writer: Scott Lobdell
artist: Brett Booth
For the record, although I seem to be writing quite a bit about Scott Lobdell these days, I didn't buy this issue because of Lobdell, but rather to complete the New 52 Zero Month collection of Robin stories. (Others included Batman and Robin, featuring Damian; Red Hood and the Outlaws, featuring Jason Todd; and Nightwing, featuring Dick Grayson.)
Teen Titans until recently was the only place where Tim Drake could be found in the relaunched DC landscape. This had to be considered a little shocking, since Tim was the Robin for two decades, and was the first of them to be featured in his own series, not to mention the only founding member of the Geoff Johns relaunch to retain his own book (unlike Superboy and Impulse/Kid Flash). Although much of my superhero experience has involved the rich lineage of the Boy Wonder, he's always been who I consider to be "my" Robin.
And yet somehow Tim, who'd become Red Robin (a costume originally designed for Kingdom Come and therefore an identity first held by Dick Grayson, and ironically or not next worn by Jason Todd in Countdown to Final Crisis) in his last phase before the New 52, was dropped unceremoniously into a book that really did not have a link to Batman. Certainly there is precedent for Robin, but not for Tim Drake, so it was always a little shocking to me that this had happened, and yet as part of the streamlining process it was also a little inevitable that his role should change.
The Teen Titans themselves have tended to fluctuate in terms of importance. In the Wolfman/Perez '80s they were the lifeblood of the company. Johns shot them back into significance, but in a lot of ways DC has spent a great deal more energy keeping the Justice League relevant, which is fine, although there will always be comic book fans who believe only by engaging the younger reader base will the industry's future be assured. This may be one of the reasons why the Titans (sometimes called Young Justice) have a continuing role in the cartoon leg of DC's efforts.
Lobdell, meanwhile, took on the youth wing of the New 52, whether that meant Teen Titans, Superboy, or even Red Hood, which in a lot of ways is another Titans book (and in a previous era this would have been more obvious), based largely on his reputation from Generation X. Because the Titans have such a turbulent publishing history, I didn't have an interest in checking this new incarnation out. It seemed if anything something for a new generation, moreso than most of the other new books, even though most of its characters are some of my favorites (the same was true for Superboy, though I had a look at its first issue).
All that being said, I finally read an issue because it finally put the spotlight on Tim Drake. It's interesting to me, someone taking another shot at Tim's early development. One of the great benefits of comic books is that they're one of the few creative mediums (music is another) that actively encourages revisiting familiar material. It's a chance to have a fresh look and discover what makes it special all over again. A Bob Dylan song sounds different when played by Hendrix or U2, but they're all pretty great (here I'm thinking of "All Along the Watchtower," by the way).
The bulk of my experience with Tim comes after he's already become Robin, so the period in which he figures out (or as depicted in this issue, spends a lot of time trying) Batman's secret identity (originally presented in Batman: A Lonely Place of Dying) is pretty fascinating. In a Brian Bendis comic this would have been the first twenty issues (which is what he did in the initial Ultimate Spider-Man comics and then again with the introduction of Miles Morales). Tim is such a unique Robin, too, in that his parents at least at the beginning of his story are both alive. He's driven by different ambitions than any of the others, including Batman himself, and Lobdell does a great job of explaining that. (It's also worth noting again that Batman #0 includes brief looks at each of the Robins, and as I said when I commented on the issue, Tim stands out. Bendis should switch to DC and do that.)
While I'm very happy that this issue happened, I also wonder why. Shouldn't it have been dedicated to the whole team, if not the new members Lobdell has introduced? Just wondering.
Have they yet had the Robins all fight each other to see who really is THE Robin? If not that needs to happen.
ReplyDeleteWell, a new Robin only happens when the last one has moved on (or in Jason Todd's case, died), so that doesn't really need to happen. Although Damian recently tried to assert himself by fighting each of them. That's as close as you're going to get. His goal was to defeat them at the thing they most prided themselves on.
DeleteIt's worth reiterating that Tim Drake became Robin because he noticed after Jason's death that Batman had become dangerously unstable, that in essence he needed a Robin. There was also Stephanie Brown, who briefly assumed the role after Tim relinquished it because his father had found out and didn't approve. Then Stephanie (who has also been known as Spoiler and Batgirl) initiated "War Games" and died (for a while), and Tim retook the role. Then some time later, Damian emerged just as Tim had gone the Dick Grayson route and increasingly asserted his independence (which was something of old hat for Tim, having had to do that earlier because Jean-Paul Valley really didn't want a Robin).