Watched em yesterday, rewatching again. I actually enjoyed the married couple vibe that they gave between Roy and Jason. XD
I think episode 1 got a bad rap for being too 'deadpooly' but I gotta disagree. Deadpools humour is absurd and random, where as this was more light hearted in a dangerous situation, or even rather mocking and condescending. Its meant to be their interpretation of an older Jason and I do think its not a bad way of making the character feel like he could last so many years dealing with the kind of horrible things he must see on a regular basis,
without becoming a jaded monster.
Also is it just me or does this Red Hood sound like Matthew Mcconaughey? The accent is tripping me up
Regarding the darker nature of episode 2 however, it honestly gave me such great emotional flashbacks to Lost Days, I love when the part of Jasons career as Red Hood hinging on protecting kids from the horribleness of the world is acknowledged. It was a strong enough point to mention and be clear about the consequences for even when he was a freaking drug lord. The children being used in human trafficking was the catalyst point in Lost Days that snapped him out of focusing on only his own pain. It was the one aspect of Batman Eternal that I loved, when Batgirl Red Hood and Batwoman are all working together to free a child labour factory but Jason is the only one to have such a strong emotion and revile to the whole ordeal. When he nearly kills (I think) Jason Bard was it? By dropping him, he likens the guys actions to that of an abusive parent and claims he should be punished so. Hell even in Injustice 2 its part of his dialogue to protect 'women and children' or spesifically keep them out of this danger, and in his ladder ending to 'fight for those who cannot fight for themselves' (Im paraphrasing but you get my point). Ooh, and also in Greg Paks Superman and batkids crossover, Superman/Batman also featured Jason willing to sacrifice the whole mission if it meant the children in the scenario had a better chance to survive.
I know ALL the bats want to protect children (just look at the head honcho), they are heroes after all, but the fact that they make the point so strong within Jason and always give him the strongest and most passionate reaction against child abuse makes me really happy to see. Ditto with this short film as well. Seeing that ending made me wish for a John Wickesque Red Hood film.
(Also that bonus last scene with Roy had me rolling. XD Dat Ghost reference)