The ending of Detective Comics #1034 teased the upcoming Robin #1 by Joshua Williamson, in which Damian Wayne will participating in a tournament that is shaping up to be DC’s version of Mortal Kombat. Here are all the other contenders confirmed for the deadly competition so far.
Very little information on the tournament itself has been revealed as of yet, but the last few pages of Detective Comics #1034 confirm it is being hosted by a group called the League of Lazarus, a rogue splinter-cell of the League of Assassins. In an effort to re-assimilate the League of Lazarus back into their ranks, the League of Assassins evidently plan to enter a champion of their own to win the tournament. The last page of the issue reveals their secret weapon is none other than Connor Hawke, the son of Oliver Queen. How exactly Connor came to be involved with the League of Assassins remains to be seen, but seeing Green Arrow and Batman's sons duke it out is bound to be entertaining. Assuming Connor's already impressive skills have improved even further from training with the Assassins, Damian could be in serious trouble.
Aside from Connor Hawke, a brief look at the computer monitor in the Assassins’ lair reveals some more of the participants. Front and center is Rose Wilson, aka Ravager, the daughter of Deathstroke. Ravager has fought both with and against the Teen Titans in the past, and has proven herself a very capable warrior many times over, even holding her own against her father. Joshua Williamson also confirmed via Twitter that a new character named ReSpawn will be making his debut in the tournament. While ReSpawn’s real identity will reportedly remain a mystery for most of the story, the costume has an undeniable resemblance to Deathstroke the Terminator, leading fans to believe he may be another member of the Wilson family.
Respawn won’t be the only character making their grand first appearance in the tournament. The monitor to the right of Ravager depicts Flatline, a character first teased in DC's solicitations for the Robin series. Not much is known about Flatline yet, but if she’s been invited to fight in this tournament, it’s safe to assume she can handle herself. In addition, both Constantine Drakon and China White, two major Green Arrow villains, appear to have been selected, as well as Jiro Osamu, the Batman of Japan who appeared in the Batman Incorporated series. Originally operating under the moniker Mister Unknown, Jiro eventually gained Batman’s approval to become the Dark Knight of Tokyo, and anyone with Batman’s seal of approval is guaranteed to be skilled. Preview pages released on the official DC Comics website also confirm the return of King Snake, an adversary of the previous Robin, Tim Drake. Much like Marvel’s Daredevil, King Snake is blind, but has honed his other senses to see without sight, and shouldn’t be underestimated.
There are a few other fighters that have yet to be officially identified, but just going off those that have been confirmed, the Lazarus Tournament will be one of Robin’s most difficult trials to date. With no Batman or Teen Titans to back him up, only time will tell if Damian Wayne has what it takes to run this gauntlet of DC’s most impressive fighters.