Some thoughts about Robin & Batman #1

What is the Secret Origin of the Boy Wonder?

Dick Grayson just lost his parents and the only way he can get over such tragedy is trying to live a fantasy where he is a hero but such fantasy will be much more dangerous than he ever imagined.

You know me, I see Jeff Lemire, I buy.

Yeah, I've been missing seeing one of my favorite authors working on franchises that I like. In fact I don't understand why he doesn't work on more ongoing titles these days, Lemire has a certain magic that makes most of his books shine in an unique way and retelling the early days of Batman and Robin wouldn't be different.

Just as the title suggests, Dick Grayson is the main focus here. We see the story completely narrated from his own perspective and it reminds me how well Lemire is able to write kids. Richard here is not the same mature, competent and lovable hero that we know from his Nightwing fame but instead an immature child who is still not ready to face the terrible world he found himself in. Mind you, this doens't mean that Lemire portrayed the protagonist as annoying, Lemire is better than that, he still shows the kind and understandable personality that we are all so familiar with too, is a pretty realistic characterization of a kid actually and one that makes me appreciate the character even more.

There's also an interesting take about why Dick decided to become a hero. Doing it to forget about the death of his parents is actually a pretty sympathetic motivation, especially considering his age. Not to mention that seeing the story from his point of view gives us a pretty interesting look at the Batman mythos.

Speaking of which, although Batman is not the main character per se here, he still plays a prominent role. Funnily enough, just like Dick, Bruce is also pretty immature about the mission he decided to take. He makes a lot of mistakes dealing with the partner he choose, doesn't know how to communicate his feelings properly and even use his classic detective skills to learn things about his new sidekick in ways that he shouldn't. Is yet another compelling take about the character.

The plot also presents intriguing aspects due that they involve villains like Killer Croc in a manner that perfectly connects him to the protagonist. Is mostly a set-up but gets the job done very well.

Dustin Nguyen handles the art and while his work has a semi-cartoony style, he definitely knows how to depict the dark tone of a story along with expressive characters and precise storytelling.

Promising beginning. Totally on board.