Holy Female Robin, Batman! Carrie Kelley Is Being Introduced To The New 52!

Comic readers know her as the first full-time female Robin but up until now, Carrie Kelley did not have that role in official DC Comics continuity. That’s about to change. 

Since Damian Wayne’s death, the Batman and Robin title has been readying rotating backup relief for the Dark Knight. Well in an exclusive interview with the New York Post, writer Peter Tomasi reveals Carrie Kelley will be making her New 52  debut. But will she be Robin?

The gatefold cover for the issue certainly makes it look that way but covers can be deceiving. If you’re not familiar with the character, Carrie Kelley was introduced in Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns. While a classic Batman tale, it was out of continuity, meaning she didn’t exist in DC proper. The same goes for her role in their Ame-Comi title.

“What you’ll find out once you crack the book, is that she’s not exactly the ‘new Robin,’ but I don’t want to spoil the story and her introduction into Bruce Wayne/Batman’s life,” Tomasi told the NY Post. “In regards to how long she’ll be around, let’s just say that it’s a helluva lot longer than ‘one issue.’ I’ve got plans for Carrie that play well into the future.”

Tomasi says her introduction is “organic and heartfelt and ties into Damian’s death” and that she’s certainly not Robin immediately. From the look of this one page from the issue, it appears she’s donning the Robin outfit at a costume party.

So who exactly is this version of the character? “It’s a New 52 version, but we’re staying close to Frank Miller’s visual template and personality of Carrie Kelley,” said Tomasi. “She’s a college kid who’s got spunk and speaks her mind. This is not an alternate-earth Robin, this is simply a girl named Carrie Kelley who we learn knew Damian which in turn weaves her into the fabric of the DC Universe for the first time in 25 years.”

Tomasi never said directly Carrie Kelley would be Robin. He also danced around whether or not past Robin, Tim Drake, or the newly introduced wiz-kid Harper Row would wind up taking up the mantle. And we should also point out, former Robin/Batgirl Stephanie Brown wasn’t mentioned by the interviewer or writer. But I’m happy Carrie Kelley being introduced and I’m happy Tomasi is excited to write about her.

Batman and Red Robin #19 hits stores April 10.

(via Comic Book Resources)

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Jill Pantozzi

Jill Pantozzi is a pop-culture journalist and host who writes about all things nerdy and beyond! She’s Editor in Chief of the geek girl culture site The Mary Sue (Abrams Media Network), and hosts her own blog “Has Boobs, Reads Comics” (TheNerdyBird.com). She co-hosts the Crazy Sexy Geeks podcast along with superhero historian Alan Kistler, contributed to a book of essays titled “Chicks Read Comics,” (Mad Norwegian Press) and had her first comic book story in the IDW anthology, “Womanthology.” In 2012, she was featured on National Geographic’s "Comic Store Heroes," a documentary on the lives of comic book fans and the following year she was one of many Batman fans profiled in the documentary, "Legends of the Knight."

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