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Sabtu, 04 Desember 2010

Agent of S.T.Y.L.E.: Flying High with Robin, the Boy Wonder

Agent of S.T.Y.L.E.: Flying High with Robin, the Boy Wonder: "

By Alan Kistler


In May of 1939, the Batman made his first appearance in Detective Comics #27. One year and one month later in Detective Comics #38 (April, 1940), he was given a young apprentice, a laughing boy daredevil modeled after Robin Hood. He was Richard “Dick” Grayson AKA Robin, the Boy Wonder, one of the first kid sidekicks of comics books.


Dick was raised in Haly Circus, a member of the Flying Graysons. Trained practically since birth to be an incredible aerialist, Dick was just entering his teenage years when a Gotham City mobster named Tony Zucco arranged for an “accident” to kill his parents as a warning to the circus owner to aid with criminal operations. Having witnessed the death of the Graysons and knowing what young Dick was going through, Batman approached the boy and offered to help him bring the killer to justice. The Dark Knight believed that if the youth was able to directly avenge his parents as soon as possible, then he wouldn’t hold on to anger and survivor’s guilt as Batman himself had and could lead a richer life. Dick agreed but later decided he wanted to be the hero’s full-time partner and apprentice and, after a few months, talked his way into the job. After months of extra training, Dick took on the identity of Robin, using a nickname his mother had given him.


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After he turned 19, Dick decided he needed to follow a new path and left behind the Robin costume and his partnership with Batman, choosing the new identity of Nightwing. Soon afterward, the Dark Knight discovered Jason Todd, an orphaned teenage thief living on the streets. The boy proved useful in helping against a group of criminals, displaying a natural talent for combat and intense distrust and anger at the world. Batman decided to guide him, hoping to prevent the young man from falling further into the life of a career criminal. After training, Jason became the second Robin but was less merciful and often driven by rage. Eventually, his reckless nature got him killed by the Joker (though cosmic forces led to his resurrection later on).


Blaming himself for Jason’s death, Batman became harsh and brutal in dealing with criminals, prompting the attention of Tim Drake, a teenage neighbor of Bruce Wayne’s who had figured out a while ago that the billionaire socialite was actually the Dark Knight. Tim believed that Batman needed a Robin to balance his darkness and keep him sane, so he asked Dick Grayson to take on the identity again. But after seeing Tim was an incredibly gifted detective and computer hacker with a familiarity in martial arts and gymnastics (skills he’d been inspired to learn by Dick and Bruce’s example), Dick suggested to Bruce that he become the new Robin instead. After serious training and the death of his mother, Tim did just that and brought much glory to the name of Robin, both in Gotham and while working around the world with other super-heroes. For a brief time, he left the role and it was filled by Stephanie Brown, an on-again, off-again girlfriend who had been the vigilante called Spoiler (and who would later become the new Batgirl).


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In recent times, Tim wound up suffering several tragedies right after each other, losing his father and then two of his best friends. After the events of the story “Final Crisis” and Bruce Wayne’s apparent death, Tim grew a darker disposition and went off on his own as “Red Robin,” an identity originally used by counterparts in parallel universes. With Bruce apparently dead, Dick took on the mantle of Batman and appointed Bruce’s newly-discovered son Damian as his new Robin, the deadliest young man yet to wear the name.


And those are the Robins in a nutshell. Now let’s check out their fashion.



ROBIN 1: DICK GRAYSON


burnleybatmanandrobinspotlightcover

Before we start, I’d just like to point out that the famous cover above was originally drawn by Jack Burnley, co-creator of the Golden Age hero Starman and a dear friend of mine whom I still miss. Along with being an underrated artist whose consistent skill and proportions stood out, he helped me towards my life’s path at a very young age. And now, back to Robin.


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When Batman’s initial creators decided that the Darknight Detective needed a young assistant, they considered a few names. Some possibilities were Pepper, Socko, Tiger and Wildcat. Eventually it was decided to take a nod from Robin Hood and so young Dick Grayson was given a costume that would fit in with the superhero environment but would have a touch of medieval Britain to it.


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When you take that into account, several elements of this outfit make sense. The suit isn’t far off from the green tights and tunic-over-a-shirt look that Douglas Fairbanks or Errol Flynn would wear when they played Robin Hood in popular films of the time. The scaled shorts give a sense of chain mail and the laced shirt resembles something that might be worn by the film version of Robin Hood or a medieval squire. Most artists gave Dick Grayson a shorter cape than his cowled mentor, which makes sense for someone regularly doing backflips and somersaults.


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Speaking of such maneuvers, there’s another influence here as well. Remove the tunic and we see that Dick Grayson is wearing one-piece under armor. Seeing him now, he looks a lot more like a gymnast or an acrobat and that’s just what he is. As a circus performer who’s become a superhero, why wouldn’t he have bright colors and a fun, showy feel? It also allows for great freedom of movement for his arms and legs.


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A few times, Robin has operated without his cape and I usually wind up thinking he actually looks okay without it. The cape is nice for a sense of motion, but without it I somehow take him a little more seriously. It also looks enhances the acrobat look in my mind, since acrobats generally don’t wear capes while actually performing their stunts.


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In Dick Grayson’s first appearance, we saw that he and his parents had worn similar outfits when they operated in the circus together. This idea remained in various revisions of Dick’s backstory, keeping the idea that the Robin identity was an homage to his roots and even to his family’s circus colors.


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Bruce Wayne may have adopted him and Batman may have brought him into a new arena, but he proudly displayed that he would never forget where he came from. In fact, in the story “Dark Victory,” we saw that his original Robin costume (pictured below) was just one of his spare circus outfits with a decorative cape and an R-emblem sewn on.


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The major weakness of this design is something that could have been so easily altered. Many of you know what I’m talking about. The tight shots and the bare legs. Here, we have to remember that this outfit is also a product of the times. During the Golden Age of comic books (roughly 1935-1951), it wasn’t unusual for superheroes, be they male or female, adult or child, to have bare legs rather than skintight colored leggings like their friends. But they operated in the 40s and then went away, so readers tend to forgive them, and the few who were rebooted or reintroduced in later decades usually got themselves some trousers.


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Robin, on the other hand, did not go away. He stuck around and was adapted into other media, such as movie serials, radio shows (guest starring in several Superman adventures), a live-action TV show, and eventually animated adventures. And so, he doesn’t get as much of a pass from later generations of fans for being a product of his time because he was never seen as a figure of the past.


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We all know that a professional swimmer can wear speedos without being embarrassed, but seeing similar shorts on a young guy who spends his nights fighting serial killers and mobsters seems, at best, strange and, at worst (especially when he got to be college age and was called the TEEN wonder), it’s just laughable. The silliness of the shorts is only enhanced by the presence of Robin’s pixie boots. Do those boots really have the best grip for scaling buildings?


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For years, I said that Dick would’ve probably looked better with green leggings and red boots (or if he’d just worn Tim Drake’s first costume, but we’ll get to that later). In an adventure that took place and the now non-existent parallel world of Earth-D, an alternate version of Dick Grayson appeared who kind of proved my point. This look has the same appeal and sensibility of the original Robin suit yet no longer can we make jokes about wedgies or how often the teenage hero must shave his legs. On the flipside, I prefer Dick’s Robin emblem to this reversed-color one.


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And speaking of colors (what a slick segue that was), let’s talk about the other thing that has bothered some folks about Robin. Namely, that it doesn’t make sense to them that the brooding, Dark Knight who sticks to the shadows would allow such a brightly colored target to tag along. Well, here’s the thing about comic book costumes. First of all, it’s a comic book, so let’s throw out an expectation for 100% realism. Spider-Man doesn’t look as dynamic web-slinging in gym wear and Batman never trips over his cape despite the fact that its length seems to alter depending on whether he’s moving, lurking or posing. It’s an exaggerated reality where the costume is not meant for practicality so much as it is to inform us of who the character is.


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That doesn’t mean we can’t consider practicality at all, of course. When Jason Todd later wore the Robin uniform, he pointed out another obvious flaw of wearing shorts when operating all-year-round in an East Coast city that gets chilly in the winter and occasionally going to even colder environments. But you get my point.


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So does the Robin costume reflect Dick Grayson? Yes. He’s the laughing boy daredevil. He understands the dangers of the world and agrees with Batman that sometimes vigilante justice is necessary to stop horrible crimes and save lives. But he’s not as cynical and still laughs at life as often as he can. He enjoys his life and work (usually) and the bright colors let us know that immediately.


The other thing that’s come up a few times is that Robin is playing a complementary role to Batman on a psychological/operational level. While Batman does his best to convince criminals and super-villains that he’s a vengeful, merciless, potentially supernatural force for good, Robin is there as “good cop.” He’s the guy a terrified witness or nervous criminal might feel more comfortable confiding in, hoping he’ll be more reasonable than his demonic mentor.


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That covers the guy who invented the Robin identity and wore it for 44 years (Dick gave up the identity of Robin in February, 1984 and began operating under the name “Nightwing” a few months later). So let’s move on to the second teen called Robin.


WELCOME TO EARTH-2


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I usually avoid talking about alternate universes, but since Robin’s Earth-2 counterpart has affected both mainstream stories and adaptations in other media, we’ll make an exception. The above picture is not from Earth-2, it’s from an “imaginary story” that foresaw a possible future where Dick Grayson became Batman II and Bruce Wayne Jr. became Robin II. Hence, you know, the “II” on their chests. So future generations wouldn’t be confused. I’m sorry, that’s just hilarious.


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When DC began revising and updating its characters in the Silver Age of comics, it was generally decided that stories taking place before 1956 didn’t happen in continuity anymore. Then later DC decided, sure it happened, it all just happened on the parallel world of Earth-2 where Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson began their heroic careers before the U.S. entered World War II. DC later took advantage of having an older, alternate universe counterpart to Batman and Robin and started telling stories that couldn’t be told in mainstream comics, such as how Older Batman retired and became police commissioner and how Older Robin got… this… new costume… wow.


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Okay, this is seriously one of the worst costume redesigns I’ve seen. What is this awful amalgamation of the Batman and Robin identities? Seriously, the Batman costume with a bat-winged letter R and a scalloped version of Robin’s cape that is now decorated by a strange magician’s collar? Really? And on top of that, adult Earth-2 Robin still whines that people treat him as a kid? Look at how you’re dressed, man! You’re in your thirties by the time this image takes place and yet your clothes are screaming “Why aren’t I as good as Dad?!” Lame!


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Earth 2 Robin eventually rethought his wardrobe and went back to embracing his own identity rather than trying to look like a drunken redesign of his mentor. This outfit is pretty clear in its message: “Robin grew up and got trousers.” It’s still clearly Robin, yet the bodysuit covers him entirely now and the altered mask, along with covering his limbs, diminishes the sense of youth that was there before. I personally think that the pants should be green all the way down rather than have yellow leggings, but what the Heck.


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This was not the only version of this adult Robin wear. Another version of it had a scalloped wing-like cape resembling Batman’s. Personally, I prefer the non-scalloped look on this version.


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The second Earth-2 Robin costume got into the mainstream Batman and Robin comics in a couple of ways. In one story featuring the magical dimensional imps Bat-Mite and Mr. Mxyzptlk, teenage Dick was temporarily transformed into an adult and wore a suit that greatly resembled it. Later, in the story “Nightwing Year One”, we learned that Alfred had made a suit of this design soon after Dick had turned 19 and that the young hero would have worn it as an older Robin had he not decided in the same story to leave the identity behind and become Nightwing instead. So technically, it did exist on the mainstream DC Earth, it simply was never worn.


ROBIN 2: JASON TODD


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When Jason Todd was first introduced, he was a red-haired circus acrobat whose parents were killed by a criminal. Basically, a lazy attempt to create a new Robin that wouldn’t seem too different from Dick. So when he became Batman’s partner, it made sense that he would wear the same outfit. However, before taking on the identity, he did experiment with an alternate costume design and even suggested perhaps using a different name. Possibilities he thought of were: Flying Ace, Bluejay, Cardinal, Eagle, Domino, Kid Dynamite and Masked Avenger.


On this alternate take, I’m for the green leggings and the red sleeves, but the belt doesn’t seem quite right and the boots stand out against the sleekness of the rest of the costume. I’m also not thrilled about the starburst design around the neck that leads to his mask. There’s too much circus here and not enough superhero.


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After the story “Crisis on Infinite Earths” (sometimes now called “The First Crisis), time and space were altered in various ways as an excuse for DC to revise parts of continuity. Jason Todd was altered so he could stand on his own and not be a Dick Grayson clone, hence the new origin with him as a street-wise, angry orphan. Which brings us a slight problem. This costume doesn’t really reflect Jason Todd at all. It’s a somewhat interesting contrast to see a smirking, violent kid wearing such bright colors, but I just don’t buy that this same cynical teenage rebel who smoked cigarettes when Batman wasn’t looking would be okay with going into battle with bare legs and a yellow cape. I think he’d insist on a couple of changes like trousers and a leather jacket.


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Jason Todd died in this costume and was resurrected later on. When he returned to the public eye, he adopted the identity of the Red Hood (a guise previously used by the Joker) and began a career as a lethal vigilante. At one point, he decided to confront Tim Drake, the third Robin, and during this battle he wore a slightly different version of the “adult Robin” costume that Dick Grayson wound up never wearing. This suit is kind of weird. You’ve got basically the original Robin costume, just with yellow leggings added and Tim Drake’s cape. Doesn’t quite work.


THE WINTER LOOKS


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Finally, DC decided to acknowledge the fat that Robin must be very cold during winter seasons and snowfall. In Batman Annual #13, Jason Todd was seen in this winter wear, having added loose green sleeves and trousers, along with larger, thicker boots. But sadly, he now looks like he’s wearing his older brother’s clothes rather than something that actually fits him. In the world of superheroes where most things are magically skin tight and most vigilantes have defined, athletic bodies, this stands out.


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Later on in the story “Nightwing: Year One,” we learned that Dick Grayson had worn his own winter look as well. The large boots and thick padding to the gloves and sleeves give a good sense that this is a combination of winter gear and body armor. Even the cape seems a bit heavier with the way it drapes on his shoulders and closes around his neck.


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In fact, this is not a bad look at all. Dick Grayson would look better in a sleeker version of it that wasn’t so padded, but it seems better than the Earth-2 adult Robin look.


ROBIN 3: TIM DRAKE


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Reluctant at first to take on yet another young apprentice, Batman did agree to let Tim Drake become the new Robin. But one thing he insisted on was that the boy would have better protection than Jason had. Along with having the latest in light-weight body armor, we see that Tim has protection on his legs that the previous Robin’s lacked. He’s also got some serious boots rather than pixie boots.


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By making the outside of the cape black, he is able to more effectively hide in the shadows yet maintains the look of the classic Robin. This cape is also armored, like Batman’s, and is not simply the decoration of a circus performer. It all tells us that this Robin, while still bright and optimistic, also seems to take himself more seriously and that fits perfectly with Tim’s personality.


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Tim was brighter than Bruce, yes, but he was not a laughing daredevil who cracked jokes while he did somersaults. He was a detective in his own right, one good enough to prove that Bruce Wayne was Batman when he was still a child. And knowing from Jason’s example that this job could very easily get you killed, he entered the world with a slightly darker sensibility than Dick had at that age.


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Tim also had some personalized weapons. Rather than always using batarangs, he also had R-blades. And in case of emergency, the emblem on his chest was actually an extra R-blade that could be detached for quick use. A couple of times, Tim had his hands bound and was able to cut the rope by simply bringing the rope up to the R-blade on his shirt and cutting. So this suit is a nice mixture of costume and utility. In the 1990s “Batman: The Animated Series”, this costume was used for Dick Grayson.


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In the story “Sins of Youth,” Tim was temporarily transformed into an adult and sported this version of his uniform. It’s nearly identical except that his shirt has been given longer red sleeves and the belt is a bit different. Not a bad look really, though I’m not sure about that collar.


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Hey, did anyone read the story where the teen heroes of Young Justice (of which Tim Drake is a founder) got themselves into a classic wild west scenario? That was fun. And you know, the green pants and duster here aren’t bad. Make that duster black with gold trim and you could have a serious look to bring home to Gotham (minus the hat, of course).


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In the 1990s cartoon, Tim Drake was eventually introduced and his animated counterpart, who definitely fit more into the “laughing daredevil” category, wore this costume to distinguish him from what animated Dick Grayson had worn. This is basically Tim’s first suit from the comics, but with all green replaced by black.


Although it’s not bad, I miss the green. I know I’m not crazy for thinking that either, because I discussed the costume change with Tim Gunn (more than once, to be honest) and as you can see in this video we did together a while ago, he felt that the green was essential to Robin’s circus boy origin.


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After the death of his friend Superboy, Tim adopted the young super-hero’s colors of red and black primarily and retouched his uniform. I like the scallops on the gauntlets and I think the shirt looks great. I prefer the pouches-style utility belt. On the scalloped cape, I’m of two minds, since it’s a nice nod to his mentor but is also in danger of making him seem like “Batman-Lite” rather than his own person.


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But yes, this costume doesn’t full grab me. I miss the green. Even if they were just the trousers (without black shorts), that would be enough for me. And yet, this darker outfit does make sense for the months following Superboy’s death, when Tim was in a darker frame of mind. My initial hope was that when Superboy came back from the dead later on, Tim would relax back into his classic colors. Of course, that didn’t happen since he wound up adopting the identity of Red Robin before his friend’s resurrection.


CARRIE KELLY


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Before we talk about Stephanie Brown, let’s give a quick shout-out to Carrie Kelly. Appearing in the famous “Dark Knight Returns” story by Frank Miller, this was a young Gotham girl who wound up taking on the Robin identity but wore glasses instead of a mask. Historically, she was the first female Robin and so it would be wrong to not show her some respect.


The bare legs of the Robin costume now work. I know it seems like a double standard, but while bare legs on a superhero male now seem weird to many folks, there are still dozens of female superheroes whose costumes show off their gams (can I say “gams”?). The red hair is also works nicely since she’s already wearing red and yellow. But I do wish she had a mask instead of green-lensed glasses. It was okay when the story came out in the 1980’s, but now it just seems so dated.


ROBIN 4: STEPHANIE BROWN


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So there was a time when Tim stepped away from the Robin identity, primarily because his father found out about his dual life and asked that he stop it. At the same time, Stephanie Brown, who’d been operating as “the Spoiler” for years, was still hoping to prove herself to Batman. With Tim out of operation, Batman took in Stephanie and she became the new Robin, the first female in mainstream continuity to use the name and costume.


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First of all, the red hair band? Kind of adorable. And fits with Stephanie, who always fought crime with a smile and a joke. The tunic extending into a skirt is a nice feminine touch and also gives a little nod to Dick Grayson’s extended tunic.


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However, Dick Grayson is not Stephanie’s model of Robin. The only Robin she had worked with was Tim Drake and in her mind he was the guy who set the standard. So it makes complete sense that this look is primarily based on Tim’s first uniform. Depending on the artist, Stephanie also had hands around her elbows. With or without them, this look works.


ROBIN 5: DAMIAN WAYNE


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For years, the terrorist cult leader Ra’s al Ghul has attempted to make Bruce Wayne his heir, believing he is the only one worthy. He hasn’t gotten that wish, but his daughter Talie fathered a son with Bruce and raised him with the aid of Ra’s al Ghul’s League of Assassins. When the boy Damian was about ten years old, mother introduced him to his father, who had been completely unaware of the child’s existence beforehand.


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Wanting to be his father’s apprentice, Damian thought he had to kill Tim Drake and take his place as Robin, since in the League of Assassin you only get to rise through the ranks by killing your superior. This is clearly just Damian’s own combat clothes with the addition of one of Dick’s shirts and a hooded cape. It is not very impressive as a Robin costume. But it’s not supposed to be either. Damian isn’t Robin yet.


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After Tim left to pursue his own agenda as Red Robin, Dick made Damian the new Robin, seeing him in much the same way that Bruce had seen Jason Todd years earlier. Dick knew that Damian had been raised as a killing machine, but also knew that he really just wanted to understand this father’s world and please those whose respect he craved. So whereas Dick filled the role of sometimes having to hold Batman back, it’s now the new Robin who has to be told “Don’t break his leg.”


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This costume is very makeshift. By having black trousers and sleeves, that becomes the dominant color, with green there for decoration. The laced boots are a bit unusual in his world of sleek superhero costumes. And the cape is back to being all yellow yet has the addition of a black hood.


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In one way, this seems like it needs a tweak here or there to really seem like a uniform and not something thrown together. Making the outer-lining of the cape black to match the hood would be nice. Or maybe removing the laces from the boots. On the other hand, Damian is still figuring things out. He thinks the previous Robins were weaker and less formidable than he, but he can’t deny the respect they earned from the superhero community. He’s no doubt wrestling with how much he wants to prove to others that he is Robin and yet be his own person. I can see a bit of that in this costume.


RED ROBIN


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In the mini-series “Kingdom Come” by Mark Waid and Alex Ross (which was later said to take place on the alternate universe of Earth-22), we saw a possible future for the DC Comics superheroes. In this future, an older Dick Grayson who had been retired for years decided to return to his role as a vigilante but not as Nightwing. Instead, his new uniform was a blend of Batman and Robin, with the new name “Red Robin.”


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Later on, the resurrected Jason Todd wound up on the parallel world of Earth-51 and met that world’s Bruce Wayne. While there, Jason took on the identity of Red Robin, using a uniform that his Earth-51 counterpart would have worn had he not been killed. Basically the same outfit but with a different belt. Earth-51 was later rendered lifeless and Jason Todd returned to the mainstream DC Earth, abandoning the Red Robin suit. It eventually wound up in Tim Drake’s hands and he adopted it as a new identity when he decided to go off on his own and realized he would not be crossing lines that Batman’s apprentice should not. He also apparently changed the belt.


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It’s a pretty good look. Sleek and simple. We can definitely see the influences of both Batman and Robin. Since he’s no longer “Robin” exactly, I’m okay with not including an element of green. But I’m not sure about the straps across the chest. They’re not bad and they do recall the laces of the original Robin suit. But there’s the thing. In “Kingdom Come”, Alex Ross specifically altered the look of the other superhero Dr. Mid-Nite because he realized Red Robin now looked too much like him.


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And he’s right, check it out. With a little squinting, this guy looks like Red Robin. Now you may say, well, there’s enough of a different with the green cape and he doesn’t seem to be wearing leather, but hey, wait a second…


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A few years after “Kingdom Come”, a new Dr. Mid-Nite came onto the scene and this guy resembles Red Robin even more! God forbid if they ever team-up, criminals aren’t going to be sure who’s who unless they keep track of the goggles and the moon symbol versus the bird emblem.


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A few tweaks and this problem could be solved. In fact, one of those tweaks could be that Tim would lose the cowl and wear a mask that lets his hair show again. This is still a very young hero, after all. It would be nice to have a visual reminder of that. And, honestly, maybe “Red Robin” isn’t the best name. I mean, he chooses to go off on his own so he changes his alias by just adding a color description? It must be confusing if he and Damian are in the same room. “Come here, Robin. No, I meant, RED Robin, sorry I was looking at HIM.”


NEW ANIMATED ROBINS


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In the recent “Teen Titans” cartoon, a young Dick Grayson was shown wearing this version of the costume. And you know what? It’s pretty cool. Tim’s outfit minus the red shorts. I dig.


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More recently still, the animated series “Young Justice” premiered and it gave us this version of Dick Grayson. It’s a nice touch having the red coloring go down the sides so that you imply shorts without actually creating them. But yeah, I still miss the green, especially when you consider that this animated version of Dick Grayson is (at least initially) the happy-go-lucky jokester of the team.


ALTERNATE DESIGNS


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There have been a few famous alternate takes offered for Robin that never made it to actual use in the comics. Alex Ross offered this design. His idea here was to embrace Robin’s medieval roots, taking inspiration from Robin hood, by extending the chain mail shorts into full on chain mail armor that covers his arms and legs (and presumably would cover him beneath the shirt. I’m not really a fan of the look. It’s now too medieval, making him look as if he’s not meant to be a modern-day superhero. The muted colors aren’t really thrilling me, the chain mail gives a sense of weight to a character who’s supposed to be an acrobat light on his feet.


The pixie boots still look silly and the hood forming a bird design is cute but also seems counter to the efforts made to remind us that Robin was named after Robin Hood rather than the bird. That’s just my take. I see what Ross is doing here and I get it, I just don’t agree with it.


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Batman artist Norm Breyfogle did a few alternate costumes for Robin. These were two of my favorites. It’s a lot like the outfit the adopted after Superboy’s death but the black boots and gloves are replaced with green and I really like that. The outside of the cape can remain black and the dark red coloring reminds us to take him similarly. I can’t decide if I like the laces down the shirt or the single strap across the chest. They both work for me. Great looks.


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This is Robin 1 Million, a robot who aids the Batman of the 853rd century and is affectionately known as the “Toy Wonder.” He is programmed with that Batman’s personality form when he was a child, just before the tragedy that turned him into a dark superhero. That’s kind of brilliant. That’s metaphorically what Robin is supposed to be, in a way. And he looks adorable!


And with that, we are done. I hope you enjoyed this look at many heroes who have walked the same basic path. For 70 years now, a Robin has been at Batman’s side, serving the cause of justice, and that alone deserves respect. Who knows what costume alterations we’ll see in the future. Perhaps in two years, we’ll be discussing the seventh teen to take on the name and role of Batman’s famous apprentice. Until next time, this is Alan Kistler, Agent of S.T.Y.L.E., signing off!


Alan Kistler is an actor and writer living in New York who has been recognized by Warner Bros. Films and major media outlets as a comic book historian. He is also the creator/host of the web-show “Crazy Sexy Geeks: The Series” (check out the Facebook fan page!). He knows entirely too much about the history of comics, Star Trek, Doctor Who and vampires who don’t sparkle. Alan can be followed via Twitter: @SizzlerKistler. His work can be found at http://KistlerUniverse.com or http://www.youtube.com/user/CrazySexyGeeksSeries


 
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