Damian Wayne: Robin Appreciation 2019

[Arsenal]

wait what? more context please...



I really don’t get what you guys are talking about regarding the issue. So did Damian actually appear or not? Or was it Prof Pyg?

...I'm sorry, he WAS Professor Pyg?

What the heck is even happening?

Context won't help much.

It was basically a nightmare of Batman "waking up" to find himself being tortured by Prof. Pyg. They fight and at the end Pyg takes his mask off to reveal that he's really Damian.

[fanfan13]

Context won't help much.

It was basically a nightmare of Batman "waking up" to find himself being tortured by Prof. Pyg. They fight and at the end Pyg takes his mask off to reveal that he's really Damian.

whoa that’s really weird. but that’s just it? I take it Batman’s hallucinating then, is he?
thanks for sharing by the way!

[Arctic Cyclist]

So he was tripping balls and THOUGHT it was Damian. Okay. That makes more sense. lol Y'all had me worried for a second. I'm so uninterested in the current Batman book I didn't want to go read it for myself. (Though I might end up picking up this issue for the art anyway.)

No. On a second read it's clear he was tripping balls and thought he was fighting Pyg. Instead he broke Damian's ribs while Damian was attempting to talk him down. Pyg's not a fighter at all, and the Pyg in this issue once he started evasive maneuvers was clearly Damian.

So now we know why Damian is locked out of the Batcave and has decided to have nothing to do with Bruce: Bruce gave him a villain beat down while raving about Selina dumping him (officially in universe King has written Bruce being more upset and for longer over being dumped than Damian's death which is seriously messed up), and Bruce now thinks Damian is working with Bane.

[Arsenal]

whoa that’s really weird. but that’s just it? I take it Batman’s hallucinating then, is he?

Seems like it. I honestly don't think it's anything more than that (as far as Damian's connection to the issue goes atleast)

[fanfan13]

Seems like it. I honestly don't think it's anything more than that (as far as Damian's connection to the issue goes atleast)

but still why did it have to be Damian though. I hope there isn’t any meaning behind this (his status as Robin for example)

No. On a second read it's clear he was tripping balls and thought he was fighting Pyg. Instead he broke Damian's ribs while Damian was attempting to talk him down. Pyg's not a fighter at all, and the Pyg in this issue once he started evasive maneuvers was clearly Damian.

So now we know why Damian is locked out of the Batcave and has decided to have nothing to do with Bruce: Bruce gave him a villain beat down while raving about Selina dumping him (officially in universe King has written Bruce being more upset and for longer over being dumped than Damian's death which is seriously messed up), and Bruce now thinks Damian is working with Bane.

you make it seems even more complicated.
now that you mention it, not sure if it’s connected (I doubt it) but even in the upcoming Teen Titans according to solicit they sure have to break into the batcave’s security as if Damian doesn’t live there.

[Restingvoice]

but still why did it have to be Damian though. I hope there isn’t any meaning behind this (his status as Robin for example)

because he's the stabby Robin and one of the people Batman love that hasn't been targeted by Bane. It's fear.

[babybats]

No. On a second read it's clear he was tripping balls and thought he was fighting Pyg. Instead he broke Damian's ribs while Damian was attempting to talk him down. Pyg's not a fighter at all, and the Pyg in this issue once he started evasive maneuvers was clearly Damian.

So now we know why Damian is locked out of the Batcave and has decided to have nothing to do with Bruce: Bruce gave him a villain beat down while raving about Selina dumping him (officially in universe King has written Bruce being more upset and for longer over being dumped than Damian's death which is seriously messed up), and Bruce now thinks Damian is working with Bane.

Okay so I read it. And am angry that I paid money for what was several pages of self-indulgent 2nd person narration I've seen done a million times better on Ao3 and a complete waste of a good artist. But...*takes a deep breath*...ANYWAY.

I'm gonna have to disagree. I don't think he was fighting Damian at all, or even Pyg. The whole thing seemed like a dream, therefore Pyg having combat skills isn't supposed to make sense. (And I'm guessing King used Pyg because he's a Damian rogue so he's making a callback to the Morrison days. Plus you get the themes of drugs and cautionary tales.)

It's too early to tell what King's exact intentions are, but so far we've got Bruce having a fear dream featuring Damian in an ominous way. We can interpret that as:

a) It's a metaphor for how Bruce feels about his son turning into a monster like him, or some stupid thing. (There's that Pygmalion reference, which is obviously referring to Bruce and Selena, but could also apply to Damian. He shaped Damian in his image, and possibly doomed him in the process.)

b) It's foreshadowing Damian being a villain (maybe related to the TT stuff) or being involved with Bane somehow. ("Little pig, little pig, let me in." Damian's the wolf who's going to blow the house in.)

c) It's foreshadowing for Batman erroneously thinking Damian is involved with Bane, driving an even bigger wedge between them.

d) It's foreshadowing Damian being Bane's next victim. (The metaphor of the pigs on the hooks. "Bred. Slaughtered. Hanging. Waiting." Is probably the Robins and various Batfam members who Batman believes he's raised like pigs to the slaughter.)

e) It's Bruce finally realizing that he needs to spend more time with his child. Bruce's fight with "Pyg" is a metaphor for his inner struggles. His depression, his guilt, and his failings. He keeps asking "How did I get here? How do I get out?" When Pyg removes the mask, the fight ends and Batman realizes it's all a dream and at the end of the tunnel is Damian, walking away from him. (Damian even says "Let me in" while Bruce looks at him in dismay.)

f) All of the above.

I think option E is least likely, but would be the best direction to take. It's probably just A. I'll be annoyed if that's the case because that makes this whole issue even more pointless. Gah. I'm all for metaphors and experimental storytelling, but all this could've been done in four pages. Props to the artists for using Robin colors throughout, though, that was clever.

[babybats]

Damian in deathstroke 39:

Attachment 76574

I like how none of us pointed out that he's drinking a juice box. Like, it's just par for the course now we don't even notice. lmao

[Fergus]

Damian in deathstroke 39:

Attachment 76574

The juice box is a nice touch. Twice now. Maybe it's a Milk box. He's trying to get taller.

[adrikito]

So now we know why Damian is locked out of the Batcave and has decided to have nothing to do with Bruce: Bruce gave him a villain beat down while raving about Selina dumping him (officially in universe King has written Bruce being more upset and for longer over being dumped than Damian's death which is seriously messed up), and Bruce now thinks Damian is working with Bane.

WTF.. He thinks that?

[babybats]

WTF.. He thinks that?

No, Bruce just had a crazy dream/hallucination. It's not clear whether any of it was real, but I'm pretty sure none of it was. The whole issue was a metaphor. :/

[Armor of God]

I think we should stop overthinking on gibberish. The issue had no real story or purpose. Its filler non sense to kill time. A silly Pygmalion reference and an attempt to evoke Mr Miracle doesn't mean that it was some masterpiece.

Bruce had a dream or is forced in to a dream world by Bane. There isn't anything more to it.

[fanfan13]

I’m really bad with metaphor, especially one that I don’t actually read, but it’s nice to know your take on them @babybats.

About Deathstroke, is it still the same artist working on Deathstroke vs Batman? (I stopped reading the title after the arc ended, will pick it up again for the crossover) if it is then kudos to them for that box detail again.

Still haven’t read AoSS so no comment yet from me for that title.
Dunno but I’m not as excited for this as I did everytime a new issue of Super Sons came out. Is it just me or I’m not alone like this?

[dietrich]

I’m really bad with metaphor, especially one that I don’t actually read, but it’s nice to know your take on them @babybats.

About Deathstroke, is it still the same artist working on Deathstroke vs Batman? (I stopped reading the title after the arc ended, will pick it up again for the crossover) if it is then kudos to them for that box detail again.

Still haven’t read AoSS so no comment yet from me for that title.
Dunno but I’m not as excited for this as I did everytime a new issue of Super Sons came out. Is it just me or I’m not alone like this?

You are not alone. SuperSons is still a great read and fun as ever but it doesn't seem to draw me in lie it did before cancellation. DC ruined it. Bendis is a genius the moment he aged Jon up my interest in the duo dropped because no matter how good the title the dynamic s broken. They have no future. Supersons is dead.

Lets hope YJ manages to grab fans the way Supersons did because DC had something special there. Something that TT could never be and never was before the ruined it for a superstar writer with basic sales.

So glad Bendis isn't able to reach Tomasi's Superman numbers. DC deserves that.

[babybats]

You are not alone. SuperSons is still a great read and fun as ever but it doesn't seem to draw me in lie it did before cancellation. DC ruined it. Bendis is a genius the moment he aged Jon up my interest in the duo dropped because no matter how good the title the dynamic s broken. They have no future. Supersons is dead.

Lets hope YJ manages to grab fans the way Supersons did because DC had something special there. Something that TT could never be and never was before the ruined it for a superstar writer with basic sales.

So glad Bendis isn't able to reach Tomasi's Superman numbers. DC deserves that.

Same. I'm still enjoying AoSS but the momentum is gone. One reason is, like you said, because it was cancelled so none of this matters and the stakes are nonexistent. And there's a pall of sadness over the whole series because we know what's become of Jon. But another thing is that the story is dragging while the first series was paced well and moved quickly through multiple stories instead of having one extended conflict. And the art, while still good, isn't as breathtaking as in Super Sons.

I will also never forgive Bendis for what he did to Jon and the Superfam. There was just no need. It's like we got a puppy for Christmas and he ran it over.