Preferred duration of Dick Grayson's Robin career?

[Buried Alien]

Parallel question: how far was Bruce into his Batman career when Dick became Robin?

If we go by Golden Age continuity, Dick became Robin about one year into Bruce's Batman career. If we go by Post-COIE continuity, Dick became Robin in Bruce's third year as Batman.

I think in another continuity (possibly the Adam West TV series), Bruce and Dick decided to start the Batman and Robin thing at the same time.

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

[Aahz]

If we go by Golden Age continuity, Dick became Robin about one year into Bruce's Batman career. If we go by Post-COIE continuity, Dick became Robin in Bruce's third year as Robin.

Bruce took him iirc already in in his second year as Batman.

[Schumiac]

I voted 10+. I like him being taken in very early and being practically raised by Bruce. I also like the idea of the first few years being training only: training in the cave, Bruce talking him through cases, and him running the comms. I think he'd become Nightwing between ages 18-20.

I think its important to the character for him to have been doing this practically his whole life. I also think Batman in his mid 30s even early 40s is fine. His appeal isn't about being young, his appeal is about being a freaking expert. That is something that comes with age.

Same for me... He just had to be very young when Bruce takes him in, both for Bruce to relate to him so much and for them to have the father-son relationship. Bruce has once claimed he is proud of Dick and feels it is the one thing that he has done right. For me that is still "canon" and for that to happen, Bruce and Dick need to spend considerable time where Bruce is raising him as a parent (a relationship that goes beyond the Batman-Robin partnership). Given it is this bond Dick referred to when Bruce had his "I am Batman, not Bruce Wayne" during the whole Murderer/Fugitive thing too, I think it is really important to maintain it.

So for me Dick's parents die and he is taken in by Bruce at age 8

age 9-10 he is in training... maybe occasionally taken out to the field as Robin when Batman isn't going against psychos like Joker but rather regular patrolling or Condiment King :P
age 10-11+ he is regularly coming on missions and his name is starting to get known...
age 16 - Teen Titans
age 18 - College
age 19 - Nightwing (Jason is Robin at 14/15)
age 20 - Jason Dies
age 21 - Tim comes aboard (Tim is 13/14)
age 22 - Prodigal, 1st time as Batman
age 25 - Batman with Damian as Robin (who is 10)
age 26- Back to Nightwing
age 28 - current timeline


If Dick was 8 when Bruce took him in and Bruce was 22 and Dick is now around 28, that would make Bruce 42 years old, which is just fine IMO.

( I voted 8, taking 10-11 as the age he is Robin.. but could easily be 10)

[Schumiac]

I think it does, since no one ever wrote a comic with Dick being Robin at that age, and you will also find plenty of comics were they give an older age for him starting as Robin.

Technically, I guess one of the earliest in-comics references to Dick being just 8 when Bruce takes him in is the infamous "Bruce spanking Dick for his birthday" thing from 1940s? He hits him 8 times, 9th for good measure and 10th to grow.... Meaning he was 8, turning 9 now and will grow into 10... And with the Pjs and all, Dick did look very young too...

It is probably why writers like Wolfman go with 8 as his starting age too..

[byrd156]

Technically, I guess one of the earliest in-comics references to Dick being just 8 when Bruce takes him in is the infamous "Bruce spanking Dick for his birthday" thing from 1940s? He hits him 8 times, 9th for good measure and 10th to grow.... Meaning he was 8, turning 9 now and will grow into 10... And with the Pjs and all, Dick did look very young too...

It is probably why writers like Wolfman go with 8 as his starting age too..

8 works as the best age for Dick to start since Bruce's whole mission is to make sure no other 8 year old loses their parents like he did. Dick starting as a reflection of Bruce's own loss is very important.

[Schumiac]

8 works as the best age for Dick to start since Bruce's whole mission is to make sure no other 8 year old loses their parents like he did. Dick starting as a reflection of Bruce's own loss is very important.

Indeed. It is a more important determining factor for his age than "what age is appropriate and believable for a kid be out at night fighting crime" because, well, the "realistic" answer to that is a kid has no business fighting crime and should be sitting at home... Robin "the boy wonder" as a hero requires me to suspend belief; if he is aged 8 or 9 or 12 or 13 doesnt make much difference in that regard...But what his age is matters for the story and how the character's relationships are defined. So I will go with the age that works best for that aspect.

[oasis1313]

Eight years old would truly be a Boy Wonder.

[Frontier]

Parallel question: how far was Bruce into his Batman career when Dick became Robin?

If we go by Golden Age continuity, Dick became Robin about one year into Bruce's Batman career. If we go by Post-COIE continuity, Dick became Robin in Bruce's third year as Batman.

I think in another continuity (possibly the Adam West TV series), Bruce and Dick decided to start the Batman and Robin thing at the same time.

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

I think 2-5 years is probably around when it should happen as far as Batman's career.

[Aahz]

Technically, I guess one of the earliest in-comics references to Dick being just 8 when Bruce takes him in is the infamous "Bruce spanking Dick for his birthday" thing from 1940s? He hits him 8 times, 9th for good measure and 10th to grow.... Meaning he was 8, turning 9 now and will grow into 10... And with the Pjs and all, Dick did look very young too...

On the other hand h has iirc 13 or 14 candels on his cake and gets his own Batplane in that story.

Than a few issues later in Batman #18, you see Dicks report card where he has classes like Latin and Chemistry, that's probably not stuff they usually teach at elementary schools.

[Mr. White]

Doesn't matter to me.
Robin was in the past and the tenure is irrelevant today.
All that's required to know is he was Robin at some point and during the time, learnt abc and met xyz.

[Aahz]

And on top of this you see Dick even in quite early issues, working on jobs as undercover identity you would probably not get as a 8 year old (even in the 1940s). IIRC as news paper boy in his origin story, and as steward on yacht in Catwomans first appearances.

[oasis1313]

He would start about the same age Bruce was when he lost his parents--so that he would identify with him--and go on till in college. That'd put it at least ten years.

[byrd156]

Doesn't matter to me.
Robin was in the past and the tenure is irrelevant today.
All that's required to know is he was Robin at some point and during the time, learnt abc and met xyz.

A dismissive attitude like this has lead to the mangled DC timeline.

[oasis1313]

A dismissive attitude like this has lead to the mangled DC timeline.

DC's best asset was their long and storied history--so Didio flushed it down the pipes.

[byrd156]

DC's best asset was their long and storied history--so Didio flushed it down the pipes.

And since this has been the status quo (or lack there of ) it's become the norm. All the negative traits of DC are now positive since they have been the new normal for so long now.