But the kids were already identifying with Batman. They hated Robin.

***

I've never liked kid sidekicks myself, but was Robin really hated?  I was under the impression sales increased after his introduction, and certainly kid sidekicks were practically de rigueur after Robin.  Hardly a version of Batman goes by -- whether in print, animation or film -- in which Robin isn't introduced eventually. 

I think JB's answer about Robin indicates one reason why some fans disliked his Superman reboot, while Frank Miller's Batman: Year One did not catch as much flak (a difference in reaction that JB has stated himself.)

JB likes to focus on the "original concept" and remove a lot of the barnacles that have attached itself.  In general, this is something I support because the barnacles can get in the way.  The obsessive continuity and self-referential stories in today's comics certainly lower my enjoyment.

However, some of those barnacles have become beloved and embedded into the character's "mythos."  Mythos is a very general term, but I used it to describe all aspects of the character that the average fan (not all, but most) strongly identifies with the character, especially to the extent that the character is identified with it.  This could be specific events (Gwen Stacy's death for Spider-Man), supporting characters, setting feel (Frank Miller's noir interpretation of Daredevil), locations (the Baxter Building), and others.  In general, most of a character's mythos will come from a small batch of specific creative runs.  The vast majority of stories simply do not achieve mythic status no matter how entertaining.  Not everything that enters a character's mythos is beneficial (unfortunately Henry Pym's hitting of the Wasp and Tony Stark's alcoholism have achieved this status), but in general mythos elements are enjoyable and treasured by fans.

When those elements are removed or tampered with. fans get upset.  A Batman without a Robin, I feel, would be one of those upsetting issues.  Obviously, not all Batman stories have used Robin - including several eras of "solo Batman" that were loved by fans.  But eventually a Robin finds itself back in - and those solo Batman eras did not eliminate the past history of the Dick Grayson Robin.

Starting anew, in this scenario, it would be easy to not introduce a Robin since it's something fans would expect to happen a bit later, but there would be an expectation there.  Assuming JB did a Batman reboot that started without Robin, eventually a future writer would introduce one.  I am not sure that an extended era of JB Batman issues without Robin would start the protests, but the introduction of Robin would be an inevitable inclusion.  In other specific scenarios, the failure to include or prepare for certain parts of a mythos would lead to upset fans.

It's for those reasons that I don't see much value in reboots or the like at all.

QUOTE: give this young Batman an imaginary confidant whom he calls "Robin".

That Batman wouldn't need a Hostess Fruit Pie because he sounds like a "fruit cake".