Absolute Batman Might Be Getting a Robin, and Fans Have Some Hilarious Theories
Absolute Batman has been something to behold. What nightmare is the titular character is going to endure next? How will one of Batman’s iconic rogues be reinvented for a new era? Month after months, fans have been having fun answering those questions… but not as much fun as they have this past week.
Last week, Absolute Batman writer Scott Snyder posted the first look at the cover for the series’ twentieth issue, which will be released in May of this year. The official solicitation for the issue keeps it pretty simple: “As the dust settles in the city of Gotham after the loss of [redacted], [redacted] enter the scene ready to hunt and more than one secret will be revealed in this seminal issue.” But honestly, that description is only supplementary to the image itself: of Absolute Batman standing, axe in hand, in front of a gigantic “R” symbol.
It certainly seems like an Absolute version of Robin is on the way… but what the hell could that even look like? That question has been in the back of the minds of Absolute Batman readers for months, especially as certain threads have been laid out in the book itself. A version of the original Robin, Dick Grayson, exists in the book, as an EMT who is only shown for a panel or a two at a time. His only dialogue is about how disgusted he is at Batman (not unlike his counterpart on the Titans TV show)… which could tee up him taking on the Robin mantle out of spite.
One other fun possibility is that Absolute Robin ends up being Harley Quinn, who was introduced earlier in the series as the leader of the Red Hood Gang, and who has previously gone against the larger group’s wishes in order to help Batman. It certainly would, thematically, make sense for Harley to fully become Bruce’s partner in the field… and it would be far from the first time that a version of Harley has attempted to take on the mantle.
And Now, the Memes!
Of course, beyond the scope of those Absolute Robin theories have been a lot of jokes… and honestly, they all land pretty well. There are plenty of jokes that he will be a literal bird, he will somehow be taller than Absolute Bane (which is saying something, because that man was stories tall), or he will be like the cartoonishly-buff version of Dick Grayson from Teen Titans Go!. One piece of fanart posted by @theroomacattack imagines Robin as cyberpunky, arriving in battle by literally ejecting from a cassette tape in the Batman suit’s chest.
A lot of posts are concerned about the fate of Absolute Jason Todd, even though we haven’t even met him in universe yet. That worry is understandable, given Jason’s tragic death in the main DC Universe at the hands of the Joker, and the overall vibe of body horror and misery that Absolute Batman has brought (particularly because of the Joker). A tweet from @binnietodd forecasts Jason’s fate with the help of TikTok’s most baffling earworm, Miami XO’s “Bazooka.” “Rest in peace to absolute Jason Todd he got hit by a bazooka,” the tweet reads. “I think about him every time i hit the hookah Kabloom kablow kaboom.”
Ultimately, it’s still too early to tell what Absolute Robin will be like, especially with Bruce currently dealing with a beautiful and horrifying new take on Absolute Poison Ivy in the meantime. But this speculation — and the inevitable answers — will surely be a lot of fun. As a tweet from @HologramBones puts it: “there’s no direction to take Robin where everybody is satisfied, so i’m hoping Scott just goes nutso crazy with it.”
(featured image: DC)
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