Marvel and DC Comics are famous for bringing in superheroes and villains of all kinds. Among these are the characters who don’t fall under either category, with their purpose aligning with the heroes but their tactics resembling that of the villains. These are known as anti-heroes and have risen in popularity in recent years.
DC’s Red Hood and Marvel’s The Winter Soldier have a close resemblance to one another, being characters who were close with the main protagonist that were killed off before returning with much darker personalities. Each anti-hero has his own advantage over the other, and it’s worth diving deeper into their stronger points.
10 Red Hood: He's Molded Specifically To Be An Anti-Hero
With the Red Hood, comparisons to other anti-heroes are a must due to him ticking all the boxes in this regard. He’s a character disillusioned by the inherent goodness of superheroes and shuns this ideology by employing the tactics used by villains to deliver his own brand of justice.
Under this manner of thinking, no doubts are left about what the Red Hood seeks to achieve, as he’s not looking for glory or fighting for what’s fair—he’s in it to satisfy his need to punish criminals, even if it requires him to behave like one.
9 Winter Soldier: Better Foil To The Protagonist
The Winter Soldier can be seen as a representation of what Captain America would become if he were to abandon his principles. Bucky Barnes was one of the best sidekicks, only for him to become a foil for the man he was best friends with.
The Red Hood used to be Jason Todd, who saw Batman as his father figure rather than another side of himself. Due to this, The Winter Soldier can be considered a direct parallel to Captain America, in turn highlighting the lethal levels he’s willing to reach even when operating as a lead character.
8 Red Hood: The Ties To The Joker
Perhaps the appeal of the Red Hood might stem from the fact that the Joker was the first incarnation. The persona developed from one that was a straight-up hero to an anti-hero, thereby showing a duality to the mindset that goes into becoming the Red Hood and how blurred the lines are between evil and chaotic good.
The Winter Soldier’s antagonism came due to outside factors, so there was never full-on villainy to compare his anti-heroic nature. In the matter of the Red Hood, connections between Jason Todd’s persona and Joker’s version can be compared, making the character a fascinating aspect to analyze.
7 Winter Soldier: Better Transition From His Original Persona
Jason Todd was never as clean-cut in attitude as Bucky Barnes was, and the latter didn’t seem to have an ounce of an edge in his personality. This is what makes The Winter Soldier stand out, as he’s a complete U-turn from how the character used to be due to the machinations of HYDRA disturbing his mind.
It makes for a more unpredictable take, as one can’t be certain just how much of Bucky Barnes is left in his altered attitude where he doesn’t shy away from taking lives, even if it’s with good intentions. Considering Robin was mentored by Batman, he was expected to have an edge from the beginning.
6 Red Hood: His Turn Makes For A Better Morality Tale
The intrigue with Red Hood has been the points he brings forward, as they’re just as, or even more, as logical as Batman’s. Red Hood argues that killing bad guys works since it prevents them from committing further crimes they’re sure to return to.
While this comes at the cost of his soul, so to speak, it makes sense what Red Hood is trying to achieve, seeing as Batman’s “no-kill rule” has left villains free time and again. The Winter Soldier hasn’t brought up this kind of comment on the issue of morality, at least not at the level compared to Red Hood.
5 Winter Soldier: Better Origin Story
The Red Hood is actually considered a rip-off of The Winter Soldier due to the latter appearing first in print. Due to the original take on this kind of an anti-hero, The Winter Soldier deserves credit. Apart from that, he still has a better origin tale.
That’s because of the large gap between Bucky Barnes’ original exit to The Winter Soldier’s debut, as well as the huge shock of the reveal of his identity. It also placed a lot of events from the past into context, as the curiosity behind his transformation into an assassin kept fans coming back for more.
4 Red Hood: Cooler Appearance
It’s vital to present an anti-hero in such a way that they appear menacing but not overall evil. The Red Hood is sure to be mentioned among the best comic book costumes for a character. Just looking at him confirms that this is not a man to be trifled with, yet doesn’t turn one off from his appearance either.
The Winter Soldier isn’t bad in this department by any means, but he lacks that visual punch that sells the idea of an anti-hero to readers without needing to set-up his characterization. The Red Hood has enough resemblance to Batman to make clear his “good” nature, but a lot of his own thematic qualities to set him apart
3 Winter Soldier: His Arc Of Redemption
The Winter Soldier is far from a one-note anti-hero, as those who read his comics will be aware that his arc includes a journey of redemption. After he was snapped out of his brainwashing, he recalled all the terrible things he’d done and went on a path to self-discovery.
The Red Hood has more or less remained unapologetic in his turn as a vigilante out for blood, with most of his humane angles connected to stories with Batman. The Winter Soldier can be interesting due to his tendency to try to be human as well.
2 Red Hood: The Persona Works In A Protagonist And Antagonist Story
Since the Red Hood persona isn’t exclusive to just the one character, the ideology behind being Red Hood can be interpreted both in a protagonist and antagonist light. Along with Joker’s role as the original, there’s also a Red Hood Gang that took over this persona.
With the Jason Todd version’s status as a protagonist, the Red Hood ideology works in any context. This makes it interesting to see which side of the argument might be better suited for the anti-hero.
1 Winter Soldier: More Room For Character Growth
Due to The Winter Soldier’s willingness to return to being Bucky Barnes, he’s been shown to develop further as a person. This has been reflected in some stories where he became the next Captain America, which provides more layers to his characterization as there’s room for an anti-hero to try to be better as a person.
The Red Hood is usually shown pushing down the memories of his past, being bitter about how things turned out for him. While this works for an anti-hero in general, it also limits his character since readers know what to expect from him.