‘Dark Nights: Death Metal Robin King’ Review: A Robin to Die For

Writer: Tony Patrick & Peter J. Tomasi / Artist: Riley Rossmo & Daniel Sampere / DC Comics This is the third one-shot tie-in that I’ve read for the Dark Knights: Death Metal event, and I am here to inform you that it is also the third book that I’ve really enjoyed.  I don’t know what it is, but these tie-ins are hitting different than they usually do. The general consensus is that they still aren’t necessarily needed to get the whole narrative. But they also feel like more than just supplemental stories. They’ve got some nuance to them. And I’m not mad at it.  Robin King tells the story of a Robin from a world where he killed his parents and then went on a crusade to kill all old people because they suck. His words, not mine. He was then recruited by The Batman Who Laughs to join his team of Bat adjacent murderers from the multiverse. 

But Robin King isn’t about just killing old people. He wants to inspire other young people to kill the elders in their life too. He sees himself as an example by which others can follow. And by the end of the issue, he gets exactly what he wants. The Batman Who Laughs has a Legion of docile Robins, and the Robin King was able to get them to sing his tune. I really enjoyed how fun this story was. It was written (in-part) by Peter J. Tomasi. And if his run on Superman focusing on Jon Kent told us anything, it’s that the man knows how to write children well. But it turns out he can write sadistic children even better.&nbs…