I agree that it comes down to fans not letting the character evolve. The new52 situation could have been fresher if fans didn’t pretend the new inexperienced Dick was the old Dick. Editorial says he’s a new younger character with no history but writers pretend he is, the way he cares for his brothers and Bruce, and fans said he should have accomplished this and have friends that. It caused confusion and lies about who he is. Pretty much all other characters of his generation have been torn down too but theirs are never lied about by writers and fans to this extent. Practically , if you stripped Dicks history, other Robin should never exist. Jason was a replacement for Dick, Tim was led into this life because of Dick and Damian was Dicks Robin. With new 52 we should have forget all that and believe he’s the lapdog of the fam. He’s treated worse that wee Robin back in the day. You can say babs still was shot and Garth’s lover still died and they just rescovered faster, but 4 robins don’t happen in 5 years and Dick didn’t build his history in 1 year. As of Prime Earth,Scott Snyder’s run which was written in light of preboot, is a lie. Multiversal Constant is a lie. Everyone loves Dick is a lie. “I was always there while you are not” is a lie. Fun on train with Tim is a lie. Even Robin Damian with Brucebats negates his history with Dickbats.
Last edited by nhienphan2808; 02-16-2019 at 04:21 PM.
I haven’t seen any evidence lately that Everyone Loves Dick. Aside from Alfred and Barbara, the Bat-Family seems to have forgotten all about him.
This is definitely a problem with mainstream Big 2 comics. Fans typically like the characters they like the way they are, and worry that changes to the status quo will disrupt whatever traits or elements made them fans in the first place.
But you still see it. Dick becomes Nightwing. Clark and Lois get married....then have a kid twenty years later. It can be done, but you gotta take em in baby steps. Obvious, natural progression, nothing *too* big, nothing that takes away from the core themes and appeal. No subtraction, just smart, common sense additions. And it builds slowly, over decades.
This is the root flaw with reboots. The assumption that altering fictional continuity also alters the fans' expectations and perceptions.The new52 situation could have been fresher if fans didnÂ’t pretend the new inexperienced Dick was the old Dick.
Fans aren't *going* to forget. And after investing time, money, and passion into the hobby they shouldn't be asked to. DC can say whatever it likes about what "counts" or not, but I have twenty years of Nightwing comics in my memory (just as all of us have past experiences that brought us to the fandom). Those memories have formed opinions, and my enjoyment of today's comics are influenced by those opinions. When a character I'm familiar with acts out of accordance with my expectations, I'm probably going to consider the product poorly. I can make allowances, and I think all of us do; we tell ourselves to be open minded because its a new continuity. We try. And we might even like what we see. But forcing us to actively fight against our bias and expectations is going to detract and distract from the product; we're (usually) convincing ourselves these OOC moments are okay while our expectations tell us otherwise. It's not a good long-term business model to employ. And with a "time reset" we make excuses but it's still stuff we've already read before (thematically at least) and it feels like a reduction, rarely a fresh start. Previous experience hones expectation. Acting counter to those biases is not in DC's best interest, unless they surpass those expectations, and that's really damn hard to do most of the time. That's how I see it, anyway.
Who's pretending? The writers (and fans) who have had their views and understanding of these characters built over years of experience, or the people telling everyone to pretend none of the stuff they still remember happened? DC owns the rights to the characters but they don't own the rights to how they are perceived, and screwing with brand expectations in the hopes of finding new business is damn risky. Just look at New Coke.Editorial says heÂ’s a new younger character with no history but writers pretend he is
And really, rebooting in an industry where the backbone of the consumers love to argue and talk about continuity? C'mon.
"We all know the truth: more connects us than separates us. But in times of crisis the wise build bridges, while the foolish build barriers. We must find a way to look after one another, as if we were one single tribe."
~ Black Panther.
I wouldn’t say that the fans share any blame for “Ric.” Grayson was well-received, certainly better than Ric is going over for the most part.
No, what im saying is that crap like Ric is why there are fans hesitant to change with the status quo. Which is unfortunate.
Last edited by Godlike13; 02-16-2019 at 11:49 PM.
It's the Dynamic Duo! Batman and Robin!... and Red Robin and Red Hood and Nightwing and Batwoman and Batgirl and Orphan and Spoiler and Bluebird and Lark and Gotham Girl and Talon and Batwing and Huntress and Azreal and Flamebird and Batcow?
Since when could just anybody do what we trained to do? It makes it all dumb instead of special. Like it doesn't matter anymore.
-Dick Grayson (Batman Inc.)
It's the Dynamic Duo! Batman and Robin!... and Red Robin and Red Hood and Nightwing and Batwoman and Batgirl and Orphan and Spoiler and Bluebird and Lark and Gotham Girl and Talon and Batwing and Huntress and Azreal and Flamebird and Batcow?
Since when could just anybody do what we trained to do? It makes it all dumb instead of special. Like it doesn't matter anymore.
-Dick Grayson (Batman Inc.)