Red Robin: The Grail

{{DC Database:Storyline Template
 * Title                  = The Grail
 * Image                  = Red Robin The Grail.jpg
 * ImageText              =
 * OfficialName           = The Grail
 * Aliases                =


 * Universe               = New Earth
 * Locations              = Europe, Gotham City


 * Heroes                 = Red Robin
 * Villains               = Council of Spiders
 * Others                 = Batman, League of Assassins, Owens, Pru, Ra's al Ghul, Robin, Stephanie Brown, Tamara Fox, Wild Huntsman, Wonder Girl, Z


 * Titles                 = Red Robin
 * Collected              = Red Robin: The Grail
 * Creators               = Christopher Yost; Ramon Bachs; Art Thibert
 * First                  = Red Robin #1
 * Last                   = Red Robin #4


 * Quotation              = He's alive. Bruce is alive... He's out there somewhere. I know he is. I know I'm right. Bruce Wayne... Batman... is alive. They think I'm grieving. That I'm in denial. That I've lost it. But he's all I have and he has to be alive. Stay focused. Keep looking. Find the answer. Bruce is out there somewhere. And he wouldn't give up on me. I won't let him down. I won't let him fade away. Please, God, don't let me be crazy.
 * Speaker                = Tim Drake
 * QuoteSource            = Red Robin Vol 1 1


 * HistoryText            = The Grail is a Batman storyline written by Christopher Yost and illustrated by Ramon Bachs, featuring the debut of Tim Drake as Red Robin. It's published as part of the Batman: Reborn crossover, establishing the Batman Family status quo following Battle for the Cowl and Bruce Wayne's disappearance during Final Crisis. The other stories published simultaneously include Batgirl Rising, Batman Reborn, The Deep, Elegy, Hush Money, Long Shadows and Union. This is the first arc on Yost's Red Robin volume, followed by his second arc Council of Spiders.

This storyline features Tim Drake beginning his career as Red Robin and searching across Europe for clues to the disappearance of Bruce Wayne with help from Ra's al Ghul. The individual issues are divided between his adventures in Europe and flashbacks to Gotham City revealing the reasons he left. There is a sub-plot involving agents from the League of Assassins getting wiped out by spider-themed killers, leading into the Council of Spiders' debut in the next arc.

Synopsis
Tim Drake refuses to believe that Bruce Wayne is really dead, although the rest of the Batman Family think he is crazy and in denial. Dick Grayson in his new role as Batman chooses Damian al Ghul to replace Tim as Robin, causing Tim to angrily storm out of the Batcave. He starts insisting on the name "Tim Wayne" and chooses the Red Robin costume because it's already been tarnished, allowing him to cross lines he otherwise couldn't. Spoiler visits Tim when he starts refusing calls from all his loved ones, but he pushes her away too. Wonder Girl also makes an attempt to reach out to Tim in his grief, but she's unsuccessful as well because she doesn't believe him either. Finally Dick appears and tries to reason with Tim, although they fight and Tim insists that he can't stay in Gotham while nobody believes him. To pursue the truth, he decides to adventure abroad.

His activities across Europe to search for Bruce eventually attract the League of Assassins to try and kill him. The assassins Owens, Pru and Z are unsuccessful in killing him. However, this is revealed to be merely Ra's al Ghul's way of reaching out as he believes Tim that Bruce is still alive. Tim and Ra's begin working together, and when Red Robin sneaks into a museum he's attacked by Wild Huntsman of the Global Guardians. Owens, Pru and Z intervene with lethal intentions and reveal that Ra's has put them completely in Red Robin's service. Tam Fox begins searching for Drake at the behest of her father Lucius Fox. Traveling with the assassins using information stolen from the museum, Red Robin finds a cave-painting with a bat-drawing that points to Bruce still being alive somewhere. Their group is ambushed in the desert by Widower of the Council of Spiders, who murders Owens and Z leaving Pru and Tim to bleed out in the dirt.


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