My favorite Robin is definitely... GARY GANZ aka the Spectacular Sunbird! ... hey, no fair! just kidding.
But for real, as of the last "NoBody" story-line, I'm starting to really lean toward Damian as my current favorite Robin. Sure the kid is a snotty punk, but he's far and away the strongest personality in the bat family right now. He's young, but he's a fearless ninja with the skill to surpass all the Robin's before him, and probably even his own father. Not to mention that he inherited his father's wicked intellegence.
Tim and Dick were always the lighter side of the Dynamic Duo; true do-gooders, while Batman was the Dark Avenger. With Damian we have a Robin that's as dark or even darker than Batman, and it brings a new and interesting dynamic to the story that really makes the Batman and Robin title my favorite DC title at the moment. I really like how Damien makes the usually stoic Batman so non-plussed all the time. You can tell Bruce loves the kid, but has no idea what to do with him. It's great.
I'm not sure that Damien has been around long enough to completely own the title of Best Robin yet. I think I'll give it another year before I say that he's the best Robin ever. That title still goes to Tim Drake. Tim was the first really interesting Robin that I didn't hate.
I don't know why so many say Grayson was the best Robin. I know he was the first Robin, and I love the fact that DC has allowed his character to grow-up and evolve. I think Grayson, overall, is one of the most well developed characters in any comic over the years, but as Robin? Nah, he was THE cornball, "Holy Geewiz," kid wonder, in fairy slippers and tighty shorts. He is much better as Nightwing. Heck, I even liked him as Batman, but he was boring and irratating as Robin. Honestly, until Tim Drake came around I was on the "Robin sucks" bandwagon. Anyone old enough to have been reading comics in the 80's knows exactly what I mean- Robin was an absolute joke for a while there (which was as much due to Jason Todd as Dick, but the character would need a major overall to interest readers again).
Tim Drake is the one who really changed the game. His character was the one that made Robin no longer suck, and showed why Batman actually is better off with a Robin. Ha! In those first Robin-free Drake issues, Batman was a wreckless mess. Also- The writing, writing, writing on the Tim Drake solo run of Robin was stellar! Bill Willingham especially wrote some chilling cross-genre horror Sci-Fi issues that still haunt me a bit to this day. Some of his ideas were so large in those issues, I found myself surprised to even find them within the confines of a Robin comic. I love the fact that every facet of the Robin character was delved into, including Batman's choice to dress up Robin in bright distracting colors while he wore black and his in the shadows. That brought up the question of whether Robin was just another tool in Batman's utility belt, or if he was a legitimate partner. I loved that storyline. To top it off, those Drake, Robin issues went beyond the comic, took on a deper meaning and talked about some pretty heavy real life issues such as mental illnesses, teen pregnancy, abortion, and addiction.
So, yeah... I love the Tim Drake era of Robin. I also loved his run as Red Robin as well. I think DC is crazy to not have a Tim Drake solo series out right now in the New 52. I'm sorry to say that the Teen Titans just doesn't cut it. It's a so-so title, but no where as good as Robin or Red Robin. I also thought Stephanie Brown really got short changed as Batgirl in the new 52 as her character was finally really starting to blossom. So, why not a Red Robin & Spoiler title? I'd love that. There would certainly be a lot for those two to discuss to carry many stories I'd imagine.
Stephanie wasn't really a Robin long enough for me to consider her among the best. Plus, she got fired by the Batman. She'd already been dumped on by the Batman when she was Spoiler and ousted by the Birds of Prey. Getting fired as Robin and then killed by Black Mask made her character the most sad depressing DC character of all time until she came back as Batgirl.
Jason Todd? I love him as the Red Hood. The recent series is a bit coarse and silly for taste, but it's still the best thing we've seen with his character. But as Robin? Are you kidding me? DC actually had people put it to a vote whether or not Jason Todd should be killed and the majority of the voters agreed that they wanted them dead. Later on, some of the voters who vote against killing him have allegedly stated that they thought were voting to keep Dick Grayson alive and had no clue who Jason Todd even was. He was a total failure as Robin. I hate to say it, but the best thing to happen to his charater (and at the time Robin as well) was to die. His death did create the jumping point for Tim Drake's Robin and later for Todd's epic return as Red Hood.
Carrie Kelly? She's not the only alternate world/time Robin, so I'm not sure why she's being singled out on the list. There's that Robin 3000 and Toy Wonder Robin and then the other future girl Robin- whose names I can't remember because I didn't like any of those comics. LOL! Sorry. I don't even want to discuss Carrie. It makes me want to yawn.
So to sum it all up...
Tim Drake IS the best all-time Robin, but Damien is also great and is probably the most interesting Batfamily character of the moment. Dick Grayson is an amazing overall character, but his cornball Robin is nowhere near as cool as Nightwing. Jason Todd rocks as Red Hood, but the only thing his Robin did well was to die. Stephanie didn't really get break in the Robin costume before being fired by Batman, and is therefore more interesting as Batgirl, Spoiler and a between costumes character than she was as Robin. And Carrie Ke....yawn.... ***zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz....
Log in to comment