Robin #1

BIG BAD WORLD

Batman provides Tim Drake with a brand new Robin costume, unlike any worn by his predecessors. He tells him that he will soon be ready to become his partner, but first he needs training from the greatest masters in the world. Bruce books Tim on a flight to Paris, where he enrolls in an exclusive school specializing in Tibetan fighting techniques.  The instructor at the school is the aging Rahul Lama, who lives and trains with his son, Shen Chi. Tim discovers that he is currently the only student at the dingy, spartan dojo. Rahul spends several nights teaching Robin meditative healing arts, while Shen instructs him in physical combat.  One evening, Shen and Tim take the night off. Shen takes Tim out to a trendy nightclub in the Chinese district of Paris, but Tim is uncomfortable in this strange environment. A young woman named Lynx approaches Tim at the club and strikes up a conversation, and baits him into following her outside. Lynx is part of a street gang known as the Ghost Dragons. Billy Hue, leader of the Ghost Dragons approaches them in an alley and violently drags Lynx away. Tim attempts to stop him, but Billy knocks him down with a solid kick to the face.  Tim races back to the dojo to retrieve his Robin costume and then hits the rooftops. He tracks the Ghost Dragons to a decrepit warehouse and witnesses the gang members torturing an American named Clyde Rawlins. Robin swings down to defend Clyde, from the gang members. Despite being bruised and beaten, Clyde still has a lot of fight left in him, and together they force the Ghost Dragons to scatter. From above, an assassin named Lady Shiva watches them with great interest.