In Batman and the Outsiders #16 Halo’s true identity is revealed from a 1987 yearbook. This revelation leads her.tp reunite with her parents. Then in issue #20 Halo’s parents are killed and their gravestone reads 1985. Can anyone explain this discrepancy?
…A wizard did it.
Seriously, it’s likely just an artistic error.
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That is what I’m leaning towards as well.
I’m looking at the issue (from December 1984) right now. Jason Bard even mentions “the class of 1986” in the previous panel, so it’s a consistent error. Perhaps Mike Barr was originally intending for BATO to be set in the near future? Maybe that particular issue is set in the post-Crisis DCU? 
I figured it out.
It’s highly unlikely it was just a mistype because issue 16 was published in 1984 and reading the yearbook not only discovers her in the class of 1987 but also says he found nothing in the class of 1986. Accidentally dating a future year once is a big oversight. Doing it twice would be early impossible. It would be like accidentally mistaking this for the year 2021 and 2022 within a few seconds.
The key is that it’s not the year book that’s called the class of 87 but a section in the yearbook called the class 1987. The yearbook breaks down all the different grades in headings based on the years they will graduate, so Halo must be a Sophomore in 1984who will graduate in 1987.
Ta-Da!
Also moderate spoilers tangentially related to the question, you still don’t have the full story on Halo’s origins. Keep reading.
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Ah, so it’s just another case of 1980s artists drawing young teens as if they were in their mid 20s.
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I agree with your hypothesis… Halo is part of the class that WILL graduate in 1987 (three years from 1984).
@ VillainsInPants,
Halo’s origin gets weirder in Parts 3-4 (issues 22-23), but it’s a fun read. Alan Davis takes over the art in #22, so you should stick around. The Outsiders’ initial run-in wiht Kobra (issues 24-27) is probably the highlight of the entire BATO run.
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