Year Three

(2007)

 

–Batgirl Vol. 4 #0, Part 1
This zero issue flashback takes place “four years ago,” meaning four years prior to Batgirl Vol. 4 #1. Barbara Gordon and James Gordon, Jr., the daughter and son of Commissioner Gordon, visit their pop at GCPD HQ. Babs watches as some officers discuss the “myth of the Batman” by displaying a makeshift Batman costume cobbled together based upon supposed eye-witness accounts delivered to a sketch artist.  The officers only list Batman’s three “official” sightings in Gotham, but fail to include his sighting during the Darkseid attack from Justice League Vol. 2 and his subsequent televised appearance on Capitol Hill with the Justice League and the President.  Nor do they mention the Justice League’s widely publicized fight against Starro or address David Graves’ book about the emergence of the superheroes.  Because of all this, it is safe to speculate that a vast majority of the US population, despite massive evidence of the dawning of the superheroes, still simply refuses to believe such fantastical stuff.  Back to our story at hand: When Canadian cult leader Harry X and his followers take control of the entire police HQ, Babs takes it upon herself to put her years of combat training to the test, dons the fake Batman costume, and beats the tar out of Harry X! The Dark Knight arrives just in time to watch Babs KO the big lug. Impressed, he congratulates Babs, who soon becomes Batman’s newest pupil and member of the Bat Family, Batgirl (as referenced in Batgirl Vol. 4 #1).

–FLASHBACK: Batman and Batgirl, following the latter’s debut, quickly begin a routine of taking down crooks together (as seen in a single-panel flashback from Batgirl Vol. 4 #6). Note that Batgirl is colored here in her more recent all black ensemble. However, at this point in her career, she would have been wearing her grey outfit. Batgirl also becomes romantically involved with Robin (as referenced in both Nightwing Vol. 3 and Batgirl Vol. 4).

–NOTE:  An escaped Joker puts poison into the heating ducts at the Wayon Housing Project homes, killing 114 people (as referenced in Teen Titans Vol. 4 #15).  Batman, Robin, and Batgirl investigate.^[1]

–NOTE:  Batman begins recording every detail of every case, especially the more bizarre cases, into his Black Casebook.  We know this is canon in the New Age because of the reference to the “third Batman” nightmare from Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #6.  This reference canonizes Simon Hurt’s substitute “ghost” Batmen that we will meet later this year, which in turn canonizes Batman’s recording-of and remembrance-of them via an entry into the Black Casebook.

–NOTE: Batman secretly assembles items that can be used to neutralize each of his fellow Justice Leaguers (due to his natural distrust of just about everyone and also in the case they ever get mind-controlled or turn to the dark side), as referenced in Justice League Vol. 2 #19. These items, including some Kryptonite, are placed into “emergency briefcases” in a vault in the Batcave.

–FLASHBACK: February 14.  Valentine’s Day.  Batman meets the leather-clad cat-burglar known as Catwoman (Selina Kyle) and prevents her from robbing the Sunnyside Projects (as seen in Young Romance: A New 52 Valentine’s Day Special #1).  Batman, seeing that Catwoman is beautiful, skilled, decently-trained, and smart, decides to cut her some slack and lets her walk, encouraging her to use her abilities for the side of good. While Catwoman remains a definitive villain, she does decide to tiptoe the line between good and evil. The Dark Knight figures out Catwoman’s secret identity pretty much right away, but Catwoman does not learn who Batman is (as referenced in Catwoman Vol. 4 #1).^[2]

–FLASHBACK:  Catwoman proposes starting a sexual relationship with Batman, but the Dark Knight walks, saying “It would never work” (as seen in Justice League of America Vol. 3 #2).  Of course, the idea will always be on Batman’s mind, and in a few years it will finally happen. The beginning of this scene (or what could presumably be this scene) is shown in the second feature of Justice League of America Vol. 3 #3.

–NOTE: Enter Katherine Webb Kane, the thrill-seeking secret agent femme-fatale who happens to be the widow of Bruce’s uncle, Nathan Kane. Kathy works for the UN secret intelligence organization known as Spyral with one of their top agents, Santiago Vargas (who will later become the superhero known as El Gaucho). Kathy, under orders to infiltrate the Dark Knight’s organization in order to discover his secret identity, becomes Bat-Woman! As Bat-Woman, Kathy not only fights crime side-by-side with Batman but becomes his lover as well! These items are all canonically referenced in the “Leviathan web display” from Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #3.^[3]

–NOTE: Kathy Kane learns that Doctor Dedalus (Otto Netz), the vile ex-Nazi spymaster/head of Spyral, is her biological father.  Ashamed of her heritage and own secret ties to Spyral, Kathy ends her very short-lived but passionate relationship with Batman, retires as Bat-Woman, and becomes a recluse. While not specifically referenced in the New Age, the “Leviathan web display” from Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #3 shows Bat-Woman Kathy Kane. Therefore, we must assume her important back-story, being pertinent to the main action of New Age Batman Incorporated, is at least quasi-canonical.

–NOTE: Ra’s Al Ghul’s second-in-command and his actual biological father, Han-Son (better known as The Sensei), tries and fails to seize control of the League of Assassins, prompting a brief war between two ninja factions. Ex Bat-Woman Kathy Kane mysteriously gets involved and winds up seemingly getting stabbed to death! This is lifted from the original Detective Comics #485. Unknown to Batman, Kathy is not really dead—her murder is actually an elaborately orchestrated ruse perpetrated by herself, Spyral, and Talia Al Ghul. These occurrences, while not specifically referenced in the New Age, are canon because the “Leviathan web display” from Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #3 shows Bat-Woman Kathy Kane. Therefore, we must assume Kathy’s important back-story bits, being pertinent to the main action of New Age Batman Incorporated, are at least quasi-canonical.

–NOTE: The well-known gangster Matches Malone is murdered by The Ventriloquist and Scarface. Batman assumes his identity and will use the Malone disguise as a primary cover on-and-off-again for the rest of his illustrious career (as referenced in Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #3). In the Silver Age, Malone debuted during The Saga of Ra’s Al Ghul, but was killed right away, allowing for Batman to assume his ID. In the Modern Age, Malone was seemingly killed early on, with Batman assuming the ID, only to later turn up still alive in Gotham nearly two decades later. Upon his return (in Close Before Striking), Malone was quickly killed off for real by Scarface. So, it appears that the Close Before Striking version is the more accurate version in the New Age. Batman’s use of the Malone disguise begins now. Batman, as Malone, will quickly distinguish himself as one of Gotham’s top mobsters, affiliating Malone’s name with the Whiskey Road Gang and the miniscule but devilish mobster known as Small Fry (as also referenced in Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #3). The Whiskey Road Gang is a reference to an old Chuck Dixon story (if I’m not mistaken), but for the life of me I cannot recall which one.  Bear in mind, there is probably a ton of undercover work done by Batman—as Matches—to bolster the character’s underworld reputation that is never specifically mentioned in any comic book.  However, we simply have to imagine most of this credibility-building as occurring randomly throughout the timeline from this point forward.

–NOTE: Billionaire John Mayhew attempts to recruit Batman and Robin into a new team of international heroes dubbed The Club of Heroes. One of the main members of this team is the original Knight, essentially the British Batman. Knight’s son Cyril Sheldrake (who is also his sidekick known as Squire) will later become the second Knight and one of Batman’s trusted allies in the future. Wingman, El Gaucho (Santiago Vargas), Man-of-Bats (William Great Eagle), Little Raven, The Legionary, The Musketeer (Jean-Marie), and The Ranger are also members of the team. Once assembled, this Club of Heroes venture will fail immediately. The team doesn’t get along and disbands in less than a half hour. This event is canonically referenced in the “Leviathan web display” from Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #3.^[4]

–NOTE: Deathstroke the Terminator (Slade Wilson) debuts. Batman will quickly become acquainted with the lethal tactics of the world’s deadliest assassin (as referenced in Batman: The Dark Knight Vol. 2 #4). The debut of the original Teen Titans led by Dick Grayson was associated with Deathstroke in the Silver and Modern Ages, but in the New 52 Dick never started the Titans, so we can ignore any previous histories. In Red Hood & The Outlaws #1 we are told of a past bond between Nightwing, Arsenal, Starfire, and other original Silver and Modern Age Titans, including Garth, Dustin, Vic, Lilith, and Gar.  So far, all we know in the New Age is that these characters were never a teenage crime-fighting team, but they do share a linked history and camaraderie—Lobdell simply calls them a “gang [Arsenal and Starfire] used to hang with” and refers to the latter five as people Starfire has slept with.  In fact, it is even possible that a few of these latter five names—no surnames given—are not even characters we’ve known before.  Any details beyond that have yet to be revealed.

–NOTE: District Attorney Harvey Dent becomes the super-villain Two-Face. There has yet to be a canonical reference to his origin in the New Age, but we can assume that the circumstances are similar to past re-tellings. The Caped Crusader puts Two-Face behind Arkham Asylum bars (the very institution where he makes his New Age debut in Batman Vol. 2 #1). Two-Face will be one of Batman’s primary arch-enemies over the course of the next few years. They will have multiple encounters, many of which we just have to imagine occurring randomly on this timeline.

–NOTE: Simon Hurt implants post-hypnotic suggestions into Batman’s psyche while he’s undergoing sensory deprivation tests. Hurt is actually Thomas Wayne, Bruce’s great(x5) uncle born in the 1700s, endowed with quasi-immortality (or so he claims). In the Modern Age he definitely was old evil Thomas Wayne, but I’m not so sure in the New Age. During these sensory deprivation tests, Hurt is able to psychoanalyze Batman and literally hear in detail about all of the Dark Knight’s hallucinations, new and old. Using dialogue specific to one of Batman’s most recent hallucinations, Dr. Hurt implants the trigger word “Zur-En-Arrh” into Batman’s brain. Once this word is uttered, Bruce will “shutdown” and lose all memory of having ever been a crime-fighter. Meanwhile, Batman forgets ever meeting Hurt thanks to hypnosis. Hurt also blocks all of Batman’s memory of him using hypnosis. This event, while not specifically referenced in the New Age, is canon because the “Leviathan web display” from Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #3 shows Simon Hurt. Therefore, we must assume Hurt’s important back-story bits, being pertinent to the New Age, are at least quasi-canonical.

–NOTE: Simon Hurt continues messing with Batman’s brain while he is undergoing sleep deprivation tests. Hurt tests out three substitute Batmen (cops Josef Muller, Branca, and Michael Lane) against the real thing, but a groggy and confused Batman still easily defeats them (as referenced in Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #6). Hurt blocks Batman’s memory of the fight against the substitutes and sends the Dark Knight on his way. Batman still has no memories of ever meeting Simon Hurt or of fighting his substitute Batmen. However, he does record the details of the fight into his Black Casebook, mistakenly listing it as a hallucination he had undergone while in the sleep deprivation tank.  Bruce calls them the “three ghosts of Batman.”  Hurt will retrain (and sadistically torture) his substitute Batmen for the next three years before unleashing them upon Gotham again. Specifically, Lane’s brother and sister will be ritualistically slaughtered in an occult ritual (as mentioned in Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #10).

–NOTE: Batman isn’t a part of this occurrence, but this is an important note to include. Several months have passed following the publishing of David Graves’ Justice League: Gods Among Men.  We are told that Green Arrow, Zatanna, and Hawkman have all debuted by this point and are public figures. Two mysterious men meet in London and declare themselves the world’s first official “super-villains” (as seen in the second epilogue of Justice League Vol. 2 #6).  Justice League of America Vol. 3 #1 reveals one of the mystery men as Professor Anthony Ivo.  JLofA #1 also tells us that this meeting happens five years prior to the early months of 2013.  Five-and-a-half months, which is more accurate, puts us here.

–NOTE: As referenced in Justice League Vol. 2 #7, the US Government creates a special division led by Colonel Steve Trevor called ARGUS (Advanced Research Group Uniting Superhumans). ARGUS’s main initiative is to provide support and public relations for the Justice League, with Trevor acting as the official liaison between the Justice League and the citizens of planet Earth.

–NOTE: The Justice League makes its official headquarters at a new state-of-the-art compound known as the Hall of Justice in Washington, DC (as referenced in Justice League International Vol. 2 #1).

–NOTE: The Justice League, which has been using Boom Tube technology to travel from mission to mission ever since its inception, finds out the hard way that one in every one-thousand boom jumps screws up and accidentally sends the team to Apokolips. Stranded in Apokolips, the JL fights off an army of Parademons until Cyborg can reboot his systems and return them back to Earth (as referenced in Justice League Vol. 2 #8, Part 1).^[5]

–Penguin: Pain and Prejudice #1-5
Batman deals with longtime Gotham mob boss known as The Penguin (Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot). Penguin has been a prominent underworld leader for years, but has always been virtually untouchable by the law and has yet to serve jail time. I’m not one-hundred-percent sure that this Penguin story, which also contains the New Age history of the Cobblepot family and Penguin’s origin, takes place here or takes place later. However, I think that it definitely could work here, especially since it defines Penguin as a criminal worthy of jail time, whereas previously (as mentioned above) he was a seemingly untouchable gang lord. Our story begins by highlighting the ruthless and evil Penguin, a horrible, monocled, fat, little ogre of a man that uses his vast independent wealth to destroy people’s lives.^[6] While Penguin is notorious and has been the preeminent mobster in Gotham for many years, the waddling villain has orchestrated the most atrocious and violent crimes possible, but kept his hands clean. Until now. After a brutal murder during a jewelry heist, Batman suspects Penguin’s involvement and confronts Penguin at his Iceberg Lounge club/hotel. With no evidence, Batman then meets with Commissioner Gordon to discuss a plan of action. Meanwhile, Penguin begins dating a lovely blind gal named Cassandra. A few weeks pass (during a gap that occurs in the middle of issue #3) and Penguin orders another murderous jewelry heist in order to obtain a ring for his girlfriend. Batman examines the crime scene, which leads him to Penguin’s goons, which finally ties Penguin to a crime. Penguin is arrested amidst an embarrassing media frenzy, but his lawyers have him free in less than a day. At the opera, Batman warns Cassandra that Penguin is wicked, but she is blind in more ways than one and doesn’t believe it. An irate Penguin then tests a mechanical penguin—which acts as a signal beacon that attracts birds—by sending it into a Gotham schoolyard. Within minutes a swarm of birds attacks the school (Hitchcock style), but Batman arrives in the Batplane and saves the day. Penguin retaliates by launching thousands of the bird beacons all over the city. As the Hitchcockian nightmare unfolds across the city, Batman goes straight to the source at the Iceberg Lounge. A panicked Penguin accidentally stabs Cassandra to death before Batman hauls his ass to prison. I should also mention that throughout this story Joker can be seen hiding out in a room at the Iceberg Lounge Hotel, doing Joker things like dressing in drag while tickling a goat, throwing circus knives at a midget, or wearing a panda costume. It is unknown how long Penguin stays in prison, but we will definitely see him again (as soon as next year).  And when we see him a bit later down the winding road, he will be a prominent mob boss yet again and he will reopen the even more grandiose Iceberg Casino (in Detective Comics Vol. 2).

–NOTE: Batman apprehends the debuting Riddler (Edward Nashton aka Edward Nigma). Riddler makes his New Age debut as a prisoner of Arkham Asylum in Batman Vol. 2 #1.

–NOTE: Batman apprehends the debuting Scarecrow (Jonathan Crane). Scarecrow makes his New Age debut as a prisoner of Arkham Asylum in Batman Vol. 2 #1.

–NOTE: Batman apprehends the debuting Tweed cousins, Dumpson and Deever, better known as the Lewis Carroll-inspired supervillains Tweedle-Dum and Tweedle-Dee (as referenced in Batman: The Dark Knight Vol. 2 #8).

–NOTE: Batman meets and defeats the debuting eco-terrorist known as Poison Ivy (Pam Isley) (as referenced in Batman: The Dark Knight Vol. 2 #6). Ivy will be one of Batman’s primary rivals over the course of the next few years. They will have multiple encounters, many of which we just have to imagine occurring randomly on this timeline. Eventually, Poison Ivy will become a sort of anti-hero sometimes fighting on the side of good. In Detective Comics Vol. 2 #14, which occurs in 2012, Batman mentions that in a previous encounter with Ivy he has been able to fend off her ability to “brainwash via kiss” through sheer willpower alone. This type of defense against Ivy’s metahuman charms might have been used now or will be used during one of the aforementioned invisible Ivy notes to come.

–NOTE: Batman apprehends the debuting Killer Croc (Waylon Jones). Croc makes his New Age debut as a prisoner of Arkham Asylum in Batman Vol. 2 #1. A single-panel flashback in Batman: The Dark Knight Vol. 2 #12 shows what could be the very first brutal battle between Batman and Killer Croc.

–NOTE: Batman apprehends the debuting Clayface (Basil Karlo). Clayface makes his New Age debut as a prisoner of Arkham Asylum in Batman Vol. 2 #1. In the New Age, Karlo is the only Clayface—there aren’t multiple Clayfaces like there were in the Modern Age and Silver Age (not yet, anyway). In any case, Clayface will be one of Batman’s primary arch-nemeses over the course of the next few years. They will have multiple encounters, many of which we just have to imagine occurring randomly on this timeline. During each encounter, Batman will take a sample of Clayface’s DNA (as referenced in Batman Vol. 2 #19).

–NOTE: September. Batman visits Crime Alley, as he does every late September, to honor his fallen parents at the location of their grisly deaths (as referenced in Batman & Robin Vol. 2 #1).

–NOTE: Batman obtains a giant question mark as a collector’s item after another altercation with Riddler. The question mark can first be seen in the Batcave in Batman Vol. 2 #1).

–NOTE: The Spook (Val Kaliban) debuts (as referenced in Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #1).

–FLASHBACK: Mad Hatter (Jervis Tetch) debuts and is jailed by Batman and Robin (as referenced in Batman: The Dark Knight Vol. 2 #5). A single-panel flashback in Batman: The Dark Knight Vol. 2 #12 shows what could be this very encounter.

–FLASHBACK: Batman prevents master assassin Deadshot (Floyd Lawton) from murdering a senator (as seen through flashback in Suicide Squad Vol. 4 #1).

–NOTE: Vortex debuts and is jailed by Batman and Robin. Vortex is canonized in the New Age via an appearance in Batman: The Dark Knight Vol. 2 #1. Vortex is named in Catwoman Vol. 4 #19. In the Silver Age, Vortex had different powers and was named “Zebra-Man” due to his black and white striped body.

–NOTE: Spellbinder (Delbert Billings) debuts and is jailed by Batman and Robin. Spellbinder is canonized in the New Age via a reference in Batman: The Dark Knight Vol. 2 #4.

–NOTE: The mindless hulking Blockbuster (Mark Desmond) makes his villanous first appearance and is swiftly brought to justice by the Dynamic Duo (as referenced in Hawk & Dove Vol. 3 #6).

–NOTE: The Cavalier (Mortimer Drake) debuts and is jailed by Batman and Robin. The Cavalier is canonized in the New Age via an appearance in Batman: The Dark Knight Vol. 2 #2.

–NOTE: The Justice League fights and apprehends The Key. The Key is canonized in the New Age via an appearance in Batman: The Dark Knight Vol. 2 #1.

–FLASHBACK: Batman smashes out of a glass holding cell and apprehends the in-prison-again-out-of-prison-again Two-Face once more (as seen in Batman: The Dark Knight Vol. 2 #12).

–Batgirl Vol. 4 #0, Part 2
This is a single splash page that shows Batman, Robin, and Batgirl swinging into the Gotham night together while on patrol.

–NOTE:  An escaped Joker unveils his famous “laughing fish” gag (one of the most beloved Steve Englehart Joker tales of all time, originally from Detective Comics #475 and made canon via reference in Batman Vol. 2 #16), putting his signature smile on all the fish in Gotham Bay, and killing many people in the process.  Batman manages to apprehend Joker.

–NOTE: Batman sends the demonic-looking metahuman gangster known as The Boss to Blackgate Prison (as referenced in the second feature from Detective Comics Vol. 2 #20).

–NOTE: Dick ends his tenure as Robin early and becomes the superhero known as Nightwing (as referenced in Red Hood & The Outlaws #2 and Nightwing Vol. 3).

–NOTE:  Batman strikes Joker henchman Willis Todd (father of Jason Todd!) in the arm with a Batarang (as referenced in Red Hood & The Outlaws #0).  Willis evades capture for now, but it won’t be long before he is jailed (following an incident unrelated to Batman) and murdered in prison.  The flashback second feature to Red Hood & The Outlaws #0 tells us that Joker, with a far-fetched plan to mold Willis’ troubled son into the next screwed-up Robin, is responsible for putting Willis in jail.  Furthermore, Joker makes Jason believe his mother is dead, shoots Jason, then drops him off in the care of Leslie Thompkins (knowing that, via Leslie, he will wind up in the care of Batman and likely become his new protege—a Boy Wonder with a few screws loose).  Despite my opinion that this very weak Scott Lobdell tale is both poorly constructed and executed, it subtly reveals to us that Joker knows Batman’s secret identity!  This, of course, is huge.  The “Death of the Family” arc confirms that Joker does indeed know the identities of every Bat Family member, although it’s a bit more complicated than that (as we learn in Batman Vol. 2 #17).  Joker’s lunacy runs so deep that he chooses to completely separate the secret IDs from their superhero counterparts, focusing only on the latter as a part of a twisted “fun” fantasy that he constantly lives out.

–FLASHBACK: Juvenile delinquent Jason Todd, after getting shot by Joker, winds up in the care of Dr. Leslie Thompkins (as seen in Red Hood & The Outlaws #0). Jason recovers only to show his gratitude by stealing some pills from Leslie.  Batman immediately nabs him. Leslie, however, convinces Batman to be lenient on the boy and help him. Bruce makes Jason his legal ward and seeing promise in him, reveals his secret and offers him the position of brand new Robin, provided he completes a training course. Unlike his already talented predecessor, Jason is not a natural aerialist and will train for six months before hitting the streets with Batman. Thus, Jason will be Robin for roughly one year, with the first six months of the tenure comprising of a hellish training regiment and the last six months on the streets fighting baddies in-costume (before getting killed).^[7] Furthermore, while younger than Dick, Jason must also be in his teens in order for things in the New Age DC to jibe—Jason was younger when he debuted in the Modern Age.

 

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1. ^[1] COLLIN COLSHER:  Teen Titans Vol. 4 #15 also mentions four other random unspecified Joker crimes.  These four other crimes must be placed randomly (and imagined) on our timeline, sometime in this year or the next. ↩
2. ^[2] COLLIN COLSHER:  The Young Romance Special #1 definitively makes Catwoman’s debut from Frank Miller’s Year One non-canon in the New Age.  The flashback from this issue occurs here since it takes place on a Valentine’s Day where Batman has already become a household name. ↩
3. ^[3] DIEGO:  Kathy Webb Kane’s debut should take place after Batman’s presence has been made public to the world (in the first Justice League arc) and after Robin’s debut.  While not necessarily canon, the first volume of Batman Incorporated placed Kathy’s debut after Robin’s debut, so it makes sense if it mirrors the Modern Age in that aspect. ↩
4. ^[4] COLLIN COLSHER:  Note that the “Leviathan web display” shows images from the previous continuity.  Therefore, Robin’s costume is an obsolete one. ↩
5. ^[5] COLLIN COLSHER: In Justice League Vol. 2 #8, which takes place in 2012, Cyborg states that the JL has boom jumped 1,056 times since their last trip to Apokolips, meaning 1,056 times between 2009 and 2012. If one assumes that the JL jumps at least twice per mission (once to get where they are going and once to return) than that means the team, from 2006 through early 2012 will have boomed around 3,000 times; meaning the highball estimate for number of total JL missions during that range could be around 1,500. Of course, that seems extremely high—the JL probably will boom on average much more than twice on a single mission, maybe as high as ten, fifteen, twenty, or twenty-five times (if not more) depending on the case. Also, we should bear in mind that the booms might not always be full-team teleportation, and could very well be individual jumps. So one could conceivably divide any number of total missions (from within the range of 2006 through early 2012) by seven to achieve a more reasonable and realistic number. Thus, instead of 1,500 missions, the total number of JL cases during that five-plus-year time range could be as low as 200, 150, or even under 100. But my point is, the JL will absolutely go on way more missions than I will catalog on this timeline. We just have to imagine that these various assignments will be sprinkled throughout the chronology in the future. ↩
6. ^[6] COLLIN COLSHER: The New Age version of Penguin is by far the most vile we’ve ever witnessed. This version of Cobblepot ruins people’s lives for very little reason, and when I say ruin, I mean ruin. Entire families are wiped out overnight, along with reputations permanently scarred—one victim’s girlfriend is even mugged and dosed with HIV on Penguin’s orders. Yikes. ↩
7. ^[7] COLLIN COLSHER: Jason says in Red Hood & The Outlaws that he was Robin for “years.” There isn’t enough room on this timeline for him to have been Robin for a full two years. The longest amount of time he could have been Robin is one year—and even that includes six months of training.  Maybe in this case “years” simply means “more than a year including training time.”

   BATFAN REBORN: I think Jason’s “for years” comment has more to do with his self-perception in regard to the recollection of time rather than with actual time. His instinctive use of his Robin training stays with him even in “Under the Red Hood.” Despite the fact that Jason is technically not Robin, he still has the Robin identity as the basis for who he is—something that he has changed over the years until he feels like his own person again. ↩