But… Schumacher waited until at least halfway through the movie to get Robin into a costume.
Actually, the idea of a real Robin–early thirties Bruce Wayne takes in fourteen year-old orphan–would probably be the best thing Batman Begins 3 could do. It’d force some realism, but it’ll never happen. No way Warner Bros. allows the inevitable “what’s with the little boy” conversation, dude.

Woohoo! Go Loeb! And Robin!

“I support any idea from a screenwriter who worked on SMALLVILLE: THE INCOHERENT YEARS and HEROES: SECOND SEASON, SAME AS THE FIRST!”

Don’t forget that he hasn’t written anything decent since Hush, and even that’s arguable. Don’t get me wrong, I love The Long Halloween and Dark Victory, but the man ran out of ideas years ago.

And then he wrote Ultimates 3… I think he’s waiving his rights with every new project he does.

Having been a writer on the (admittedly) kid-friendly “Batman Strikes” series, I can say from experience that Robin makes Batman work. Batman is a grim and dour character and that gets really depressing really quickly. He needs the comic relief so that he can play the straight man. From a structural perspective, Batman works better — especially in the long run — with Robin than without him.

From a character perspective, Johnny Zito gets it exactly right when he says that Robin is Batman’s only friend — and his hope for the future. Batman lost his family and yet he creates one. Where the loss of his parents warped him for life, he’s there to help Robin come through his loss as a bright beacon of hope rather than a dark avenger.

Batman needs Robin because he needs a friend, a son and a partner. We need Robin because we need hope that after a long and dark night, the sun will rise.

The Batman Strikes was great. When you guys started bringing in the extended bat family I really got into it.

Thanks for picking up for the boy wonder, Josh.

While it’s awfully easy to dismiss Loeb these days as a once talented writer who’s lost it, I want to give the guy who worte Long Halloween, Dark Victory, and also worked on the show Lost for awhile some credit.

I’m no fan of Robin. And I feel he definitely has NO place in Chris Nolan’s awesome, finally-got-it-right movie Batman. BUT… if the third movie in the Nolan-verse were to introduce Dick Grayson, used Dark Victory as its basis, and didn’t actually let Dick become Robin until the very end (just like in DV), then it might work. I say MIGHT. But even then, I’d end the series right there and then.

I have no interest in seeing a full-on Batman AND Robin movie. It just doesn’t fit with what Nolan’s doing IMO, but I think ending his series with the coming of Robin offering a little brightness into Bruce’s dark world would be a suitable, hopeful way to end the series.

That said, I still want to see Liam Neeson return as Ra’s, with his body taken to Lazarus Pit after the events in Batman Begins, in an epic film that gives Ra’s backstory and brings Talia into the mix. I’d be far more interested in that than a Robin origin.

Isn’t that one of the great ironies, or at least contradictions, of Batman — that for all of the talk of him being a “loner,” he has perhaps the largest supporting cast in comics?

Dave hits on a key part of Loeb’s appeal: his ability to give an artist exactly what he wants to draw, which is usually everything. You think Venom’s in Ultimates 3 because it’s part of an overall plot? Fuck no, it’s because that’s what Joe Mad felt like drawing.

And what’s with all the vitriol for Loeb?

DunItForTheLolz is spot on. Robin hating is an extension of the too cool for school 90’s attitude that tried to kill everything fun about comics and replace it with shoulder pads and guns.

Hell, even Frank Miller (arguably the guy who writes bats the darkest) uses the character every damn time.

And all the Robin has no place in a dark world crap is moot. What’s the creepiest thing in horror movies? Eerie smiling children who can kill you. Robin is a carnie acrobat and street kid with a Vietnam vet’s 1,000 yard stare. He’s seen so much craziness and it doesn’t phase him, he just keeps cracking wise while he beats you just as bad as the Batman can.

Creep city, kids.

‘City of Crime’, David Lapham’s Batman story from a few years back, would seem like the sort of thing that Robin couldn’t be involved in, and yet he appeared in literally every issue. And h worked. So who knows?

Robin works well in Cartoons, there are so many unique and new plot lines and angles that the movie can follow that Robin slows everything down. Here in these movies it’s a bit special when you see Batman and I like that the focus is more on the character of Bruce Wayne and he’s far more interesting than Batman in these films. I think they could have him in there as an actual little kid but not use him. Batman is the most interesting alone and once Robin gets introduced I think the franchise is gone, he’s too risky, his costume doesn’t work well on film but does in animation, and once he’s involved things quickly turn from the serious and cool world of the mob and villains to camp in the films. So I say no Robin please or if you do just have him live at the house and never put him in the costume.

The Professional is a dark movie about mobs and criminals which involves a little girl. Why exactly can’t Batman remain serious and involve a kid?

How can you say Batman works best as a loner and not realize that implies that most of Batman’s stories don’t work (including The Dark Knight Returns which prominently features Robin)?

The hate towards Robin is incredibly irrational and reveals a complete misunderstanding of the Batman character from people who think they are “fans.”

I agree with you Mr.Loeb I think Robin can work in the current Batman movies. And I WANT ROBIN IN THE NEXT BATMAN MOVIE! BATMAN NEEDS ROBIN!! Without Robin Batman is a just a grim figure with no one to talk to. Batman and Robin have always made a great team. Robin makes Batman feel like a father figure and an older brother and provides light into Batman’s dark world. I want Robin(Dick Grayson) to be based on your Robin in Dark Victory. I hope Chris Nolan is really considering having the Boy Wonder pop up in the next Batflick.

Indeed. Loeb is right.