"Who's the best Robin?" It's a question fans continue to argue and argue about and we're sure the discussion will go on for years and years to come. We all have our favorites and, even if many of us know our favorites probably aren't the "best" one, that won't stop many of us from proudly standing by the character's side and explaining why they're great. Seeing as Damian Wayne is our latest Character of the Month, we figured we should analyze whether he truly is the best Robin. He certainly thinks he is.

By "best" Robin, we mean the character who will benefit Batman's mission the most. Who will help him when he needs assistance the most? Who will stand by his plan, even if they have disagreements? Who will make the Dark Knight look at a problem from a whole new perspective? Who will make Bruce Wayne grow as a hero? Does Damian Wayne help his father more than the 3 other iconic Robins? We're not including Stephanie Brown since her time as Robin wasn't very extensive and, well, she was kind of fired. That said, there's no denying many of you can go on and on about why she's your favorite Robin and understandably so! Now, let's see what advantages the big 3 Robins brought to the costume.

First, there was Dick Grayson. Out of the several Robins, he's the most skilled and the most agile. He may not be as good as Batman (not many are), but when those two are in a fight, not many threats have what it takes to overcome this Dynamic Duo. While Batman may be brooding and intimidating, Grayson's often likable and uplifting. He has great teamwork with Batman when they're out in the field and his personality offers a nice contrast to Bruce's. He eventually wanted to become more than Robin, but we're looking back on his time as Robin. Then there was Jason Todd. The second Robin may not be as nimble as Grayson, but he has an inner rage that Bruce was hoping the child could channel and use for good. Todd's okay with fighting dirty and he tested Bruce's abilities as a mentor. The character's death (and eventual return) had a huge impact on the hero. Jason Todd isn't exactly Batman's biggest success story, but it plays a critical part in his life.

Later came Tim Drake, a boy who may not be as skilled as Grayson or as challenging as Todd, but he's absolutely the best detective out of the batch. That's not saying he's a pushover and bad at fighting or that the others aren't the brightest around, but he has the most potential to become "the world's greatest detective." Batman's a phenomenal hand-to-hand combatant and strikes fear into his enemies, but his gifted intelligence is what truly boosts his abilities as a hero. What good is a fighter with a lot of technology if they're foolish in combat or can't figure out what their enemies will do next?

So, what does Damian Wayne bring to the table? He's a gifted fighter and has a sharp mind -- he's been trained by the League of Assassins since he was just 3-years-old -- but each Robin knows how to hold their own in a fight, disarm a thug and outsmart a variety of opponents. What makes his time as Robin truly unique is the fact this is a father and son fighting side by side. Yes, Bruce's views the others as part of his family, but this is quite literally his only child -- something Damian has no problem rubbing in Tim's face. Batman would fight to the death to protect any of the Robins, but having his actual son -- his flesh and blood -- simply brings more weight to the dynamic, something which Peter J. Tomasi made perfectly clear in the pages of BATMAN AND ROBIN. Bruce loves all of the Robins, but with his son's terrible and bloody past, he feels an overwhelming need to make sure Damian has a bright and positive future. This is brought about some brilliant displays of motivation. Hell, Batman just went to Apokolips and back -- and not to mention fought Darkseid -- because there was a chance to save his son.

The fact that Damian was raised by Talia al Ghul to become a cold and wise killing machine puts an extra emphasis on just how motivated Bruce is to help his son become a good, respectable man and not a bloodthirsty individual who walks the line between hero and villain. The desire to mold his son into the best person he can possible be is a constant test for Bruce, one that is always forcing him to be mindful of how he acts and make sure he's doing everything he can to help teach Damian what's right and serve as a positive role model. It's a learning experience for both of them and it's no easy feat considering the training Talia put the kid through, after all.

The father-son relationship may bring about a passionate and stronger connection, but just like a number of young sons, Damian tends to clash with his father. Be it blatantly disobeying an order or strongly protesting a plan and/or idea, Damian's arrogance and sense of comfort with his dad means he's more open and blunt with his opinions. Now, Damian rarely has a filter and often tells others exactly how he feels, but his confidence and drive to do what he wants to do has produced several issues. As you probably know, defying an order and doing what he thought was right is exactly what got him killed.

Overall, Damian's kind of a blend of the previous Robins. He's incredibly skilled and effective in combat (Grayson), has quite an attitude (Todd), and, despite his arrogance and young age, he has a brilliant mind (Drake). His witty personality and impressive formidability makes him an extremely appealing and lovable character to many readers, but his arrogance and frequent desire to prove himself can create major problems (just ask the Teen Titans). So, is Damian Wayne the best Robin? He has the potential to one day earn that title and now that he's back, hopefully we'll see him continue to grow as a character. You know, once the ego boost of having super powers wears off. But as of right now, a better case can be made for Dick Grayson or maybe even Tim Drake as being the "best" Robin. Is Damian worthy of being called your favorite Robin, though? Absolutely!

Do you believe Damian Wayne is the BEST Robin or do you think someone else has earned the title?

Damian almost never listens to Bruce and always has to do things his own way. He isn't totally incompetent but as far as teamwork goes he's much closer to being the worst Robin than the best. Maybe if we look at this in 10 years he'll be halfway to Tim's level.

Tim Drake is the best Robin.

short answer: no.

long answer: noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.

Definitely Tim.

Hes probably the best Robin at a skill level but when it comes to things like teamwork and following orders he falls short. He's still young though so he has plenty of time to grow. He may not be the best Robin because of those shortcomings but he is my favorite Robin.

I've said this many times before but the Robin's (and most of Batman's sidekicks) I didn't typically like until they branched out on their own. Grayson (my favorite besides Bruce) I didn't like until he split off and became Nightwing, for example. Tim Drake is the only Robin I've liked as Robin, and Stephanie Brown the only Batgirl as Batgirl.

I understand while plenty like Damian, but I just still can't get into him as a character yet. Maybe with more time still.

I don't like Damian that much but I think if there is to be a Robin it should be him. I think Jason Todd's story is the most interesting but I would never want him to be Robin again. Same goes for Dick Grayson. And Tim Drake has always felt like a fill-in to me though he has probably had the most success as Robin when it comes to comic series.

Bruce did say in the New 52 that Tim Drake is better than Dick and Jason.

Seems like a few people beat me to saying that Tim Drake is the best

Tim Drake

As far as I am concerned, Tim is the best Robin and Damian is the most problematic.

Like the others earned the job through various ways, Damian didn't at first, he just sort of muscled his way into the house because he's Bruce's kid and because his mom and grandpappy wanted him there. Then Bruce went and got Omega beamed and I still dont get the reasoning behind Dick then caving in and giving Damian what he wanted by being obnoxious.

To this, Damian is the only of the Robins that really needed watching while wearing the mantle, because despite all the development, he is still perfectly willing to kill people if he has to. Which to my mind, is not how a partnership like this can work on.

Not yet he's not but he does have the most potential for character growth. Though if Batman #666 is any indication Damian may fall short.

Damian Wayne is my favorite Robin. I absolutely love the little jerk. That said, Tim Drake is the "best" Robin using the parameters set in the article. Dick does a lot for Batman's emotional stability but Tim is pretty much the all around perfect sidekick. He has the detective skills, combat skills, and emotional rationality that Barman needs from his Robin. Tim can debate tactics, morals, clues, or anything with Bruce if he needs to be challenged and Batman frequently needs to be challenged. Drake, unlike Damian, also knows when to keep his mouth shut and do what Batman orders. When you look at all the aspects that make for a good Robin then I think it's fairly obvious that Tim Drake is the prototype of what Bruce needs in his sidekick.

All of this is of course using the pre-New 52 version of Tim because the one we have gotten since the reboot has not been the character we all knew and loved before.

What's great about the Robins is they all have their place in The Bat Family and the DC Universe as a whole. Dick is probably the most beloved of the Bat Family, was the first Robin, and in several ways that makes him the best. But when I started reading BATMAN he had already moved on to Nightwing. So I never got a heavy dose of Dick Grayson's Robin. Same goes for Jason Todd. He was dead once I started reading BATMAN comics. Tim Drake is the Robin I grew up with and in many ways that makes him my favorite. Overall I prefer Dick Grayon over Tim Drake, but that doesn't answer the question of "Who was the better Robin"? Dick is the most athletic, Jason the most physical, and Tim the most intellectual. They all represent different aspects of Batman himself. I won't get into Stephanie Brown since she only lasted 3 issues, and Carrie Kelly is an alternate reality Robin. Damien is the wildcard. He's the newest (therefore youngest) and current Robin, and also has a big following like previous Robins. I honestly believe it all comes down to who you grew up with as the current Robin, (for myself Tim), but I'd say Dick Grayson is the best character overall.

have to make a case for Dick Grayson.

The last scan of the article is one example of why. Dick understands Bruce better than any of the others, because he's known him the longest. He also understands best what it means to be Robin, because he CREATED the role.

Would probably go with Dick being the best, Jason as the worse (my fav but not a great Robin)

Even Tim loses out to Super Robin.

I thought this was going to be a poll.

It has to be Grayson. Not only is he the original, but he did a good job filling in for Batman, and helping train Damian to be the Robin he is.

@nightwing4 said:

That's pretty much what I was gonna say. Dick is the quintessential Robin - he's both the equal and opposite of Batman. Damian is only "the best" when partnered up with someone who is both his equal and opposite - Dick Grayson. Damian and Bruce are too much alike, similarly, Tim and Bruce are too much alike. Batman and Robin is the "dynamic duo" - it's hard to be dynamic when y'know, they're the same.

It will always be Grayson. He brings more heart and positive attitude than any other Robin and it compliments Batman perfectly. He is Robin. The others simply adopted the role.

Damian didn't listen to batman and got himself killed. What a great help he is. He's a great character and the relationship between him and batman is awesome and probably better than Batman's with the others, but as a robin he's not the best. That honor goes to Tim drake. Dick was nowhere near as good as robin as he is a Nightwing, and he didn't become as interesting until after he became Nightwing. Also, he quit being robin. Yes it was to move on to Nightwing, but as a robin, quitting surely didn't help batman. Jason was "meh" and then he died. Tim Drake as robin was perfect though. He had his own series and pretty much always did what batman said. I believe he was the greatest help to batman, in addition to helping him accept Jason's death. He wasn't bratty or a troublemaker and was always there to help batman. Same could be said about dick too, but I think Tim was a better robin. Tim always gets the short end of the stick.

Great article though.

Very well put.

It depends on when you started reading batman comics. Also lots of people say dick greyson but only because they like him as nightwing.

@shadowhuntr said:

Bruce did say in the New 52 that Tim Drake is better than Dick and Jason.

i still hate how much they changed all their stories. I agree Tim Drake was the best robin for Batman but they messed with the characters to much.

Tim shouldnt be better then Dick at acrobatics. I was fine with him being a better detective and he can be closer to batman in abilities then the rest but he should not be able to beat Dick in ACROBATICS. I had to say it again. Dick is supposed to be the best gymnast in the DCU alive and 2nd best ever in the DCU (behind Deadman)

I actually like the way things unfolded when Dick took over. He didnt need Tim to be his sidekick bc thats not how Dick saw him. He saw Tim as an equal that needed little to no advice from Dick. Damian on the other hand was ill tempered, short sighted and had a chip on his shoulder.

Tim Drake. Everyone who has been Robin has their own strengths and all have done great things, but when you look at overall I think it is fairly clear that Tim was the best.

@degraaf: 1) Thank you for reminding us how Lobdell effectively turned Tim into Dick's clone brother. /end sarcasm :)

2) I know a lot of people liked that. Me... I hated that exchange, not because of how Dick viewed Tim, but because his choice more or less shunted him out of the house at perhaps the worst time imaginable.Tim's time before all of that had not been an easy one thanks to some twat editors idea that no Robin could exist without tragedy... so Tim lost his dad, his girlfriend was tortured to death, his two best mates died in the line of duty, he got a psychopath in the Batcave that wanted to kill him (along with fruitcake Todd outside of it that nearly managed it) and then on top of everything else: Bruce 'the Batman' Wayne also died and then he had to hand over his mantle. If it was anything, it was an honorable but involuntary discharge from service.

And to be frank, I would have found a Batman & Robin as equals an interesting direction. Who knows, if Damian had run off, he could have joined up with Todd (or Deathstroke) and made a better anti-B&R partnership than Todd got with 'Scarlet' (?).

He doesn't follow orders and got Alfred yelled at. He technically is insubordinate which makes him the worst

Grayson or Drake are the best Robin's in my opinion

Damian goes well out of his way to act like a (anti)hero and not a sidekick, so I would say that he is not the best Robin. That honour goes to Dick Grayson.

@daredevil21134: Damn straight

I think it's getting to the point that whatever generation your from, that's your Robin. Similar to the question, which Bond is the best. It's just a matter of who you grew up reading. It seems at this pace their will be just as many robins as there are Bonds.

here's my ranking:

1. Tim

2. Damian

3. Dick

4. Jason

Tim and Damian have the best training and each are experts in aspects. I feel like Dick was good, but everyone always says his strength is that he is acrobatic...he is not exceptionally intelligent or trained by assassins since 3.

The greatest Robin is Dick Grayson ( although i like him more as Nightwing ).

My favourite Robin is Damian Wayne.

i like tim drake.

I've never like the idea of Batman being a father.

The best Robin for me is Dick Grayson, i wish he was Robin again. Though I must admit, Tim was a great Robin too, Back in the 90's i love his stories along Batman.

I like all of them as characters, but as Robin, the best one is Tim. He had the capability of knowing when follow orders and when ignore them, great detective skills than in my opinion someday will be better than the ones Batman has and had a great tactical mind. He also didn't just choose to be Robin, he discovered who Batman is and convinced him to take him as his sidekick. Dick wasn't meant to be Robin for a long time, he was born to other things, to be by his own and make things his way, he is too different from Bruce. Damian still has to prove himself, he is great at fighting, but too impulsive. Jason is the worst as Robin, he do what he considers necessary to impose his justice, he's an antihero.

Same. He was always my favorite. Plus, didn't he kick Damian's ass once?

Let me describe it this way.

All hail the almighty Super Robin.

Dick Grayson is and always be the best Robin. Damian still has a long way to go hopefully his return will improve the character.

Best Robin... Tim Drake.. Because even though he doesn't want to be Batman he WILL take over the mantle... Best Robin to change Batman's mood... Richard Grayson.. Remember he always was destined for greatness just not as Batman {even though he was a awesome Batman} best rebellious Robin.. A tie between Jason Todd and Damian Wayne because both have tempers and both question methods and orders quickly... And although I have love for Richard Grayson {grew up reading his adventures with Batman} Tim has an advantage that all the other three didn't have... He figured out Batman was Bruce Wayne {actually cross out Damian he doesn't count duh!}

Dick Grayson without a doubt, just was the robin I believe had the most development.

For the record, Damian himself is more loyal to Bruce than any other Robin:

Tim Drake is the best robin

Dick I think has more than just eclipsed being Robin. He's forged his own identity as Nightwing and, has even proven worth of carrying the mantle of Batman.

Jason and Damien, I.... look I tried really hard to like them but I never did. Damien to this day feels very much like like he's been shoehorned into the Batman Mythos and has just never felt like a natural part of it too me.

Tim I think is the best Robin. Not just is he the best detective/tactician of the Robins, but he is the one that truly embraced the role of Robin. Not just a partner, but that humanizing influence that keeps Batman from becoming what he beholds. Damien I think is emotional broken on such a level that he'll never be able to do that for Batman. Robin is who helps Batman hold onto his humanity. When those roles get reversed? With Batman trying to help Robin keep his humanity.... I think that's a road that can lead to a very far fall for the Dark Knight.

Of course that can lead to some great and dramatic story telling.