Robin: Year One
Encyclopedia
"Robin: Year One" is the title of a DC Comics
story arc written by Chuck Dixon
and Scott Beatty
and illustrated by Javier Pulido and Marcos Martin
. It was originally published in single magazine form as Robin: Year One #1-#4. The story is narrated by Alfred Pennyworth
and tells of Dick Grayson
's first year as The Batman
's sidekick, Robin
.
's career as Robin, The Boy Wonder
as Batman trains him in crime-fighting, against the judgment of Alfred
. Robin proves to be a capable ally when he foils The Mad Hatter's
plot to abduct and sell children into slavery. The story begins when the Mad Hatter is hired by Singh Manh Lee, the president of Rheelasia, to kidnap ten American girls for Lee's personal sex trafficking purposes. Batman and Robin are informed of the disappearances of eight girls by Captain Gordon
and begin searching Gotham City for clues. After encountering difficulties in their search, Robin identifies one of the missing girls as Jennifer, a school acquaintance. While searching his school for leads at Batman's request, Robin discovers that the Mad Hatter is behind the kidnappings. Because Batman is aboard President Lee's yacht as Bruce Wayne, Robin decides to foil the Hatter's plot alone. Although Robin's efforts lead to the arrest of the Mad Hatter, the exploitation of President Lee, and the rescue of the captive girls, Batman is angered that Robin did not wait for his permission and assistance. Before Batman can reprimand Robin, Alfred intervenes and convinces him to commend his squire for a job well done. As Dick aids Bruce in his war on crime, Alfred fears that the boy may not be able to balance a normal teenage life with vigilantism.
Dick Grayson continues to prove his worth as Batman's aid by single-handedly defeating criminals like Killer Moth
and Blockbuster. Meanwhile, Two-Face
, who feels that Batman is to blame for his disfiguration, plans revenge against Batman by plotting to kill his sidekick. To carry out his plan, Two-Face kidnaps Judge Lawrence Watkins in order to lure the Dynamic Duo into his trap. When Captain Gordon meets with Batman and Robin to inform them of the kidnapping, he expresses concerns about Robin's young age and reminds Batman of the danger of the mission. With this new realization, Batman orders Robin to sit out during the hunt for Two-Face; however, Robin secretly follows him during his search. Soon thereafter, Batman finds Two-Face in the act of kidnapping twin infants and tries to prevent their death. Although Robin shows up to help, the abduction of the infants turns out to be a trap and both Batman and Robin are taken hostage.
Two-Face carries out his revenge by making Robin choose between Judge Watkin's life and Batman's. While attempting to save the judge and Batman from Two-Face, Robin is badly beaten. Bruce takes him to Dr. Leslie Thompkins
for treatment, and decides to end Dick's career as Robin. This causes Robin to run away from Wayne Manor.
While on the streets, Robin is enlisted by a martial artist named Shrike into a junior League of Assassins
. Shortly after Dick's recruitment into the league, Shrike is hired by a crime boss to murder Two-Face, who has recently escaped from jail. Meanwhile, Batman begins his search for the escapee while Alfred tries to find Dick. While in the League of Assassins, Dick uses the name "Freddy Loyd" in order to conceal his identity. However, Shrike grows suspicious of "Freddy" and orders the other league members not to trust him. The junior League of Assassins quickly find Two-Face's hideout and attempt to murder him. Dick nearly kills Two-Face for all the pain that he has caused him, but instead he flees with the others. During his involvement with the group, Dick serves as an unofficial spy for Batman by sending letters containing information about the junior League of Assassins and Two-Face, but refuses to return home out of guilt. After returning to the League's hideout, Shrike demands the truth about "Freddy's" identity. Meanwhile, Two-Face learns of Shrike's plan, hunts him down, and tracks him to his hideout. At the same time, Batman finds Dick. The two take down Shrike, but Two-Face escapes.
Afterwards, Batman allows Dick to be Robin again, as long as he agrees to follow Batman's orders. The team later captures Two-Face.
. The Gauntlet leads directly into Robin: Year One and can be read directly after Dark Victory. However, since Dark Victory was written before the aforementioned storyline, and its predecessor, Batman: The Long Halloween
, some aspects of the story are rendered non-canonical such as Gordon being only a Captain and Two-Face's backstory being slightly different. The story was created by the same creative team that later worked on Batgirl: Year One
and Nightwing: Year One.
in his work with Batman: Dark Victory. Craig Lemon from Comics Bulletin
points out the novel's poor comparison with Batman: Year One
, stating that the author's approach to the story is very bright and cartoon-like. Lemon also criticizes the sudden, dark change in style near the end of the story when Robin is nearly killed by Two-Face. Although he admits that the change in style could have succeeded, Lemon says that the intended effect was absent due to the failure to match the story's mood with the appropriate art style.
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
story arc written by Chuck Dixon
Chuck Dixon
Charles "Chuck" Dixon is an American comic book writer, best known for long runs on Batman titles in the 1990s.-Biography:Dixon grew up in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, area, reading comics of all genres...
and Scott Beatty
Scott Beatty
Scott Beatty is an American author who has written comic books and encyclopaedias based on DC Comics characters.-Biography:Beatty has worked extensively for the popular comic book publisher DC Comics since the mid '90s...
and illustrated by Javier Pulido and Marcos Martin
Marcos Martin
Marcos Martín is a Spanish comic book artist who worked for American comics, illustrating Batgirl: Year One, Doctor Strange: The Oath, Breach. He is the current artist of The Amazing Spider-Man...
. It was originally published in single magazine form as Robin: Year One #1-#4. The story is narrated by Alfred Pennyworth
Alfred Pennyworth
Alfred Pennyworth is a fictional character that appears throughout the DC Comics franchise. The character first appears in Batman #16 , and was created by writer Bob Kane and artist Jerry Robinson. Alfred serves as Batman’s tireless butler, assistant, confidant, and surrogate father figure...
and tells of Dick Grayson
Dick Grayson
Dick Grayson is a fictional superhero that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger and illustrator Jerry Robinson, he first appeared in Detective Comics #38 in April 1940....
's first year as The Batman
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
's sidekick, Robin
Robin (comics)
Robin is the name of several fictional characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, originally created by Bob Kane, Bill Finger and Jerry Robinson, as a junior counterpart to DC Comics superhero Batman...
.
Synopsis
The story recounts the beginning of Dick GraysonDick Grayson
Dick Grayson is a fictional superhero that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger and illustrator Jerry Robinson, he first appeared in Detective Comics #38 in April 1940....
's career as Robin, The Boy Wonder
Robin (comics)
Robin is the name of several fictional characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, originally created by Bob Kane, Bill Finger and Jerry Robinson, as a junior counterpart to DC Comics superhero Batman...
as Batman trains him in crime-fighting, against the judgment of Alfred
Alfred Pennyworth
Alfred Pennyworth is a fictional character that appears throughout the DC Comics franchise. The character first appears in Batman #16 , and was created by writer Bob Kane and artist Jerry Robinson. Alfred serves as Batman’s tireless butler, assistant, confidant, and surrogate father figure...
. Robin proves to be a capable ally when he foils The Mad Hatter's
Mad Hatter (comics)
The Mad Hatter is a fictional supervillain and enemy of Batman in the DC Universe. He is modeled after the Hatter from Lewis Carroll's novel, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, a character often called the "Mad Hatter" in adaptations of Carroll. He made his first appearance in Batman #49 in October...
plot to abduct and sell children into slavery. The story begins when the Mad Hatter is hired by Singh Manh Lee, the president of Rheelasia, to kidnap ten American girls for Lee's personal sex trafficking purposes. Batman and Robin are informed of the disappearances of eight girls by Captain Gordon
James Gordon (comics)
James Worthington Gordon, Sr. is a fictional character, an ally of Batman that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and was created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane...
and begin searching Gotham City for clues. After encountering difficulties in their search, Robin identifies one of the missing girls as Jennifer, a school acquaintance. While searching his school for leads at Batman's request, Robin discovers that the Mad Hatter is behind the kidnappings. Because Batman is aboard President Lee's yacht as Bruce Wayne, Robin decides to foil the Hatter's plot alone. Although Robin's efforts lead to the arrest of the Mad Hatter, the exploitation of President Lee, and the rescue of the captive girls, Batman is angered that Robin did not wait for his permission and assistance. Before Batman can reprimand Robin, Alfred intervenes and convinces him to commend his squire for a job well done. As Dick aids Bruce in his war on crime, Alfred fears that the boy may not be able to balance a normal teenage life with vigilantism.
Dick Grayson continues to prove his worth as Batman's aid by single-handedly defeating criminals like Killer Moth
Killer Moth
Killer Moth is a fictional character in the DC Comics universe. He first appeared in Batman #63 published in 1951. Killer Moth originally wore a garish costume with striped purple and green spandex, orange cape and a moth-like mask....
and Blockbuster. Meanwhile, Two-Face
Two-Face
Two-Face is a fictional comic book supervillain who appears in comic books published by DC Comics. and is an enemy of Batman. The character first appeared in Detective Comics #66 , and was created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger....
, who feels that Batman is to blame for his disfiguration, plans revenge against Batman by plotting to kill his sidekick. To carry out his plan, Two-Face kidnaps Judge Lawrence Watkins in order to lure the Dynamic Duo into his trap. When Captain Gordon meets with Batman and Robin to inform them of the kidnapping, he expresses concerns about Robin's young age and reminds Batman of the danger of the mission. With this new realization, Batman orders Robin to sit out during the hunt for Two-Face; however, Robin secretly follows him during his search. Soon thereafter, Batman finds Two-Face in the act of kidnapping twin infants and tries to prevent their death. Although Robin shows up to help, the abduction of the infants turns out to be a trap and both Batman and Robin are taken hostage.
Two-Face carries out his revenge by making Robin choose between Judge Watkin's life and Batman's. While attempting to save the judge and Batman from Two-Face, Robin is badly beaten. Bruce takes him to Dr. Leslie Thompkins
Leslie Thompkins
Dr. Leslie Thompkins is a fictional character from the Batman mythos. Created by writer Dennis O'Neil and artist Dick Giordano, she first appeared in Detective Comics #457...
for treatment, and decides to end Dick's career as Robin. This causes Robin to run away from Wayne Manor.
While on the streets, Robin is enlisted by a martial artist named Shrike into a junior League of Assassins
League of Assassins
The League of Assassins is a group of fictional comic book villains, an organization of killers formerly led by Ra's al Ghul, an enemy of Batman in the DC Comics Universe.-Doctor Ebeneezer Darrk:...
. Shortly after Dick's recruitment into the league, Shrike is hired by a crime boss to murder Two-Face, who has recently escaped from jail. Meanwhile, Batman begins his search for the escapee while Alfred tries to find Dick. While in the League of Assassins, Dick uses the name "Freddy Loyd" in order to conceal his identity. However, Shrike grows suspicious of "Freddy" and orders the other league members not to trust him. The junior League of Assassins quickly find Two-Face's hideout and attempt to murder him. Dick nearly kills Two-Face for all the pain that he has caused him, but instead he flees with the others. During his involvement with the group, Dick serves as an unofficial spy for Batman by sending letters containing information about the junior League of Assassins and Two-Face, but refuses to return home out of guilt. After returning to the League's hideout, Shrike demands the truth about "Freddy's" identity. Meanwhile, Two-Face learns of Shrike's plan, hunts him down, and tracks him to his hideout. At the same time, Batman finds Dick. The two take down Shrike, but Two-Face escapes.
Afterwards, Batman allows Dick to be Robin again, as long as he agrees to follow Batman's orders. The team later captures Two-Face.
Continuity
The story takes place after the events of Batman: Dark VictoryBatman: Dark Victory
Batman: Dark Victory is a 14-part comic book limited series written by Jeph Loeb and drawn by Tim Sale. The series is a sequel to Batman: The Long Halloween and was originally published from 1999 to 2000 by DC Comics. The series takes place primarily during the third/fourth year of Batman's career...
. The Gauntlet leads directly into Robin: Year One and can be read directly after Dark Victory. However, since Dark Victory was written before the aforementioned storyline, and its predecessor, Batman: The Long Halloween
Batman: The Long Halloween
Batman: The Long Halloween is a 13-issue comic book limited series written by Jeph Loeb with art by Tim Sale. It was originally published by DC Comics in 1996 and 1997. It was inspired by the three Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Specials by the same creative team...
, some aspects of the story are rendered non-canonical such as Gordon being only a Captain and Two-Face's backstory being slightly different. The story was created by the same creative team that later worked on Batgirl: Year One
Batgirl: Year One
Batgirl: Year One is a comic book mini-series published by DC Comics in nine parts, from February to October 2003, and then compiled into trade paperback form...
and Nightwing: Year One.
Critical reaction
Collected Editions reviews praise "Robin: Year One" for emphasizing the growing bond between Batman, Alfred, and Robin, rather than simply retelling the story of Dick Grayson's earliest adventures as Batman's sidekick. The website also commends the efforts of Javier Pulido and Robert Campanella to mesh their styles with that of Tim SaleTim Sale (artist)
Tim Sale is an American Eisner Award-winning comic book artist. He is primarily known for his collaborations with writer Jeph Loeb.-Early life:...
in his work with Batman: Dark Victory. Craig Lemon from Comics Bulletin
Comics Bulletin
Comics Bulletin is a website with an emphasis on the American comic book industry, updated daily with news, reviews, interviews, and editorial content. Coverage ranges from mainstream to independent/small press comic book and graphic novel publishers.-History:...
points out the novel's poor comparison with Batman: Year One
Batman: Year One
"Year One", later referred to as "Batman: Year One", is an American comic book story arc written by Frank Miller, illustrated by David Mazzucchelli, colored by Richmond Lewis, and lettered by Todd Klein...
, stating that the author's approach to the story is very bright and cartoon-like. Lemon also criticizes the sudden, dark change in style near the end of the story when Robin is nearly killed by Two-Face. Although he admits that the change in style could have succeeded, Lemon says that the intended effect was absent due to the failure to match the story's mood with the appropriate art style.