Batman: Beyond The White Knight may need proven a decrepit, dystopian Gotham, however all hope was not misplaced as quite a few heroes emerged to problem the duplicitous authorities, together with a model new feminine Robin. Gan was DC’s first feminine Robin in a very long time, and I hope they bear in mind her transferring ahead.

In Batman: White Knight Presents – Red Hood, a two-issue miniseries by Sean Murphy, Clayton McCormack, Simone Di Meo, George Kambadais, Dave Stewart, and AndWorld Design, Jason Todd, after his run in with the Joker, had really educated his personal Robin: a younger lady named Gan, who tried to cease crime on her personal with grit and a motorcycle. Eventually, Gan gained her personal correct Robin costume and her place amongst Gotham’s vigilantes, and I really want that DC hadn’t moved on from her so quick.

Set in between Jason’s time as Robin and his re-appearance in Bruce’s life, the sequence confirmed that Jason struggled with dedication, transferring from job to job, earlier than ultimately operating into Gan whereas drunk. Despite their tough begin, Jason readily agreed to coach her. He solely later exited her life after realizing the instincts he’d instilled in her had been extra harmful than precautionary. Batman: Beyond the White Knight revealed how Gan discovered more healthy strategies to assist her group forward of Gan suiting up correctly to battle alongside Batman’s allies in the sequence’ climax.

Gan’s Robin Costume Honors Her Mongolian Heritage

Variant Cover by Simone Di Meo

While most Robin costumes are of their time, Gan’s swimsuit immediately references her heritage, from the design to the operate. Gan tells Jason in Batman: White Knight Presents – Red Hood #1 that each her belt and her tunic belonged to her paternal grandfather. Other than Damian Wayne’s Robin costumes, Gan is considered one of the few Gotham heroes to include her tradition into her heroism, bringing a private contact to a cluttered legacy.

I believe these cultural touches are a superb solution to differentiate her character and add some distinction to the Robin swimsuit. Gan additionally later exchanges her bike and grappling hook for upgraded arrows and her grandfather’s bow, bringing conventional weaponry right into a high-stakes, high-tech battle.

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But the costume wasn’t nearly tech. From the starting, Gan stood out from Gotham’s previous roster for really wanting to guard the elements of the metropolis that Batman neglects. That worth is at the core of her character. Gan wielding conventional and cultural weaponry creates a distinction between her and the characters utilizing superior expertise, moreover serving to separate Gan from a corrupted Gotham. As a brand new character, she wanted to be differentiated from the different Robins in a robust means. All collectively, Gan’s character is a vibrant mild in a darkish story line, and I hope DC remembers her transferring forwards.

It’s About Time DC Invested In Non-Male Robins

Batman Certainly Has a Type

After the finish of the New 52, DC resolved disputes over who ought to maintain the titles of Robin and Batgirl by letting a number of characters personal the names at the identical time. While this has diminished storylines purely centered on legacy, it’s additionally saved any new characters from receiving a highlight. Gan is proof that new Robins – and Batgirls – can nonetheless be launched with out different characters (or followers) feeling invalidated.

There are loads of methods to reinvigorate the Robin legacy with out revoking another person’s sense of belonging, like bringing private tradition into the costume. Gan didn’t ask permission to bear the Robin identify, nor did she hesitate to place her personal spin on it. She doesn’t have to. Gan’s storyline could have intertwined with Batman: White Knight’s Jason Todd’s, however her growth by the time she joined Batman: Beyond the White Knight was totally her personal.

Gan’s resolution to don the Robin brand and costume got here with out Batman being in her life. Not solely did that call reverberate in the current characters round her – who have already got a heavy quantity of DC lore connected to them – however gave Gan the probability to make an actual impression in Batman: Beyond the White Knight’s remaining battle. There are extra Robin tales to inform, simply from different views than the Robins who’ve come earlier than.

Gan’s Robin Needs to Return to the DC Multiverse

Variant Cover by Simone Di Meo

I believe DC may do a superb job of telling extra non-male Robin tales ought to the proper second current itself. Robin War – a crossover occasion by various creators that includes the likes of Nightwing, Red Hood, Damian Wayne, and extra – proved anybody can bear the image, however DC has but to really make good on that realization. That’s one thing that ought to change as DC strikes ahead. Gan’s character was lots of firsts for DC – esepcially by way of various character designs – however there’s no ignoring that her contemporary outlook on the Robin legacy reinvigorated an more and more stale heroic heritage.

As a newly minted Robin, and an older one with life expertise besides, Gan’s character would have loads to supply in future tales, each in the Batman: White Knight universe, which subtly teased a fourth quantity, and if DC had been to reintroduce her in the principal universe. Plus, non-male Robins are few and much between. There are extra Gotham residents who deserve a hero to characterize them on the roofs. Archery may not be Batman’s model, however Gan’s already proved she doesn’t want something from Batman to develop into a Robin.

Batman: White Knight Presents: Red Hood is out there now from DC Comics.