The Dark Knight Rises Adapting Robin

[Miranda Fox]

That's right, Bale wont play Batman in a movie with Robin, but he had no problem auditioning for the role of Robin himself about 10 years ago.

Of course! Didn't you get the memo?

Seriously though, good point.

 

[Matt.S99]

i wouldnt mind jason for nightwing but he isnt my first choice
dont hate me for this but my first choice is





























jared padalecki

 

[Nepenthes]

That's right, Bale wont play Batman in a movie with Robin, but he had no problem auditioning for the role of Robin himself about 10 years ago.

I'm sure he doesn't 'hate' Robin but I'm guessing he wouldn't approve of his inclusion in this trilogy. Auditioning for Batman Forever is a totally different thing.

 

[El Payaso]

Of course! Didn't you get the memo?

Seriously though, good point.

What's the good point? I've done worse things for less money...

 

[Miranda Fox]

What's the good point? I've done worse things for less money...

Also a good point, I'll admit.

Honestly, I don't really care one way or another about Robin but it's pointless arguing over whether he will or won't show up in the future because there's really no way to know. And it's also NOT the point of this thread in the first place.

 

[Katsuro]

What's the good point? I've done worse things for less money...

But once again, Bale's willing to put aside his hatred to get paid to play Robin, but he wont put it aside to play Batman in a movie with Robin? He's still getting paid, ya know.

 

[Keyser Sushi]

I was bored and did some writing. I know this isn't going to convince anybody but I thought it might be fun to share. I've talked a lot about how I could write a decent Robin intro story. Here are some excerpts from what my version would be like...

(I bet the formatting gets all screwy... apologies in advance)

EXT. GOTHAM, NIGHT

Two-Face comes up with a handgun is about to shoot the boy. Batman chucks a batarang just in time, knocking Two-Face’s gun wild as he pulls the trigger. Before Two-Face can curse, Batman grabs the boy and hauls him away on a grapple line.

BOY
You let him get away!

BATMAN’s eyes narrow. He grunts.

He sets the boy on his feet at the top landing of a back-alley fire escape. The kid is about thirteen, disheveled, wearing the tattered remains of a long coat over a sweater and jeans. He’s a bit grubby, but unmistakably Dick Grayson, from the circus. The two have never met before, but Batman knows about the boy. Bruce Wayne saw it happen.

BATMAN
What were you doing out here?

BOY
Why do you care, anyway?

BATMAN
It’s not safe.

BOY
Spare me. I almost had him.

BATMAN
That’s one way to look at it.

BATMAN’s dry wit is not lost on the boy. For a second it looks as if the kid might cry. BATMAN makes no move to comfort him.

BOY
I just want to be like you, don’t you understand that?

BATMAN
You’re too young to make that decision.

The boy looks up; his eyes harden again.

BOY
Yeah? And how old were you?

EXT. GRAVEYARD, NIGHT – LONG AGO

A young Bruce kneels in front of his parents’ grave. There are tears in his eyes but his voice is hard.

BRUCE
What happened to you will never happen again. I promise.

EXT. FIRE ESCAPE – PRESENT

BATMAN
Too young.

BOY
Jerk.

The boy clatters down the fire escape, and runs headlong into Batman on the landing below.

BOY
DAMN YOU!

The boy sobs once as he pushes himself away from Batman.

BATMAN
You don’t want to be like me. You don’t want this life.

BOY
WHAT LIFE? I don’t have a life. All I have is this…

The boy thumps his stomach.

BOY (continuing)
And if you can’t understand that, then you’re right, I don’t want to be like you. Get outta my way.

BATMAN
You’re going to get yourself killed.

BOY
Does it look like I care?

INT. WAYNE MANOR, NIGHT – LONG AGO

ALFRED is on the phone. The house is empty and full of echoes, the furniture ghostly, covered in drop cloths.

ALFRED
Master Bruce, you’re going to get yourself killed.

INT. CARGO SHIP, LONG AGO

A grown, but still fresh-faced Bruce Wayne sits in darkness, but for the blue glow of his cellphone.

BRUCE
Maybe that’s what I want, Alfred.

ALFRED (OC)
You don’t mean that.

BRUCE
Probably not. I just wanted to let you know I’m okay. I’ll be in touch.

INT. WAYNE MANOR, NIGHT – LONG AGO

ALFRED
When?

The line goes dead.

ALFRED
Damn.

EXT. FIRE ESCAPE, NIGHT - PRESENT

BATMAN
Alright, kid, come on.

INT. BATCAVE - LATER

BRUCE and DICK are wearing fencing gear. DICK is walking on his hands.

DICK
You’re going to show me how to be like you, right?

BRUCE
Stand up straight.

DICK
I am standing up straight.

BRUCE
On your feet.

DICK
You didn’t say that.

BRUCE, unamused, gives DICK a jab with his foil, and the boy collapses like a scarecrow.

DICK
Hey, what the hell?

BRUCE
On your feet. Now.

DICK
That hurt!

BRUCE
A lot of things hurt. You’re going to have to learn to deal with it. That’s the first lesson. Now stand up on your feet and do as I tell you.

DICK
Alright, alright.

BRUCE
The second lesson is, ALWAYS do as I tell you.

DICK
What if I don’t?

BRUCE
You end up on your ass.

DICK
Gotcha.

The two fence. BRUCE walks DICK through the basic moves, then starts using more complicated moves. DICK is creative and counters well. Then BRUCE kicks his legs out from under him and points the foil at DICK’s chest. BRUCE unmasks himself.

DICK
Ow! You cheated!

BRUCE
Real fights aren’t fair. Life isn’t fair.

DICK pulls off his own mask.

DICK
How am I supposed to beat you if you don’t play by the rules?
BRUCE
You aren’t.

DICK begins to cry. He doesn’t sob, doesn’t hide his face. But tears trickle from the corners of his eyes.
DICK
Bastard.

BRUCE makes no response. But he moves the foil away from DICK’s chest, and DICK sits up.

DICK
I miss them, Bruce.


BRUCE
Get up.

DICK
But…

BRUCE
Get up! You have no time for pain. Keep fighting.

DICK
I don’t want –

BRUCE is transformed. To appearances, he is still BRUCE, but the voice and eyes belong to BATMAN.

BRUCE
THIS IS WHAT YOU WANTED! YOU CHOSE THIS. YOU CHOSE ME! GET UP!

DICK
Jesus, you’re scaring me…

ALFRED steps in and helps the boy up.

ALFRED
I wonder if I might have a word with you, Master Bruce.

BRUCE follows him off a short distance from the training area.

ALFRED
Don’t you think you’re being a bit harsh on the lad?

BRUCE
I don’t have time for pain, Alfred. I don’t have time for fear.

ALFRED
That’s Dick Grayson in there, sir, not Bruce Wayne.

BRUCE
They’re the same, Alfred.

ALFRED
The same, sir, and different.

BRUCE
Not different enough.

ALFRED
Do you suppose you’re being a bit selfish, sir, what you’re doing to him? What you’re willing him to become?

BRUCE
Selfish, Alfred? I don’t want him here. I tried to tell him he didn’t want this. He convinced me.

ALFRED
Have it your way, then.

BRUCE
I made a promise, Alfred. To them. It wouldn’t happen again. But it did.

ALFRED
You can’t save them all, sir.

BRUCE
Then let me save one.

INT. BATCAVE – WEEKS LATER

DICK and BRUCE are practicing with staves.

BRUCE drives hard, he’s bigger and stronger than DICK but the boy is fast and athletic. He nimbly dodges back and lets BRUCE make a strong attack. DICK drops to the ground and lets the staff swing over him, then goes into a forward somersault and comes up standing behind BRUCE before he can recover his attack posture, and knocks his legs out from under him. BRUCE lands hard.

DICK
Gotcha.

BRUCE
Not bad.

DICK
Just like Robin Hood.

The boy is proud. And he has reason to be. He stands back, grinning, as BRUCE regains his feet.

BRUCE
Robin Hood?

DICK
Yeah, it was part of today’s lesson with Alfred.
BRUCE
So have you chosen a symbol yet?
DICK
Well…
ALFRED
We were thinking about Sir Robin of Locksley, actually.
BRUCE
We’re not merry men, Alfred.
ALFRED
Actually, sir, in Old English, the word “merry” meant mighty.
BRUCE
Ah.
ALFRED
So one might say that you are the merriest man I know.

BRUCE
Right.

ALFRED
After all, Sir Robin was a symbol not unlike yourself. He is a legend meant to give a voice to the underprivileged, the downtrodden. To give hope to the forgotten. To those in power he was an outlaw, but to the common man, he was… well, a hero.

DICK
Batman and Robin.

BRUCE
Ugh, I don’t like the way that sounds.

DICK
Come on, it’s perfect. It’s not like I’m gonna be wearing stockings and slouch boots.

BRUCE
Jesus.

EXT. GOTHAM, ROOFTOP – NIGHT

BATMAN and ROBIN are crouched on a rooftop, each peering through is own pair of binoculars. ROBIN is wearing body armor not unlike BATMAN’s, but in woodland ranger colors; the arms and legs olive green, black gauntlets like BATMAN’s, gloves and boots black leather. His cape is black on the outside and brown inside. Above the dark block of his red-tinted goggles, his hair is a messy, spiky swirl.

The one dash of color amid the earthen tones of his armor is the torso, which is blood red, bisected by a gold belt not unlike BATMAN’s, as though to suggest the red breast of the bird which shares his name.

Through the binocs, they are watching a robbery in progress below.

BATMAN
Go. Just like we talked about.

ROBIN stands, vaults over the ledge.

EXT. GOTHAM, ALLEY – NIGHT

Four thugs are moving valuables out the back door of a building.

ROBIN (OC)
Gentlemen.

They stop in mid-progress and look up. Perched on a lamp-post above them is ROBIN. The light beneath him makes his form indistinct to the men below.

ROBIN (continuing)
I’m gonna count to three. If you don’t drop the goods and run away, they’ll have to carry you away. Your choice.

The gang laughs nervously.

ROBIN
One.

LEADER
Hell, ya hear his voice? It’s just some kid. What’s he gonna do, tell his mommy?

This earns laughter from his boys.

ROBIN
Two.

LEADER
C’mon, let’s move this **** outta here.

His boys mutter their agreement, and continue piling the contraband in the back of their van.

ROBIN
Three. Don’t say I didn’t warn ya.

ROBIN reaches to the back of his belt, and comes up with a small cylinder that extends into a staff as he launches himself neatly down from the lamp. He lands in the middle of the group, and in a matter of seconds and a crunching of bones, two of them are down; the other two split. One takes off in a run down the alley, the other goes for the driver door of the van. A batarang sticks in his hand and a staff cracks across his head.

ROBIN looks around, but the fourth thug is gone.

ROBIN
Ah, dammit.

EXT. ALLEY – MOMENTS LATER

The fourth thug, in a blind run down the darkened alley, runs headfirst into BATMAN. The thug takes a step back and looks up. BATMAN’s eyes narrow, and with lightning speed he elbows the thug in the neck and punches him in the jaw.

BATMAN drags the fourth thug back to the van and tosses him on the ground in front of ROBIN.

BATMAN
You let one get away.

ROBIN
I’d have gotten him.

BATMAN’s eyes narrow again. He says nothing.

ROBIN (continuing)
Maybe.

BATMAN
No room for maybe. No room for mistakes.

ROBIN
I’d have got him.

BATMAN
Maybe.

ROBIN
Yeah, yeah.

 

[Miranda Fox]

I was bored and did some writing. I know this isn't going to convince anybody but I thought it might be fun to share. I've talked a lot about how I could write a decent Robin intro story. Here are some excerpts from what my version would be like...

Now that? That could work. Nice job!

I've heard people pitch the idea of Dick being homeless and fighting crime in his old circus uniform before and it's one I've always liked and you seemed to have used a similar idea here. I also like the line about how a lot of things hurt. I could really see Bruce saying that.

 

[Crooklyn]

BRUCE
I made a promise, Alfred. To them. It wouldn’t happen again. But it did.

ALFRED
You can’t save them all, sir.

BRUCE
Then let me save one.

I really like that exchange. It's a pleading line, but I can see Bruce saying that with complete seriousness.













Not a fan of "Tears of Grayson" though.

 

[El Payaso]

But once again, Bale's willing to put aside his hatred to get paid to play Robin, but he wont put it aside to play Batman in a movie with Robin? He's still getting paid, ya know.

First time, he was no one, it was just a good chance. He couldn't do a thing to decide the kind of movie he wanted.

Now he can.

 

[D.P.]

DICK
I miss them, Bruce.


BRUCE
Get up.

DICK
But…

BRUCE
Get up! You have no time for pain. Keep fighting.

DICK
I don’t want –

BRUCE is transformed. To appearances, he is still BRUCE, but the voice and eyes belong to BATMAN.

BRUCE
THIS IS WHAT YOU WANTED! YOU CHOSE THIS. YOU CHOSE ME! GET UP!

Niiiiiice.

Some excellent ideas in this thread.

I like the Robin sketches from a couple pages back as well...The ninja-esque outfit with the League Of Shadows guantlets...All of this could work...

 

[Keyser Sushi]

Now that? That could work. Nice job!

Thanks.

I've heard people pitch the idea of Dick being homeless and fighting crime in his old circus uniform before and it's one I've always liked and you seemed to have used a similar idea here. I also like the line about how a lot of things hurt. I could really see Bruce saying that.

Thanks again! I actually did think about having him in his circus uniform but decided against that. There was a scene, though, that I didn't get around to writing, which would have come before any of those others - where Bruce Wayne talks to the circus people and they're going to take care of Dick themselves. Then some days later Dick decides he's running away. His old pal, one of the clowns, tries to stop him, and Dick knocks him out and runs off. It was gonna showcase Dick's strength and agility, but, well, I figured the thing was long enough as it was... I wasn't trying to write a whole movie.

 

[Keyser Sushi]

I really like that exchange. It's a pleading line, but I can see Bruce saying that with complete seriousness.

Dude, thanks. I had some reservations about writing that as a pleading line (the alternative was, "I can sure as hell try,") but the plea to his conscience (in Alfred form, LOL) seemed stronger, dramatically.

Not a fan of "Tears of Grayson" though.

LOL. Tears of Grayson?

 

[StorminNorman]

I hope Keyser is really a long lost Nolan Brother

 

[Keyser Sushi]

Niiiiiice.

Thanks. When I realized Bruce was going to actually say that to Dick, it hit me like a ton of bricks, because even though it was Bruce talking to Dick... it was also, symbolically, Batman talking to young Bruce. YOU CHOSE ME.

 

[Keyser Sushi]

I did this a long time ago but I'm going to reprint it here... this is my Robin

 

[Keyser Sushi]

I hope Keyser is really a long lost Nolan Brother

LOL, shucks...

Pardon me while I bask in all this excessive adulation. I know it won't last forever. Somebody'll rip me a new one soon enough...

 

[StorminNorman]

LOL, shucks...

Pardon me while I bask in all this excessive adulation. I know it won't last forever. Somebody'll rip me a new one soon enough...

Here ya go...

I mean it with love :heart:

 

[David Rice]

That's pointless. Nightwing is not Batman's apprentice. Nightwing is a grown man who has no need to be anybody's apprentice. And Dick can't become Nightwing without Bruce's guidance.

Basically, Nightwing is meaningless without having first been Robin.

YEP! You know your stuff!

 

[David Rice]

Of course, everything that has ever been created everywhere, should be there because it is... excellent logic there, Brainiac...



Of course it can. But Robin hasn't. Ever. I doubt he ever could, because the character is ridiculous. Period.



How the hell do you know what I would be interested in or not?

Please do forgive me for having an opinion which differs from yours. You are as entitled to it as I am to mine. Yours just happens to be wrong. Luckily Chris Nolan agrees with me on this one. I know. We had brunch.

WOW! You must know everthing there is to know about Batman. You should run DC. The hell with all those other guys who have been selling Batman books for years.

You brunch with Nolan? Wow me too! Don't you just love he cast as Dent?

 

[David Rice]

I have to agree that I dont see Robin,Selina Kyle aka Catwoman and other campy villains or characters in Nolan's style. I resent over crowding TDK because that really hinders the film & quality as a whole.

Catwoman is not campy. Read a few comics that were put out in the last two years.

 

[David Rice]

Seriously. Does anyone here even read comics anymore?

Nope. They must not.

Just as I said... READ some comics that were put out in the last 2-5 years.

 

[StorminNorman]

I was bored and did some writing. I know this isn't going to convince anybody but I thought it might be fun to share. I've talked a lot about how I could write a decent Robin intro story. Here are some excerpts from what my version would be like...

(I bet the formatting gets all screwy... apologies in advance)

EXT. GOTHAM, NIGHT

Two-Face comes up with a handgun is about to shoot the boy. Batman chucks a batarang just in time, knocking Two-Face’s gun wild as he pulls the trigger. Before Two-Face can curse, Batman grabs the boy and hauls him away on a grapple line.

BOY
You let him get away!

BATMAN’s eyes narrow. He grunts.

He sets the boy on his feet at the top landing of a back-alley fire escape. The kid is about thirteen, disheveled, wearing the tattered remains of a long coat over a sweater and jeans. He’s a bit grubby, but unmistakably Dick Grayson, from the circus. The two have never met before, but Batman knows about the boy. Bruce Wayne saw it happen.

BATMAN
What were you doing out here?

BOY
Why do you care, anyway?

BATMAN
It’s not safe.

BOY
Spare me. I almost had him.

BATMAN
That’s one way to look at it.

BATMAN’s dry wit is not lost on the boy. For a second it looks as if the kid might cry. BATMAN makes no move to comfort him.

BOY
I just want to be like you, don’t you understand that?

BATMAN
You’re too young to make that decision.

The boy looks up; his eyes harden again.

BOY
Yeah? And how old were you?

EXT. GRAVEYARD, NIGHT – LONG AGO

A young Bruce kneels in front of his parents’ grave. There are tears in his eyes but his voice is hard.

BRUCE
What happened to you will never happen again. I promise.

EXT. FIRE ESCAPE – PRESENT

BATMAN
Too young.

BOY
Jerk.

The boy clatters down the fire escape, and runs headlong into Batman on the landing below.

BOY
DAMN YOU!

The boy sobs once as he pushes himself away from Batman.

BATMAN
You don’t want to be like me. You don’t want this life.

BOY
WHAT LIFE? I don’t have a life. All I have is this…

The boy thumps his stomach.

BOY (continuing)
And if you can’t understand that, then you’re right, I don’t want to be like you. Get outta my way.

BATMAN
You’re going to get yourself killed.

BOY
Does it look like I care?

INT. WAYNE MANOR, NIGHT – LONG AGO

ALFRED is on the phone. The house is empty and full of echoes, the furniture ghostly, covered in drop cloths.

ALFRED
Master Bruce, you’re going to get yourself killed.

INT. CARGO SHIP, LONG AGO

A grown, but still fresh-faced Bruce Wayne sits in darkness, but for the blue glow of his cellphone.

BRUCE
Maybe that’s what I want, Alfred.

ALFRED (OC)
You don’t mean that.

BRUCE
Probably not. I just wanted to let you know I’m okay. I’ll be in touch.

INT. WAYNE MANOR, NIGHT – LONG AGO

ALFRED
When?

The line goes dead.

ALFRED
Damn.

EXT. FIRE ESCAPE, NIGHT - PRESENT

BATMAN
Alright, kid, come on.

INT. BATCAVE - LATER

BRUCE and DICK are wearing fencing gear. DICK is walking on his hands.

DICK
You’re going to show me how to be like you, right?

BRUCE
Stand up straight.

DICK
I am standing up straight.

BRUCE
On your feet.

DICK
You didn’t say that.

BRUCE, unamused, gives DICK a jab with his foil, and the boy collapses like a scarecrow.

DICK
Hey, what the hell?

BRUCE
On your feet. Now.

DICK
That hurt!

BRUCE
A lot of things hurt. You’re going to have to learn to deal with it. That’s the first lesson. Now stand up on your feet and do as I tell you.

DICK
Alright, alright.

BRUCE
The second lesson is, ALWAYS do as I tell you.

DICK
What if I don’t?

BRUCE
You end up on your ass.

DICK
Gotcha.

The two fence. BRUCE walks DICK through the basic moves, then starts using more complicated moves. DICK is creative and counters well. Then BRUCE kicks his legs out from under him and points the foil at DICK’s chest. BRUCE unmasks himself.

DICK
Ow! You cheated!

BRUCE
Real fights aren’t fair. Life isn’t fair.

DICK pulls off his own mask.

DICK
How am I supposed to beat you if you don’t play by the rules?
BRUCE
You aren’t.

DICK begins to cry. He doesn’t sob, doesn’t hide his face. But tears trickle from the corners of his eyes.
DICK
Bastard.

BRUCE makes no response. But he moves the foil away from DICK’s chest, and DICK sits up.

DICK
I miss them, Bruce.


BRUCE
Get up.

DICK
But…

BRUCE
Get up! You have no time for pain. Keep fighting.

DICK
I don’t want –

BRUCE is transformed. To appearances, he is still BRUCE, but the voice and eyes belong to BATMAN.

BRUCE
THIS IS WHAT YOU WANTED! YOU CHOSE THIS. YOU CHOSE ME! GET UP!

DICK
Jesus, you’re scaring me…

ALFRED steps in and helps the boy up.

ALFRED
I wonder if I might have a word with you, Master Bruce.

BRUCE follows him off a short distance from the training area.

ALFRED
Don’t you think you’re being a bit harsh on the lad?

BRUCE
I don’t have time for pain, Alfred. I don’t have time for fear.

ALFRED
That’s Dick Grayson in there, sir, not Bruce Wayne.

BRUCE
They’re the same, Alfred.

ALFRED
The same, sir, and different.

BRUCE
Not different enough.

ALFRED
Do you suppose you’re being a bit selfish, sir, what you’re doing to him? What you’re willing him to become?

BRUCE
Selfish, Alfred? I don’t want him here. I tried to tell him he didn’t want this. He convinced me.

ALFRED
Have it your way, then.

BRUCE
I made a promise, Alfred. To them. It wouldn’t happen again. But it did.

ALFRED
You can’t save them all, sir.

BRUCE
Then let me save one.

INT. BATCAVE – WEEKS LATER

DICK and BRUCE are practicing with staves.

BRUCE drives hard, he’s bigger and stronger than DICK but the boy is fast and athletic. He nimbly dodges back and lets BRUCE make a strong attack. DICK drops to the ground and lets the staff swing over him, then goes into a forward somersault and comes up standing behind BRUCE before he can recover his attack posture, and knocks his legs out from under him. BRUCE lands hard.

DICK
Gotcha.

BRUCE
Not bad.

DICK
Just like Robin Hood.

The boy is proud. And he has reason to be. He stands back, grinning, as BRUCE regains his feet.

BRUCE
Robin Hood?

DICK
Yeah, it was part of today’s lesson with Alfred.
BRUCE
So have you chosen a symbol yet?
DICK
Well…
ALFRED
We were thinking about Sir Robin of Locksley, actually.
BRUCE
We’re not merry men, Alfred.
ALFRED
Actually, sir, in Old English, the word “merry” meant mighty.
BRUCE
Ah.
ALFRED
So one might say that you are the merriest man I know.

BRUCE
Right.

ALFRED
After all, Sir Robin was a symbol not unlike yourself. He is a legend meant to give a voice to the underprivileged, the downtrodden. To give hope to the forgotten. To those in power he was an outlaw, but to the common man, he was… well, a hero.

DICK
Batman and Robin.

BRUCE
Ugh, I don’t like the way that sounds.

DICK
Come on, it’s perfect. It’s not like I’m gonna be wearing stockings and slouch boots.

BRUCE
Jesus.

EXT. GOTHAM, ROOFTOP – NIGHT

BATMAN and ROBIN are crouched on a rooftop, each peering through is own pair of binoculars. ROBIN is wearing body armor not unlike BATMAN’s, but in woodland ranger colors; the arms and legs olive green, black gauntlets like BATMAN’s, gloves and boots black leather. His cape is black on the outside and brown inside. Above the dark block of his red-tinted goggles, his hair is a messy, spiky swirl.

The one dash of color amid the earthen tones of his armor is the torso, which is blood red, bisected by a gold belt not unlike BATMAN’s, as though to suggest the red breast of the bird which shares his name.

Through the binocs, they are watching a robbery in progress below.

BATMAN
Go. Just like we talked about.

ROBIN stands, vaults over the ledge.

EXT. GOTHAM, ALLEY – NIGHT

Four thugs are moving valuables out the back door of a building.

ROBIN (OC)
Gentlemen.

They stop in mid-progress and look up. Perched on a lamp-post above them is ROBIN. The light beneath him makes his form indistinct to the men below.

ROBIN (continuing)
I’m gonna count to three. If you don’t drop the goods and run away, they’ll have to carry you away. Your choice.

The gang laughs nervously.

ROBIN
One.

LEADER
Hell, ya hear his voice? It’s just some kid. What’s he gonna do, tell his mommy?

This earns laughter from his boys.

ROBIN
Two.

LEADER
C’mon, let’s move this **** outta here.

His boys mutter their agreement, and continue piling the contraband in the back of their van.

ROBIN
Three. Don’t say I didn’t warn ya.

ROBIN reaches to the back of his belt, and comes up with a small cylinder that extends into a staff as he launches himself neatly down from the lamp. He lands in the middle of the group, and in a matter of seconds and a crunching of bones, two of them are down; the other two split. One takes off in a run down the alley, the other goes for the driver door of the van. A batarang sticks in his hand and a staff cracks across his head.

ROBIN looks around, but the fourth thug is gone.

ROBIN
Ah, dammit.

EXT. ALLEY – MOMENTS LATER

The fourth thug, in a blind run down the darkened alley, runs headfirst into BATMAN. The thug takes a step back and looks up. BATMAN’s eyes narrow, and with lightning speed he elbows the thug in the neck and punches him in the jaw.

BATMAN drags the fourth thug back to the van and tosses him on the ground in front of ROBIN.

BATMAN
You let one get away.

ROBIN
I’d have gotten him.

BATMAN’s eyes narrow again. He says nothing.

ROBIN (continuing)
Maybe.

BATMAN
No room for maybe. No room for mistakes.

ROBIN
I’d have got him.

BATMAN
Maybe.

ROBIN
Yeah, yeah.

I don't want Keyer's Masterpiece to be held responsible for killing the Robin thread - so I bump it.

 

[GL1]

Keyser's masterpiece is pretty good...

I like a lot of things about it... the coincidence of going over Robin Hood the day Robin picks his code name doesn't sit will with me, and Bruce's reasoning seems to involve "He asked for it" which never flies with kids... no rational adult gives kids what they want just cuz they want it.
And of course, I don't think the flashbacks are necessary to highlight that Batman's relationship with Robin is really just an excuse for Batman to re-evaluate his childhood, and his parents' murder.

That said, this is the first time I've seen the street-rat angle and it hasn't turned my stomach. A short stint as an ineffective crime fighter is paletable to me. Furthermore, Keyser did an EXCELLENT job of capturing the taskmaster role... I think Dick cried a bit much, but with adequate harshness from Batman, perhaps that's understandable...

I also think some filling out of Dick's motivation to be like Batman could be adequate. Also I think more opportunities should be taken to make Dick's development about BATMAN and not about Robin so much, character development wise. But all in all, it's a great, GREAT starting point and is a clear example of how easy it is to make Robin realistic, grounded Nolan-style and still entertaining.

Also, I'm still not buying Robin as a combatant pre-16 or 17... not reguarly, it'd make more sense if Bruce was training a replacement for 20 years out (he started at 30, and at that point, he'll be 50, ready to retire). There's also some development in there about Bruce overestimating the volatility of youth.

But yeah, I just don't see a young teen martial artsing alongside Batman, and I certainly don't see them making $300,000 military armor in kids sizes... Frankly it's unbelievable... I'm a staunch supporter of keeping Robin in a support role, the kinds of roles they keep tapping Gordon, Fox and Alfred for... Robin should be Batman's runner, lookout, scout, messenger, maybe even spy... which would indicate him having infra-binoc goggles that take the place of the useless and rediculously conceived domino mask. (Though, perhaps it's just padding for the high tech goggles. The telescoping staff seems like just the kind of R&D thing that Robin could snag since Batman would have no use for it.

But to have a boy running around doing martial arts on grown men... well, even with acrobatics and natural athleticism, these are career toughies and imho, it would take 3-4 years for Dick to be on a level where he could reliably defeat a thug. It took Batman 10 years...

 

[Keyser Sushi]

Keyser's masterpiece is pretty good...

Thank you.

I like a lot of things about it... the coincidence of going over Robin Hood the day Robin picks his code name doesn't sit will with me,

It's not a coincidence. If I'd written more scenes it might have been clearer. Basically Dick is supposed to have asked Bruce at an earlier point what his name would be, and Bruce said Dick would know it when he found it, and to just focus on the training. So when Dick learned about Robin Hood, he chose it. No coincidence involved.

and Bruce's reasoning seems to involve "He asked for it" which never flies with kids... no rational adult gives kids what they want just cuz they want it.

Bruce never said that. When he yelled at Dick, "you chose this, you chose me," that was actually Batman yelling at young Bruce, if you will. Bruce chose this life, Bruce chose Batman. The reason Batman is training Robin is so that Robin will not get himself killed.

And of course, I don't think the flashbacks are necessary to highlight that Batman's relationship with Robin is really just an excuse for Batman to re-evaluate his childhood, and his parents' murder.

Yeah, I struggled with whether those ought to be in there or not, but the reason I included them is to help showcase Bruce's reasoning for taking Dick on as an apprentice. If those scenes are not there, then Batman's reasoning is unclear and ultimately far more suspect.

That said, this is the first time I've seen the street-rat angle and it hasn't turned my stomach. A short stint as an ineffective crime fighter is paletable to me.

Yeah, it wasn't so much supposed to be the street-rat angle per se; it was just Dick going after Two-Face because, dammit, he wants to get him.

Furthermore, Keyser did an EXCELLENT job of capturing the taskmaster role...

Thanks.

I think Dick cried a bit much, but with adequate harshness from Batman, perhaps that's understandable...

He cried once. I kept it to a minimum but I had to let him still be a kid. A hardened kid, but a kid. Tough line to walk. Given some time to revise it I would probably shore it up a bit.

I also think some filling out of Dick's motivation to be like Batman could be adequate. Also I think more opportunities should be taken to make Dick's development about BATMAN and not about Robin so much, character development wise. But all in all, it's a great, GREAT starting point and is a clear example of how easy it is to make Robin realistic, grounded Nolan-style and still entertaining.

Thanks again. That is, of course, the point - all of those things you spoke of would be included in there were I to write a complete script; make no mistake that what I wrote were just a handful of isolated scenes, there would have been a lot of other stuff in between them. Batman stuff. But I wasn't trying to tell a story. Just show how the character could be written.

Also, I'm still not buying Robin as a combatant pre-16 or 17... not reguarly, it'd make more sense if Bruce was training a replacement for 20 years out (he started at 30, and at that point, he'll be 50, ready to retire). There's also some development in there about Bruce overestimating the volatility of youth.

My theory is that some field work (i.e. taking out simple thugs, like in the robbery scene) would be a necessary part of Robin's training. But it is still training. When Batman is on a big mission like, going up against Joker or Two-Face or somebody, he would probably leave Robin out of it. My thought was that this is what would happen at the end; Batman would go and leave Robin out of it, and Robin would sneak out after him and wind up saving his ass. And then getting chewed out by Batman.

But yeah, I just don't see a young teen martial artsing alongside Batman, and I certainly don't see them making $300,000 military armor in kids sizes... Frankly it's unbelievable... I'm a staunch supporter of keeping Robin in a support role, the kinds of roles they keep tapping Gordon, Fox and Alfred for... Robin should be Batman's runner, lookout, scout, messenger, maybe even spy... which would indicate him having infra-binoc goggles that take the place of the useless and rediculously conceived domino mask. (Though, perhaps it's just padding for the high tech goggles. The telescoping staff seems like just the kind of R&D thing that Robin could snag since Batman would have no use for it.

I do think that Robin can only be introduced at a point when he is needed as an angle to go further into Batman's psyche. Which is why it should wait until, at least, the fourth film. As for the body armor... I assume that the smaller-size armor is a homegrown modification of the existing armor since, as you say, such a thing is not available in that size.