Exclusive DC preview: Robin School is in session in Grayson’s “Robin War” tie-in

After the actions of a boy dressed as Robin result in two deaths, Gotham City has declared war on the youth movement inspired by Batman’s sidekick. Being a Robin is now illegal in Gotham, and anyone displaying Robin paraphernalia is also breaking the law. The situation is getting out of control (read last week’s Robin War #1 for all the details), and the four Robins that have actually worked with Batman have gathered together to help sort things out before more lives are lost. This week’s Grayson #15 has Gotham’s first Robin taking responsibility for those that have followed in his footsteps, but instead of telling these kids to stop engaging in activity that could get them killed, he offers them training to make them more effective vigilantes.

It may not be the safest course of action, but it would be a bit hypocritical of Dick Grayson to shut down a teen Robin enterprise when it’s expanding on the work he started. This preview breaks down Dick’s argument for starting Robin School, and also highlights the dramatic increase in representation that has come with the growth of the Robin movement. The first page shows close-up shots of all the different kinds of people that have taken on the Robin identity, and it’s a much broader variety than the four white guys that have held the mantle in the past. That page showcases artist Mikel Janin’s talent for facial expressions, as well as his understanding of how bone structure and other facial features can be adjusted to make for more distinctive character profiles. There are a lot of Robins, so Dick and his fellow former sidekicks have a lot of work to do if they’re going to turn these teens into a viable vigilante force.