Comic Books

BATMAN AND ROBIN #1

Battling evil with his son, Damian, at his side, Batman now realizes that the hardest part of the job may be trying to work together!

As Batman and Robin try to adjust to their new partnership, a figure emerges from Bruce Wayne’s past: His name is NoBody, and he’s not happy that Batman Incorporated is shining a light on his own shadowy war against evil…

Story by Peter J. Tomasi
Art by Patrick Gleason & Mick Gray
Cover by Patrick Gleason & Mick Gray

Price: $2.99
iFanboy Community Pick of the Week Percentage: 0.8%
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Avg Rating: 3.7
 
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  1. Next to Snyder’s Swamp Thing this is the book I am most excited for. The first arc Tomasi/Gleason did together was just amazing, possibly the best arc to come out of ‘Batman and Robin’ post Morrison. The previews for this issue around the web is making me even more excited. It’s like the two never left the book.

    Easily the best pairing to come out of the relaunch.

  2. I kinda wish there wasn’t 4 batman books. I am going to try them all but this one is on the bubble for me. Detective Comics was very good, and I am expecting big things from Snyder’s Batman.

  3. Yeah, this is a bubble book for me, too, though I anticipate sticking with it, as I generally enjoy both Tomasi and Gleason’s work. The Bruce/Damian dynamic should be interesting…

  4. This has got me excited. Father and son team!

  5. I’m totally looking forward to this!

  6. So, how old is Batman again;)

  7. I really hope this book will be great, because I think Damian is such a great character!

    • “I really hope this book will be great, because I think Damian is such a great character!” martinNL

      Boof! We can agree to disagree on this, I think. I never liked even the idea of Bruce having a son, especially a little psycho like Damian. Where’s The Joker and a lead pipe when you need him?

    • Um … Batman and Robin (2009) #13? Or was it #14?

      Damian is a sweet character when he is written well. As someone on this website once said, when he’s written like a former member of the League of Assassins, the character works; when he’s written like a petulant 10-year-old, not so much.

      This issue was iffy for me, although it was good enough to keep me around for the first arc at least.

  8. I’m looking forward to this one, but not so much for the creative team as I am the characters. Looking forward to it either way!

  9. Tomasi is one of me least favorite DC writers, behind Eric Wallace, maybe a little bit ahead of JT Krul. But I will give it a chance and hope this surprises me. The problem is, to me, his characters don’t feel alive, they are just tools to get the plot from point A to point B. But I love Damian.

  10. Got a good feeling about this one … the preview gave me goosebumps …

  11. originally didnt want this cuz i didnt like the direction post morrison. but having a 2yr old son, and the fact that this is a father/son book, my interest has been piqued as to their dynamic given damian’s rebellious pride and bruce’s disciplined, iron will.

  12. I really dislike how Tomasi writes Damian. I usually love his work but if this is like his previous work on the title I won’t even touch the book.

  13. I just can’t bring myself to get excited for this book anymore. I’m only mildly interested because of Damian, but I’m gonna have to hold off and see what people say about it. Then, maybe, I’ll give it a go.

  14. Is it sad that I dont want this to be good because I need my decision to be easier on what to keep on my pull list after this is all over. Last week I added 2 books to my permanent stack that I didnt think I would. Too many great comics and not enough money in my budget *sigh*

    • No it’s not sad. It sounds reasonable to me. Comics in general are too expensive.

    • it’s a good sign when there is too many good books for your budget. great time to be a comics fan. I’m also having trouble deciding which books to cut. week one of the new 52 was awesome, too many good books.

  15. Father and son working together again for the first time since the Batman and Son arc? I’m looking forward to this!!

  16. Is it me, or am I the only one who loves it when Batman’s cape is drawn to be extremely long?

    I got hooked on that style when Kelley Jones would draw his cape to cover an entire rooftop sometimes. Here it’s not THAT over the top, but for some reason I like it when the capes are really long.

    Probably a metaphor if Freud was alive today…

  17. I really hope this is more fun and less gritty and rated R than the other bat books…hoping for good things.

    @TNC–yeah i kinda like the long capes. Its completely ridiculous but a good old fashioned Spawn cape is always funny. Its like a creature of its own.

    • One of the only few shots I liked in Spawn was the ending. His cape goes for MILES at the end of that movie.

    • Judging by the reaction to the last page of Detective Comics last week (which I wasn’t a big fan of), I think the days of “fun and less gritty” Batman comics are dying out. Everyone wants the Dark Knight and not the Caped Crusader.

  18. that cover is badass!

  19. The cover is BAD-ASS!! I agree there are just to many Batman books already and I think DC needs to pull back on some somewhere…. Do not get me wrong I like Batman an Robin it is fun with his son Damien and all but think about it?????
    Batwoman, Batwing, Batman, Detective Batman, Batman and Robin, Batgirl etc……. Maybe it is not a bad thing or maybe it is I am not sure yet? The point is it is to early in the new DCU to tell right now…..

    Just sayin’,

    K

    • Don’t forget Nightwing!

    • If you stop buying them they’ll stop printing them.

    • I think it’s a good thing.

      Even after eliminating the bat-family characters from your list, we’re left with four books with Batman as the headliner. And with the possible exception of Batman: The Dark Knight (never read it, don’t care for Finch’s art), each book has a unique angle on the character – Detective is more noir/mystery, Batman and Robin is more action/adventure and focuses on the father/son dynamic, and Batman covers all that with more of a slant toward the super-heroics.

      And let’s face it, Batman is the most recognizable super-hero in the world. If anyone ought to be featured in several titles, it’s him, right?

  20. I’ve been really back and forth on this book post-morrison. Maybe the father/son dynamic can spark my interest again. I want it to. I really do.

  21. Pretty good. I liked the father/son relationship this book will have but sadly there is not enough room in my budget for another 4out of 5 star comic. Maybe one day I’ll pick it up in trade or something

  22. I am giving almost the new titles a chance. The only arc I enjoyed in the previous volume of Batman and Robin was the Winick run with the Red Hood. Nor am I huge Batman fan…

    But this book seemed a little forced with the dialogue, but still pretty good. Felt like it was necessary and caught everyone up to speed and set the stage. This is something different than I am used to reading, and I am going to stick with it for the next couple issues and see if the magic wears off. After reading this book, I totally think I was too kind to Daniel’s Detective.

  23. Mostly disappointed. Batman and Robin was my favorite series in the old DCU. Things felt a little forced and I found myself not caring about Batman’s new view of life. And I couldn’t care less about the reveal at the end.

  24. I am excited about this villain. I love how DC is really running with the Batman franchise idea. Overall I thought this was a great book except for one moderate negative. The negative for me was Damian Wayne. Grant made me love that kid and only Grant can write that kid. His voice in this issue wasn’t the worst I’ve read, I think it may even be the fact that it’s Bruce and not Dick he is interacting with but something just doesn’t seem special like it used too.

  25. Only bought it because it was a light week and I was curious. I won’t be back for issue two.

  26. I liked the book, it’s Damian Wayne I (still) don’t like.

    Anyone with me? He’s a crappy Robin.

    When I was a kid I voted for Jason Todd to live – I would vote for Damian to die.

    • Definitely. Damian is just irritating to me.

    • I agree. Before the reboot we were beginning to see him change, I thought. Dick was a great influence on him. Now its like we’ve reset him to just like he was when he first showed up. I don’t want to have to play that level again.

      That being said I really did enjoy this issue. The art was great. I like that Batman is beginning to move on and grown. I’m interested enough to stay on despite my irritation with Damian.

    • Ayup. As a brand new reader to this book, I found Damian to be annoying and not fun to read. I get why they’ve made him that way (again?) but the relationship doesn’t feel genuine to me, and Batman completely lacked a personality. Both just felt really one dimensional, showing only one side of their characters.

    • @twopossums I agree that it felt like a step back for Damian, but that kind of makes sense since this is really the first timeit’s just been Damian and Bruce. I think he even says it in the book, something like “I liked you better when you weren’t around”. Being around his father is making Damian forget how far he’s come. And that’s what pre-teens are like — one day you can be their hero, and then the next you’re their nemesis.

      It’s fine if you didn’t like it, but from my perspective Tomasi’s approach worked.

    • i voted for todd to die, i wouldnt vote for damian to die. i thought the approach to bruce was the problem. he seems way to soft and sentimental to me. i like my batman to be more of a “take no bull-shit, drill sergeant” type. it seemed to me that i he did was take shit from robin.

  27. Loved this book, but didn’t Grant Morrison already do this story??? Damian is a little prick. if this was the 1980’s everyone would hate him like Jason Todd, but this is the new century WE LOVE PRICKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    • I think the difference is that we know Damian is only 10 years old and that he was raised by Talia and the League of Assassains. His entire world view is kind of messed up. So what makes him interesting to me is seeing his arc from a little prick into the son of Batman. And what makes his prickishness digestible is the fact that is so talented and capable. I can put up with him being a prick because he is a very good Robin. Time will tell how long it takes for his arc to progress, I hope they don’t intend him to stay a 10 year old jerk forever.

    • Ken, I asked Tomasi a few questions at a signing yesterday and he let me know Damian’s actually 12.

      As in I asked “How does Bruce have a 10 year old son with Talia when Batman’s only been around for 5 years?”

      And he answered “Actually, he’s 12.”

      suspension of disbelief…

    • Hmmm, on page 10 Bruce says to Damian, “It means you should shut your mouth, listen, and show a little respect, because you’re sounding more and more like a cold-hearted ten-year-old boy who only cares about himself.”

      I’m not saying Tomasi got confused or you made up the story (since a ten-year-old and a twelve-year-old can be equally jerky), but it certainly muddles things up.

      Regardless, I really dug the issue and will be back for #2. Hooray comics!

    • Ack, I missed that. So how old *is* he?

      Oh continuity.

  28. I missed out on this. It wasn’t on my pull list and my LCS had it marked up to $9.00, so I passed on it. I had a brief conversation about this with my retailer. His reasoning, which was slightly confusing to me, was that B&R was sold out everywhere as were second printings. He seemed confused himself about why this book had sold out so fast. Was DC intentionally underprinting? Was it due to mainstream media attention to the new 52. I’m still not sure why they decided to mark up their copies. Coincidentall most of the other number one issues were priced at $10.00 each. Batgirl was priced at $16.00. This was probably the most disheartening experience I’ve had as a comic book reader and patron of this particular shop. Anyone else having similar experiences?

    • I was pissed because I had to pay cover price last week so I went to my usual shop this week. If I ever had an experience like this I would literally tell the owner his shop will not be open much longer and I personally will not waste another dime at his store. All these stories just seem ugly to me.

    • I have paid cover price (and maybe a little less if I had a subscription discount) at two local stores. I shared the story about a store marking Batgirl #1 up to ebay prices at my main LCS and everyone was appalled. I know if I shopped at a store that did this, I would take my business elsewhere after telling them why. ASSHOLES.

      At least you can buy it digital!

    • I was quite upset. The problem is that this is a store that, up until now, has maintained a standard of great customer service and business ethics. The ugly ebay pricing seems completely out of character with the way that this shop usually runs. After being a customer for some time, I’ve developed a good relationship between the shop’s owner and its employees (I think this is why the mark ups feel like such a piss take). Maybe this is isn’t the store I thought it was. Ah, bitter disillusionment!

    • If you are a regular at the store the best thing you can do is try and tell the guy what you think. Everyone makes mistakes. If he keeps pulling this stuff let him know you are leaving and going to grab it off the web for cover. Way to dig your own grave dude.

    • Whoah, seriously? Order copies from Midtown Comics – they’re my LCS and they’re always stocked well. There’s no excuse for jacking up the prices of a book that fast.

    • unfortunately the shops in my area either mark up high profile #1’s/milestones or don’t order enough inventory….so the shop owners have effectively told me i’m no longer welcome at their catalog pickup depot’s. Fine with me…the immediacy of buying my comics digitally works really well for me.

    • Thanks for your feedback, guys. I think I’ll try and discuss this with my shop and respectfully let them know how off-putting it something like the Canadian equivalent of DCBS.

      @wallythegreenmonster

      ” unfortunately the shops in my area either mark up high profile #1′s/milestones or don’t order enough inventory….so the shop owners have effectively told me i’m no longer welcome at their catalog pickup depot’s”. That’s a shame, dude. They way you’ve been treated, I mean. Sounds like you’re enjoying reading digitally.

    • Yikes, that was messed up!

      What I meant was this:

      Thanks for your feedback, guys. I think I’ll try and discuss this with my shop and respectfully let them know how off-putting it the mark ups are. I’m in Canada and ended up getting this from an online retailer, All New Comics, for cover price. All New Comics are great. Something like the Canadian equivalent of DCBS.

    • I think right now comics need all the buzz/media/hype it can get, so they are manufacturing sold out first runs..i.e. printing just a hair over pre-orders…sellouts and 2nd and 3rd printings generate headlines which is good for business. Its the same kinda thinking that club owners use to have their bouncers maintain long lines outside of clubs even when they are under capacity. People are attracted to hype.

      I was moving digital anyhow, and with the economy there is no room for a non pre-order guy like me anyhow…It actually makes me worried for the industry in general…how are you supposed to get new/lapsed readers with this kind of strategy? Someone walking in off the street doesn’t need to hear about how they should have ordered a book 3 months ago that they first heard about on the Today Show that morning. Kinda makes all the advertising pointless if there is nothing to buy.

    • I always pay cover price? it’s what my comic book shop charges for new comics, I thought that was the norm. But I live in a small city so I’d rather pay more for a small local business.

  29. I liked this but the dialogue was a bit forced between Damian and Bruce. Then again they are probably pretty awkward toward each other. My question is where is cocky somewhat lighthearted Batman. I liked that version and would like to see some consistency there.

  30. I liked this issue….it wasn’t a grand slam, but so far so good. The tone was just right and i’m looking forward to some fun adventures. The Bruce/Damian relationship will be interesting to see develop.

    Hoping they keep this series less gritty and graphic. I need a regular Batman book but i fear the character i’ve loved for the past 20 something years is no longer for me.

  31. Just me, but could we convince DC to give us a vote on Damian as we did with Jason Todd? I know I’d be happy to text or call a few times.

  32. Equal parts face-palm and genuinely excellent. The writing literally went from excellent to atrocious in a heartbeat, swinging each way with the page. I loved the pearl panels, and, to an extent, I appreciated the attempt at a solid #1. The art was good, too.

    But, shit me, Damien talked too long. If I were Batman, on the end of a torrential barrage of snarky abuse, I’d have put my kid in a full-body plaster-cast long ago. It’s overkill, even though I understand the motives of the writer.

    But enough to see the arc out. Don’t force the dynamic. Let it happen naturally like Snyder did.

  33. Very solid first issue….I realy enjoyed Dick and Damian together but I’ve really been looking forward to seeing Bruce and Damian…so far pretty good, it will be interesting to see how their relationship develops.

  34. Dear DC: thank you for not touching Batman. And thank you for giving me the Bruce Wayne i love back, Mr.s Tomasi and Gleason. Thank you so much!

  35. horrible

  36. I usually don’t like Tomasi, but I quite liked this book. I’m giving him another chance. It was less stuffy than most of what I’ve read from him.

  37. I hated this crap.

  38. ***HERE THERE BE SPOILERS***

    This seems to muck up the continuity of the new 52. I thought these were the early years of the characters, but Damian says “Even Dick trusted me” suggesting (to me anyway) that Batman RIP happened and Dick held the mantel……..wat?

    but I enjoyed it, about what I was expecting. It shouldn’t suprise anyone that Batman is getting a lot of titles as Batman/GL family titles are the ones that make the most money for DC.

    • No one ever said that. In fact they said Batman and GL continuity was largely the same.

    • What Jim Lee told Melissa Block was that they were streamlining the continuity. JL #1 was clearly an early version of these characters. You’re telling me that Batman and GL have never met (and GL wasn’t even sure he was real) but Bruce has worked his way through three Robins already?

    • “This is an epic and ambitious initiative that ushers in a new generation of comics for DC Comics and will set the tone for storylines and characters for years to come,” the statement said. “With all the titles starting at #1, our creative teams have the ability to take a more modern approach, not only with each character, but with how the characters interact with one another and the universe as a whole, and focus on the earlier part of the careers of each of our iconic characters.”

    • Justice League #1 takes place five years prior to all other #1s. Except for Action Comics, which takes place even earlier. Batman and Hal Jordan meet for the first time in JL #1, but in their own #1s, they’ve know each other for five years. They’re saying a lot of things happened in five years, but hopefully that clears up some of your logistics problems. Some.

    • ***HERE THERE BE MORE SPOILERS***

      I understand that. I just find it hard to believe that five years later, Bruce has been through Dick, Jason (who still died I’m assuming), and Tim. Now he’s on to Damian. So that’s five years of a Batman duo beating up the baddies in Gotham, and yet the bad guys in the reactor aren’t worried about Batman, and the cop looks at Gordon and goes (paraphrased) “Whoever did this sure did a number on them, any idea who it was?” It just doesn’t fit all together in my head. I still enjoyed it, I felt some of the dialogue was forced but conversations between parents and children are often forced. If I was writing it I wouldn’t have had Damian already in the Robin suit, I’d have built up to that.

    • Here’s the secret. The guys writing the Batman books (and even Johns on GL) are just doing what they’ve been doing. If asked, they will talk in terms of the new five year continuity. But in their heads, it’s just business as usual. I’m not saying anyone has said this, but it’s pretty evident that they can keep playing as if this reboot didn’t happen, because their books were doing fine anyway. There’s also NOTHING wrong with this. They shouldn’t have to be slaves to continuity if no fixes are clearly needed.

    • I think it’s the case that Bruce has been Batman many years prior to JL one. So that’s how he can get through that many Robins and have a kid Damian’s age. As I said in a comment higher up, I don’t particularly like that fact but I think it’s going to be a case of having to live with it and pretty much ignore it. I’ve no doubt there will be loads of continuity errors because of this but hopefully it won’t be too big a deal.

    • It really doesn’t matter at all. Like Paul said, GL and Batman were DC’s most popular titles prior to the relaunch. So why change a formula that’s working? Don’t let yourself get bogged down by conitinuity (new or old). It’s the wrong approach. If ya like B&R before, you’ll probably like it now. If ya didn’t read it before, then it’s all new to you so what’s the difference?

    • I’m not talking about continuity really, I don’t care about it either. Although just because we don’t care about it doesn’t mean that others should either. Creating a believable character with back-story who work in the universe he works in is not about continuity in that sense, it’s about good writing and a properly communicated editorial policy. In a different thread I basically said that I wish they’d properly rebooted Bruce and de-aged him. However, as they haven’t I think they need some consistency on him across the books.

    • Batman has been active longer than 5 years, but was only an urban legend. They haven’t stated how long he’s been active, probably because no number they give will make sense. You can assume that things like Dick’s time as Robin happened during that earlier time frame (especially since Dick was still in the Teen Titans).

  39. The only time Damian has sounded like himself outside of Grant Morrison was in the Supergirl / Robin team up in Superman Batman 77 and the Batgirl Teamup Issue. I think Bryan Q Miller would have been a great choice to take over this title.

  40. i really wanted to like this, but i thought batman took waaaay too much trash talk from damian and seemed to have strange urges to talk about his feelings. i thought bruce was going to be whipin this boy into shape. totally expected damians attitude to be snooty and cold, did not expect bruce to show such a lack of control of the situation and his son. im against child abuse and all, but bruce needs to raise his pimp hand and lay the smackdown.

  41. Weeeeell, that was a heaping pile of crap. Sorry i wasted my money on it.

  42. Contrary to some of the reviews I gave it a 4 since Batman since the end of Flashpoint has well been a little more emotional so this must be going somewhere?? I think Bruce and Damion are headed down a path and this can not be good??
    Betrayal, Death???
    This could be intresting if you look at the big picture..maybe??
    The art was good and the story around those two was good thats why it only received a 4.

    Just sayin’,

    K

    • Damian’s path has already been set by Morrison. Someday he will be a lethal Batman in a Phillip K. Dick style Gotham, and eventually be Old Man Wayne to Terry McGuiness’ Batman. That’s provided that Morrison’s continuity is not completely ignored like it typically is.

      Not to say betrayal/death is out of the question, but Damian’s a pretty popular character. I think he’ll be around for a long time.

  43. I thought this was OK. I’m really excited to see Bruce and Damian as a father/son B&R. Lotta great potential there. And I’m glad to see that Tomasi is sticking to Morrison’s more reflective, sentimental characterization post-ROBW. The issue itself wasn’t more than a 3 for me, but I’m looking forward to this title. And gee it’s nice to see Gleason’s pencils again. These two work really well together.

  44. Since the issue with Damian has been argued over, let me add that I wasn’t impressed with the villain of the piece.

    Seriously, if you don’t want the hero awake for your deathtrap then just shoot them in the head. That piece of dialog annoyed me quite a bit.

    • How could you not be impressed with a dude that carried two men (one the size of the Hulk) and let them slowly dissolve in a vat of acid? The fact that he apologized to the one guy for not knocking him out better made it extra creepy.

    • And don’t forget that the majority of Batman villains are mentally ill people with extreme – and sometimes incredibly nuanced and specific – psychopathologies that guide their behavior. While you’re absolutely right that any assassin worth a crap would probably just get the kill and move on, It’s tough to argue for realism when extreme mental illness is part of the equation.

  45. Wasn’t all that thrilled with this issue. I thought Damian was further along than this but I guess new #1 and new team we can suffer some relapse. Not the first (or last) time I’ve read something like this. May get dropped if #2 doesn’t improve, which will pain me greatly.

  46. Pulled this one just out of curiosity. I won’t be getting issue #2, but if I hear it’s good I’ll pick it up in trades

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