One of the most important things you can know about me is that I love comic books. One of the second most important things you can know about me is I love talking about comics. So, to kick of my blog I figured I would walk you through the Great Batman Binge of 2026 (patent pending). While my family certainly doesn't have much in the way of mansions or private planes for me to inherit, I have been lucky enough to come into a good amount of old comic books that I have gleefully claimed as my own. Think of this series as a companion guide. Follow along with your own comics, if you dare.
The collection I'll be reading through is mostly Copper Age Batman, Batman Detective and Legends of the Dark Knight. I've never read through every single comic in the collection, so some will be a reread and others will be my first impression.
The earliest comic in my collection is Batman #424-The Diplomats Son. It's one I've read before and is very near and dear to my heart.
This is probably my favorite Batman comic of all time- it's the first one I bought for myself. 424 opens with Jason Todd as Robin smashing into an apartment at the sound of a woman's scream. Inside, he finds a man named Felipe Garzonas assaulting a woman named Gloria Stanson. As we watch the fight between Jason and Garzonas, we hear some of Batmans analysis of his protege's fighting. The conclusion Batman comes too is that Jason is too foolhardy and rushes into fights without a plan.
For a Batman nerd such as myself, it's not hard to see the writing on the wall in this issue. Batman 424 is the issue in which the bond between Batman and Robin fractures, and this is apparent from the first couple pages. The character of Batman is defined by his methodical approach to everything. He plans and prepares a for a thousand different scenarios before ever engaging, and he is matched by an adolescent, brazen Robin who acts with his heart.
Jason Todds stint as Robin (post-crisis) began in 1987 when he attempted to steal the tires off the Batmobile in Crime Alley, was caught and - after a brief interlude at a group home - taken in by Batman to channel his rage into crime-fighting. Jason's post-crisis creator was Max Allan Collins, but the bulk of his most popular appearances are thanks to Jim Starlin. Starlin, in his own words, "I tried to avoid using [Robin] as much as I could...I wasn’t crazy at Robin." At this time in the comic book zeitgeist, storylines were taking on a gritter, darker tone. Gone were the days of a fun, light-spirited Robin, and Jason Todd reflects that. Under Starlin he aged into a disliked character who Starlin himself tried to get killed off with AIDS.
Batman and Robin take Gloria to the police station to make an official report and discover Garzonas is the son of a foreign dipolomat and thus, immune to any repercussions of his crimes. This revelation is revealed by Commissioner Gordon, and the next panel features Gloria's wide-eyed terror at the news. Some more narration reveals that Gloria had to be sedated and sent to the hospital while Garzonas walked out of the precinct without even being booked. Later on a rooftop, Jason tells Batman he needs to get Garzonas. Batman reprimands Jason for getting too emotionally invested in a case, and then reveals that he discovered Garzonas has a drug problem and his sampling his fathers imported cocaine. Batman plans to expose his addiction to force Garzonas to be deported back to Bogatago (his fictional home country) and kill any dreams of following his fathers footsteps into diplomacy.
This comic lives and breathes 1980s American politics, in more ways then one. The villain of the story is a Latin American man abusing American women on his drug-influenced tirade through freedom. The stereotype of a Latin American importing drugs is nothing unique to the writers of Batman. Throughout the 1980s the United States government was involved in several wars in Central and Southern America and the story told to the American people is that the revolutionaries in these countries (usually communist) were importing drugs into the States and so, to protect the American people, military intervention was necessary. The character Felipe Garzonas effectively personifies those fears of a Latin American political figure involved in international drug trade.
After revealing his plan, Robin says to Batman that simply being deported 'isn't much of a punishment' for Garzonas and Batman responds that he's 'afraid it's the best we can do.'
This sense of crime as something to be punished is also very of the times. In the mid to late 80s, President Ronald Reagan was experiencing the fruits of his controversial 'Reaganomic' and 'War on Drugs' policies and the effect on the American people was deepening class divides and a strong need for punishment rather then rehabilitation of criminals. Batman fit into this tough on crime fantasy perfectly, and is clearly passing his ideals down to Jason.
Jason, who comes from Crime Alley and knows intimately the effects violence and crime have on life in more ways then one. What separates Jason from Batman, or his predecessor Dick Grayson is that the incident that makes him a hero isn't his first foray into the darkness. With Batman, the murder of his parents showed him the lawlessness of Gotham City and inspired him to enact change. Dick Grayson was taken in by a sympathetic Batman after his parents were murdered, but Jason Todd had long since been alone by the time he was taken in. His father was in jail, his mother was a drug addict, he had been living on the streets and forced to drop out of school. His life had been no cakewalk, and yet his character is defined as being caring, and thoughtful. He's shown as wanting to learn and help people. He's kind to sex workers in an age of moral upheaval and purity panic. Jason Todd is shown to be One of Them by writer Starlin, who harbored no sweet love for Jason and was eager to see him go in favor of a darker, grittier Batman. And so Jason internalizes these teachings from Batman that crime is something to be punished. A wrongdoing is righted by a wrongdoing and your suffering is undone by another's.
Ironically, this isn't what Batman wanted at all.
The comic then follows Batman and Robin staking out Garzonas, waiting for him to slip up so they can turn him in. We see Jason pacing on rooftops, antsy to 'pop' Garzonas. (I think that about 30% of the fun of old comics is the outdated slang.) When Garzonas finally does contact his dealer for a resupply, Batman and Robin dispatch the goons in an artful 'silent' spread- no dialogue. I love when comics do this and you can soak up the art. I know there's a couple fully silent Batman issues out there, but I've yet to stumble upon any.
After the goons are taken care of, Robin corners Garzonas in a corner. "Come on, Felipe, be a sport. Resist my taking you in." Jason says while walking over a cowering Garzonas. "Please, resist!" This panel is framed from Batmans perspective, with Jason casting a shadow over Garzonas' cowering form. 
This panel shows us how Batman is perceiving this moment- Jason as needing to feel bigger then the bad guy. This goes against the Batman mythos. Batman is effective as a hero and a crime deterrent not because he is bigger then the bad guys, or less then, but because he isn't like them at all. He's a separate entity, operating on his own level and unable to be corrupted. It's why Batman doesn't kill. But Jason Todd is shown in the panel above as being bigger then the enemy, towering over Garzonas. He's putting himself on the same playing field as the bad guy, so to speak, and Batman sees this. Jason is taking advantage of his role as Robin for his own purposes.
Batman and Robins efforts are fruitful, and they take Garzonas in for booking. Before he's taken to a cell, he makes a phone call. We see him talking through the line, asking what they're wearing and vowing to see the person later tonight. It's revealed he's talking to Gloria, and Batman and Robin hustle Garzonas off the phone and rush to Gloria's, but it's too little to late. They arrive at her apartment to find that she's hanged herself.
The entire issue exploits the disconnect between the interests of the legal system and what would best protect individuals. Garzonas is a criminal rapist and drug trafficker, but because of the workings of the legal system the best punishment able to be afforded is deportation. And later, when taken into custody Garzonas is again able to use the system to his benefit, using his phone call to threaten and ultimately push Gloria to her suicide. The entire interaction shows how the system benefits those with power, Garzona's diplomatic immunity and hangs those without to dry.
After discovering Gloria, Batman laments his failures and Robin slips away. We shift to Garzonas' apartment, see him listing the things he will miss, namely cocaine and women, and we see Jason step onto the balcony next to Garzonas. The next panel is Garzonas falling from the balcony, and Batman swoops in to question an astounded looking Robin about what happened. He then says the lines that, to me, are iconic in the mythos of Jason Todds time as Robin. 
Robin tells Batman "I guess I spooked him. He slipped." and swings into the sunset as Batman lingers on the balcony. To me, this issue has everything. Criticism of existing societal structures, plenty fight sequences, and a moral conundrum without a clear-cut answer.
One of the beauties of this issue, to me, is that to the end it's ambiguous. We don't know if Jason really pushed Garzonas, as Batman suspects. But what would it mean if he had? Certainly that he was acting outside the bounds of the law and the expectations for an agent of it, but is it not in the nature of a vigilante to enact justice where the system fails? Is Jason truly acting as the out of control, angry Robin we're being led to believe, or is he acting as the hand of justice he needed in his youth?
Of course, a core part of the Batman character is his refusal to act as judge, jury and executioner. Batman does not kill. If you know one thing about Batman, you know this. So what does it mean for Batman to have an apprentice willing to take that step for the greater good?
If you can't tell by now, this is one of my favorite comics and I could talk about it forever. If you made it this far, you have my praise and respect for reading all my nerdy ramblings. The next issues should be shorter, this one was such a doozy because it's one of my favorites. If you did read all that and have any questions let me know in the comments! Love Always, Ellie
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