Batman and Robin is an American comic book ongoing series, created by Grant Morrison and featuring Batman and Robin. The debut of the series followed the events of "Batman R.I.P.", Final Crisis, and "Battle for the Cowl" in which the original Batman, Bruce Wayne, apparently died at the hands of DC Comics villain Darkseid and features the winner of the "Battle for the Cowl" as the new Batman. The conclusion of Battle for the Cowl shows Dick Grayson ascending to the role of Batman, while Damian Wayne becomes the new Robin.
Morrison returned to writing the characters after being the ongoing writer on Batman from issues #655–658 and #663–683. While writing for this title, Morrison simultaneously wrote the miniseries The Return of Bruce Wayne and finished his run on the title with issue #16, before moving onto the next phase of his narrative in Batman Incorporated. Paul Cornell and Scott McDaniel created a three-issue arc before the new ongoing creative team, the former Green Lantern Corps duo of writer Peter Tomasi and artist Patrick Gleason, began their run with February 2011's issue #20.
Style and tone
In an interview with IGN before the release of the first issue, Morrison detailed that the tone of the series would be a "reverse" of the normal dynamic between Batman and Robin, with, "a more light-hearted and spontaneous Batman and a scowling, bad ass Robin". Morrison also divulged that this is a continuation of their previous work on the Batman character, although this is a different title than what they wrote previously: "This is the next book in what will be a 5-volume series beginning [with] Batman and Son, but it can be read on its own too. Batman and Robin welcomes new readers!" Morrison also said that even though the series deals with familiar identities, the series features all new villains and situations, but also revealed that some villains were glimpsed in Batman #666.
When asked if the series would deal with the new Batman being unable to fill Bruce Wayne's proverbial shoes, Morrison answered: "When I started out I had that in mind, and I thought we'd finally prove that nobody else could be Batman. But I do believe certain aspects of RIP were about how nobody but this guy could be Batman. I think with this, it's fun to start by seeing what happens when someone else tries. Sometimes it goes wrong, and sometimes it goes really well. Some of the things these guys do are things that Bruce Wayne would never have thought to do". In regards to using Frank Quitely as the opening artist, Morrison described the difference between this particular collaboration with previous ones, specifically on JLA Earth-2 and All-Star Superman. For instance, Morrison asked Quitely to choreograph the flow of the action in his own way, rather than through Morrison's normally heavily detailed scripts.
In regards to the style: "I've asked [Quitely] to re-introduce the much-maligned sound effects to superhero comics, but in a way that integrates them more closely with the art". He also described Batman and Robin as, "a shorter, pacier collaboration so we've tried to keep it looser and more open than All-Star Superman".
Following Quitely's run on the first three issues, Philip Tan became artist for the next three issues, an arc entitled "Revenge of the Red Hood", with Cameron Stewart as the artist for "Blackest Knight", the third arc, followed by Andy Clarke drawing the fourth arc titled "Batman vs. Robin" and Quitely coming back to the book sometime after. Frazer Irving took over for the fifth arc "Batman and Robin Must Die!" starting in issue #13.
In an interview with USA Today, Morrison outlined the future of the titles: "I'm doing at least another year of stories with Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne in the Batman and Robin book before that book starts to dovetail with Return and we rush headlong and screaming into the next big, earth-shattering, game-changing twist in the life of Batman".
Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason later took over the title after Grant Morrison, while Morrison went onto a different title. Dick Grayson continued his role as Batman concurrently with Bruce Wayne, and remained as the star of Batman and Robin.
Continuity with "Batman: R.I.P.", Bruce Wayne
With this title being Morrison's primary work in the Batman world for nearly two years, the writer said that this is a direct continuation of their Batman work: "With the collections out, we've got "Batman and Son", we've got The Black Glove, we've got "Batman R.I.P.", and then we've got this one, Batman and Robin, and then, hopefully, there will be a final volume, a fifth volume".