ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the male sidekicks—the various Red Robins—to outline the lessons that Batman indoctrinates for the characters about hegemonic masculinity and deference to patriarchal authority. The father and his sons' dynamic explored in Batman stories privileges masculinity across generations in a genre predominantly concerned with men. Fatherhood is important in Batman stories because it represents a link from the past to the present to the future in a direct, and exclusively, patrilineal line. The superhero genre in general, and Batman stories in particular, are about safeguarding boundaries. Batman has served as a surrogate father figure of sorts ever since Robin was first introduced in 1940 and the lone avenger became part of the dynamic duo. Batman & Robin Eternal repeatedly draws attention to the parallels between Batman's training of young sidekicks and Mother's sculpting of children for her own ends.
