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Robin: Son of Batman
Robin – Son of Batman, Volume 1: Year of Blood
Before he was Robin, Batman’s son, Damian Wayne, was raised by his mother, Talia al Ghul, to lead the vicious League of Assassins. In this story, the son of Batman has freed himself from that destiny and is about to embark on a globe-spanning quest to atone for the horrible acts he committed during the most brutal portion of his old life: The Year of Blood!
Collecting: Robin: Son of Batman 1-6, Sneak Peek
Collecting: Robin: Son of Batman 1-6, Sneak Peek
176 pages, Hardcover
First published March 29, 2015
64 people are currently reading
1169 people want to read
About the author
Patrick Gleason
660 books61 followersPatrick Gleason is a comic book artist. Among his credits are the 2005/2006 miniseries Green Lantern Corps: Recharge. He has also worked on such titles as Aquaman, JLA: Welcome to the Working Week, JSA, Noble Causes, H-E-R-O, and X-Men Unlimited.
He has been the regular penciller on DC's Green Lantern Corps since its debut in 2006.
Photo by Luigi Novi.
He has been the regular penciller on DC's Green Lantern Corps since its debut in 2006.
Photo by Luigi Novi.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 125 reviews
May 22, 2021
(B+) 76% | Good
Notes: A wordy weave, it’s roughly-spun, a yarn of sass and fighting: all tinted gloss of candy-floss, it cries for finer writing.
Notes: A wordy weave, it’s roughly-spun, a yarn of sass and fighting: all tinted gloss of candy-floss, it cries for finer writing.
September 4, 2021
Despite the fact that I couldn't always follow the artwork, this book was a slam dunk for me.
I've always had a soft spot for Damian Wayne. I've seen all the animated films he appears in and I've read some of the Morrison run where he's Robin and Dick's Batman. This book was him trying to make up for a lot of the pain he caused during the Year of Blood.
The Year of Blood was a series of tasks and quests Damian performed to prove himself to his family. It consisted of a thought of thefts of spiritual objects, harming people and animals and in the end, Damian became someone a bunch of different people hated.
He comes into contact with Nobody's daughter, Maya who wants to Avenge her father's murder. I really like her as a character and she tries to help reverse some of what Damian did.
Goliath was adorable! I loved Damian's relationship with him and their meeting is why this book made me tear up a bit. I really felt for him here. He's a kid. He's a tiny kid who, as we find out earlier, still has baby teeth.
Damian Wayne is all about family. He dedicates himself and everything he hopes to be to living up to his family's standards. And while he used to place so much emphasis on blood, he's grown past that now. There's several mentions of the other Robins as his "brothers" (and while we're at it, what the hell is Cassie? She's your family, too, Damian). So, here he has traded his grandfather's cause for the bat family's.
Damian asks Maya for forgiveness and that was such a moving scene.
Anyway, he gains a sister in Maya and he leaves Goliath with her. It was sad. His mother returns and I hate Talia so I could not care less about her showing up.
I really enjoyed this and it's such a great introduction to Damian Wayne, in my opinion.
Edit: Still as wonderful as I remembered. Damian's nightmare of Dick telling him there was no way Bruce would accept him if he knew about his past really hit close to home. I remain disappointed that DC never really capitalized on Damian and Cass' guilt over what their birth families led them to do. That seems like such an easy road to go down but they ruined Cass' history so that's not really an option at this point.
I've always had a soft spot for Damian Wayne. I've seen all the animated films he appears in and I've read some of the Morrison run where he's Robin and Dick's Batman. This book was him trying to make up for a lot of the pain he caused during the Year of Blood.
The Year of Blood was a series of tasks and quests Damian performed to prove himself to his family. It consisted of a thought of thefts of spiritual objects, harming people and animals and in the end, Damian became someone a bunch of different people hated.
He comes into contact with Nobody's daughter, Maya who wants to Avenge her father's murder. I really like her as a character and she tries to help reverse some of what Damian did.
Goliath was adorable! I loved Damian's relationship with him and their meeting is why this book made me tear up a bit. I really felt for him here. He's a kid. He's a tiny kid who, as we find out earlier, still has baby teeth.
Damian Wayne is all about family. He dedicates himself and everything he hopes to be to living up to his family's standards. And while he used to place so much emphasis on blood, he's grown past that now. There's several mentions of the other Robins as his "brothers" (and while we're at it, what the hell is Cassie? She's your family, too, Damian). So, here he has traded his grandfather's cause for the bat family's.
Damian asks Maya for forgiveness and that was such a moving scene.
Anyway, he gains a sister in Maya and he leaves Goliath with her. It was sad. His mother returns and I hate Talia so I could not care less about her showing up.
I really enjoyed this and it's such a great introduction to Damian Wayne, in my opinion.
Edit: Still as wonderful as I remembered. Damian's nightmare of Dick telling him there was no way Bruce would accept him if he knew about his past really hit close to home. I remain disappointed that DC never really capitalized on Damian and Cass' guilt over what their birth families led them to do. That seems like such an easy road to go down but they ruined Cass' history so that's not really an option at this point.
May 26, 2023
"Ridiculous. Pathetic. Utterly pointless." -- Damian Wayne, a.k.a. Robin, inadvertently stealing my review courtesy of his own dialogue on page 2
Damian Wayne as Robin is a divisive sort of figure (just in my opinion), and unfortunately I don't think his Son of Batman, Volume 1: Year of Blood graphic novel does him any favors. I don't think he functions particularly well as a freestanding character - although pair him with Nightwing and/or Superman's son Jon Kent in a scenario and THEN you have some required personality drama - and this adventure story overwhelms on the sci-fi / fantasy glop, with certain illustrated segments strongly reminiscent of parts of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom crossed with countless sword & sorcery plots that are way too heavy for my tastes on the mystical mumbo jumbo. (I had remarked to a GR friend that I probably would've liked this better if it had been reigned in to a standard crime caper, with Robin riding shotgun in the Batmobile to take down one of Gotham's various felonious fiends.) Other than a cameo appearance by the villainous Deathstroke to liven up the proceedings - however, he just as swiftly but understandably exits the scene - this one was pretty dull.
Damian Wayne as Robin is a divisive sort of figure (just in my opinion), and unfortunately I don't think his Son of Batman, Volume 1: Year of Blood graphic novel does him any favors. I don't think he functions particularly well as a freestanding character - although pair him with Nightwing and/or Superman's son Jon Kent in a scenario and THEN you have some required personality drama - and this adventure story overwhelms on the sci-fi / fantasy glop, with certain illustrated segments strongly reminiscent of parts of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom crossed with countless sword & sorcery plots that are way too heavy for my tastes on the mystical mumbo jumbo. (I had remarked to a GR friend that I probably would've liked this better if it had been reigned in to a standard crime caper, with Robin riding shotgun in the Batmobile to take down one of Gotham's various felonious fiends.) Other than a cameo appearance by the villainous Deathstroke to liven up the proceedings - however, he just as swiftly but understandably exits the scene - this one was pretty dull.
June 8, 2019
Great art from Patrick Gleason! In this series Damian Wayne is trying to atone for the sins he committed while training to become the next Ra's al Ghul. Gleason does a great job of expanding the world of the al Ghul's. Goliath is pretty awesome. I love the interaction between Damian and Nobody.
Received an advance copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Received an advance copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
August 1, 2016
Damian Wayne returned to the DC Universe in Batman & Robin, Volume 7: Robin Rises after that big brouhaha about his recent “death”. Really, DC - you couldn’t wait longer before bringing him back? I’m a Damian fan too but it kinda undermines the impact of Grant Morrison’s Batman finale - which turns out to be, inadvertently or not, actually the theme of this book.
Before Damian met Batman he was trained in the League of Assassins by his crazy ma, Talia Al’Ghul, to be an evil, badass sum’bitch. She made him undergo a trial called the Year of Blood where he did terrible things. Now that he’s rehabilitated and become “good”, he’s going back and undoing all the bad he did in the Year of Blood - a Year of Atonement, basically.
Batman and Robin artist Patrick Gleason writes as well as draws this series and, like so many artists who turn their hands to the additional role, proves he isn’t much of a writer. Damian has gone from being an exciting, unpredictable and nuanced character who is capable of both good and evil actions, to a bland, standard hero character. Gone is his edge, replaced with warmth and fuzziness. He’s become boring - not a great continuation of his character.
The Abominations from Batman Incorporated have gone from being horrific creations to affable dimwits living in peace on Ra’s island and even psychotic Talia (yup, she’s back too!) is revised as a caring mother. Gleason is a really poor successor to Grant Morrison.
Remember that totally forgettable villain from his and Peter Tomasi’s Batman and Robin run, Nobody? No? Well he had a daughter and she’s called Nobody too! She tags along because I guess she’s another former villain who wants to be good and atone for stuff? Shame she’s as dull as her dad. That weird creature on the cover is Goliath, a bat dragon, because… Damian likes collecting pets? Bat Cow had more personality.
The book is mostly dull fighting between Damian/Goliath/Nobody and whichever monster/challenge is next on Damian’s list. There’s never any tension as you know Damian will always accomplish what he’s set out to do and, surprise, surprise, he does.
As well as an overall bad story, Gleason too often crams the pages with way too many dialogue bubbles most of which contain forgettable writing. But he is a talented artist and the book does contain some great artwork, so there’s that at least.
I wouldn’t recommend Year of Blood even to Damian Wayne fans - Patrick Gleason’s weak version of the character is light years away from the kid that captured so many readers’ hearts during Morrison’s epic run.
Before Damian met Batman he was trained in the League of Assassins by his crazy ma, Talia Al’Ghul, to be an evil, badass sum’bitch. She made him undergo a trial called the Year of Blood where he did terrible things. Now that he’s rehabilitated and become “good”, he’s going back and undoing all the bad he did in the Year of Blood - a Year of Atonement, basically.
Batman and Robin artist Patrick Gleason writes as well as draws this series and, like so many artists who turn their hands to the additional role, proves he isn’t much of a writer. Damian has gone from being an exciting, unpredictable and nuanced character who is capable of both good and evil actions, to a bland, standard hero character. Gone is his edge, replaced with warmth and fuzziness. He’s become boring - not a great continuation of his character.
The Abominations from Batman Incorporated have gone from being horrific creations to affable dimwits living in peace on Ra’s island and even psychotic Talia (yup, she’s back too!) is revised as a caring mother. Gleason is a really poor successor to Grant Morrison.
Remember that totally forgettable villain from his and Peter Tomasi’s Batman and Robin run, Nobody? No? Well he had a daughter and she’s called Nobody too! She tags along because I guess she’s another former villain who wants to be good and atone for stuff? Shame she’s as dull as her dad. That weird creature on the cover is Goliath, a bat dragon, because… Damian likes collecting pets? Bat Cow had more personality.
The book is mostly dull fighting between Damian/Goliath/Nobody and whichever monster/challenge is next on Damian’s list. There’s never any tension as you know Damian will always accomplish what he’s set out to do and, surprise, surprise, he does.
As well as an overall bad story, Gleason too often crams the pages with way too many dialogue bubbles most of which contain forgettable writing. But he is a talented artist and the book does contain some great artwork, so there’s that at least.
I wouldn’t recommend Year of Blood even to Damian Wayne fans - Patrick Gleason’s weak version of the character is light years away from the kid that captured so many readers’ hearts during Morrison’s epic run.
September 29, 2021
The writers have retconned ("retroactive continuity (verbed)", if you are unfamiliar) an evil, noxious "Year of Blood" into the last year before Damian Wayne changes his stripes and becomes Robin. In present time, Damian seeks to atone for the damages he caused in that year, but atonement is a complicated thing for an al-Ghul.
August 7, 2017
Patrick Gleason takes Damian Wayne on a Year Of Atonement, as we discover that, while training with the League Of Assassins, Damian did 365 awful things and he now wants to rectify them in order to start afresh.
Of course, when you're the son of Batman and Talia Al Ghul, plus Ra's Al Ghul's grandson, life isn't quite that easy.
It's nice to see Damian striking out on his own, and gaining a supporting cast of his own too. Granted, one of them is a giant red bat-dragon who can't talk, but that's Damian all over.
The struggles that the poor kid goes through in these six issues are some of the best that he's had to face, and without the safety net of his father there to catch him, it means Damian really has to come into his own. The rare moments where his facade breaks and we see the 12 year old underneath are really heartbreaking, and the journey that he goes on with Nobody across these issues is really well realised too.
I'm not sure if I like the idea of Talia being back so soon, but Damian was dead for all of about six months so you kind of just roll with it at this point. The idea of a second bloodline tied to the Lazarus Pits is intriguing too.
And of course, Gleason's art is flawless. It gets increasingly zanier as we go on, with some crazy panel layouts and designs (especially once Den Durga shows up), and Gleason never misses a beat. His usual collaborators Mick Grey and John Kalisz are along for the ride too, so if you've followed Gleason through Green Lantern Corps to Batman And Robin to here, you know you're getting some bang for your buck.
Of course, when you're the son of Batman and Talia Al Ghul, plus Ra's Al Ghul's grandson, life isn't quite that easy.
It's nice to see Damian striking out on his own, and gaining a supporting cast of his own too. Granted, one of them is a giant red bat-dragon who can't talk, but that's Damian all over.
The struggles that the poor kid goes through in these six issues are some of the best that he's had to face, and without the safety net of his father there to catch him, it means Damian really has to come into his own. The rare moments where his facade breaks and we see the 12 year old underneath are really heartbreaking, and the journey that he goes on with Nobody across these issues is really well realised too.
I'm not sure if I like the idea of Talia being back so soon, but Damian was dead for all of about six months so you kind of just roll with it at this point. The idea of a second bloodline tied to the Lazarus Pits is intriguing too.
And of course, Gleason's art is flawless. It gets increasingly zanier as we go on, with some crazy panel layouts and designs (especially once Den Durga shows up), and Gleason never misses a beat. His usual collaborators Mick Grey and John Kalisz are along for the ride too, so if you've followed Gleason through Green Lantern Corps to Batman And Robin to here, you know you're getting some bang for your buck.
July 28, 2017
Patrick Gleason shows a remarkable ability to take cool characters who stand out for their unique style and turn them into silly versions of themselves. He does this with aplomb for Damian. Now Damian has been my favorite Robin right after Grayson. He was hyper-intelligent, dark, brooding and borderline ruthless. In a word he was awesome. Then he "died" and as most all comic characters tend to do-he came back.
Well this version of Damian sucks. He's another Tim Drake. Yaay. Talia? Now she's redeemed too. Yaay. *sigh*
So apparently when Damian was still cool (when he was training for the League) he had to go through this thing called the Year of Blood. He essentially stole a bunch of magical artifacts for Ras Al-Ghul. Now he's returning them. Yaay. Accompanied by a large red man-bat named Goliath who channels his inner Jar Jar. Nice..very nice. Just what we needed a cute man bat thing. Yaay.
Oh remember Nobody? The guy who was pissed at Batman because his dad died or something? Well his daughter is now Nobody. Apparently she learned how to fight by watching her father from the shadows. Ok then. So now she's fighting Robin. Who was trained by Batman. And the League of Assassins. And Nightwing. But..she DID watch very, very closely. So she's able to do really phenomenal moves now. Are you buying this? You are? Well good..then you'll like this silly tale.
Oh did I mention some awesome prose? Like where she calls him "Dami-yuck"? VERY clever. Oh and Deathstroke makes an appearance. Which is nice. There is a good fight sequence between him and Damian. Probably the best part, other than seeing Damian "back in the day" when he was still cool and a memorable hero. Oh the art is nice too. But yeah Gleason is trying too hard. Especially when I read lines like this from Deathstroke : "..the pain train is pulling into the station and I'm punching all your tickets." Ugh. Seriously? Has Deathstroke been reading 80's Spiderman comics?
So in a headlong rush towards mediocrity Patrick Gleason manages to take an awesome Robin and turn him into a simpering dolt. It seems that all the daughter's of criminals seem to have "daddy issues" and follow in their father's footsteps. But..of course she isn't REALLY evil. I don't think anyone is. The best one is Ras Al Ghul and he's dead. If this is what has become of Damien perhaps he should have stayed dead. Speaking of which is Batman dead? Again? He's nowhere in this book. I can't keep track of who is or isn't dead. Umm nice art though. A completely meh volume.
Well this version of Damian sucks. He's another Tim Drake. Yaay. Talia? Now she's redeemed too. Yaay. *sigh*
So apparently when Damian was still cool (when he was training for the League) he had to go through this thing called the Year of Blood. He essentially stole a bunch of magical artifacts for Ras Al-Ghul. Now he's returning them. Yaay. Accompanied by a large red man-bat named Goliath who channels his inner Jar Jar. Nice..very nice. Just what we needed a cute man bat thing. Yaay.
Oh remember Nobody? The guy who was pissed at Batman because his dad died or something? Well his daughter is now Nobody. Apparently she learned how to fight by watching her father from the shadows. Ok then. So now she's fighting Robin. Who was trained by Batman. And the League of Assassins. And Nightwing. But..she DID watch very, very closely. So she's able to do really phenomenal moves now. Are you buying this? You are? Well good..then you'll like this silly tale.
Oh did I mention some awesome prose? Like where she calls him "Dami-yuck"? VERY clever. Oh and Deathstroke makes an appearance. Which is nice. There is a good fight sequence between him and Damian. Probably the best part, other than seeing Damian "back in the day" when he was still cool and a memorable hero. Oh the art is nice too. But yeah Gleason is trying too hard. Especially when I read lines like this from Deathstroke : "..the pain train is pulling into the station and I'm punching all your tickets." Ugh. Seriously? Has Deathstroke been reading 80's Spiderman comics?
So in a headlong rush towards mediocrity Patrick Gleason manages to take an awesome Robin and turn him into a simpering dolt. It seems that all the daughter's of criminals seem to have "daddy issues" and follow in their father's footsteps. But..of course she isn't REALLY evil. I don't think anyone is. The best one is Ras Al Ghul and he's dead. If this is what has become of Damien perhaps he should have stayed dead. Speaking of which is Batman dead? Again? He's nowhere in this book. I can't keep track of who is or isn't dead. Umm nice art though. A completely meh volume.
January 9, 2022
Robin remembers the year of blood where he committed several mistakes or crimes and so he wants to repent on them and restores some artefacts from islands from where they were taken like the one where he has to go against the Guardian of the island which is a stone and go against the daughter of Morgan Ducard aka Nobody.. Maya. And well its a face off and a blossoming of the friendship and some other challenges and doubts and the return of Talia and also some ancient threats and the realization of what Robin actually means. Plus the dawn of demons soon...
Its a great volume and expands on the lore of Al-Ghuls and the mystical world there and also fleshes out the fascinating backstory of Robin and kind of makes him interesting in that regard and is the blossoming of great things to come. I like how the relationship between Maya and Damian develops and also Goliath and it does a good job of explaining how he came to be. The art is pretty okay for the most part. So yeah overall really good read.
Its a great volume and expands on the lore of Al-Ghuls and the mystical world there and also fleshes out the fascinating backstory of Robin and kind of makes him interesting in that regard and is the blossoming of great things to come. I like how the relationship between Maya and Damian develops and also Goliath and it does a good job of explaining how he came to be. The art is pretty okay for the most part. So yeah overall really good read.
February 18, 2018
You can find my review on my blog by clicking here.
Leave it to Patrick Gleason to transform some of the most unique character’s in the Batman universe into unrecognizable and standard individuals. Robin: Son of Batman is a series that rose from the dead after Damian Wayne went through a whole ordeal regarding his life. Collecting issues 1 to 6, volume 1 explores the story behind the Year of Blood, a trial that Damian went through during his earlier and darker days under the watchful eyes of his mother. After his reappearance into the game and his countless lessons under the wings of Batman, Robin seeks to undo the evil that he had unraveled by going through a phase of atonement/redemption. As he attempts to set things back to the way they were prior to his trial, he quickly runs into countless obstacles, including a girl with a vengeance, Nobody.
Now, this adventure is far from being a solo quest by Robin. Where’s the fun in that, right? During this story arc you’ll be acquainted to a giant hairy red creature with wings, also referred to as a Man-Bat. The relationship between Robin and this creature is under development but the story behind it will slowly be unveiled in bits and pieces. Nobody also gets introduced and developed on the side and will quickly become an important side-character to Robin’s quest. The story also dives into multiple storylines without shame or restraint in order to give us a better understanding of how much Damian has changed from his past life. Patrick Gleason doesn’t make anything easy for the eyes or the brain as the story ends up feeling like a giant colourful mess instead of a coherent, well-structured and clever plot.
What defines Damian Wayne and distinguishes him from the other Robin’s is his size and personality. For a little guy, he can be one of the most rude and savage character in the Batman universe. However, Patrick Gleason succeeds in taking away everything that made him original and transformed him into a typical tech-savy and wordy character. It doesn’t help that every other staple character goes through the same filter and personality change. Ruthless characters would suddenly grow a heart, and clever and merciless killers would become money hungry and harmless. There is also a lot of character names being dropped left and right out of the blue without any real development. It sometimes felt like there was a whole mythology inspired this adventure but was never truly explored.
It’s also safe to say that the mystical facet of this story was prioritized. While you knew you were going to be dealing with the Al Ghul’s and all their witchcraft, what Patrick Gleason brings to the able is a whole new level of psychedelic non-sense. There were moments that were simply unreal and impossible to follow. As fun as it was to watch the story unfold in a direction that is rarely explored in the Batman universe, it still remained chaotic and insane. The artwork also didn’t help with sometime very mediocre work, and at other times crazy colourful and trippy panels. With a giant man-bat as a companion and supernatural things happening left and right, it was hard to feel rested reading this story arc. If anything, I thought I was high.
Robin: Son of Batman (Volume 1): Year of Blood was a fun and messy story featuring a Robin that could’ve brought us some really bloody and careless adventures. Instead, Patrick Gleason offers us a very supernatural and hectic story about redemption and forgiveness with unrecognizable characters from the Batman universe. This series however doesn’t last long (it only has one more volume before it was cut) and I guess I understand why things didn’t last longer. It still remains that this was a fun and creative story with maybe a little too many cheesy moments that helped in changing the scene of what people are used to in regards of Robin. The artwork switched between mediocre to acceptable from panel to panel, but I honestly couldn’t stand the facial designs of some of these characters. They looked so off. I’ll probably complete the run with the last volume some day, but I definitely won’t have any expectations regarding it.
Yours truly,
Lashaan | Blogger and Book Reviewer
Official blog: https://bookidote.com/
Leave it to Patrick Gleason to transform some of the most unique character’s in the Batman universe into unrecognizable and standard individuals. Robin: Son of Batman is a series that rose from the dead after Damian Wayne went through a whole ordeal regarding his life. Collecting issues 1 to 6, volume 1 explores the story behind the Year of Blood, a trial that Damian went through during his earlier and darker days under the watchful eyes of his mother. After his reappearance into the game and his countless lessons under the wings of Batman, Robin seeks to undo the evil that he had unraveled by going through a phase of atonement/redemption. As he attempts to set things back to the way they were prior to his trial, he quickly runs into countless obstacles, including a girl with a vengeance, Nobody.
Now, this adventure is far from being a solo quest by Robin. Where’s the fun in that, right? During this story arc you’ll be acquainted to a giant hairy red creature with wings, also referred to as a Man-Bat. The relationship between Robin and this creature is under development but the story behind it will slowly be unveiled in bits and pieces. Nobody also gets introduced and developed on the side and will quickly become an important side-character to Robin’s quest. The story also dives into multiple storylines without shame or restraint in order to give us a better understanding of how much Damian has changed from his past life. Patrick Gleason doesn’t make anything easy for the eyes or the brain as the story ends up feeling like a giant colourful mess instead of a coherent, well-structured and clever plot.
What defines Damian Wayne and distinguishes him from the other Robin’s is his size and personality. For a little guy, he can be one of the most rude and savage character in the Batman universe. However, Patrick Gleason succeeds in taking away everything that made him original and transformed him into a typical tech-savy and wordy character. It doesn’t help that every other staple character goes through the same filter and personality change. Ruthless characters would suddenly grow a heart, and clever and merciless killers would become money hungry and harmless. There is also a lot of character names being dropped left and right out of the blue without any real development. It sometimes felt like there was a whole mythology inspired this adventure but was never truly explored.
It’s also safe to say that the mystical facet of this story was prioritized. While you knew you were going to be dealing with the Al Ghul’s and all their witchcraft, what Patrick Gleason brings to the able is a whole new level of psychedelic non-sense. There were moments that were simply unreal and impossible to follow. As fun as it was to watch the story unfold in a direction that is rarely explored in the Batman universe, it still remained chaotic and insane. The artwork also didn’t help with sometime very mediocre work, and at other times crazy colourful and trippy panels. With a giant man-bat as a companion and supernatural things happening left and right, it was hard to feel rested reading this story arc. If anything, I thought I was high.
Robin: Son of Batman (Volume 1): Year of Blood was a fun and messy story featuring a Robin that could’ve brought us some really bloody and careless adventures. Instead, Patrick Gleason offers us a very supernatural and hectic story about redemption and forgiveness with unrecognizable characters from the Batman universe. This series however doesn’t last long (it only has one more volume before it was cut) and I guess I understand why things didn’t last longer. It still remains that this was a fun and creative story with maybe a little too many cheesy moments that helped in changing the scene of what people are used to in regards of Robin. The artwork switched between mediocre to acceptable from panel to panel, but I honestly couldn’t stand the facial designs of some of these characters. They looked so off. I’ll probably complete the run with the last volume some day, but I definitely won’t have any expectations regarding it.
Yours truly,
Lashaan | Blogger and Book Reviewer
Official blog: https://bookidote.com/
March 6, 2016
I received this from Edelweiss and DC Comics in exchange for an honest review.
Pretty good continuation of the Damian Wayne Robin storyline after Batman and Robin, Vol. 6: The Hunt for Robin. Interesting twist to see another child from the Batman mythos with the daughter of Nobody taking up her father's mantle. I'm not sure I cared for Goliath the red (non) man-bat thing.
Artwork was good, but I must say it is the most colorful graphic novel I've probably ever read. It felt like an intense sugar rush at Candiopolos. :D
Pretty good continuation of the Damian Wayne Robin storyline after Batman and Robin, Vol. 6: The Hunt for Robin. Interesting twist to see another child from the Batman mythos with the daughter of Nobody taking up her father's mantle. I'm not sure I cared for Goliath the red (non) man-bat thing.
Artwork was good, but I must say it is the most colorful graphic novel I've probably ever read. It felt like an intense sugar rush at Candiopolos. :D
September 7, 2018
Actual rating: 3.5 Stars
Whilst reading this, I often wondered who suggested that the ten year old needed a redemption series. As far as I'm concerned if a kid has been brought up on the path to evil, all you can really ask if they can try to do better. So, in my eyes, Damian is fully redeemed by the end of pre-flashpoint Batman and Robin. That isn't to say that he couldn't become a better person or that there's nowhere else for him to grow to though, and so I read this less as a redemption arc and more as him taking some responsibility for his past. Essentially, this book deals with him trying to right his wrongs.
Nitpicking aside, this book highlighted a lot of the things that I love about Damian. Namely how good he is with animals, how awkward he is with people, how kind he can be to those he cares about, and how hard he tries. That last one is probably the reason he's one of my favourite superheroes, actually. Damian might be an arrogant brat, even at his best, and he might not go about it in the right way, but he's always trying to be better.
Two of his old wrongs centre around his two companions, Maya Ducard (Nobody) and Goliath (a flying red...bat...demon...thing?). Maya's gripe with Damian is simple: he murdered her father, and now she's stuck carrying his legacy. She wants Damian dead, and she wants to be the one to do it so she has to make sure he survives long enough for her to take her shot. I don't really want to spoil anything regarding her character arc, but I will say that I absolutely love her and the friendship that developed between her and Damian was adorable. Goliath is the last of his species, courtesy of Damian's Year of Blood, and really just a big cuddly teddy bear. There's a cute arc there as well but, again, no spoilers.
I was reading this late at night so, naturally, something that happened towards the end had me tying myself in timeline-related knots.
Anyway, this was a decent read with some great characters. If you're a fan of Damian, I highly recommend it. If you like well-written, complex, female characters, I recommend it all the more.
Whilst reading this, I often wondered who suggested that the ten year old needed a redemption series. As far as I'm concerned if a kid has been brought up on the path to evil, all you can really ask if they can try to do better. So, in my eyes, Damian is fully redeemed by the end of pre-flashpoint Batman and Robin. That isn't to say that he couldn't become a better person or that there's nowhere else for him to grow to though, and so I read this less as a redemption arc and more as him taking some responsibility for his past. Essentially, this book deals with him trying to right his wrongs.
Nitpicking aside, this book highlighted a lot of the things that I love about Damian. Namely how good he is with animals, how awkward he is with people, how kind he can be to those he cares about, and how hard he tries. That last one is probably the reason he's one of my favourite superheroes, actually. Damian might be an arrogant brat, even at his best, and he might not go about it in the right way, but he's always trying to be better.
Two of his old wrongs centre around his two companions, Maya Ducard (Nobody) and Goliath (a flying red...bat...demon...thing?). Maya's gripe with Damian is simple: he murdered her father, and now she's stuck carrying his legacy. She wants Damian dead, and she wants to be the one to do it so she has to make sure he survives long enough for her to take her shot. I don't really want to spoil anything regarding her character arc, but I will say that I absolutely love her and the friendship that developed between her and Damian was adorable. Goliath is the last of his species, courtesy of Damian's Year of Blood, and really just a big cuddly teddy bear. There's a cute arc there as well but, again, no spoilers.
I was reading this late at night so, naturally, something that happened towards the end had me tying myself in timeline-related knots.
Anyway, this was a decent read with some great characters. If you're a fan of Damian, I highly recommend it. If you like well-written, complex, female characters, I recommend it all the more.
October 19, 2017
The art was decent but the story just fell flat.
August 21, 2016
This is all Damian Wayne. Following his resurrection, from the desire to do good, he's atoning for his Year of Blood, which involved theft and sacrilege for the completion of his training with his mother Talia. But things go horribly wrong!
And it was pretty cool. Gleason doesn't write as strongly as Tomasi, but it's not bad, and not bad for an illustrator. This is essentially a quest story, A to B, with expectations thwarted at the end to set us up for Volume 2, which, honestly, I want to read. I liked the supernatural fantasy aspect of Gleason's story. Tribes and cults. Demons and bizarre creatures. Little does Damian realize why he was tasked to steal these relics in the first place.
Goliath, the aptly named giant red bat dragon, was pretty awesome as one of those nonverbal characters like Chewbacca. I hope he shows up again. The female companion (avoiding spoilers) was annoying, though, with her constant back and forth between "I'm gonna kill you" and "I'm gonna help you." One of those weird "frenemy" characters. I'm confused as to why Gleason wrote her in, because she was almost entirely inconsequential. But maybe she comes in again later.
And of course Lazarus Pits.
I'm convinced Mick Gray is a damn fine illustrator. And the colors were just as impressive. Good story, amazing artwork. If you're okay with all of the above, you'll probably have a good time. I did.
January 27, 2023
Damian with Goliath has my heart.
June 11, 2025
3 stars!
Bro, this one took me so long. I thought I was gonna love this, and though it had a couple of moments and panels I really loved I can't help but feel super disappointed.
This volume is all about redemption. It's about Damian going back to the Al Ghul island and confronting his past. When Damian turned nine, Ra's and Talia tasked Damian with the Year of Blood. 365 days of missions, of stolen holy items and strategy, of blood and destruction. At the time, Damian followed these orders with no hesitation (or so we thought), but present day Damian sees his past deeds and feels shame, worry and regret. He makes the decision of giving back everything he stole, to fix everything he broke and desecrated.
On this mission, one character is self-invited. Current Nobody, the daughter of Morgan Ducard, the man Damian killed while wearing the Robin mantle and that threatened to destroy everything in the beginning of his journey as Damian Wayne. She is now seeking revenge and following Damian around.
Talia also makes her return from the death and plays an important role in the last couple of issues collected here.
So, the good? There are two scenes I absolutely loved. Throughout this volume we see flashbacks of Damian commiting these attacks and stealing these items. After one particular mission in Egypt we see him painting to decompress, yet he's suffering with a dead stare. Ravi, Damian's servant, sees him as a kid struggling and tries to comfort him briefly in his own way, yet later we see him being blinded and punished by Ra's and Damian having the chance to help him yet choosing to ignore him. It's such an emotional charged scene, I really liked it. The best scene, however, is seeing Damian killing an entire species of Dragon-Bats until the last remaining one shows up. A small puppy-esque creature, one that Damian just can't kill off. Here, he crumbles and breaks down crying in the face of innocence. I loved that moment because though Damian presents himself as collected, proud and cold, here there's a nine year old boy breaking down by such brutality. It's such a good panel. And such a good origin to his relationship with Goliath (and a good expansion to Damian's love for animals).
Also, the other thing I really loved is *spoilers* Nobody forgiving Damian. She's a very annoying character, yet, she is the only one who can forgive him and give Damian the chance of redemption he so desperately seeks in these pages. She is the daughter of the man whose murder haunts him, haunts his journey as a Wayne and as a Robin, and here is little Ducard offering him redemption. That was a nice touch of writing.
Negatives, however, there are a bunch. The action scenes were messy. From the art that made these scenes hard to follow to the pacing and writing, it feels like there's zero set up for any new mission. We are just jumping from the middle of an action scene to the other while Damian gives back items stolen and it makes everything feel so shallow.
I really hated the dialog some times. Especially for Nobody, she's so annoying. From complaining about being hungry to mocking Damian calling him Indiana, I was just cringing a lot by her presence.
I also did not like the big bad reveal at the end *spoilers* with a rival family to the Al Ghuls that actually justified Ra's as the good guy sending Damian in his missions during the Year of Blood. I did not like Talia either.
Also, I'm a bit lost in the timeline here because apparently Bruce is once again 'dead', yet we see nothing of Gotham. How is it possible that Damian is all this time along gallivanting through the world and there's zero Batfam presence, not even a call, I don't know it irked me a lot. Was he going back there inbetween his missions?
Anyway, there's a lot I was underwhelmed with. A few moments I really loved for Damian's characterization. But overall, I'm a bit done with it. I know I have one more volume, but I'm not feeling it right now, maybe I'll wait a little.
Bro, this one took me so long. I thought I was gonna love this, and though it had a couple of moments and panels I really loved I can't help but feel super disappointed.
This volume is all about redemption. It's about Damian going back to the Al Ghul island and confronting his past. When Damian turned nine, Ra's and Talia tasked Damian with the Year of Blood. 365 days of missions, of stolen holy items and strategy, of blood and destruction. At the time, Damian followed these orders with no hesitation (or so we thought), but present day Damian sees his past deeds and feels shame, worry and regret. He makes the decision of giving back everything he stole, to fix everything he broke and desecrated.
On this mission, one character is self-invited. Current Nobody, the daughter of Morgan Ducard, the man Damian killed while wearing the Robin mantle and that threatened to destroy everything in the beginning of his journey as Damian Wayne. She is now seeking revenge and following Damian around.
Talia also makes her return from the death and plays an important role in the last couple of issues collected here.
So, the good? There are two scenes I absolutely loved. Throughout this volume we see flashbacks of Damian commiting these attacks and stealing these items. After one particular mission in Egypt we see him painting to decompress, yet he's suffering with a dead stare. Ravi, Damian's servant, sees him as a kid struggling and tries to comfort him briefly in his own way, yet later we see him being blinded and punished by Ra's and Damian having the chance to help him yet choosing to ignore him. It's such an emotional charged scene, I really liked it. The best scene, however, is seeing Damian killing an entire species of Dragon-Bats until the last remaining one shows up. A small puppy-esque creature, one that Damian just can't kill off. Here, he crumbles and breaks down crying in the face of innocence. I loved that moment because though Damian presents himself as collected, proud and cold, here there's a nine year old boy breaking down by such brutality. It's such a good panel. And such a good origin to his relationship with Goliath (and a good expansion to Damian's love for animals).
Also, the other thing I really loved is *spoilers* Nobody forgiving Damian. She's a very annoying character, yet, she is the only one who can forgive him and give Damian the chance of redemption he so desperately seeks in these pages. She is the daughter of the man whose murder haunts him, haunts his journey as a Wayne and as a Robin, and here is little Ducard offering him redemption. That was a nice touch of writing.
Negatives, however, there are a bunch. The action scenes were messy. From the art that made these scenes hard to follow to the pacing and writing, it feels like there's zero set up for any new mission. We are just jumping from the middle of an action scene to the other while Damian gives back items stolen and it makes everything feel so shallow.
I really hated the dialog some times. Especially for Nobody, she's so annoying. From complaining about being hungry to mocking Damian calling him Indiana, I was just cringing a lot by her presence.
I also did not like the big bad reveal at the end *spoilers* with a rival family to the Al Ghuls that actually justified Ra's as the good guy sending Damian in his missions during the Year of Blood. I did not like Talia either.
Also, I'm a bit lost in the timeline here because apparently Bruce is once again 'dead', yet we see nothing of Gotham. How is it possible that Damian is all this time along gallivanting through the world and there's zero Batfam presence, not even a call, I don't know it irked me a lot. Was he going back there inbetween his missions?
Anyway, there's a lot I was underwhelmed with. A few moments I really loved for Damian's characterization. But overall, I'm a bit done with it. I know I have one more volume, but I'm not feeling it right now, maybe I'll wait a little.
July 11, 2022
I loved his relashionship with Maya, they can learn from each others.
Damian has been my favorite Robin and this comics just in fact proves it and i couldn't help sharing a tear when he and goliath met in horrible circumstances and decided to save him🥺
Not so much a fan of the art is some panel but i really want to thanks the colorist for coloring his skin matte.
Damian has been my favorite Robin and this comics just in fact proves it and i couldn't help sharing a tear when he and goliath met in horrible circumstances and decided to save him🥺
Not so much a fan of the art is some panel but i really want to thanks the colorist for coloring his skin matte.
October 13, 2022
This comic focuses on Damian Wayne's character and its all about giving second chances.
In the year of blood, Damian had gone under multiple tasks in order to finish his training as the league of assassin's leader. But ever since he had been taken under Batman he ofc had changed and he tries to undo what he had done during the year of blood.
In the fandom I see alot of people hating on Damian and sure the little gremlin is tough to love, but knowing what he had been put through since day one is sad.
If you want to see more into his character and why he is the way he is ( that being: a little demon spawn with a soft spot for animals, that I happen to absolutely adore ) then I can't recommend this comic enough, it really captures his character so well.
There is a scene where he talks about his baby tooth and you realize this person is still a freaking child, with the way he acts some times you'd forget that he is just a kid and never actually had a normal childhood.
This is my favorite scene, when he breaks down and cries. I mean how often do we get to see him so vulnerable.
One downside in this comic for me was the artwork, the way the facial expressions are drawn is a turn off and didn't like it, but all the other details in the art is fantastic.
In the year of blood, Damian had gone under multiple tasks in order to finish his training as the league of assassin's leader. But ever since he had been taken under Batman he ofc had changed and he tries to undo what he had done during the year of blood.
In the fandom I see alot of people hating on Damian and sure the little gremlin is tough to love, but knowing what he had been put through since day one is sad.
If you want to see more into his character and why he is the way he is ( that being: a little demon spawn with a soft spot for animals, that I happen to absolutely adore ) then I can't recommend this comic enough, it really captures his character so well.
There is a scene where he talks about his baby tooth and you realize this person is still a freaking child, with the way he acts some times you'd forget that he is just a kid and never actually had a normal childhood.
This is my favorite scene, when he breaks down and cries. I mean how often do we get to see him so vulnerable.
One downside in this comic for me was the artwork, the way the facial expressions are drawn is a turn off and didn't like it, but all the other details in the art is fantastic.
August 21, 2016
I give this a 3.25/5 it's a bit better than your average comic but it's overall arc loses its self in some of its own nonsense. the art in this book is great I enjoyed looking at it through the entirety of the book. the story is a bit strange it does have its redeeming moments like the relationship between Robin, Nobody and Goliath, but some of the story is just too weird and fantastical and at times doesn't make any sense. I like how it continues from where Batman and Robin left off because I really liked that series. I don't appreciate how DC\Marvel just can't leave anyone dead ***Spoiler*** we don't need Talia back she's not really an important part of Batman anymore anr she had her moments and i believe her time has passed, she has already served her purpose in the Batman storyline, I get it with the A-list Guy's but when you can't leave these B, C, D-list guys dead it takes away my faith in comics. anyways if you're not a Batman or Robin superfan like I am I'll leave checking this one out up to you.
March 16, 2022
dc artists are fighting to the death over damians skin color wow like he just switched to being a white boy halfway through this
July 5, 2017
Didn't care much for this, story wise. I thought it was all over the place, and a bit confusing also. Gleason draws the best Damian Wayne, though, so that mitigated the story failures.
October 1, 2017
2.5 stars. I liked it, but the art wasn't really my favorite style (it's okay, though).
In this volume, Damian is trying to redeem himself, after all the things he did while training under Ra's al Ghul. Specifically, the Year of Blood (in which Damian stole items of power and significance from around the world- with quite a bit of bloodshed). Now he's trying to fix what he can, returning the items he took.
Only, he isn't alone, he's got his giant bat-creature, Goliath, both bodyguard and friend, and we get to see his backstory (I never knew where he came from, so that was appreciated).
And a short cameo of Deathstroke; which would be cool, except I couldn't help but facepalm at this line of his.
Really? "Pain train?"
I don't remember exactly what the plot was building into- some evil dude, Lu'un Darga(?), is a longtime enemy of the al Ghul's and he's been raised from the dead, I guess, and is going to destroy the entire world because he just hates Ra's that much? Something like that. I could just go back and skim through to get my facts straight, but in all honesty, I don't really care. I think its some sort of territory dispute over the Lazarus Pits, and Lu'un thinks all al Ghul's are evil and need to be purged from the face of the earth (even if that means destroying said earth). So, yeah, I obviously wasn't into the secondary plotline, but whatever, I'll keep reading it.
In this volume, Damian is trying to redeem himself, after all the things he did while training under Ra's al Ghul. Specifically, the Year of Blood (in which Damian stole items of power and significance from around the world- with quite a bit of bloodshed). Now he's trying to fix what he can, returning the items he took.
Only, he isn't alone, he's got his giant bat-creature, Goliath, both bodyguard and friend, and we get to see his backstory (I never knew where he came from, so that was appreciated).
And a short cameo of Deathstroke; which would be cool, except I couldn't help but facepalm at this line of his.
Really? "Pain train?"
I don't remember exactly what the plot was building into- some evil dude, Lu'un Darga(?), is a longtime enemy of the al Ghul's and he's been raised from the dead, I guess, and is going to destroy the entire world because he just hates Ra's that much? Something like that. I could just go back and skim through to get my facts straight, but in all honesty, I don't really care. I think its some sort of territory dispute over the Lazarus Pits, and Lu'un thinks all al Ghul's are evil and need to be purged from the face of the earth (even if that means destroying said earth). So, yeah, I obviously wasn't into the secondary plotline, but whatever, I'll keep reading it.
May 15, 2023
The overall arc is wonderful, although I have to admit, the more time passes the more and more I resent the tropes and stereotypes associated with Bialya. Even in Young Justice DC creators struggled to portray this nation with nuance. Individual characters like Talia and Damian are well-rounded, but you can tell this is one of the legacies Batman has baked in that’s difficult for their team to reimagine.
ETA: If you didn’t tear up or feel emotional at how Damian met Goliath, I’m not sure we’ll get along as fellow comic readers.
ETA: If you didn’t tear up or feel emotional at how Damian met Goliath, I’m not sure we’ll get along as fellow comic readers.
May 29, 2017
Damien is one of my favorite characters in the DC universe. Cocky and head strong, he's Batman's perfect child, without actually having to be a stock Batfamily player. This book gives great example of why Damien's got his own redemption story to live, and Batman isn't needed to tell it. Also, LOVE Goliath! Patrick Gleason never disappoints on art. Mind blowing panels you can stare at for days. I've followed him from title to title, which is the highest compliment I can give a comic book artist.
September 15, 2025
It's fine. I think the thing with this is it fails to be amazing, and coming RIGHT after Batman and Robin series doesn't help. But the colorful art, and Damien being snarky, are still here. But I also feel it's less serious, mroe goofy, and tus doesn't feel as fun as the Batman and Robin that came after. But Damien fans will probably still find some enjoyment here.
July 5, 2018
Read my Review, at my website: Balancingactbooks.com
http://www.balancingactbooks.com/2018...
http://www.balancingactbooks.com/2018...
December 11, 2021
Good art for a story that jumps around far too much and loses coherence in places, with characters appearing and disappearing without enough explanation.
September 5, 2024
actual rating: 2.5 ⭐️
March 27, 2021
5 🌟
Damian atones for the mistakes he made during his Year of Blood.
Damian atones for the mistakes he made during his Year of Blood.
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