Monty Got a Raw Deal

Monty this seems strange to me
The movies had that movie thing,
But nonsense has a welcome ring
And heroes don't come easy

Robin looked hard in the mirror. Staring back at him was a person he had begun to wonder about. He had thought himself a hero, someone who did good for everyone. But was that him? Was he really using the training and equipment that had made him this way for the best? Or was had he become so obsessed with playing hero that he forgotten how to really save people anymore?

Now nonsense isn't new to me
I know my head, I know my feet,
But mischief knocked me in the knees
Said, Just let go, just let go

Ever since he had become Robin, he'd been met with challenges. Villains, lives in jeopardy, innocents to save. But he'd always saved them from evil that he could see. Evil that could be beaten with a staff or a Birdarang. But Terra.. had been evil within herself. It was something that he should have dealt with. All he needed was to talk to her, to be mentored to the way he had been. But he couldn't do the job Batman had once done. Instead, he had let Slade do it.

I saw the ocean meet the man
I saw you buried in the sand
A friend was there to hold your hand,
Said, Walk on by

Because of his failure, Slade had twisted her soul. He had made her into a monster, because Robin hadn't been able to see what was right in front of him. Then, he finally tired to say what was right, what he needed to say, she didn't want to listen anymore. All she had wanted was to be alone.

So, I went walking through the street
I saw you strung up in a tree
A woman knelt there said to me,
Said, Hold your tongue, ma, hold your tongue

He could still remember her bitter words to him. Those words of hate and disdain for all that he had tried to do. He'd wanted to help her, to do for her what had been done for him. But it had been too late.

You don't owe me anything
You don't want this sympathy (waste your breath)
Don't you waste your breath (waste your breath)
For the silver screen

The worst thing was, he could so much of himself in her now. Not how was now but how he had used to be. The feelings of fear, not knowing what to do with your life. The knowledge of some greater purpose that you just couldn't fit into. He had found his place with Batman. But she had found it with Slade. Did that mean that your purpose wasn't what you made it? That it was the people you cared about who put you on path to walk? That all you could ever be in life was the sum of somebody else's work?

That nonsense doesn't mean a thing,
They tried to bust you in a sting,
But virtue isn't everything
So, don't waste time

No. Even he hadn't met Batman, Robin would still be here. He would still be fighting, in some way. Everyone chose what they did, and Terra had made her choice. But then, she had made another one and it had redeemed her. And she had taught him something. It didn't matter how many bad guys you took down, you had to remember to see past them and into the people you were trying to save. He was still ahero, and now he would be a better one. If Terra could teach him that in death, then he would remember it in life.

Now, here's a rhyme that you can steal
Put this on your reel to reel
Mischief threw a rotten deal
Monty's laying low, man
He is laying low
Just let go, y'all
Just let go