Any Thoughts On Dick Haunting The Narrative Despite Being Very Much Alive ?

oh look both of my writing styles in one post

On the one hand, I want to write complex, richly crafted characters and explore their psyches and what makes them tick.

On the other hand, I want giant set piece encounters where two people whack at each other with swords five hundred feet in the air, and just when it looks like one of them has won, the other guy pulls out an even bigger sword.

Sometimes I feel like us as the bat family fandom forget how starry eyed people get about Nightwing canonically.

Because with the exception of early era Tim most of the Batkids are like. lol that’s my loser older brother or some variation of yeah…he’s some guy I guess? He helps me with homework?

And Nightwing is the canonically a center of multiversal light.

When Heroes meet Nightwing they do the vigorous handshake and the “it’s an honor to meet you sir, I have heard so much about you oh my god”

There are so many character where they are literally shown giggling and kicking their feet whenever Nightwing talks to them.

Even the people who don’t have the celebrity level worship of him respect the hell out of him and call him as soon as they need help.

From raven to Starfire to Superman to Superboy to all or the flashes there is so much respect and awe given to this one dude.

And it is deserved

But imagine you are Damian Wayne and you’ve been working with what 90% of the people you’ve met (all bats) have been calling an embarrassment to your father’s legacy.

Your mother hates him and your Grandfather doesn’t feel that strongly about him.

The red hood calls him an embarrassment and a coward and he couldn’t even keep Red Robin from running away.

Your father tells him that he never should have been Batman

And you’ve worked with him and you know what you think everyone is full of shit about him and you and him the new Batman and Robin are the best no matter what anyone says.

And fuck it the fact he keeps going in a suit that everyone tells him he’s not good enough for is scratching something in your brain that you’re refusing to acknowledge because why would you feel that way? You are the circus freak have nothing in common (shut up)

And then you meet the justice league and all the extended teams.

And people are falling over themselves to listen to a word out of your brothers, your Batman’s mouth. They wait for a nod or headshake and dictate decades worth of planning on it.

Both Drake and Todd’s hero teams ask him for advice with or without their designated bats presence.

The man of steel asks for child rearing advice and wonder woman cracks a joke about a spar

Newer heroes whisper about him in the halls

He’s literally your favorite hero’s favorite hero

And it’s breaking Damian’s Brain

Because well… he kinda gets slapped around in Gotham. He’s the butt of half the jokes the other Batkids make and Dick just smiles and takes it.

The rogues have a bounty on nightwings ass and he gets leered at by goons, rogues, civilians and anti-hero’s alike and he doesn’t say anything.

He lets oracle crack jokes about a pretty face and having to do everything herself

Let’s Jason run the alley despite the fact that apparently he knows how to take it back

Apparently he’s had 12 people tailing Drake since Paris and despite being the man Ra’s Al Ghul calls detective has yet to notice. (Because you can’t tell me Dick was just magically at the right place to catch Tim falling to his death on coincidence)

And necessary to peace talks because he’s the best they have at deescalation

Like imagine you are a child who was raised to believe power is this obvious, all consuming thing. That the ones who control the board are visibly larger than life figures who fought their way to the top and cling to power by even the thinnest hangnail if they had to.

People who ignore simpler morals or an overall greater goal or good

And then you’re taken in by the man who whispers the correct answers into the larger than life figures ear.

Like I feel like that would have such an impact because Dick didn’t take power from anyone to reach his goals, it’s why his siblings don’t really defer to him unless in crisis.

Dick didn’t take power, no people just looked at him and decided he was the best option to give it to.

Everyone basically looked at this kid and went, yeah you’re the future of all heroism.

And if that dude can’t even get Bruce Wayne’s respect what chance does Damian Wayne have

Adding to this! (Sorry op)

HELENA IS THE CATHOLIC SCHOOL TEACHER WHO PROTECTS THE ALLEY not Jason

Jason is the one who will do whatever it takes to reach his goal no matter who is in the way

And NOBODY HATES TIM DRAKE, NOT DICK, NOT JASON, NOT DAMIAN HELL EVEN STEPH STILL LOVES HIM. STOP

Dick can investigate, spy, work and all the normal things(cooking, cleaning, laundry,taxes) you all seem to think he cannot do? Despite being

A) training longer than Damian was a alive

B) a professional acrobat longer than Tim’s been alive

C) a functioning adult man who has lived alone since he was 17

D) the leader of a team that was not funded by Bruce or ollie or any branch of the league. A team he kept funded via merchandising contracts and being a little meticulous

E) and I cannot stress this enough THE HEIR TO THE BATMAN LEGACY

Tiktok is basically the place where someone's biggest argument is "it's canon that x character does x thing," and it's the most fanon fact there is.

No, Dick wasn't a cop any longer than any of his other jobs... And he's not unemployed either, that guy's resume must be at least three feet long.

No, Jason's central personality trait is not protecting women and children, he does that, but not as a standout trait; that's Selina.

No, Tim is not a cold calculating genius. The guy can be quite the idiot or just the crazy one of the group (he's a bat for God's sake).

No, Damian wasn't raised by Jason in the league of assassins. No, he's not that same kid you saw when he was 10 either, he's already a teenager now.

No, Cass is not mute, she didn't know how to speak, but now she communicates quite well with minimal grammar errors like anyone else.

No, Duke doesn't hate Dick. He felt betrayed, yes, but he got over it and actually admires him. (And he's not normal, no one is).

No, Steph doesn't want to be Bruce's daughter... And yes, she did call Nightwing hot, lol.

And no, Bruce is not incapable of being surprised or scared, and he definitely lost sight of his kids at least once lol

I know he is legit suicidal at that point and the entire city of Bludhaven is being erased from the map but this is so cool. So badass.

This is one of those panel I would die to see animated. Are you kidding ?

Me when some of yall post about Dick Grayson and Roy Harper angst unprompted on a regular Tuesday

Tumblr already has a personalization algorithm it's called my beloved mutuals who have great taste and only wish to psychologically damage me sometimes

The real reason i ship superbat is so i can keep Lois lane to myself

Compilation of Lois Lane being terrible at spelling.

Bonus:

Dick looking for Jason

Dick: Jason?

Dick: Jay?

Jason: *Sitting in the corner of a dark room*

Dick: Ok.

The best things in the new Nightwing run!!!! (In a random order)

Part 1!!!

Skip if you don’t want spoilers??

Is he gonna crash out????

CRASHOUT CRASHOUT CRASHOUT CRASHOUT MY BOY!???? FINALLY I CAN BREATHE!!! LOOK AT THE RAGE???

LOOK HOW HE LOOKS WHEN SHES INSULTING HIS TEAM??? HOW HE LOOKS AT THE DIGS AT HIS GIRLS?? LOOK AT MATURE HES BEING??? Not crashing out?? But absolutely making us all know he 100% wants to crash out.

Damian Damian Damian… I hope we see Damian this run! Please I love them together? Why doesn’t Damian crash at dicks until Bruce gets his shit together???? Mayhaps

Crashoutcrashoutcrashoutcrashoutcrashoutcrashoutcrashoutcrashoutmybaby boyyyyyy ughhhhhh

C R A S H O U T

C R A S H O U T

(Can you tell I like him angry)

Yes 100% agree random mysterious circus themed villain (lowkey the villain is actually getting me invested like?? What is going on there???)

Also the nightcycle looks so so cool

See how u can be funny and not insufferable???

HES SO COOL LOOK AT HIMMM?

NAH?

GRAYSON MY BELOVED LOOK AT HIM??

U don’t gaf do you? (That’s a lie lmao)

Gotta love anti cop sentiment in nightwing comics thank you for reminding us that the institution is in of itself corrupt as shit I miss you here! No more of that cringe shit we Saw him do since 2016

We love a Grayson who is actually badass as fuck

-babs was also not grating at all here! I lowkey really really liked their dynamic! Which is rare for me I am the biggest dickbabs hater ik! But she was also SO COOL HERE!!

Don't know if you know this but there was a tiktok about these two friends (one boy the other a girl) who went to a hotel in France and absolutely as soon as they came in was a couple pack, I mean like rose petals, towel shaped swans and like champagne bottle with ice romance shit 😭

And ofc the friends the moment saw that ended up laughing so much and honestly this just reminded me of Donna and dick so much for some reason

I have not seen it (please send it to me)

However I can see it

In my minds eye

Donna books the hotel except for once she’s the more sleep deprived one bc Dick fell asleep and is currently napping across her lap. And all the titans follow the cat rule for Nightwing AKA: IF THE BABY SLEEPS ON YOUR LAP IT IS NOW ILLEGAL TO MOVE.

So she’s tryna book a hotel trip on her shitty burner phone since her last real phone blew up (long story but just know it was Roy’s fault) very carefully bc bats will wake up if your heart rate accelerates by 1 beat per minute

And she accidentally books a honeymoon suite

And doesn’t think anymore of it bc she is now going to sleep for a month.

The they go on this slay lil trip to Paris bc Donna and him do a solo field trip once a year added on to the yearly titans field trip. Unlike the titans field trip this has no set it, it’s done when either Donna feels unstable in her identity or Bruce pushed Dick too hard for bludhaven to feel like a safe distance to recenter himself.

So they get there and no one bats (hehe) an eye, they’re both exhausted from the flight and everything end of the world-y that happened before but it’s a nice hotel near the center of Paris and they both wanna knock out

And they walk in and see

Rose petals

Swans kissing

Bottles of champagne with a “for the happy couple”

And they both fuckinf lose it on the floor laughing for a good 10 mins

And then they realize they 100% have to see it through bc not only is this a couples suite Nono this is couples resort.

And so they get into character and instead of goofing off in public and cuddling up to cancel touch starvation in their room. They simply pretend they’re 14 again and remain attached at the hip the whole time.

Cheek kisses, pet names the whole shebang

And they keep getting compliments like “oh my god you guys talk like you’ve know each other your whole lives”

“This is what marrying your best friend looks like”

And so on

They get so much positive reinforcement that Donna and Dick end up in an old argument

Donna: this was nice

Dick: yeah it was

Donna: we should do it again

Dick snorting: what like fake being a couple and stay and an outrageously expensive hotel and eat out weight in butter

Donna: yes except we can’t fake it again we have to do it for real next time or it would be boring

Dick: you’re asking me to marry you

Donna: I’m asking you to marry me

Dick sighing: I will not abandon Bruce and or Gotham if we get married

Donna: WHY NOT?

Dick: HES MY DAD

Donna: HES AN ASSHOLE

Dick: Donna-

Broke: everyone fights over whose Batman’s favorite

Woke: everyone fights over whose Dicks favorite bc Dick isn’t an emotionally stunted loser (I shit talk Bruce so much but I love him, he’s just also a loser) and trying to get in the bats favor is like trying to catch sand in a sieve

————

Damian: obviously I’m Graysons favorite I was his Robin

Tim: dude I was the first Robin he trained and we still talk every day I am 100% the favorite

Steph: fuck you! You disappeared off the the face of the earth when he was Batman I was actually here I’m 100% the favorite everyone knows Wing loves me.

Jason: Dick willingly went to Gotham to spend time with me even when he was mad at Bruce. Has Dick ever been in Gotham when he was mad at Bruce for you guys? No? Didn’t think so?

Damian: ….

Steph:…

Tim: that’s because you sucked so much he thought you’d get blown up trying to have to bludhaven.

Jason: oi! Low blow, you can’t use a man’s death against him

Damian: shut up we’ve all died before

Steph: you literally said you were allowed to break Tim’s laptop bc you died b4

Jason: yeah it’s MY DEATH I can use it how I want

Tim: we really gonna call your 14yr old 4’7 self a man?

Cass: he helped me train when B rejected me I’m the favorite

Tim: you can’t be Dicks favorite you’re already Bab’s favorite those are the only 2 likable older members of the family. (They’ve decided Alfred doesn’t count since he’s legally not allowed to have favorites)

Dick: Duke is my favorite

Damian: what?

Tim: how?

Jason: this shit is rigged

Steph: What?? You barely spend time with him?

Duke who has been eating popcorn quietly this whole time:???

Dick: he doesnt steal my suit and murder people

Jason: …

Dick: or tell his friends I threatened to send him to Arkham when I told him to get therapy

Tim:…

Dick: or break into my apartment at 3am because he can’t communicate with his father

Damian:…

Dick: or make me believe he flatlined on the operating table

Steph: …

Dick: or tell me he can’t meet up for a bust because he’s too busy fighting Wonder Woman a hero we work with over text with no context and then go AWOL for 5 days

Cass:…

Dick: or overload his plate with 50 million things I will have to come in and help with

Everyone:

Steph: he started a cult tho??

Dick: was it before or after he was fostered bc if it was before it’s. Not. My. Problem.

Duke: I’m the favorite???

Dick: also I feel like if I died you’re the most likely to take over my duties and not go on a quest for vengeance or try to clone me or put me in the Lazarus pit.

Jason: ID NEVER PUT you in the Lazarus pit…. No comment on the rest tho.

Tim: ditto

Damian: meh you are superior to Todd and he’s relatively functional post the pit I don’t see the issue here.

Steph raising hand: I wouldn’t-

Dick: or help TIM do it

Steph lowering hand:

Dick: plus you have a parent so I don’t have to do 80% of the child rearing while giving Bruce credit

Duke still a little star stuck bc that’s nightwing: IM THE FAVORITE.