I've always had a soft spot for Tim Drake. He's the Robin that I was used to reading when I got into comics, and I think he's a very likeable character. Even when they changed him to Red Robin following Damian Wayne taking on the mantle of Robin I thought he had a great book, and looked forward to reading about him each month. When the New 52 hit I ended up taking a step back from DC for a while because, frankly, I didn't like most of the comics anymore; and one character that I felt got one of the worse deals from the revamp was Tim. However, I'm really happy to see that Meghan Fitzman has served the character well in his Future State book.
The issue opens with Tim alone in Gotham, his friends and allies gone, leaving him alone to fight against the forces of the Magistrate. We get a nice little explanation at the start as to what's happened to a few of the other members of the Bat-family, with Dick locked up in Arkham, and Jason working for the Magistrate. No info on Damian at this point though, so perhaps Tim not revealing that is going to lead to a little revelation in the next few issues, which might not be too far fetched considering what the bad guys are using to enhance their soldiers.
But I'm getting a little ahead there, we find out that Tim is still leading the fight against the bad guys, and is trying to stop the Magistrate from enhancing their mechanical soldiers with a new mystery substance. Along his investigation he gets joined by Stephanie Brown, Spoiler, who's picked up her costume to rejoin the fight. I love the way Steph looks in this issue, and she's got the hardened future resistance fighter vibe down well. I've always loved Stephanie, and her relationship with Tim is always fun to watch, so it feels really appropriate that she's back for this story.
She's not the only returning character though, as Tim is also joined by Darcy for We Are Robin, giving readers three characters that have a relation to the name Robin all in one book. Possibly four if Damian turns up? It really began to feel that whilst this is definitely Tim leading things this book was also taking the time to acknowledge the fact that there have been a number of Robins over the years, and is trying to include multiple characters connected to the hero in some way.
The book moved with a really good pace, and despite a good section of it being given over to world building and character development as Tim and Darcy had a conversation with each other on a rooftop there was enough action and high stakes drama that meant the book never felt slow or dull. It had punch, and a sense of time running out as the three heroes tried to stop things in Gotham from getting worse.
I've found the Future State books set in Gotham to be a very mixed bag so far, but this is one that was enjoyable throughout, managing to sell this darker future whilst not making it too grim or dull, and also showcasing a trio of characters who are a lot of fun. After seeing this I really hope that post Future State we end up seeing more of Tim Drake doing what he does best, with Stephanie along for the ride too.
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