I love when DC does Year One stories. In the Batman universe, there are many character origin stories to choose from, and some characters have multiple variations. For Dick Grayson, there are several great arcs to choose from. If you’re going for the theme of “Year,” then “Batman: Year 3” and “Robin: Year One” would be candidates. When this series was first announced, there may have been more excitement about the reunion of Mark Waid and Chris Samney than about the origins of Batman and Robin. So how does this reunited duo make the story dynamic?
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One of Mark Waid’s talents is the depth of his characters and their intelligence. In our preview, Wade shows us the problems Bruce Wayne and Alfred Pennyworth face with a young boy in the house and their lack of parenting skills. From there, we see that both men are concerned about their inner anger over the loss of Dick Grayson. This opening issue is from a different angle as we’ve seen Grayson angry and saddened by his loss, but usually after Tony Zucco gets arrested, Grayson loses a lot of anger. It seems so. There’s a bit of an edge to the Grayson that Wade gives in this series that seems to challenge Wayne and Batman.
That challenge comes up a lot in the story, so it’s interesting. There’s a line from Wade–“Protect those who are still inside…or Gotham City will do worse to you”–which shows the fatherly doting in Wayne’s mind about adopting the boy. appears to be entering. In Wayne’s opinion. It shows the growth necessary to protect the boy, but as the issue progresses we see Batman thinking about how to challenge the boy to survive. This contrast is fascinating, and I’m curious to see how it will affect their relationship and partnership.
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Chris Samnee’s artwork is a sight to behold. Furthermore, the colors by Mateus López further enhance the world. Sometimes these pages felt like I was reading Darwyn Cooke or Dave Stewart, and it was perfect. Sumney’s time in Daredevil is wasted, and he uses his physical style to perfection against Robin. As the Dynamic Duo moves, we see Sumney give them a momentary separation and then show them training together. This is great. That uniformity works perfectly for the awkward shock of the moment when the team faces its first crisis.
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The opening issue gives a great vibe that this series is worth reading as it promises great action and drama. Batman & Robin Year One also doesn’t feel like it’s subtracting from previous “Year” stories. Rather, it feels like it could happen with them. Wade gives Batman a tremendous inner monologue, and I can’t wait until he starts examining Robin, and hopefully Alfred. I don’t know what I want to see, because having Sumney and Lopez in the art is like a dream, and it would be a deception of their amazing abilities.
“Batman and Robin: Year One” #1 Review
Batman and Robin: Year One #1
This is an exciting and fun first issue. It may be treading an old path, but the creative team has found a way to keep it exciting by updating the style and content while maintaining the timelessness of the original story. Mark Waid puts Batman in an interesting headspace with his thoughts, and Sumney and Lopez spice up the adventure with their heavenly style. Some great touchstones happen again, but there’s enough new material to keep you coming back for more.
The creative team knows how to make an entertaining comic, and they’ve brought a great update to Batman and Robin’s public debut.
Two-Face seems very tied to Dick Grayson’s early days as Robin, so I’m glad they’re keeping Two-Face around, and I can’t wait to see what happens with File Business.
The brief introduction to the General is interesting and I can’t wait to see the impact he has on Gotham, Batman, and Robin.
I appreciate that so far it feels more like an addition to the story than a negative one.
The Batmobile scenes were great, but the great art team failed to provide a fresh dynamic duo chasing the bad guys.
