The Most Overrated Batman Comic Book?

I'm pretty sure that many of you have heard people talking about this book. Maybe, you even heard people saying this is the greatest Batman comic book of all time. I'm going to tell you why this is the worst place for a beginner to start and why it's so overrated.

The Dark Knight Returns (TDKR for short)

"The Dark Knight Returns" was a miniseries made up of 4 issues, published by DC. The writer and the penciler for this book is the infamous Frank Miller. Outside of the head-turning dark, gritty story and a new Robin (we'll discuss this very soon), it is also most known for its unique and very distinctive art style. 

  

The Worst Robin?

#1 No Characteristics

Ok, I get Carrie Kelley is our third Robin, and TDKR came out in 1986, and she's a teenage girl sidekick which Batman never had, and it would have been a great shock to the readers at that time. However, after all these years, roughly 40 years, Carrie Kelley gets buried among all the different Robins that came before and after her and ends up labelled as the "female Robin." It feels like they just made another Robin, but put all the elements to distinguish her from others and made her a ginger girl with glasses. She doesn't stand out. To me, she's just another Robin. Compared to other elements in TDKR, she's really not that special. 

She didn't change how people view comics or Robins or add a lot to Robin's history. I would say Jason did. He was the first Robin other than Dick, and one of the few characters to stay dead which was because of the readers in the first place and be brought back as an antihero. Dick was the first and probably the best Robin with his own identity for decades now, Tim was the smart geek detective guy who found out the identities of Batman and Robin, and Damian is the blood-related son of Batman, but not only the son and the grandson but, also a living weapon of some of the Batman's greatest enemies, Talia and Ra's Al Ghul. Now where did she go? I can't find her next to all these Robins.

#2 Why Robin?

Now, hear me out. I think this is the only Robin I don't like, but not because she's the first female Robin or something. We don't get a backstory, we don't get her motives and we don't get her origin. It's like "Hey, I wanna be Robin." That's all cool and all, but why? The first scene we get to see 'Carrie Kelley' is when she and her friend get saved by Batman, in #1 Dark Knight Returns. Yes, she just shows up out of nowhere. Anyway, after seeing two gangsters brutally assaulted by a middle-aged man dressed as a giant bat, for some reason, she wants to do the same alongside him. Why does she want to be a Robin as a 13 year old middle school student and risk her life fighting crimes? I don't know.

Yes, you're right. Dick Grayson (the 1st Robin) was only 8 or 12 years old when he became Robin. (There's a debate on this) But, at least he was an acrobat. At least his parents were killed and he was adopted by Batman himself because of that and got trained by him, one of the best fighters on the planet. She would have been fine with living as a normal teenager. I know teenagers are stupid, but they aren't that stupid. 

In #2 The Dark Knight Triumphant, as she finishes putting on her Robin costume, she climbs out the window and somehow parkours through the buildings. She also somehow manages to get on top of a car's trunks that the Mutants were driving as a 13 year old girl. She follows them because she thinks when there are the Mutants, there will be Batman and she wants to see him because she wants to be the next Robin. Yes, sure it would be nice to have Batman as the last hope in Gotham, especially with how corrupted it became, but is it worth risking your life?

#3 Wasted Potential

As I said, she doesn't really have many unique traits and/or characteristics. I feel like this is such a wasted potential. She's the one fighting alongside a 55year old, "fat," more gritty and more violent vigilante with grey hair and back pain. She could have been little more different, more unique, more special, and better.

For example, her origin could have been way better. Such as, if you're going to make a female Robin, you could have put more things that are remotely connected to it. I'm not an expert on social issues like sexism over the years, especially in the 80s, but that could been one of the ways. Isn't this book for a mature audience anyway? Even if not, it could have been a great way to introduce sexism to the younger readers. Ok, I'm definitely not a feminist, and I don't wanna go deep or full feminism mode, but I'm just saying there could have been other ways to introduce her and her origin story. 

Super cliché, but her parents could have killed too. Crazy idea, but, she could have been a part of the Mutants gang, but turned her back on the gang to be Batman's sidekick, or was a gangster, but realizes what she's doing wrong or was a gangster, but gets betrayed and almost gets killed by the gang, but gets saved Batman. This would be a way to show Batman cares for everyone, even criminals and gangsters. Also, this idea allows the scene to be more climatic, with her never trusting them again and wanting to take revenge on the gang, rather than just following Batman like a dog. Also, realizing what she was doing wrong and trying to make a change for herself would've been a better motive for someone to be Robin, kind of like Damian's. These are just random ideas I'm putting up there, I'm pretty sure "the best Batman writer" would do a better job.

#4 Batman's Approval

Another problem of mine is Batman's attitude. A random girl throws her life to fight a huge, jacked, 'roided-up supervillain with her bare hands, and he just shares his secret identity right away and lets her into the Batcave. I get that she just saved his life, but that's a freaking 13 year old girl with no training at all, except Girl Scouts, Bruce. I know it's just comics, but this is just so out of character for Batman.

Don't get me wrong, I like Robins. I get why having children as your sidekicks to fight supervillains isn't the greatest idea, but that's really not the point in a world where you can talk to someone by kissing them.  Also, you have to remember that this is a universe where Batman just lost another Robin (doesn't specify because this is before "A Death In The Family", but it was retconned as Jason Todd in The Dark Knight Returns: The Last Crusade) Wasn't that one of the most crucial reasons Bruce quit being Batman? So, why would he let Carrie be Robin right away?

Important, But The Best?

Here are some of the reasons some people might consider 'The Dark Knight Returns" is the best Batman comic book of all time. It answered some of the reader's questions, changed the character's history and reshaped who Batman is forever. While I do agree that elements like Superman vs Batman, a new Robin, a fat Batman, Batman killing Joker, and final days of Batman, would be very eye-catching or mind-blowing at that time, but not really anymore. 

We had a lot of fights between Superman and Batman, both on the page and on the screen, like Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice, Justice League (2017), Batman: HUSH, JLA: Tower of Babel, Batman: Endgame, Justice League and more. Also, there were tons of more Robins and future Batman stories. And we obviously got even more tons of Batman vs Joker fights. Not to mention the newest Batman book is shaped even bulkier and bigger than TDKR. Yes, many of them are inspired from TDKR. I agree it had a big impact. I agree it was such an important piece to DC Comics' history, but I wouldn't still consider it the greatest Batman comic of all time.

Conclusion

I do not agree this is the best Batman book out there or even Frank Miller's best book. It is definitely not one of my favourites, but I don't hate it. It's not terrible, but I just don't like it as much as some people do. All I'm saying is in 2024, this book does hold up as the best despite having a big impact on the character and the industry. I believe the best adjective to describe is 'overrated' and I will die on this hill. 

5.5/10 

Check Frank MIller's best comic book: https://comicsandcomics831.blogspot.com/2024/11/the-best-frank-millers-work.html

Check this to read what I think about other Robins: 

https://comicsandcomics831.blogspot.com/2024/11/history-of-every-robins-from-dick.html