Ranking the ROBINS

[Guest Betterman]

Inspired by Newsarama: http://www.newsarama.com/15683-ranking-the-robins-from-10-to-1-yes-there-are-10.html
They list the top 10, but I'm only doing the top 5.
 

5. THE PRE-CRISIS EARTH-2 ROBIN
4. CARRIE KELLY
3. TIM DRAKE
2. DAMIAN WAYNE
1. DICK GRAYSON

Although "best" is retardedly subjective, how would you rank the Robins? I can't really find a lot of fault with their list, except in the top 3.

My list:
5. Jason Todd
4. Carrie Kelly
3. Damian Wayne
2. Dick Grayson
1. Tim Drake.

What are your rankings?

 

[DSkillz]

Discussions on characters belong in Character Chat. Moved.

[AVP vs The Terminator]

3. Tim Drake

2. Stephanie Brown (better as Batgirl but still a fun enough character)

1. Dick Grayson

 

Really don't care for any of the others. Todd got better when he became the Hood.

[corvette1710]

Tim is numero uno.

 

Then Dick Grayson, then Todd (I liked Todd. )

[C.T.]

John Blake.

[Bergy_Berg]

I mean, if we include what the robins become, I'd definitely say Grayson is number 1.

[Bergy_Berg]

John Blake.

His first name is totes pretty.

[AVP vs The Terminator]

Tim is numero uno.

 

Then Dick Grayson, then Todd (I liked Todd. )

There's a reason fans had him beaten to death with a crowbar.

[Guest tomisntblue]

There's a reason fans had him beaten to death with a crowbar.

It's just because he wasn't Dick. 

[Guest bigballerju]

I think Tim Drake surpassed Grayson as the best Robin. Dick Grayson would be second followed by Damien. Damien was developed real well and was always fun to read regardless of the times he was too arrogant for his own good.

[Guest sirmethos]

1. Dick Grayson

2. Tim Drake

 

None of the other Robins were worth reading, imo.

[Guest Hayesmeister5651]

Dick Grayson should always be number one.

[Guest force_echo]

Tim Drake would have been an interesting character if he had been faced with more "darkness". I mean, he's less traumatized than Dick and Jason, working on that dichotomy between his nature and the others (including Batman) would have been interesting, but they didn't do that enough.

[Guest bigballerju]

I'm glad Tim Drake didn't have a lot of darkness. That was one of the good things about him because he could keep himself from being dark like Bruce. His Red Robin run was excellent.

[Magnamax]

Carrie Kelly ftw.

[Guest Betterman]

ComicsAlliance had an article about this during an "Ask Chris."

Tim Drake was the choice.

http://www.comicsalliance.com/2013/03/29/batman-robin-tim-drake-dc-comics-ask-chris/

An interesting look at why Tim was chosen.

(Also, he ranks Dick really high. And even Damien's ranking comes not from his work as Bruce's Robin, but as Dick's Robin. Which says even more flattering things about Dick Grayson.)

[AVP vs The Terminator]

It's just because he wasn't Dick. 

And because he was a dick.

[Guest Darxeth]

Just wrote a list of my favorite Robins in great detail and accidently backed out right before it sent. FML.

 

I'll just make the list and explain later.

1. Grayson. Always.

2. Drake.

3. Damian.

4. Jason Todd.

[Guest Darxeth]

Alright, so The best Robins, in my opinion.:

 

1. Grayson: 

-Allowing Grayson to be his sidekick was one of the wisest things Batman has ever done. In Grayson, he'd find a friend, a partner, a son, a brother, and last but not least: A teacher. That's right, I believe Bruce needed Grayson's company just as much as Grayson needed him. I mean, here was a kid who'd experienced a similar tragedy in his life and yet, didn't obsess over it. He didn't dwell on it like Batman. He took things in stride, and learned how to have fun, even against the terrors of Gotham. I honestly believe he was just what Batman needed to keep him sane, aside from Alfred; a refreshing personality. I can imagine that if you're a realistic, brooding, border-line OC, an optimistic partner who shares the same beliefs you do, but goes about them in a healthier manner, is quite uplifting.

Grayson was someone he could take pride in. In my opinion, he was a reflection of the same hope that Batman had given the people of Gotham. This, I think, reinforced Batman's dream to keep fighting the good fight even further.

The thing I love about Grayson is that, not only did he learn from Batman, he surpassed him in many ways. (Even though I still view Batman superior in most ways)

 

For instance, he became what Batman never could: An inspiring and engaging leader., and developed the ability to see the good in peope, even more-so than Batman: A quality that was learned on his own, even before he came to be Nightwing. That's something you can't train.

 

 

2. Tim Drake:

-In a time when Batman was hesitant to take up another sidekick, and perhaps one of the darker periods of his life, came young Mr. Drake. A kid who, up until his recent affiliations with Bruce, had lived a fairly normal life. (IIRC)

He didn't share the same troubled childhood as past Robins, and yet, he seemed to have something they didnt: A drive. It wasn't the same determination that Grayson had, nor was it anything like Jason's angressive approach to crime fighting. It was much similar to Batman's own. And like Grayson, Drake kept Bruce's sanity intact. Hell, Drake's presence might have had an even larger impact on Batman's emotional well-being as Grayson did, due to allowing Batman to finally trust himself with a sidekick again.

The thing I love about Tim is that he is always trying to better himself, which is a quality I like to think I share, and a quality in which Batman def. shares. I recall an issue of either Detective Comics, Nightwing, or Robin, when Grayson was teaching Drake how to become a better detective, schooling him on the importance of keen observation. Now look at Tim? He's a damn fine detective, and probably the most prodigous Robin ever, as far as wits go. It was a tough choice to put him second, because he was everything Robin should be, but I decided to list Grayson first, due to not only setting the standard for Robin, but also reflecting the core ideals of Batman in a more efficient way, all the while enjoying it.

 

 

3. Damian Wayne: (With Grayson's Batman)

-Honestly, I disliked Damian even more than Todd as Robin. He came off as an arrogant, pessimistic, snobby little brat. After reading more of his adventures with Grayson, I came to like the little twerp. His presence to Grayson was similar to Grayson's to Batman in that the two were opposites, and yet connected to each other brilliantly. They leveled each other out so well, they would have given the first Dynamic duo a run for their money.

 

 

4. Jason Todd:

-Jason's main flaw was that he was not ready to be Robin, and it costs him as it did Bruce. Reckless, angry, moody: everything that could have went wrong with Jason did. I remember in a scan I'd seen somewhere that Jason had allowed a man to fall to his death, an event that I think Batman has never forgiven himself for, just like the tragedy of Jason's death. He was Batman biggest mistake, though he wasn't all bad.

 

The thing I love most about Jason (And hate) is that he was the most human Robin. All he ever had wanted was to make Batman proud and fight the good fight; he wanted compassion and love. (Which Batman delivered on for the most part, I guess)

Ultimately, Jason allowed his fear and dissapointment to breed anger, hate and bitterness. Thus, making him the worst Robin. (Though, to be fair, most of the blame is on Batman, for even allowing him to roam the streets as Robin to begin with)

[Guest bigballerju]

It has also been repeated many times Drake is a better detective then Bruce in his later years. Bruce even called him the master detective when he was Red Robin. Dick ended up being a better H2H fighter then Bruce. Both Robins passed Bruce in their own ways.