It used to be true to say that Robin's had a "type"

[icon_uk]

They tended to be Caucasian males with dark hair and blue eyes.... there were exceptions (Jason 1.0 being strawberry blond, Carrie being both a strawberry blonde AND a girl, Steph being... well, Steph) Even Damian Wayne though having Asian heritage, seemed rather generic.




That's being shaken up a bit in the new "We Are Robin" title, which debuts this week and MTV had details on

We have at least 6 Robins

Duke Thomas



Age 16. Currently a student at West Robinson High. Subject to change. GPA does not reflect potential. Needs to be challenged frequently.

Hobbies include collectible card games, puzzles, and film. Shows potential as a writer. Poetry, although will never admit it.

Ran track first year. Tried out for soccer, but disagreement with strength trainer resulted in expulsion from the team. Athletic, but not driven by competition. Motivations are internal.

Parents’ current whereabouts unknown. Temporary foster parent is Raymond Mendez.


Riko Sheriden


Username: R-iko

Age 16. Current student at Middletown North. 4.2 GPA. Marching band freshman year. Quit because of performance anxiety. Drama student, but refuses to perform. Excels at art and English. Struggles with math and science despite excellent performance.

Hobbies include costume design, sewing, manga, anime, music, wing chu, kung fu san zoo, and singing, although will never sing outside the safety of her room.

Batgirl fanatic.

Adoptive parents are David and Rita Harris-Sheridan. Birth parents killed in auto accident. Riko, an infant at the time, miraculously survived without a scratch.

Daxton “Dax” Chill



Username: DaxAtax

Age 17. Current student at Miller Varley Technical High School. 2.7 GPA. Discipline problem. Two suspensions: One for fighting and the second for disturbance in class. Attendance nightmare. Lacks drive/interest. Shows incredible loyalty and dedication to friends. A believer.

Hobbies include mechanics, motor cross, and NASCAR. Plays guitar (badly). Briefly performed in hardcore band, Scuzzy Muff. Left to join punk group, The Frown Clown. Physical disagreement with lead singer led to group’s dissolution.

Parents are [REDACTED]. Father’s whereabouts unknown. Mother suffers from frequent migraines due to alcohol abuse.

Isabella Ortiz


Username: Robina

Age 17. Current student at Middletown South. GPA 3.2. Transferred to Gotham sophomore year. Excels at language. Bilingual, but also studying French and Latin. Attendance problems sophomore year. Suspected gang activity. Erroneous after hospitalization at the hands of her best friends for not joining the Latin Kings. Notable recent improvement overall scholastically.

Hobbies include dancing, gymnastics, singing, Judo, and kick-boxing.

Parents are Umberto Ortiz and Maria Fernanda Santiago. Two siblings. Older brother, Hector, and younger sister, Mia.

Troy Walker


Username: TheTroyWonder

Age 17. Current student at Middletown South. GPA 3.5. Star athlete. Varsity Strong Safety for the Middletown Cougars. All-State two years in a row. Hoping to play for Duke and eventually go pro. Above average student with interests in political activism, history, and philosophy.

Hobbies include football, baseball, video games, and cross-fit.

Parents are Stephen and Joyce Walker. Stephen Walker, construction worker, injured on the job during Joker Toxin incident. Receiving disability.

Andre ’Dre’ Cipriani


Username: Dre-B-Robbin

AGE 17. Current student at Middletown South. GPA 2.5. One suspension for fighting. Written up multiple times for aggressive displays of disobedience. Argumentative. Arrogant. Emotional problems and anger issues. Could excel at math but has no drive.

Hobbies include MMA, boxing, true crime novels, forensic science, and cooking. As a child was a musical prodigy. Piano. Completely abandoned music after his father’s murder.

Parents are Gianfranco Cipriani (deceased) and Angela Mancuso. Father, a “made” member of the Maroni crime family, murdered by the Falcones when Dre was 8.

There's a preview here.

Comments

[dcbanacek]

I applaud DC for trying to bring something different to the table... I just wish that it didn't seem that they were trying too hard in the doing of it.

[q99]

Still, hope it works.

[bradygirl_12]

Interesting that Troy Walker's father ended up on disability because of the Joker's Toxin. I like that mention of the non-superheroes and how they're affected by living in Gotham with crazies like the Clown Prince.

[alschroeder3]

Have high hopes for this one. Like the concept. Hope it doesn't try so hard to be trendy that it becomes dated quickly.

[icon_uk]

That does strike me as being a risk. The Movement might have suffered a bit from that too, though it had a very varied cast which would I hope have allowed it to grow into something more.

Trendiness aside

[chortles81]

I have to wonder if someone "really" wanted to go somewhere with it but then couldn't get editorial consensus on how it should fit into the rest of the New 52.

[dark_tzitzimine]

I can't buy this title's premise. During through all the N52 we've been fed the idea of Gotham being this terrible place where evil has the upper hand and many times we've seen how being a vigilante brings huge risks through Jason, Tim, Steph and Harper backstories. So having a bunch of random kids suddenly being competent at fighting crime and pulling feats like jumping between roofs is illogical.

Although the premise could be really good if it were its own thing, unrelated from the DCU.

[lieut_kettch]

In fairness, their backstories seem to explain why they are competent at crime fighting. Most of them are extremely smart, but underachieving kids, with various intellectual pursuits and backgrounds in sports and martial arts. They didn't gain these abilities overnight.

[dark_tzitzimine]

Is still a stretch. N52 Tim was way more qualified than them and still couldn't do anything against Penguin's men.

Another problem I have with the book is that I don't see a satisfyng way for it to keep going once Bruce is back in the cowl.

[beyondthefringe]

IIRC the first issue showed someone hidden in shadow directing operations, or coordinating, or perhaps influencing.

My money is on Alfred.

[icon_uk]

Whilst that has a certain appeal, I'd be slightly horrified if it was Alfred, Though completely supportive of the individuals who are/were Robin, he has always at some level been against the concept of Robin.

He knows Bruce needs a Robin, but is always deeply concerned and guilty about endangering a child to do so.

Running a team of juveniles just seems to go agaisnt the grain somewhat.

[naebler]

I'd actually like it to be Jason or Tim, Jason because he understands the need to give back despite your horrible upbringing. He also would be perfect for channeling rage I.E. The Troy Wonder, and Dre-B-Robbin.

Further, why did they bother to say {Redacted} under DaxAttack, the guys last name is Chill, odds he is related to Joe Chill?

[burkeonthesly]

Shaking up stereotypes--by making one of the girls struggle with science and math. Thanks, DC, you stay classy.

[sadoeuphemist]

Oh my god are you seriously upset that a female character struggles with math and science even though she has "excellent performance" at them anyway.

[burkeonthesly]

If she has excellent performance, then why make a point of mentioning that she struggles?

[sadoeuphemist]

Because it shows she puts in the effort to get good results even at things that are difficult for her.

But even if she was just straight-up bad, do you honestly think that you can never have a female character who's bad at STEM fields? That's ridiculous.

[burkeonthesly]

I'm just saying, I cringe when someone says they're going to "shake up stereotypes" and then uses a really toxic one.

[sadoeuphemist]

1. Where does Lee Bermejo ever say that he's going to 'shake up stereotypes'?

2. 'She struggles with math and science but manages to get excellent results in them anyway' is in no way a toxic stereotype.

3. She's already a shy, studious Asian girl who does martial arts and loves anime, do you seriously want to add 'is naturally talented at math' to that list?

#3's important to me

[chortles81]

I actually found it deliberately subverting a stereotype about Asian-Americans, not reinforcing one about women, on first impression.

[draganoche]

I liked the first issue, it had a nice flow to it even though I wasn't really interested in Duke.

[kamino_neko]

Same...although I'd take it one step further...I actively disliked Duke.

He had basically the same characterization as Billy in the Shazam backups in JL a couple years ago, except the narrative seemed to be siding with him, rather than setting him up to grow.

All the other Robins are pretty cool, from what we saw, though.

[owlbrigade1]

Of course the problem DC has is that everyone wants to know who'll end up being the "real" Robin when Bruce gets back?

[kamino_neko]

By that point, Damien will probably be finished his redemption quest, so it's not really a question.

The Robins will hopefully remain in some form, but if there's a True Robin, it's not going to be one of them.