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Salute the Boy Wonder's big birthday in DC's Robin 80th Anniversary Special
Roaring in with a celebratory retrospective to salute the crime-fighting career of The Boy Wonder, DC Comics is rolling out the red, green, and gold carpet with a special Robin 80th Anniversary Super Spectacular starring a packed nest of all your favorite Robins over the decades — and SYFY WIRE is hatching a special exclusive peek inside.
This overstuffed 100-page edition arrives on March 18 and showcases 10 short tales of Gotham City's High-Flying Hero in all his many colorful incarnations, from Dick Grayson, Jason Todd, and Tim Drake to Stephanie Brown, Damian Wayne, and even Carrie Kelley. DC's cornerstone character was created by Bob Kane, Bill Finger, and Jerry Robinson and first bolted into action in the April 1940 issue of Detective Comics #38 as Batman's trusted sidekick.
An all-star roster of talent has emerged to help Robin blow out the candles on his 80th birthday cake, including spirited stories from writers Marv Wolfman, Chuck Dixon, Devin Grayson, Tim Seeley, Tom King, Judd Winick, James Tynion IV, Amy Wolfram, Robbie Thompson, Adam Glass, and Peter J. Tomasi. Artistic contributions come courtesy of Frank Miller, Andy Kubery, Jorge Jimenez, Tom Grummett, Scott McDaniel, Mikel Janin, Kenneth Rocafort, Freddie E. Williams II, Javi Fernandez, Nicola Scott, Dustin Nguyen, Lee Weeks, and many more.
Inside, The Super Sons' Tomasi and Jimenez have teamed up for this wondrous one-shot with a touching tale of companionship featuring Damian Wayne and Jonathan Kent titled "My Best Friend," and we've got a four-page preview of the pint-sized crime-busting partners in the gallery below, complete with special variant covers.
Jimenez reflects on his collaboration in The Super Sons (2017-2018) with Tomasi and why the Robin character endures in all its many interations, and the unique qualities of Damian's Boy Wonder.
"For me, as an artist, the Super Sons series changed my career," he tells SYFY WIRE. "It is the project that has given me the most recognition, even more than Superman. So when they told me we had the opportunity to make another Super Sons story I just answered yes. I didn't think about my deadlines or how busy I was. I said YES, I would love to do Super Sons again!"
"I think that Damian has an energy that makes him the coolest Robin, probably because his father is Batman!" he explains. "When I'm signing Super Sons books and drawing a quick sketch of the characters for fans, I always ask: Damian or Jon? And 80 percent of the time they tell me ‘Robin please!’ I think there is something that everyone loves about Damian, and whatever happens, he always wants to be the best!
"I feel like I’m in full sync with Peter while working on Super Sons," Jimenez notes. "I like to explore character expressions that link well with what Peter has written. The character’s expressions and actions can be very funny, as it always was during the series, but this time there’s emotional value that makes it even more special. I’ve tried to show Jon's affection for Damian, without being very brazen, because that is how they are. They keep a certain distance, but they would give their lives for each other.
"All of the pages have been fun to make. It has been a gift for me to do this, and now I just hope Super Sons fans like it, since they are the best fans in the world!"
DC Comics' Robin 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular lands March 18.
