Posted By Dan Greenfield on Mar 5, 2025 | 7 comments

ROBIN WEEK!

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Welcome to ROBIN WEEK! One of the greatest heroes in comics history debuted 85 years ago, on March 6, 1940 — and we’re celebrating with a series of features saluting the Boys, Girls and Teens Wonder. For the complete index of features, click here.

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By CHRIS FRANKLIN

Robin. The Boy Wonder. The Laughing Young Daredevil — Character Find of 1940 who launched a thousand kid sidekicks but stands head and shoulders above them all. Over the course of 85 years, the original Teen Titan has permeated pop culture. With the intense popularity of the 1966 Batman TV series, Robin became a household name, and merchandise bearing the red, green and gold of his costume has rarely been absent from retail shelves in some form since.

A selection of Robin items throughout the decades, including a few bonus ones!

To celebrate the 85th anniversary of Dick Grayson’s debut in Detective Comics #38 on March 6, 1940, let’s take a look at 13 examples of toys and merchandise from across the decades. Some are seminal, some are more obscure, but all represent the enduring legacy of one of comics’ most famous heroes.

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Hand Puppet (Ideal, 1966). In addition to Captain Action (more on him later) and other licensed items of DC characters, Ideal issued a series of hand puppets in 1966 as well. This Robin compliments a Batman and very rare Joker puppet, and the whole set has some of the nicest head sculpts of any toys from this period. The design and bold colors of the vinyl body capture the character perfectly.

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Ceramic Bank (Lego, 1966). This ceramic bank from Lego (no, not THAT Lego) of Japan is a bit of a strange item, since it depicts the Boy Wonder unmasking. A poster with this same image lifted from a comic panel was also issued in the 1960s, so the concept got around. Either way, it’s a handsome piece, and has an old-world charm about it. They even used the proper Robin logo font on the bottom!

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Captain Action / Action Boy (Ideal 1967). In 1966, at the height of Batmania, Ideal introduced the first superhero action figure, Captain Action. The 12-inch figure was designed for kids to change into their favorite comic heroes via individual costume sets, sold separately. Batman was the most popular costume set, naturally, so it only made sense for Ideal to add an Acton Boy to the line the following year, as well as a costume for Robin. While not quite an action figure of the Boy Wonder, the costume set accurately created the classic comics costume, replete with his Golden Age double curls.

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World’s Greatest Super Heroes/Pocket Super Heroes (Mego, 1972-1982). Robin was one of the first four figures in Mego’s 8-inch World’s Greatest Super Heroes line beginning in late 1972. He was released in every one of Mego’s figure formats and was one of the last characters available when the line ended in 1982. The 12-inch Robin released as the 1970s came to an end represents Mego recognizing the evolution of the character into a grown, college-aged Teen Wonder.

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Batman Playset (Ideal, 1973). Ideal returned to the DC license for a series of four vinyl playsets with flat cardboard figures of Superman, Batman, Spider-Man and Dick Tracy characters in 1973. Of course, Robin was included in the Batman set, but the bonus is the inclusion of a Dick Grayson piece. Dick is very much the Hudson University student of the time, with groovy vest and plaid pants that would make Greg Brady envious. The art was provided by DC master Murphy Anderson.

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Super Jrs. Squeak Toy (Protecto, 1978). Super Jrs. was ahead of its time. A marketing push that never quite took off, it recast the DC heroes as toddlers years before the popular Muppet Babies and other “de-aged” cartoon characters that followed. There was a bevy of merchandise released in the late ’70s and early ’80s, and my wife and I scoured antique malls and eBay for items to decorate our first child’s nursery when he was born in 2001. The squeak toys like this Robin are perhaps the standout releases of the line, capturing the charm of the concept like no other.

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Super Powers (Kenner, 1984). Kenner’s Super Powers Collection is often hailed as the greatest superhero toy line of all time, mostly due to the detailed sculpting and accurate translation of the characters from page to plastic. There’s no better example than Kenner’s Robin figure, which flawlessly encapsulates the older Teen Wonder version of Dick Grayson, who had already hung up his cape in the comics by the time this figure hit shelves. Present him on the dynamic card design with art by Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez (Praised Be His Name) and you have an instant classic.

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Batman: The Animated Series (Kenner, 1992). Robin is a bit of a headscratcher in the otherwise excellent early waves of the original Batman: The Animated Series toy line. Frugal Kenner had just released a Robin figure in their Batman Returns line, despite the character never making it to the screen. So, since the BTAS creators had co-opted the modern comic Tim Drake look, Kenner just used the muscular body, reproduced it in animated colors, and popped on an on-model head. Despite this, the figure works, and I have even more fondness for it since getting it signed by the Dynamic Duo themselves, Loren (Robin) Lester, and the late, great Kevin (Batman) Conroy.

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Batman Forever (Kenner, 1995). After false starts in every previous Batman film, Robin finally made it back to the big screen in 1995’s Batman Forever. The costumers behind this Joel Schumacher production wisely adapted the Neal Adams-redesigned Robin costume created for Tim Drake in 1990. Chris O’Donnell was obviously a bit older than the traditional Robin, but he brought a youthful energy, and just enough edge to the role to make it work. Kenner issued many strange variations of Robin in the line, but this one, available in a two-pack with Val Kilmer’s Batman, was the most film accurate.

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First Appearance (DC Direct, 2003). Looking as if he just burst through a paper hoop on the cover of Detective Comics #38, this figure captures wonderfully the earliest iteration of “the laughing young daredevil.” From his taller, more feathered boots to the x-shaped laces on his tunic, this is the Robin created by the combo of writer Bill Finger and artists Jerry Robinson and Bob Kane.

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Teen Titans (Bandai, 2004). To a whole generation of kids, when you say “Robin” they think of this version of the character, from the 2003-2006 Teen Titans animated series, spearheaded by Glen Murakami. Combining action, teen angst, humor and a strong anime influence, it reinterpreted the Marv Wolfman/George Perez New Teen Titans comics stories for a new audience. It eventually spawned the sequel humor series Teen Titans Go!, featuring the same voice cast, which looks like it may go on for decades.

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Batman Classic TV Series (Hot Toys, 2014). The untangling of the rights to the 1966 Batman TV series gave us many figures of the Dynamic Duo, but the clear standouts are the premium figures of Batman and Robin from the always impressive Hot Toys. A finer portrait of Burt Ward as the seminal Boy Wonder has never been produced, and the costume detailing is perfect.

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DC Multiverse Earth-2 Robin (McFarlane Toys, 2024). Since we’re celebrating Robin’s 85th anniversary, it’s only fitting that we wrap up with another figure of the original iteration of the character, or at least the version that was designated as such in the pre-Crisis DC Universe. McFarlane recently released this figure of a grown-up “Ex-Boy Wonder” in what I consider the greatest interpretation of his Neal Adams-designed red, green and gold costume. If only DC had the guts to give the Earth-One Dick Grayson these togs back in the ’70s.

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MORE

— The Complete ROBIN WEEK Index of Features. Click here.

— BIRD CALLS: 13 Thoughts on 13 ROBINS. Click here.

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13th Dimension contributor Chris Franklin is a graphic designer, illustrator, writer, and podcaster, who co-hosts and produces several shows on the Fire and Water Podcast Network, including JLUCast. Check out his illustrative and design work at chrisfranklincreative.com.