The Dark Knight Returns‘ Robin Entering DCU Continuity

Carrie Kelley, the female Robin from Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns, will appear in the next issue of Batman and Red Robin.

The Dark Knight Returns, a 1986 story written and drawn by the legendary Frank Miller, provided a dark look at the dystopian future of Gotham City after Batman’s retirement. In TDKR, which was recently adapted into a two-part, full-length animated feature, an elderly Bruce Wayne finds a new sidekick, teenager Carrie Kelley, who becomes a female Robin. Of course, as only one possible future, The Dark Knight Returns didn’t exist in official DC Universe continuity, and even if it did, the publisher hit the reset button with the launch of The New 52 in 2011. However, Kelley will soon be making her New 52 debut; she’s set to appear in the next issue of Batman and Red Robin, marking her first appearance in official DCU continuity.

Though The New 52‘s current Batman is in need of a Robin, that doesn’t mean Carrie Kelley will be donning the yellow cape (outside of a costume party, that is). “She’s not exactly the ‘new Robin’,” writer Peter Tomasi said of the news. That doesn’t mean Carrie’s just making a cameo appearance; she’ll be around “a helluva lot longer than ‘one issue.’ I’ve got plans for Carrie that play well into the future.”

Instead of a young teenager, this Carrie Kelley is a college-age woman, though Tomasi acknowledged that DC was “staying close to Frank Miller’s visual template and personality” of the character. Apparently, she has some ties to the (SPOILERS) deceased Damian Wayne (son of Bruce and most recent Robin), which is how she gets involved in the story. Beyond that, Tomasi didn’t want to reveal too many details to avoid spoiling the story.

You’d be forgiven for being confused by the DC Universe continuity situation; it’s certainly befuddling, if not a convoluted mess at times. There’s no guarantee that this New 52 version of Carrie Kelley will become the new Robin, but it would be pretty cool. She’s a great character introduced in a great story, and hopefully DC can continue to capture her spunky personality in future issues of Batman and Red Robin. The comic in which she’ll first appear, Batman and Red Robin #19, hits comic shops on April 10.

Source: Comic Book Resources via The Mary Sue