Batman & Robin by Joshua Williamson and Simone Di Meo

[Drako]

I can’t remember when but it’s pretty far in. I can summarize what they said:
-Williamson doesn’t want Bruce and Damian fighting, feels there’s been enough of that
-There will be some conflict between the two because Alfred is gone. It’s not Bruce being mad at Damian or Damian having guilt, Alfred was the mediator who could get the two of them to cooperate when they had a difference of opinion. Now Alfred is gone so the two have to deal with any problems that come up by themselves
-Part of why Bruce wants Damian to go to school is that Damian is very positive about his time in the Lazarus Tournament and the people he met there. Bruce wants him to go to school because he wants Damian to have peers and friends again, Damian initially doesn’t want to because he doesn’t see what the teachers at a normal school could possibly do for him. Bruce also reminds Damian that they need to keep up appearances of being “normal”
-Back during the Robin run, Williamson asked if he could do a sequel/follow up after Dark Crisis. Ben Abernathy was open to the idea and it was decided that it would be a Batman & Robin title instead of just a Robin book because they want Damian back in Gotham

Thank you, my friend.

[garazza]

Hope they drop his relationship with Flatline, it's not a good romance.

I hated it, too. I liked her as part of his supporting cast, but never as a love interest. Romance is just not part of Damian's character like it is for others.

[Triniking1234]

Hope they drop his relationship with Flatline, it's not a good romance.

It barely started. Y'all are boring.

[OBrianTallent]

I have to agree that Flatline was a character that fell...flat as a romantic interest for him. (Sorry, couldn't resist.) I would rather see Nobody return, not as a romantic interest, but as a female friend and Flatline become a straight up adversary for him. Also, while I dont mind it as a Batman and Robin series, I think I would have preferred it to just be Robin. Still interested, I like Williamson's voice and tone for Damien, but enough of Batman.

[Frontier]

Having a civilian life isn't a niche in the Bat family. Pretty much most of them have a civilian life.we've had titles that showed us characters like Duke, Dick, Jason, Damian in their civilian live's.

This isn't even the first time we've seen Damian attend school. This is the 3rd time.

SuperSons
Gotham Academy
Monkey Prince

But how many of them has it really been a focus for? Honestly? I don't really count Taylor's Nightwing because it's mostly just putting in appearances as Dick Grayson around people who actually know him as Nightwing.

Do we really need a love triangle? Much rather Williamson just develop his relationship with Nika.

True, but it's comics .

They apparently have plans for Flatline, considering that set-up with Ra's and her being part of that Dawn of DC art.
But, to be honest, I don't know how exactly is Williamson going to continue develop their relationship, if Damian's status quo apparently will be focused on Gotham and his civilian life, school, etc. Not to mention the fact, this title isn't just about Damian, it's about Bruce as well.

Well, she's his Catwoman (kinda) so the relationship being inconvenient or having some distance behind it makes it even more appropriate .

[Fergus]

I hated it, too. I liked her as part of his supporting cast, but never as a love interest. Romance is just not part of Damian's character like it is for others.

Says who? You.

The few times they've had him in a relationship, I've found to be enjoyable. His DCAMU relationship with Raven was the most popular pairing in that Movie verse and recently won the hBO@Home [b]Valentine fav couple poll [based on couples from all the DC content currently on HBOMax including the DCEU Movies, Live shows and animation] by a landslide.

Damian in a relationship can and has been done. It just has to be done well.

[Frontier]

I think we're past the point where Damian doesn't have any romance. He clearly felt something for Djinn and his relationship with Flatline, unconventional as it was, seemed as genuine as you could expect from a situation like that.

[Fergus]

It barely started. Y'all are boring.

Iknow. They aren't even a couple and we've had zero arcs of the two as a couple but apparently some already know a romance won't work.

I'd like to wait till I get the story before I write it off.
So far their interactions have been fun and their banter's cute.Different from everyone else he interacts with.

[Fergus]

But how many of them has it really been a focus for? Honestly? I don't really count Taylor's Nightwing because it's mostly just putting in appearances as Dick Grayson around people who actually know him as Nightwing.

True, but it's comics .

I agree that it hasn't been the focus but the comment wasn't about focus. It was about niche [Tim's love life is a bog part of his current series but that hasn't been the case for decades]

Duke's mini was the last time we had a bat character series that balanced hero and civilian life evenly.

@Frontier is a fan stan of daytime soaps and netflix Teen romance movies. Confirmed!

[garazza]

Says who? You.

The few times they've had him in a relationship, I've found to be enjoyable. His DCAMU relationship with Raven was the most popular pairing in that Movie verse and recently won the hBO@Home Valentine fav couple poll [based on couples from all the DC content currently on HBOMax including the DCEU Movies, Live shows and animation] by a landslide.

Damian in a relationship can and has been done. It just has to be done well.

Good for him. That's not the comics, though. Those are movies that are under no obligation to follow what was set in comics and comics have no need to follow what's done in the movies, no matter how badly publishers think making their comics more like the movies actually sells more books.

As someone who's interests in comics started because of the MCU being so prevalent in fandom and pop culture, I hate when outside media is forced to have an influence over the comics I'm reading. I came to comics for the comics, not the movies. When I started reading Damian, Tomasi and Gleason's B&R was wrapping up and R:SoB was about to launch, so Damian's entire history up until that point included absolutely no romance and there was no problem with that with the sole exception of Battle for the Cowl when he was still brand new as a character and had yet to become what we know him as today where he's written trying to impress an unnamed girl by taking the Batmobile for a joyride before she gets eaten by Killer Croc (almost as if that book was written by a misogynistic writer that had no interest in actually establishing a love life for Damian nor was ever followed up on or established as consistent character trait for the next 10 years).

The next time romance is brought in relation to Damian was the Glass/Thompson TT run where the book's explicit intent was to character assassinate Damian so anything established by that run is not to be considered in character for or a part of Damian.

Plus, in Superman Rebirth we get to meet the Bizarro version of Damian, where being the exact opposite of Damian, he is overly flirtatious and is constantly affectionate towards all the other characters. That sure says to me that romance is not a part of actual Damian.

I'm not pulling my understanding of Damian's character out of my ass, it's based on the history of books DC published that advance Damian's character instead of regressing him.

[Astralabius]

It barely started. Y'all are boring.

I've seen enough of her to find her highly annoying. I don't mind Damian getting a girlfriend, I just don't like this cheap goth waifu.

[garazza]

I have to agree that Flatline was a character that fell...flat as a romantic interest for him. (Sorry, couldn't resist.) I would rather see Nobody return, not as a romantic interest, but as a female friend and Flatline become a straight up adversary for him. Also, while I dont mind it as a Batman and Robin series, I think I would have preferred it to just be Robin. Still interested, I like Williamson's voice and tone for Damian, but enough of Batman.

I don't want Flatline to be an adversary for him either. I really like a lot of Damian's supporting cast consisting of strong female characters, all of whom fill different roles and niches in Damian's life, none of which being love interest. Just one more thing that makes him unique and different and distinct not just from his predecessors but other heroes.

I also would've wanted the book to be just Robin because that doesn't mean Bruce can't be a supporting character in the book, but the Batman and Robin title started as a result of Damian being Robin and has always had a focus on him and isn't just another Bruce book, so I imagine Williamson writing the book as the sequel to his Robin, Batman being in the title be damned.

[Frontier]

Good for him. That's not the comics, though. Those are movies that are under no obligation to follow what was set in comics and comics have no need to follow what's done in the movies, no matter how badly publishers think making their comics more like the movies actually sells more books.

As someone who's interests in comics started because of the MCU being so prevalent in fandom and pop culture, I hate when outside media is forced to have an influence over the comics I'm reading. I came to comics for the comics, not the movies. When I started reading Damian, Tomasi and Gleason's B&R was wrapping up and R:SoB was about to launch, so Damian's entire history up until that point included absolutely no romance and there was no problem with that with the sole exception of Battle for the Cowl when he was still brand new as a character and had yet to become what we know him as today where he's written trying to impress an unnamed girl by taking the Batmobile for a joyride before she gets eaten by Killer Croc (almost as if that book was written by a misogynistic writer that had no interest in actually establishing a love life for Damian nor was ever followed up on or established as consistent character trait for the next 10 years).

The next time romance is brought in relation to Damian was the Glass/Thompson TT run where the book's explicit intent was to character assassinate Damian so anything established by that run is not to be considered in character for or a part of Damian.

Plus, in Superman Rebirth we get to meet the Bizarro version of Damian, where being the exact opposite of Damian, he is overly flirtatious and is constantly affectionate towards all the other characters. That sure says to me that romance is not a part of actual Damian.

I'm not pulling my understanding of Damian's character out of my ass, it's based on the history of books DC published that advance Damian's character instead of regressing him.

To be honest the Djinn stuff came before they were seriously trying to character assassinate him and it felt genuine.

Just because his Bizarro self was more outward with his feelings doesn't mean Prime!Damian doesn't have them.

I think the thing to understand is Damian was very young and came from a very difficult upbringing that's heavily skewed or effect his relationships and how he relates to people, but he's also grown up a lot since then.

[ayanestar]

I don't care about romance, especially not when it involves Damian, but if I had to choose someone, it would be Nobody.

[garazza]

To be honest the Djinn stuff came before they were seriously trying to character assassinate him and it felt genuine.

The run started with Damian shooting Black Mask in the head and starting a gulag. It was the intent from the very beginning. It wasn't a sudden shift in direction dropped in Glass' lap.

Just because his Bizarro self was more outward with his feelings doesn't mean Prime!Damian doesn't have them.

I think the thing to understand is Damian was very young and came from a very difficult upbringing that's heavily skewed or effect his relationships and how he relates to people, but he's also grown up a lot since then.

He does have feelings but they won't manifest the same way they do for Bizarro Damian.

Bizarro Damian is stereotypically romantic, handing out roses and the like. Because of his upbringing, Damian is going to express himself in non-typical, non-traditional ways. Yes, he has grown as a character but that growth hasn't been in the direction of making him express himself like everyone else. How he conducts himself would never result in a long list of love interests like it does for Dick and Tim, and making him more like Dick and Tim goes against what there is to like about Damian.