Fans of both DC Comics and the Teen Titans animated series whose iconic design and skill-based power set make it surprising that he hasn't debuted in the mainstream comics reality before now. But with Red X's true identity a famous mystery, it's still unclear who will be under the mask in Future State... but we think we know.
Launching in January 2020, Future State will pause DC continuity for two months to jump to the close future, in which today's heroes have ed on their mantles to the next generation. Jonathan Kent is the Superman of Earth, Bruce Wayne is on the run while a new Batman guards Gotham, and plenty more heroes such as the Flash and Red X have arrived during the time jump. It's not surprising to see a few new faces in Future State's marketing materials, but with the new heroes hiding behind full-face masks, are they actually as unknown as they seem?
First appearing in Teen Titans Season 1, Episode 9, "Masks", Red X was initially a false identity used by Tim Drake. Drake's intention was to buddy up to villain Slade, and he used the villainous Red X costume to do it, beating his own team in a plan which ultimately fell flat. Later in the series, another Red X appeared, donning Robin's one-time costume and switching between hero and villain teams to serve his own ends. The identity of the person under the mask was never revealed, though fan speculation is that the character was intended to be Jason Todd - Tim Drake's predecessor as Robin.
So Red X is a character with a history of being one Robin's villainous new alter-ego and then perhaps that of another former Boy Wonder. It therefore seems reasonable to assume that the Red X of Future State would have some connection to Robin, but given the character's suggested antihero role, who fits the bill? Jason Todd is an obvious answer, but DC have confirmed he'll still be Damian Wayne.
Damian is the biological son of Bruce Wayne, an arrogant hellion trained from birth as an assassin. Though he served in the Robin role for many years, he recently quit after friction caused by the death of Alfred Pennyworth, stating his intention to move out of his father's shadow. He's also adopted a similar name in the past, becoming "Redbird" in Grant Morrison's Batman Incorporated in order to live up to the letter of his promise not to prowl the streets as Robin.
So there we have it - a new character defined by one Robin's decision to "break bad" and a former Robin who just vowed to take a more brutal approach to crime. Could there be a more perfect match? Damian is the right age and build to be Red X in the future, and if he's not the new vigilante, DC will need another way to for the son of Batman that they haven't yet revealed. All in all, we're pretty confident this theory is on the money, but we'll only know for sure when Future State arrives in January 2021.
