The CW is developing a series based on the life of Batman’s most famous (or infamous) sidekick Richard “Dick” Grayson, a.k.a. Robin I, before he became Robin. The show will be called “The Graysons.” Admittedly, this already sounds like a really bad idea, but it gets worse.
Apparently, the young “DJ” Grayson (lame) will be wrestling with issues like young love, childhood rivalry, and his family’s hectic lifestyle. Playing the devil’s advocate, I will say that this does not have to be bad. It will be, but it does not have to be. Supposing the show begins when Richard… or… D… J… DJ… Supposing the show begins when DJ is only eight or nine years old and the show has an announced cap on it, this could be a fun idea. If the show begins with DJ (that name pains me to type, I must admit) being around eight years old, then, the show could hypothetically run for four (maybe five) years without officially ticking people off, as it is at the age of twelve that Richard Grayson gets adopted by the billionaire Bruce Wayne.
However, I have this sneaking and disturbing suspicion that the show will begin with DJ being between thirteen and fifteen. I, also, suspect that, if the show is successful, it will continue on for upwards of five or six seasons, potentially placing DJ at the ripe old age of twenty by the time he finally becomes Robin. Of course, at that age, he cannot be adopted and the story of Robin that people know and (if you’re like me) have grown up with is, in effect, ruined or, at least, changed beyond recognition. At that point of alteration, why not just come up with an original concept for a show?
Obviously, the CW needs a replacement for their current costume-less superhero series “Smallville,” which has already jumped the shark by about three or four years. Due to the massive success of Nolan’s The Dark Knight, they want a series focusing on a Bat-family character, specifically, one that has not had much exposure of late. Furthermore, they want to set the story in a place that will not interact or conflict with the established Batman franchise. This final stipulation is what makes the decision so difficult and, so, should be discarded. I have good reason for this.
To put it simply and bluntly, give the fans what they want. Fans are sick of this heroes-without-tights fad and, if not ended, it should become inconsistent, at least. There is currently a really exceptional Batman franchise going on right now (well, the second installment was exceptional), but I and many fans think that, although this is indeed a strong franchise (intelligent, exciting, etc.), there needs to be a live-action Batman that not only does the character justice but also accurately represents the comics the character comes from. The armor suit worked for the purposes of that film, but, after all this time, I’d really like to see Batman in his gray and black (or blue) tights. I’d like to see him as a detective and skilled martial artist and not just someone with lots of expensive gadgets (although the nick-nacks do come into play).
That said, I can understand how having a live-action Batman tv show could step on the toes so to speak of the film franchise (thought “Smallville” didn’t seem to be the reason behind Superman Returns‘ middling box office returns), but what I am about to ask for would not place Batman at the forefront, only in the background, as an essential supporting character. Don’t worry, studio execs. Batman existing in more than one audio-visual format won’t confuse people. This is particularly true if the interpretation of the character and costume is sufficiently different (less armor, for example, and more focus on hand-to-hand combat, acrobatics, and detective work). If Batman is allowed to be used as a supporting character in a tv series based in the DC Universe, the options for what series could be developed are multiplied by ten.
Keeping within the Bat-family, there are quite a few different options available for television development if Batman and costumes are allowed to be used. Below, I have listed only a portion of the options available in this case.
“Grayson” – or – “Robin”
Not “The Graysons.” This show would focus on the young Richard Grayson after his parents are murdered, 
as he trains to assist the Batman as the boy-wonder Robin. This concept, with this title, has virtually no cap on it. Starting with Grayson being either twelve or thirteen, the show could continue for another five to seven years before rebooting and moving to Bludhaven, with a slightly different cast and theme. As Grayson has close relationships with a large portion of the characters in the greater DCU, the show could be expansive and could go in many different directions after the initial season. After the announcement from the CW about “The Graysons,” this “Grayson” (singular and sans noun marker) is precisely the show that fans started calling for, as people do want to see Robin in live-action, just not in the Nol
an franchise.
“Nightwing”
Another series that has been suggested is a series about Richard Grayson post-Robin, as Nightwing. Obviously, this is much more fertile soil for cultivation than Richard Grayson pre-Robin. In essence, this show would cut out the first few seasons of “Grayson” and focus more on Richard after he leaves Wayne Manor and moves to Bludhaven. The first episode or two would focus on why he decides to return to the life of a superhero. There are fun themes for exploration in this series: of growing up, standing on one’s own two feet, doing what’s right despite circumstances, yada, yada, yada. These are themes highly identifiable with a young, CW audience. Furthermore, having a dark, handsome twenty-something as the lead seems like a smart, if a bit safe, move after the success and ending of “Smallville.”
“Birds of Prey”
First, let me just say that his would not be an uncancellation of the short-lived 2002 series of the same name. While that series was not completely without merit, it was far too afraid of its origins, frequently stepping, in theme, over to Marvel territory. I can see a potential problem with doing this show less than a decade after the cancellation of the ‘original’ series, as it might lead to confusion, but the 2002 series was somewhat obscure and has been all but forgotten; so, this may be a non-issue. The potentiality of that handicap could be overcome by hiring capable writers who are familiar with the source material. However, WB, if you develop this idea, for Bab’s sake, do it right.
“Drake” – or – “Robin”
This would be a show that would follow the rather engaging story of how Tim Drake came to be the third 
Robin. The very extensive backstory of which your average non-comic-reader would be unfamilar can be recalled in broad strokes. The gist could be given in a few scenes or sentences. In my geeky mind, I see the show opening with Jason Todd running into a building, shouting. After easily dispatching a number of lackies, he is attacked by the Joker. Iconic moments from A Death in the Family ensue. The great thing about Tim Drake is that he goes through so much drama, with his family, friends, school, and… work. He goes from being this terminally brilliant wiz-kid to a superhero’s sidekick and, from someone in the long shadow of a legend (or two) to an accomplished superhero. This multifaceted drama and very involved character development could help the show last for around six or seven seasons. If they wanted to do a family drama ala “The Graysons,” they could also use this material as a basis and call it “The Drakes.” This would put a cap on the show and remove the potential for certain powerful developments to occur within the series, but the Drake family is rich material for development.
“Wayne Manor”
The seed for this concept was planted by my brother. In stead of focusing much on the costuming exploits of Batman and company, “Wayne Manor” would, in essence, follow Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson, Barbara Gordon, etcetera in their day-to-day lives. And this series would not require much (if any) deviation from the recently instituted heroes-without-tights rule, as it would only be on rare occasion (perhaps not even every episode) that the audience would get a glimpse of Batman, Robin (or Nightwing), Batgirl, etcetera. This way, you don’t have the supposed ‘kookiness’ of the costumes, but you do get all of the characters that you know and love.
“Gotham Central”
Based on the comic series of the same name, this show would focus on the diverse characters and cases at the GCPD. Developing this concept might be a smart move, as it would deal with the costumed Bat-family without having to show them much (or at all, with the possible exception of Batman). So, with few-to-no Batman appearances, few-to-no costumes/tights, this might be the ideal choice for development. That is, if they don’t mind developing a concept that would include characters that also appear in the movies (most notably, James Gordon). Also, there is the issue about the show being developed for the wrong channel. This seems like an HBO, Showtime, or even NBC program, but not at all a CW show, as the focus is not on sexy, young people who have an inexplicably large amount of time on their hands, but rather on aging police officers who are all overworked.
And this is merely the tip of the iceberg. My point is that there shouldn’t be fear of confusion or fear of ruining a character’s reputation and that you should just give people what they want. The WB as a whole should take a cue from the filmmakers working on the upcoming Green Lantern film when it comes to developing comicbook properties. In an interview early last month, Marc Guggenheim, one of the writers behind Green Lantern, was quoted as saying of the GL script, “We approach it from a fan’s perspective. Every step of the way, we ask ourselves what we want to see and what the fans will want to see.” This Bruce Wayne character that the WB is so unwilling to use outside of a few films is an important character if there is to be adequate development on any Bat-fam series.
WB, be smart about who is involved, but let loose your grip.
