Damian Wayne: Robin Appreciation 2019

[Arctic Cyclist]

Damian looks older than Tim now. Is this intentional?

With Tomasi? Yes. As are the green eyes, which is a shorthand to convey that Damian isn't happy on any level and is reining in negative emotions, particularly when the story is under Tomasi's control.

On each reread, I'm becoming more convinced that's not Damian. Rather it's someone or something pretending to be Damian. Which means that Alfred and Leslie's body have been left with an enemy. The manipulating Bruce to find Ducard, who having gone to ground would be impossible for someone not trained by him to find, and the discussion of Damian in the context of the pawn chess piece are all clues that there's more going on with Damian than meets the eye.

[babybats]

idk, I think the only thing that's really fishy is that last panel. Everything else slightly weird about Damian in this can be explained by the artist's interpretation and Tomasi doubling down on the new direction they're going with in TT. I can definitely see it happening (the shapeshifter infiltrating the Cave as Damian), but I think the only thing that really hints at that is the last panel on the Damian page.

But I'm not reading BB, can someone explain how it established that Damian has delayed aging?

[babybats]

Other than 1 line, I think, in the 1000 special, I don't think Bendis has even acknowledged the two are friends, or even know one another. And apparently, Bendis is going to tell the story of Jon and Jor-El (the same one that instigated a number of terrorist actions) as they come across the Crime Syndicate, and Jon magically ages 7 years in 3 weeks. And throwing Jon in a war. All for the sake of shock value.

This whole Kent family thing is like watching a train wreck, but it's happening in slow motion over the course of months.

[Arctic Cyclist]

idk, I think the only thing that's really fishy is that last panel. Everything else slightly weird about Damian in this can be explained by the artist's interpretation and Tomasi doubling down on the new direction they're going with in TT.

But I'm not reading BB, can someone explain how it established that Damian has delayed aging?

Easy enough. Warren McGinnis is one of the students at Gotham Academy in Maps' class. In fact, he's in the one class Damian was shown attending, which establishes that Warren (Terry and Matt's dad) is a year or two older than Damian. In the flashbacks in issue 9 or 10 of BB where Damian defected/had the crap beat out of him and was dragged back to be brainwashed by Ra's he doesn't clear Bruce's chest and looks 13/14 despite Bruce having gray hair and wrinkles so it's obviously 5-10 years from current time. When we see him in Terry's time he looks the same age as Terry, if not a touch younger.

If you contrast that with Damian: Son of Batman where he's 14, or Batman 666 and 700 where he's 20, it's dramatically obvious that since dying and rising, Damian isn't aging or growing like he should. Over in Injustice, we do see that he hits puberty late, at about 15/16, and then has his growth spurts quickly (Year 5, the invasion of the other League, and 2 all have him at 18, MotU vs Injustice has him at 19/20). So we know that by 20 Damian should be built like a brick sh*t house instead of the delicate, petite kid we saw in Beyond.

It's possible he's using the Lazarus Pits, but they don't prevent puberty and growth spurts as we saw with Jason. Since we know from basically everything, including Battle for the Cowl, that prior to his death Damian has accelerated healing from Bruce's genetics, Talia's tinkering, and the artificial womb, and then add in the chaos shard that he's infused with along with the Omega effect plus the infusion of soul energy from Den Darga's final plan, it's clear that Damian's crossed into not exactly meta range as he still reads as human and powerless to various DC entities like Kid Amazo, but he's not normal.

Or to put another way, there are no muscles anywhere near the liver. Dr Hurt was legitimately freaked out by Damian's breathing and getting up and running from a fatal stab wound for a reason: he did kill Damian. Damian got better. Just like in the Gotham Resistance when Green Arrow shot him: that hit a major artery under the clavicle, Damian should have bled out in two or three minutes not snap off and extract the arrow and walk away.

It's very subtle, but there are signs that Damian isn't exactly mortal anymore.

Getting extra geekier: that thing with Den Darga is almost identical to how the Eternal Warrior and his brother became immortals incapable of dying or aging over in the Valiant Comics universe.

As a side note, poor Warren already knows that his son is going to be Batman as people are already traveling back in time to kill him and prevent Terry's conception. On the plus side, at 12/13 he knows he's going to get laid someday. On the down side, he's already met his future murderer and knows his name. Which is super dark, and adds some fascinating layers to the Beyond mythos.

[Flashback]

On the plus side, at 12/13 he knows he's going to get laid someday.

Lol, love how you manage to find something positive in this whole ordeal.

[Konja7]

But I'm not reading BB, can someone explain how it established that Damian has delayed aging?

It isn't established, but he looks too young in BB.

Damian should 40 or more in that comic, but he looks Terry's age.

[king81992]

It isn't established, but he looks too young in BB.

Damian should 40 or more in that comic, but he looks Terry's age.

Really? He always looked older than Terry to me. Damian should be in his late thirties to mid forties but looks like someone in his early to mid thirties. Probably because of a combination of good genetics, active lifestyle, healthy diet and possible use of the Lazarus Pit.

[dietrich]

idk, I think the only thing that's really fishy is that last panel. Everything else slightly weird about Damian in this can be explained by the artist's interpretation and Tomasi doubling down on the new direction they're going with in TT. I can definitely see it happening (the shapeshifter infiltrating the Cave as Damian), but I think the only thing that really hints at that is the last panel on the Damian page.

But I'm not reading BB, can someone explain how it established that Damian has delayed aging?

He didn't speak like Damian.

That was just creepy and that costume malfunction... not sure what's going on.

Damian and Jon are going to be part of Levithan after all according to Bendis. I guess that's where w see him react to teen Jon.

[Mosameen]

Reread it again and I still don't understand why they never settle for an eye color they either make his eye color blue or green but for God's sake DC make a permanent decision. For the design maybe an artist approach the hood may still be there but the artist chose to go for a more obscure design. For how he spoke maybe it's Tomasi trying to make it awkward to show the tension between them in away Damian seem mature and serious.

[Armor of God]

He didn't speak like Damian.

That was just creepy and that costume malfunction... not sure what's going on.

Damian and Jon are going to be part of Levithan after all according to Bendis. I guess that's where w see him react to teen Jon.

Where did Bendis say that?

[dietrich]

Reread it again and I still don't understand why they never settle for an eye color they either make his eye color blue or green but for God's sake DC make a permanent decision. For the design maybe an artist approach the hood may still be there but the artist chose to go for a more obscure design. For how he spoke maybe it's Tomasi trying to make it awkward to show the tension between them in away Damian seem mature and serious.

You are probably right about the reason why he was talking like that.


About the eye colour it really doesn't take much to send a memo out what eye colour he should have. Along with skin colour but I don't think DC is that much into the detailing.

[dietrich]

Where did Bendis say that?

An interview from the Superman 7 preview/review thread on the Superman part of this site. I'll Find and link

[Armor of God]

I dont think he brought up Damian or Leviathan. He just said Jon's going to be in every issue of Superman moving forward and that obviously his new status is going to rock everyone around him.

[dietrich]

I dont think he brought up Damian or Leviathan. He just said Jon's going to be in every issue of Superman moving forward and that obviously his new status is going to rock everyone around him.

https://twitter.com/BRIANMBENDIS/sta...45363468791811

I was sure he brought up Levithan

[shadow6743]

On another note baby Jon just showed up in Young Justice so clearly they are setting up Super Sons to be a thing