Dick Grayson: Robin/Batman/Nightwing/Agent 37 Appreciation 2022

[Felipe Silveira]

I gotta be honest, I do not really want to see Starfire in Nightwing`s solo more than she already his. Cameos are cool and I like his strong bond with all the Titans but I don`t think I would like a character with that power set as a permanent fixture in his book. I definitely prefer him with someone closer to Helena and Barbara. The same way I can`t see Bruce with a superpowered individual.

Admittedly, I am the type to see Dick as a bat character first and Titan second.

Zadarsky is doing a League level story in Batman, and it's great. The Flash (the real one) was on Nightwing a few months ago. For me not only Kory, but as Donna should appear more, Roy is easier, and the last time he appeared in Nightwing was a lot of fun, and I would like to see Dick interacting with Vic more.

Nightwing (2016-) 043-004.jpg

[Majesty]

I gotta be honest, I do not really want to see Starfire in Nightwing`s solo more than she already his. Cameos are cool and I like his strong bond with all the Titans but I don`t think I would like a character with that power set as a permanent fixture in his book. I definitely prefer him with someone closer to Helena and Barbara. The same way I can`t see Bruce with a superpowered individual.

Admittedly, I am the type to see Dick as a bat character first and Titan second.

Love Dick with Starfire, lots of stories to still be told, and it would force writers to actually come up with something creative. The whole "but her powerset" is not a problem really. If Batman called Superman or any other member of the Justice League, all the crime in Gotham would be solved in a few seconds. Starfire and Nightwing can still date one another while still having their own adventures in their own separate power situations. Same way that Bruce and Diana could. There's enough supervillains and enough creative ideas where a Bat Family member dating someone with superpowers isn't really that big of a deal.

When it comes to Robin though, the last person I prefer him with is Barbara, strictly because of how their relationship was before and for the longest time I just can't get into it. Also considering the things Dick has done that was straight up disrespectful to Barbara, it hurts her character that she still decided to "wait" on him despite all of that.

But if Dick isn't with Starfire.. I to be honest preferred him with Shawn the most.


And if not with Shawn or Kori, Beatrice would be my pick all day after.

[Vordan]

[Badou]

Zadarsky is doing a League level story in Batman, and it's great. The Flash (the real one) was on Nightwing a few months ago. For me not only Kory, but as Donna should appear more, Roy is easier, and the last time he appeared in Nightwing was a lot of fun, and I would like to see Dick interacting with Vic more.

Not every Batman arc is going to be a League level story though. If it is then it wouldn't be Batman anymore. It's fine here or there, but it is always going to return to Gotham street level stories eventually. Nightwing is in the same situation. So a character like a Starfire or a Superman can't fit into every story arc, and with a love interest like Starfire you are limiting yourself to the kind of stories you can write or you have to write around her character. Then with an actual alien looking love interest you are limiting yourself further as they stick out from normal people, which is why you rarely ever see street level heroes dating alien looking characters in both Marvel or DC. The same situation doesn't exist for a Batgirl or Huntress because they fit into all the same Titans or Justice League level stories a Nightwing does because they operate with the same abilities and space in the DCU.

I'm fine with JL or Titans characters showing up in Nightwing occasionally, but I don't want the Nightwing book to just become a nursing home for displaced Titans characters because they are incapable of supporting their own series, especially when the Titans haven't given Dick any good stories in decades.

And if not with Shawn or Kori, Beatrice would be my pick all day after.

I'll never understand why anyone likes Bea as a character or love interest. She had zero depth to her and is part of some of Dick's worst stories. She didn't even know Dick as a person because she only knew Ric.

[WonderNight]

If dick has to be with a street level love interest then how did dick and star become a thing in the first place? And I still don't believe Dick's love interest should be a bat character, because what be they bring that Dick doesn't already have with the batfamliy and gotham or solo in bludhaven?

[Godlike13]

Because Titans aren’t street level.

[Badou]

If dick has to be with a street level love interest then how did dick and star become a thing in the first place? And I still don't believe Dick's love interest should be a bat character, because what be they bring that Dick doesn't already have with the batfamliy and gotham or solo in bludhaven?

Because Dick was looked at as a Titans character first back in the 80s; even being moved to their editorial. So the Starfire romance made sense back then. Then the Titans franchise declined by a lot and he was luckily moved back to the Batman editorial in the 90s and they gave him a solo book and new love interests that aligned more with their direction. He changed from a Titans character to a street level Batman family character where a Starfire romance didn't make as much sense. So the relationship ended.

With how DC is now, and where Dick currently is at as Nightwing, I prefer him to be in the Batman editorial. It is maybe the strongest franchise in comics. I think it is the best place for him if I had to pick one and I can clearly see the value of him being there. Sure, I don't like a lot of traditional Nightwing street level elements, including many from the current run that's I've mentioned too many times, but I just don't trust the Titans or non Batman editorial because of how rough their stories have been and how badly they have used Dick's character. They treat him so poorly yet people keep saying he should go back there for some reason. I need to be convinced that a franchise like the Titans is a stable comic franchise again where they actually add a great deal of value to Dick's character over tearing him down constantly. Where it would benefit him for that editorial department to spearhead his direction over Batman's.

But that just hasn't been the case. The Titans, and even Starfire as a character, I don't think have been very good for a long, long time. They've produced nothing noteworthy in the comics in ages and are constantly clinging to their past achievements from nearly 40 years ago. Now if things change and a franchise like Titans is once again one of DC's pillars then I'd be far more open to Dick being used there more or even revisiting Starfire as a romance. I just need to see it first before I believe.

I actually really enjoy non-street level stories in Nightwing, but I don't think the book should forgo them completely. I feel like the best balance would probably be two street level issues to every one non-street level one for Nightwing's solo book.

[Frontier]

I'd rather Dick have Titans adventure arcs outside Bludhaven than have the Titans in Bludhaven.

[ayanestar]

I couldn't care less about his relationship with Babs, the only time I have ever liked them as a couple was when she was still Oracle. In fact, the only time I have ever cared about her was when she was Oracle. I'm also sick of Nightwing having to rely on Batman characters to sell a book. Seeley did well with redesigning Blüdhaven and introducing new and old characters to Nightwing's supporting cast, but as usual, new writers threw all of that out the window. Seeley's idea for a support group for former criminals was a pretty good, he took completely forgotten characters and gave them a new home. Grayson also had some characters with potential, like Tiger, I loved his relationship dynamics with Dick. I would love to see him back, same goes to Raptor.

Also, why can't we have both? Just because DC is awful at their job, it doesn't mean we have to limit ourselves to what we want to see from Nightwing. I love seeing Dick interacting with his Titans friends like Donna, Wally, Roy, Garth etc. but I also love Dick's relationship with Damian and Bruce. The Starfire vs. Babs discussion is also tiresome as hell, like I couldn't care less anymore. I just want him to have his own love interest, someone who was created for him, like Shawn. Bea was also a decent character, but she was sadly introduced during one of Dick's worst story arcs, still I would take her over Babs any day of the week.

[thefinalguy]

I'd rather Dick have Titans adventure arcs outside Bludhaven than have the Titans in Bludhaven.

And that's where the issue stems from. Dick can easily be pushed around the DCU. The Titans, the Batfam, Superman... yet he's only getting 1/3 of that.

He hasn't had a one-on-one with Donna Troy in years.

[Iclifton]

I never said they couldn’t do stories with Satrfire. Just that I wouldn’t want them consistently in the Nightwing book on a monthly basis. It’s a matter of taste. I don’t want the solo to feel like a Titans book.

[Godlike13]

Generally speaking there is also usually some sort of Titans comic around. Though of course anytime anyone says they should do something with Dick in it people clap back with "he has a solo". So, ya. Its not really the bat side's issue when there are books exactly for that, yet chose not to further develop Dick's relationship with those characters. Dick's had plenty of opportunities in recent Titan comics to have a one on one with Donna for example, instead they had her just interact with him with an almost distain for lack of a better term. If at all.

And im personally grateful for Starfire and Babs. So many people go on about how Dick needs to get away from Batman or do something different, while at the same time then suggest introducing ideas that conform to tired old formulas like a boring civilian love interest. Trying to replicate textbook formulas leads to Dick coming off redundant or complacent far more then being next to Batman or interacting with other bat characters. Take Grayson for example, Grayson wasn't awesome just because Dick was doing something different but also because how they were telling his stories were different. This is what they fundamentally misunderstood with Ric. They did something different, but then brought in old out of touch creators who just lean back on old formulas and tired old techniques to produce by the numbers quick to produce drivel.

[Drako]

And that's where the issue stems from. Dick can easily be pushed around the DCU. The Titans, the Batfam, Superman... yet he's only getting 1/3 of that.

He hasn't had a one-on-one with Donna Troy in years.

He usually don't hang out with her in his solo book. And that is DC's fault for not having a Titans book and when we had it, the main Titans weren't the focus.
Also, at least Tom Taylor made a effort to put the Titans in his book, something that we barely seen before.

And he had a crossover with Superman\Jon Kent.

[Badou]

I'd rather Dick have Titans adventure arcs outside Bludhaven than have the Titans in Bludhaven.

I'd rather there was no Bludhaven.

I couldn't care less about his relationship with Babs, the only time I have ever liked them as a couple was when she was still Oracle. In fact, the only time I have ever cared about her was when she was Oracle. I'm also sick of Nightwing having to rely on Batman characters to sell a book. Seeley did well with redesigning Blüdhaven and introducing new and old characters to Nightwing's supporting cast, but as usual, new writers threw all of that out the window. Seeley's idea for a support group for former criminals was a pretty good, he took completely forgotten characters and gave them a new home. Grayson also had some characters with potential, like Tiger, I loved his relationship dynamics with Dick. I would love to see him back, same goes to Raptor.

Also, why can't we have both? Just because DC is awful at their job, it doesn't mean we have to limit ourselves to what we want to see from Nightwing. I love seeing Dick interacting with his Titans friends like Donna, Wally, Roy, Garth etc. but I also love Dick's relationship with Damian and Bruce. The Starfire vs. Babs discussion is also tiresome as hell, like I couldn't care less anymore. I just want him to have his own love interest, someone who was created for him, like Shawn. Bea was also a decent character, but she was sadly introduced during one of Dick's worst story arcs, still I would take her over Babs any day of the week.

You want him surrounded by heroes but then want him to date someone like Bea. A character like Bea was created to remove him from all those things. That was her role in the story. To pull him away from the Batman family and Titans.

I want Dick immersed in heroism. I have no interest in writers trying to give Dick some personal life where he is a bartender, cab driver, museum curator, gym trainer, and so on. That also extends to his romantic life. I have no interest in seeing him with some civilian that is disconnected to his hero life and takes him away from being a hero. To me it is a waste of time. It is writers using a typical formula of a hero trying to balance the two parts of his life, basically the Superman/Spider-man formula, but Dick isn't like those characters where it works. He doesn't really have any ties to a "normal" life without it feeling forced. He is most comfortable being a hero and being surrounded by heroes.

So him having a love interest that is also immersed in heroism, like a Babs or most other female heroes, does away with all those issues and he is able to seamlessly navigate all aspects of being a hero without any roadblocks. He doesn't have to explain why he is out late, worrying about her discovering his identity, and so on. A love interest like Bea is designed to keep Dick in one place, like Bludhaven, and it was the same with a Shawn too. They are love interests created to anchor Dick to one location which I don't like. A Babs, Helena, and a Starfire in some aspects allow Dick far more freedom. He can be in his solo book, in Gotham, on the Titans, on the JL, or even in some spy agency and his relationship with them can carry through it all.

It is why I think Taylor has done an oaky job with Dick setting up the Alfred Foundation. It isn't perfect, and it is sort of a "normal job", but it exists mainly to bring Dick's hero friends to him rather than pull him away and it is something Babs understands and is helping with.

[Frontier]

I'd rather there was no Bludhaven.

I think Seeley had the right idea of balancing street-level arcs with crazy, exaggerated, comic book-y arcs. He just didn't get to do much with it.