Is Joseph Gordon Levitt truly Robin?

[Cobblepot4Mayor]

Lordy how do we even begin to discuss this one? Controversial or what?

It did give me a great chuckle in the theatre but I believe some fans chose to vomit into their popcorn instead at the mere mention of a Boy Wonder in the Nolanverse.

Now this has split me down the middle. I personally would have liked him to have really been Robin because one problem with the movie is the sheer amount of time we spent with this John Blake guy. A mere cop with a gun and we see him a lot more than we do Bale in action seemingly. Had he been the infamous sidekick I may have tolerated  his bemusing presence better with him being a new take on a significant character. On the other hand he's certainly not Dick Grayson or any other Robin for that matter.

So what was Nolan's deal here with that Robin reference? A mere joke to piss off more aggressive devotees? Or a statement of yep, this is the best we could do for the character by re-imagining him completely? Has he ever confirmed or denied anything officially? Levitt recently commented on Affleck's casting in the press and the writer of the piece did in fact refer to him as Batman's famous sidekick. It seems the media and public assume this but where on earth does this sit inside the fan base?

[The Laughing Fish]

It did give me a great chuckle in the theatre but I believe some fans chose to vomit into their popcorn instead at the mere mention of a Boy Wonder in the Nolanverse.

Given that Nolan already got away with a lot of things like changing the characters and screwing up the story to suit his agenda, I see no reason why any of his supporters would have a problem about Blake's reveal.

For me though, I don't really consider Blake as Robin. Nolan and Goyer, as usual, took a bunch of ideas that came from the comics (Robin being an orphan, a cop etc) and twisted them to create a new character. I thought the reveal was nothing more than a nod to Robin, and that's it.

[Cobblepot4Mayor]

What is frustrating about it though is the way in which it is handled. It'd be different and cleaner if it was like seeing Remy Lebeau's (Gambit) name on a computer in X-Men 2. As a fun tease to spot. Or say Donald Blake's on a name tag in Thor.

The difference here is that it occurs right at the end of the movie and is prominently stated in what can best be described as a sort of "TA DA!" moment. Almost like a Planet of the Apes type conclusion in which a huge revelation is revealed and we discover just what (or who) we've been watching all this time. It just seems they intended it to be far more than a fun tease in how it's presented.

[Catwoman]

no, he isn't. if he isn't an acrobat in some circus, then he isn't. thank you, end of story.

[The Dark Knight]

His name was Robin. That's all it is in TDKR. A name.

[zDBZ]

no, he isn't. if he isn't an acrobat in some circus, then he isn't. thank you, end of story.

I don't believe Tim Drake came from a circus.

But no, I don't think John Blake really fits the bill. He comes closer to a replacement Gordon than a sidekick directly under Batman's wing.

[Silver Nemesis]

Blake is the Nolanverse Robin. At the end of the day 'Robin' is a codename that's been applied to Dick Grayson, Bruce Wayne Jr., Jason Todd, Tim Drake, Robert Chang, Tris Plover, Stephanie Brown, Damian Wayne, Carrie Kelley, and countless other DC multiverse characters. Robin is Batman's young sidekick who knows his secret identity and helps him fight crime. That's the fundamental premise of the character. Other details, such as Robin's true identity, origin story, costume and personality, vary from one iteration to the next.

Is John Blake Dick Grayson? No.

Is he Nolan's version of Robin? Yes.

[Edd Grayson]

He had the name but that's about it. He wasn't anything like any Robin I know.

Reminds me of The Mandarin in Iron Man 3 wasn't really Mandarin. At least they didn't fool me into thinking I'll get the Boy of Wonder in TDKR like Marvel did by setting up Mandarin as the big bad in Iron Man 3.

[johnnygobbs]

He had the name but that's about it. He wasn't anything like any Robin I know.

Reminds me of The Mandarin in Iron Man 3 wasn't really Mandarin. At least they didn't fool me into thinking I'll get the Boy of Wonder in TDKR like Marvel did by setting up Mandarin as the big bad in Iron Man 3.

Hey, you're not knocking Iron Man 3 are you Edd?    I loved that twist and I think it worked more effectively than any attempts to do an up-to-date 'serious' version of the Mandarin might have.

[The Laughing Fish]

He had the name but that's about it. He wasn't anything like any Robin I know.

Reminds me of The Mandarin in Iron Man 3 wasn't really Mandarin. At least they didn't fool me into thinking I'll get the Boy of Wonder in TDKR like Marvel did by setting up Mandarin as the big bad in Iron Man 3.

Hey, you're not knocking Iron Man 3 are you Edd?    I loved that twist and I think it worked more effectively than any attempts to do an up-to-date 'serious' version of the Mandarin might have.

The twist was great. I'll admit that I felt misled by the marketing at first, but it was refreshing because it was truly unexpected (unlike the so-called surprises involving Ras and Talia Al Ghul), and it served a big purpose in the story too. Killian created the Mandarin persona to cover up AIM's involvement with the incidents happening everywhere in the country. A Middle Eastern-looking terrorist was a perfect ploy to avoid any suspicions that the threat was actually home grown. Killian was actually the brains behind the whole plot.

It was by far a superior and coherent twist than Nolan could ever come up with. Besides, even if the twist never happened, the pretend-Mandarin was still nothing really like the comics anyway e.g. Middle Eastern instead of being Chinese, no magic rings etc. And really, unless there are examples that the Mandarin played a big part in the wider Marvel Universe, I don't consider him to be that interesting as Magneto or Thanos.