Duke Thomas: We Are Robin, Signal Appreciation 2018

[Askia]

I'll go into Outsiders with an open mind and see what happens.

for the discussion of daytime Signal, I like it a lot. It allows him to have a setting unique to any other bat-family member. There is so much potential there. Batman and co mainly operate at night so regular civilians rarely see him. He's more like a secret protector that people only hear about. Duke on the other hand would be center stage and would have interactions with the people of Gotham that we haven't scene much of.

[Korath]

Holy ****, I hadn't seen it coming, but Wolveri... I mean, Duke is in The Unexpected issue next week, and he seems to have a cool vibe that I really like. The art is special, but I really like this book and seeing Duke here just elevate the whole thing even further in my eyes.

[the illustrious mr. kenway]

Once upon a time I wanted Duke to join the Unexpected so this is the next best thing.

[lemonpeace]

Wow I didn't expec...see that coming. I always assumed he'd pop up in Immortal Men if he were going to show up in any of these New Age books but I'm 100% here for this!

[J. D. Guy]

Holy ****, I hadn't seen it coming, but Wolveri... I mean, Duke is in The Unexpected issue next week, and he seems to have a cool vibe that I really like. The art is special, but I really like this book and seeing Duke here just elevate the whole thing even further in my eyes.

Well this is certainly living up the the book's name!

And boy howdy, does The Signal look good in that artstyle! Especially his first appearance; I love that perspective! The artist really lived up the potential of his costume there!

(Been awhile since I posted; been following tangentially, though. Nice that Duke will be part of the Outsiders book, but we'll see if he's actually used more, for lack of a better word, respectably there than in the Detective arc it spun off from where he never even showed up on the covers. Also want Mr. Tony Patrick to get that Duke solo, or at least a more dedicated, longer mini, to pick up where he left off at.

Also, I see The Signal has yet to be added to this thread's name, and Lark has yet to be taken off it.)

Wow I didn't expec...see that coming. I always assumed he'd pop up in Immortal Men if he were going to show up in any of these New Age books but I'm 100% here for this!

Same here, as that seemed like a no-prize guess due to The Forge/The Casting.

[lemonpeace]

Ok maybe it's just me and I'm just dumb but do the panels feel disjointed? It feels like some of them are out of order or just doesn't flow. Iunno, maybe I'm just reading it wrong.

Edit: I was reading it wrong, the preview cut the splash page in half into two different pages.

[J. D. Guy]

Ok maybe it's just me and I'm just dumb but do the panels feel disjointed? It feels like some of them are out of order or just doesn't flow. Iunno, maybe I'm just reading it wrong.

Edit: I was reading it wrong, the preview cut the splash page in half into two different pages.

Yeah, that's actually pretty common presentation for splash pages on website previews.

[lemonpeace]

Yeah, that's actually pretty common presentation for splash pages on website previews.

Yeah, I can usually spot the cut but for whatever reason my brain didn't recognize it. Probably because it's cut in between the panels so I didn't take it in. Although that line about Duke bleeding in the narrows still feels random though.

[J. D. Guy]

Yeah, I can usually spot the cut but for whatever reason my brain didn't recognize it. Probably because it's cut in between the panels so I didn't take it in. Although that line about Duke bleeding in the narrows still feels random though.

Was that Duke saying that or Huntress? I'm pretty sure it was meant to be Huntress, since that's the only way that line would make sense in the context.

Anyway, it'll probably make more straightforward sense when we get to see the actual splash page in full.

[lemonpeace]

Was that Duke saying that or Huntress? I'm pretty sure it was meant to be Huntress, since that's the only way that line would make sense in the context.

Anyway, it'll probably make more straightforward sense when we get to see the actual splash page in full.

Nah, I went back and stitched the splash back together to make sense of it, it's the page after the splash. the speech bubble is coming right from Duke. Maybe it was supposed to come from Huntress because coming from Duke it just doesn't flow right. Smh if that's the case then that's the second time they've mixed up Duke's dialogue with another character so I'm hoping it's just a poorly executed quip.

[J. D. Guy]

Nah, I went back and stitched the splash back together to make sense of it, it's the page after the splash. the speech bubble is coming right from Duke. Maybe it was supposed to come from Huntress because coming from Duke it just doesn't flow right. Smh if that's the case then that's the second time they've mixed up Duke's dialogue with another character so I'm hoping it's just a poorly executed quip.

Well...

But yeah, I auto-assumed Huntress, because that's the only one who'd make sense saying it after what The Signal did say; he got there right before the police did, which notes his speed, and Huntress (who The Signal is technically saving, even if she would never admit or likely even see it to be the case) would give the line about something that happened earlier that apparently Duke didn't get to right away.

[lemonpeace]

Aside from the odd line about the narrows, i really enjoyed Duke's inclusion in The Unexpected. We got to see some interesting applications of his powers and i like that he was shown to be really coming into his own as a hero. I liked that a couple of his lines show the Batmanisms he's picked up. While I do appreciate that Bryan Hill is taking his time in developing Duke, they did a better job incorporating him in the narrative here than in the Detective run. What are you guys' thoughts?

[the illustrious mr. kenway]

I felt that i missed an issue or did huntress and firebrand have a prior encounter off-screen?

Orlando's handling of Duke was pretty good.

[Korath]

Firebrand referenced the way she died during the Dark Knights Invasion, I presume. Hence why she is kind of unhappy with the Batpeoples.

I really liked Duke's character in here. He wasn't written as this super powerful character, but neither was he a total rookie. The use of his powers, which are linked to Nth Metal, was actually great, it's a good thing to see them explored. Bryan Hill has apparently long term plans for him and I'm grateful for it, but if Orlando ever want to uses Duke, I'll always be down for it.

[J. D. Guy]

Though I haven't read the issue yet myself, I'm glad to hear that The Signal was done well by the accounts here of those who have.

And I agree that is it nice to hear that The Signal is portrayed with his due respect. After all, even if he isn't Batman-levels of experienced (and really, who else in the Batverse can be? Who else would really be allowed to be?), Duke's far from being some naive, brittle newbie either. His Signal persona may be comparatively new, but he himself is not. That kind of portrayal really is appreciated.

I look forward to seeing for myself exactly how his powers are applied in this issue. Also, for those who read it, is there any likelihood he'll be in the next issue, too? Or would that be unlikely because the story moves away from Gotham and doesn't imply The Signal will be joining them the rest of the way?