Why We Need the Bat Family

Few comic book characters have been brought to the big screen as many times as Batman. Just about the only one that can compete at this point is Spider-Man. From Adam West to Christian Bale, Michael Keaton to George Clooney, Ben Affleck to Robert Pattinson, we can hardly go five years without a new version of the Caped Crusader.

Yet despite the many Batmen we’ve seen so far, we’ve only had a select few Robins, no Nightwings, and only one Batgirl. The only member of the family that we’ve seen consistently between films is Alfred! Unless you count the Lego Batman movie!

Which I absolutely do, because where else will Batman and friends fight god damn Daleks from Doctor Who?

Getting back on topic: these characters are every bit as important to the Batman mythos as the Dark Knight himself. Robin is the comic book sidekick; he’s been around longer than the Joker, and almost as long as Batman! Dick Grayson is the John Watson to Bruce’s Sherlock Holmes!

Despite this, Hollywood has treated the Boy Wonder like a plague-carrying rat. Although to be fair, it’s not hard to see why. Beyond Burt Ward’s intentionally goofy Robin back in the 60s, every other attempt we’ve gotten at the character has led to disaster. The two big offenders being Batman Forever, followed by the infamous Batman and Robin; amazing how two movies are all it takes to poison the well forever. In the eyes of casual fans and some film makers (cough cough Zack Snyder), Robin can’t be made cool. Stick him in red and yellow with a green speedo or give him the coolest spandex you could find, it just couldn’t be done.

The Arkham games have proven that idea thoroughly incorrect, but Warner Bros. hasn’t descended so far as to adapt those into live action. Yet.

Besides that, most people generally think that characters like Robin or Batgirl might be too goofy and colorful for Batman movies. Especially given the darker, more serious tone those films have taken to since the Nolan trilogy. Just imagine that incredible opening scene in 2022’s ‘The Batman’, wherein the Dark Knight menacingly emerges from the shadows for the first time; the effect would be somewhat undercut if a fourteen-year-old in green, yellow, and red came dancing up behind him dropping quippy one-liners.

Why, then, are they so important? As Tim Drake put it, why does the Batman need a Robin?

Reason one: Nightwing. AKA the one of the coolest characters in comic books. Can’t have a Nightwing without a Robin.

Reason two (this one a bit more substantial): they provide a vital step in Bruce Wayne’s character arc. Remember: the whole reason Bruce is Batman to begin with is because of the death of his parents. Dude was so traumatized by losing his family that he spends the rest of his life dressed up as a bat to make sure no other little boy goes through that ever again.

Y’know. Little boys like Dick Grayson. Whom Bruce adopts shortly after the murder of his parents.

The presence of Robin, Batgirl, and Nightwing help push Bruce’s character to progress. They force him to confront some of his greatest flaws as a character: his obsession with his crusade against crime, his impossibly high expectations, his sometimes cruel and abusive personality. At the same time, they also bring out the best in him; his empathy, his wisdom, his kindness. In getting closer to them, he grows as a person, learning to be a father, even becoming a better, happier man.

One of my favorite examples comes from ‘Under the Red Hood.’ In a flashback to Jason Todd’s first night Robin, we can see how the boy’s excitement rubs off on Bruce. For god’s sake, he even smiles! In that film, he loves both Dick and Jason as he would his own sons. Which makes the core conflict of that story all the more painful and powerful.

Hell, even the colorful outfits are important to this aspect! Batman’s life is dark and brutal; the man lives in a god damn cave, for Christ’s sake! Everything is gray and black and red with blood. Robin brings color and joy to Bruce’s life, both figuratively and literally! Without him, all the Caped Crusader has is his butler, the bats, vengeance, and darkness.

Without the Bat Family to help him grow, writers run the risk of Batman growing stale. Already, we’re starting to see signs of it. How many times have we seen Batman on his own fighting the Joker? Enough that it’s starting to get old. To the point where people complained about his latest return in ‘The Batman.’ Audiences are starting to want something else besides murderous clowns.

Imagine now, if you will, how refreshing it would be to see the Joker go up against a Robin, or Batgirl. How exciting would it be to see a side of the Clown Prince of Crime beyond his obsession with Batman himself. It could be the breath of fresh air the character sorely needs.

That brings us to reason three: the stories. Some of Batman’s most compelling storylines center around the Bat Family. The aforementioned ‘Under the Red Hood’ is a great example; when Jason Todd returns as the murderous Red Hood, Batman is forced to confront his greatest regret and mistake. ‘Death in the Family’ is one of the most iconic and grim tales in Batman’s entire history, and it centers entirely around Robin! Barbara Gordon’s grim fate is a key factor in ‘The Killing Joke,’ which is quite possibly the most beloved Batman story of all time! Even ‘The Dark Knight Returns’ wouldn’t work without Carrie Kelly’s Robin!

By excluding the Bat Family from the films, the writers severely limit their options in the stories they can tell. Insane as it is to think about, but over the last fifty-so years of Batman films, we’ve barely scratched the surface of what Gotham and the Dark Knight have to offer! So much potential, and so much of it tied to the Bat Family!

Like Nightwing! Seriously, I cannot stress enough, can we please get Nightwing in a movie? I’ll take a god damn cameo at this point! He’s so cool!

If ever we were gonna get the Bat Family on the big screen – or at the very least a good Robin – I think it’ll be now. With a new DC cinematic universe starting beneath James Gunn, and a sequel to Pattinson’s Batman in the works, I’d be shocked if we didn’t get a live action Robin some time in the near future. He’d be perfect for the current films.

But who knows? We still have very little info on either one. A man can dream, though.

Of Nightwing. C’mon, James! Y’know you want to!