Michael Woods writes about Kid

This poem, a dramatic monologue, is written on the voice of Robin, or “The Boy Wonder” as Commissioner Gordon of Gotham City used to call him in the cult 1960s serialisation of Batman starring Burt Ward as Robin and Adam West as Batman. He is clearly felling bitter about having been separated from Batman against his will. It reads like an expose by one half of a famous duo about the other, attempting to ‘set the record straight’, something with which we are very familiar in the newspapers. The nature of Robin’s ‘revelations’ draw attention to what he claims were Batman’s neglect of him.

Robin clearly feels bitter and resentful at having been forced into the “gutter” (line 5) but proud of himself for managing to “turn the corner” after having lived through the trauma he goes on to allude to in the remainder of the poem. Robin claims he has “scotched that ‘he was like a father / to me’ rumour” (lines 6-7) as well as “blown the cover / on that ‘he was an elder brother’ / story” (lines 7-9), making it clear that Batman was neglectful towards him and that Robin felt rejected as his partner, far from being a bastion of moral virtue was a womaniser who embezzled money to fuel his lifestyle. Line 12 and 13 are written as tabloid newspaper headlines that also have the air of the cartoon about it:

“Holy robin-redbreast-nest-egg-shocker!
Holy roll-me-over-in-the-clover.” (lines 12-13)

This alerts the reader to the idea of tawdry revelation typical of such journals but is also a comic presentation of Robin’s favourite adjective. He would frequently prefix his statements with “holy”. The sexual indiscretion of batman is a comic idea in itself when one imagines him in his outfit. He would hardly be inconspicuous unless, of course, he was meeting someone in his guise of Bruce Wayne. There is a song called “Roll Me Over in the Clover” which is an invitation to engage in intimate activity.

Robin asserts his new-found independence by asserting that he is “not playing ball any longer”, a colloquialism meaning he will not collude in keeping Batman’s good reputation intact. This involves rejecting the requirement to dress effeminately in “that off-the-shoulder / Sherwood-Forest-green and scarlet number” (lines 15-16) in favour of “jeans” and “jumper” (line 17). He has grown “taller, harder, stronger, older” (line 18). The preponderance of feminine rhyme in the poem may be a joke made by Armitage at the expense of Robin who is clearly keen to prove his masculine credentials.

Robin concludes by gleefully imagine Batman in decline “without a shadow” in a flat with bare cupboards and little to eat. Robins’s trademark mannerism of “punching the palm” of his hand as he worked out some clue associated wit the villainy of the various criminals he and Batman faced, will be done by Batman instead of him “all winter”, not to indicate the sudden solving of a clue, but to keep warm. Robin finishes by asserting his importance, using his old tag of “boy wonder” as a sign of superiority in contrast to his previously subordinate role.

There is no doubting the fact that Batman was what we now call a very “camp” programme. Batman and Robin were dressed in tights with briefs outside them. Some people “read” this story of an aristocrat (albeit American) and a young man taken in as his “ward” as being rather suspect. This interpretation may, of course, be incorrect.

Although this poem is ostensibly about Robin and his relationship with Batman, we know that both are fictional characters so obviously need to recognise that Armitage is reflecting upon rivalry in the general sense and the acrimony that can exist between partnerships in the public eye that only comes out long after they have professionally parted. It also reminds us that anyone can feel forced to be the “kid”, subordinate to an older sibling.