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Post by Deleted on Dec 10, 2018 8:32:56 GMT -5
Conspiracy time: DC has never seemed to want Dick Grayson's Robin to face Man-Bat. I bought this 1982 issue from comiXology recently:  Maybe it's me, but DC never seems to want Robin to fight Man-Bat. A later Robin, Tim Drake, did, but it's almost like they wanted to have Batman go solo against Man-Bat. In this issue, Man-Bat is waiting in the Batcave, forever holding a grudge against Bats. Francine Langstrom, the wife of Kirk, shows up with their daughter at Wayne Manor, seeking help from Bruce Wayne. As Francine and her daughter sleep, Bruce and Dick head to the Batcave - where Man-Bat attacks. Actually, Robin doesn't encounter him. Talk about contrived, Man-Bat heads through a secret tunnel. Grayson tells Alfred that he doesn't know the tunnel - and that Batman will have to handle Man-Bat on his own. Naturally, Bats does that very thing. It's a solid and well-illustrated tale, but I would have enjoyed seeing Robin mix it up with Man-Bat, either alone or in partnership with Bats. Instead, Robin stayed behind, played second fiddle and, once again, it was left to the Dark Knight to handle Man-Bat. Now, I don't really think there's a conspiracy. But throughout my decades of comic reading, it seems that DC have always found a way to avoid a Robin/Man-Bat encounter. Perhaps they simply want Man-Bat to be exclusively a Batman foe; perhaps they think it's better to have Bats fly solo against Man-Bat; or perhaps they don't think Robin versus Man-Bat is an interesting scenario. It's just baffling. It didn't dawn on me until I read that issue. Here, and the cover implied it, was the perfect opportunity to have Robin either go it alone with Man-Bat or help Batman battle him. Instead, Robin, in an uncharacteristic moment, left his partner to it due to the highly contrived reason that the tunnels were unfamiliar to him. Come on, Robin, superheroes often jump in at the deep end. Maybe one day I'll see a Dick Grayson/Man-Bat encounter. Still, at least Tim Drake's Robin got to fight Man-Bat:  |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Dec 10, 2018 11:25:10 GMT -5
Man-Bat captured Jason Todd in their first meeting.
Beyond that, Man-Bat was supposed to be scary...really scary. He came about at a time in which the Batman stories were trying to be darker and generally free of the brightly colored boy sidekick (except when it was time to fight Crazy Quilt). I felt the implication was that if Dick Grayson ever faced Man-Bat, Man-Bat would eviscerate him. Any story in which Robin fights him and lives would only serve to lessen the character's impact/reputation.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 10, 2018 12:08:59 GMT -5
That's certainly a good hypothesis! It does make sense.
I remember craving a Robin (Grayson)/Man-Bat encounter as a child. Robin was always out of town when Man-Bat came calling; and then when I read that aforementioned issue, I was excited - only to discover Robin didn't follow Bats into the tunnels to help fight Man-Bat.
Do you know what issue the Jason Todd/Man-Bat encounter happened in, please?
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shaxper
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Posts: 22,874
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Post by shaxper on Dec 10, 2018 15:57:00 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Dec 10, 2018 16:00:38 GMT -5
Thanks a lot, I'll check them out.
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Post by Hoosier X on Dec 10, 2018 16:41:36 GMT -5
Isn't that the issue where they're moving the giant penny back into the Bat-Cave? It's just Bruce and Dick somehow pushing this multi-ton prop back into its place after it was in a Wayne Tower sub-basement for most of the Bronze Age. And they lose control of it and somehow aren't crushed flat.
Next time, see if Clark or J'onn can help out.
(I got this issue when it first came out and I'm very fond of this era. But that scene cracks me up!)
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Post by chadwilliam on Dec 10, 2018 20:34:16 GMT -5
It could also be a matter of the science driven formula at play in a Man-Bat story not really being regarded as suitable for a Robin vehicle. A villain Robin can match his deductive abilities against or acrobatic or martial art skills is one thing, but he's not really one of those "I have until midnight to develop an antidote for Kirk Langstrom" characters. I suppose that's no reason for him not to assist in a Batman vs. Man-Bat tale, but given the fact that Man-Bat debuted about five months after Batman and Robin split, I can't see any writer seeing any need to bring Dick Grayson back for a one-off story in which he isn't going to prove much use.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 11, 2018 4:32:32 GMT -5
That's another great hypothesis!
I'm glad to have received replies here because it was bewildering to me. I'd always craved a battle where Robin - alone! - gets to fight Man-Bat mid-air.
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Post by Reptisaurus! on Dec 11, 2018 6:18:25 GMT -5
It could also be a matter of the science driven formula at play in a Man-Bat story not really being regarded as suitable for a Robin vehicle. A villain Robin can match his deductive abilities against or acrobatic or martial art skills is one thing, but he's not really one of those "I have until midnight to develop an antidote for Kirk Langstrom" characters. I suppose that's no reason for him not to assist in a Batman vs. Man-Bat tale, but given the fact that Man-Bat debuted about five months after Batman and Robin split, I can't see any writer seeing any need to bring Dick Grayson back for a one-off story in which he isn't going to prove much use. Yeah, that makes sense. Man-Bat is an enemy of Batman-as-scientist, which isn't an element of Robin's character. Poison Ivy works similarly. I'd also wager that - since the Penguin is the enemy of Batman-as-old-money-socialite there haven't been many Robin/Penguin solo confrontations. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 11, 2018 8:10:51 GMT -5
There were always villains I wanted to see Robin fight. Catman, a favourite of mine, was another one (I did eventually discover that Robin, with Bats, had fought Catman in a 60s tale).
What about Robin VS KGBeast? I don't recall it.
It probably is right and proper that there are villains more suited to taking on the Dark Knight only, but as a huge Robin fan, there are encounters I'd like to see between him and the likes of Catman, Blockbuster, etc.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 11, 2018 11:51:28 GMT -5
I would love to see a Robin with the Teen Titans battling Man-Bat -- I don't think it has never been done in DC Comics history. What a story with the right creative team in place.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 11, 2018 11:59:29 GMT -5
It's another topic entirely, but there are so many encounters I'd like to see, some of which, if Google images is to be believed, have never been done before.
I don't recall any Fantastic Four VS Juggernaut battles. Or Captain America VS Green Goblin. Or Aquaman VS Mr Freeze.
Many characters have been around decades, but I still believe there may be some fresh encounters to be seen!
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Post by rberman on Dec 11, 2018 17:54:15 GMT -5
It's another topic entirely, but there are so many encounters I'd like to see, some of which, if Google images is to be believed, have never been done before. I don't recall any Fantastic Four VS Juggernaut battles. Or Captain America VS Green Goblin. Or Aquaman VS Mr Freeze. Many characters have been around decades, but I still believe there may be some fresh encounters to be seen! I haven't read all the Acts of Vengeance event, but it seemed like an amusing idea, to pit villains against heroes that they don't usually face. The Fantastic Four issues (by Walt Simonson) were pretty funny, with the FF trouncing a horde of Spider-Man gimmick-based opponents with little-to-no effort. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 11, 2018 19:13:30 GMT -5
Although I don't feel Acts of Vengeance ever lived up to its full potential, it was fun. I remember encounters such as Alpha Flight VS Scorpion, Hulk VS Gray Gargoyle, Dr. Strange VS Hobgoblin, Daredevil VS Ultron, etc.
I think "cross-pollination" can be fun. It should never be overdone, but now and again it'd be fun to see an encounter such as Iron Man VS Lizard or Teen Titans VS Reverse Flash.
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Post by jason on Dec 23, 2018 16:13:16 GMT -5
While we're on this topic, have we ever seen Rogue vs Absorbing Man?
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