Mythology Gag / DC Showcase – Batman: Death in the Family

• The mere concept of Jason becoming either Hush or Red Robin. Originally, Hush was supposed to be Jason himself ^note and sort of was, in that later issues revealed that Bruce initially had been facing him in the graveyard scene before he abandoned the fight and had a disguised Clayface take his place, with Thomas Elliot being a Red Herring Sacrificial Lamb, but editorial got cold feet and vetoed the idea, giving way to Tommy Elliot being Hush. As for Red Robin, Jason took up that specific identity during the events of Countdown to Final Crisis.
• Also, the movie being Interactive Fiction itself is this due to the fact Jason's fate in the original "Death in the Family" story was decided upon by a poll.
• A flashback to the Waynes' murders has Thomas tell Bruce that someone like Zorro would be locked up in Arkham, something that was also seen in Batman (Grant Morrison), which retconned that "Zur-En-Arrh" wasn't the name of an alien planet, but a corruption of some of Thomas's last words, "Zorro in Arkham". Some of the Red Hood endings have Jason facing down the "Batman of Zur-En-Arrh".
• The Batman of Zur-En-Arrh uses a kris dagger-like Red Hood in the comics, as here and in the original film he uses a different kind of knife.
• In one of the routes, the Joker is stabbed in the right eye, the same eye where he gets a Batarang in Batman: The Dark Knight Returns.
  • What prompts Jason to stab Joker in the eye is when the Joker, disguised as an average joe, reveals himself to Jason while telling him a story he once told Batman: "There were these two guys in a lunatic asylum..."
  • Before Jason even realizes he's been speaking to the Joker, he calls him "friend". Another reference to The Killing Joke, where the Joker's real name is never revealed in his origin story.
  • Right before Joker dies, he wipes his disguise facepaint off, revealing his true face underneath. This seems to reference a scene from Batman (1989), where Vicki Vale splashes Joker with water and washing off his guise.
• The Joker giving up on crime after killing Batman and adopting a civilian identity is probably a reference to the 90's story arc Batman: Going Sane. In which the Joker does the same after seemly killing Batman. Although the comic's story was played up more tragically, with the Joker not remembering his past and trying to live a normal life while dealing with his psychosis until Batman's return drives him mad again. Here he's completely aware of his past actions and seemly only quit being the Joker to avoid repercussions and because without Batman the game was boring. Additionally how Batman dies in this route is quite similar to what happens in the Going Sane story: getting caught in an explosion in a rigged warehouse, albeit Batman survived in that story.
• If Jason is jailed for the Joker's murder, he gets some self-referential tattoos like Jared Leto's Joker.
• In some of the endings Barbara becomes "a sort of oracle" through handling the Bat-family's intel and recon.
• Jason is never directly called Hush despite potentially dressing like him but then Talia says "Hush, Damian".
• If Jason cheats death, Batman will exclaim "He's alive!" like in the alternate version of the original story in case fans voted for Jason to live.
• If Jason spares Two-Face as Red Robin, it turns out that the story becomes a Pragmatic Adaptation of A Lonely Place of Dying, except Tim Drake prevents Jason from going into a darker path and is repaid for it by becoming "Batkid".
• Tim stopping Jason from offing Two-Face by holding him at gunpoint and talking him down by warning him that killing people will send him down a dark path can be seen as a reference to Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker, where Tim shoots the Joker and is horrified at what he's become and done.
• One route shows the Joker's body being cremated, similar to Batman: Arkham Knight.
• In the Downer Ending where Jason, Talia, and Bruce dies, Jason's burnt corpse is framed similarly to the Batman cover #428.
• One route has Jason as the Red Hood confronting the Joker. When Jason unmasks himself in front of him, the clown prince of crime responds with "One. Bad. Day."
  • The use of flashbacks that are only black, white, and red in the "Batman dies and Jason still becomes Red Hood" route evoke those in both the special edition of The Killing Joke and its animated adaptation.
• In one timeline, Batman talks to Superman in a cafe.

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