making sure that all the characters involved have a reason for and by the story we want to tell. … The only thing I can say is: audiences should prepare themselves for upcoming action… things are about to get interesting."
Red Hood: Outlaws updates every Sunday on Webtoon.
Before Jason Todd became the anti-hero outlaw Red Hood, he was one of Batman's best Robins of all time.
