Pre-Crisis Primer: Batman needs a Robin

Batman 408-409

“Just Another Kid in Crime Alley”

'Sup Gordon?

Ah, the plights of continuity. Readers who give a shit will noticed we jumped almost 80 issues from the last Batman update as well as jumping from Pre-Crisis to Post-Crisis as these issue came out in 1987. This is the only time in the entire run (I believe) where I supplant an original story for the Post-Crisis retcon. Retcon, for those unaware of the term, stands for 'retroactive continuity' where an original story is either overridden by a new telling or this some new “things-you-didn't-know-at-the-time” twist to be added.

The Batmobile is just a Trans-Am.

I'm not a big fan of retcons as a story-telling device, which is an odd statement considering the whole of the Post-Crisis can be seen as a retcon. We'll talk more about the Crisis as retcon once we actually get into the Post-Crisis proper. This particular story replaces the original, Pre-Crisis telling of both the rift between Dick Grayson and Bruce Wayne as well as the introduction of Jason Todd and his taking the role of the second Robin. I avoided most retcon stories between Pre- and Post-Crisis by not including original stories that are later overridden by later continuity where I felt I could. This is a major reason as to why I don't have any solo Wonder Woman or Superman stories from the Pre-Crisis as the histories of the characters are completely re-written Post-Crisis. Regardless, I wanted to include the Post-Crisis version of this story because Dick abandoning the Robin role and the introduction of Jason Todd are major story elements in Pre-Crisis Batman and Teen Titans stories as well as the Post-Crisis version of the story being very important to a lot of continuity elements that fuel later stories. All that said, we'll have this divergence to a later re-telling of the original story before settling back into original Pre-Crisis stories after these events. Teen Titans #34 will pick back up with Dick Grayson still Robin but no longer working with Batman and Batman #363 will pick up with Jason Todd moving into Wayne Manor.

As this whole blog is testament to, I'm a bit of a nut when it comes to continuity minutiae. As I mentioned when I started this though: I love the shared-universe of comics, and the events of one story being referenced and played-off in a future story from another title. When everything works, it's very exciting, and I'm proud of this aspect working well.

Jason smokes, that's how we know how bad he is.

All that being said, finally getting to the actual contents of two little issues, while I enjoy the idea behind the story and the end results, the actual story-telling is pretty ridiculous.

The story opens with Batman and Robin going up against the Joker. It's a pretty classic scenario that ends with a twist: Robin is shot by The Joker and mortally wounded. Of course he recovers from these injuries, but the entire affair has forced Batman to the decision that he has no right to put a child, forgetting that Dick Grayson is at least 18, probably older, at this point, and dissolves their relationship. With this Dick leaves the mansion and these plot points, as I mentioned before, will be picked up in Teen Titans #34.

Some time passes, and while visiting Crime Alley on the anniversary of his parent's death, Batman returns to find the Batmobile's tires boosted and his bad-ass car resting on concrete blocks. Incredulous, Batman tracks his tires to a young boy squatting in an abandoned tenement: Jason Todd. Like any sensible adult who dresses in an animal totem, Batman decides to turn Jason over to a local orphanage, Ma Gunn's Home for Wayward Boys despite the boy's protesting to the contrary.

Ma Gunn turns out to not be the kindly old woman taking in destitute boys out of the kindness of her heart but is instead a chain-smoking big-bad-mama who trains boys in her care to be expert thieves and criminals. With Jason's help, Batman uncover Ma's secret and shuts the school down. The story ends with Batman agreeing to take Jason in and begin training him as the new Robin.

For a Post-Crisis story, this plot twist is pretty Silver Age.

With a lot of Post-Crisis retcons to Pre-Crisis stories, the emphasis was on changing the original story in a more realistic way and do away with a lot of the silliness of older Silver and Bronze Age stories. 'Just Another Kid in Crime Alley' begins in this way, having Batman realize what a poor idea it is to have a young sidekick and then changing Jason Todd's origin from his Pre-Crisis roots.

Jason's original character was a carbon copy of Dick Grayson Pre-Crisis from the similar origin (young circus acrobat loses his parents to crime) to the same loyalty to Bruce and his wise-cracking attitude. Jason Todd was a simple way for DC to age Dick Grayson but not lose the Robin character. Jason Todd Post-Crisis is a much different, and much more interesting, character. Jason has a chip on his shoulder, he doesn't always listen to Bruce as Dick did, and he doesn't have that acrobatic training Dick started with. As a Robin, Jason Todd will provide a much different challenge to Bruce as time goes on.

A class on booze. Nice.

While these changes are all good, the story fails in making Bruce's adoption of Jason make sense aside from 'Batman needs a Robin.' So quickly after dismissing the much-better trained Dick Grayson for a mistake, Bruce feels it necessary to take-in a troubled child because is one attempt at providing the child a normal life in an orphanage failed. As we'll see though, this decision to take Jason in will go on to haunt Bruce for a long time after.