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Red Robin #17 Review

Cassandra Cain is back! That name is enough for a lot of the former Batgirl's fans to feverishly grab up this issue, but to be warned Cassandra is not in the issue enough for a reader just interested in her to be satisfied. There is enough of an enticing epilogue and nice artwork to have others happily pleased with this well-crafted epilogue to the "Hit List" storyline. You can still skip it and you will not be missing a piece of the plot, but you will miss out on a lot of other things. Tim Drake goes to Hong Kong to get a tip from Cassandra Cain... and then does a little smooching with the criminal, or possibly undercover cop Lynx on a rooftop after springing her from Police custody. As I mentioned before Cassandra does not have a huge appearance in this issue, but it is nice to see her and it is hinted that this is a nice set up leading to her return and may be even a possible ongoing series or a mini-series that I am sure many fans would love to see happen. Red Robin # 17Seeing the Batman in his new suit was also a nice finish. His fatherly relationship towards Tim is refreshingly emotional from all the physical abuse members of the Bat-family are usually taking from some crook on the street. Finally, something a little different from non-stop action and detective work. The relationship between Lynx and Red Robin is reminiscent of Batman and Catwoman. It lacks originality, but it does not try to hide the parallel and constantly points out that they are similar. Of course, that does raise the question, is Lynx a good match for Red Robin? Lynx is not Catwoman, no matter how much her character tries to steal her thunder. Her character still fails to interest me, but the scene between her and Tim kissing is actually very powerful. If writer Fabian Nicieza continues to keep similar scenes in future issues of Red Robin between Lynx and Tim like the one, I will definitely be on board with the Lynx character. However, I still have my doubts that she'll reach that level. One thing did stick out in this issue that should not have been there at all. Tim talks to his friend Ives halfway through the book in a bright environment that takes us out of the fast-paced nightlife and into a meaningless conversation between two friends that not only takes the story off track, but also suffers from bad art and color choices. It's like the artist Marcus To gave up on these panels to focus heavily on everything else, which luckily more than balanced it out. His art for Red Robin and Lynx kissing is one of the many panels that are beautiful and strike an emotional cord with the reader. One of the better pictures of Bruce Wayne holding Tim is a nice expression of how strong their father and son bond is. Facial expressions and the characters' eyes are also great in this issue and are not exaggerated in a way that takes me out of the story, like several other comics tend to do. It is true that this issue is just a filler, but it provides nice closure to the Hit List and sets up Cassandra's return. Hopefully we'll see more of her soon, but until then pick up this issue to get a quick glance and some good artwork with a nice story. It does lack some action, but the characters are well written and not only believable but likeable. Story: 8.0 Plot: 8.5 Characters: 9.5 Art: 8.5 Overall: 8.6 Red Robin and Batman
Rating
8.6

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About / Bio
An all-around nerdette, I’m a comic book connoisseur, horror aficionado, video game addict, anime enthusiast and an aspiring novelist/comic book writer. I am the head of the comic book department and the editor-in-chief of Entertainment Fuse. I also write and edit articles for Comic Frontline. I am also an intern at Action Lab Entertainment, a comic book publisher at which I edit comic book scripts, help work on images in solicitations and help with other comic book related project. My own personal website is comicmaven.com.

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