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#but if you /do/ read tim's comics then you understand what's going on in a way that neither of the characters do
waspredteeth · 1 day
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the thing about Damian, especially pre-Robin, is that you have to straddle a line between child and cult assassin. He’s a nuanced character, you can’t dumb him down or simplify him. (On that note: PLEASE stop calling him feral! It’s racist as fuck!)
You cannot make other characters be nice and understanding to him from the start like Dick or Tim or Jason. You cannot make them treat him like a toddler below his actual age.
You also cannot make him a irredeemable psychopath who exists only to hurt Tim and sow conflict. Because that’s just straight up not true. Fanon.
Writing Damian needs to be a balance between these, and he needs this nuance to be interesting.
If everyone treats him softly, then there’s no point for Damian’s personality as it is. He is rude and arrogant and abrasive for a reason. You could argue that he’s spoiled, but he’s also a child who was ripped from a culture he knew and thrust into the arms of a white family who don’t understand him and don’t make the effort to actually teach him their views. He’s rude and angry because there is no place for him there, not until Robin, and even then he is still subject to their judgements. If everyone treats him with kid gloves, then his attitude comes without justification and doesn’t make sense.
Please remember that when Damian first appeared in comics, everyone except Talia disliked him. Bruce wasn’t sure what to do with him, but he also was quick to scream obedience. From Dick’s inner monologue in Resurrection of Ras al Ghul and his very early interactions in Batman and Robin, he didn’t like the kid and thought him a burden to bear in the place of Bruce. Tim never once gave him mercy after the first meeting. His inner monologue and actions all speak of hate and teenage angst - some justified, some way out of line.
Damian’s anger is then reasonably apparent. He doesn’t fit in. He can’t. But he doesn’t seek violence. He doesn’t try to murder everyone in their sleep like some people think. It’s shocking that fanon’s interpretation of him is a boy who goes for the throat in every interaction. He’s snippy, but in every single comic I’ve read he’s never tried to fight someone without a justification. If he was an X-Men level telepath, then I’d argue that his actions would become worse if he really knew what people thought of him at first glance.
If you’re a child that knows he is hated, then you lash out. You test boundaries. You see what will make them exile you, hurt you. You are a brown boy surrounded by a white city in a culture that you don’t understand. You cannot see your mother again. They hate her. You cannot express yourself in a world that expects the worst. You are shackled by expectation and judgement. They won’t let you be, but they won’t let you go.
You are stuck.
And in this, you will always be.
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fancyfade · 8 hours
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2009 era Damian reading
As I've been doing my 2009 era Damian reading, I'm trying to condense the good stuff and bad stuff, and things I believe are relevant for his character. These are in addition to what I assume is obvious (Batman and Robin 2009, the comic where he has a starring role).
Battle for the Cowl: this has how Damian becomes Robin. It's not necessarily good. Daniels really does not understand Damian, especially this early in his writing, but it does have some important context for things going down b/c Damian helps Squire save Tim's life, and we can see Dick viewing training Damian as something he is responsible for.
Secret Origins (2014) #4: This is a much more in character Damian becoming Robin, though fit for a condensed new 52 timeline that leaves some stuff out (like Damian's rocky intro with Bruce).
Batman #688 (Long Shadows part 1): Winick seems one of the early writers who does a Damian as he lines up with later characterization (views himself more as a professional assassin), so I think this one's good.
Batman: streets of Gotham #1-6: damian makes some minor appearances here.
Batgirl #5-7: Always take Damian's guest-starring stuff with a grain of salt, as often times writers just go with "how would an obnoxious 10 year old boy act here" without understanding he's a specific kind of obnoxious 10 year old boy... that said I do like some of his interactions with Steph, and I think it's incredibly important that we see Damian defends his competence based on his training, not on his blood.
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Like he'll sometimes justify why he belongs based on his blood (which like... no one acts like they want him around), but he isn't going around saying "I'm better than you b/c I'm batman's son". he was trained intensely since birth (and that's why he should say he's better than you :P)
Batman #692-697: not a ton of Damian in this, and it is Daniel's writing, but he's a little better than he was in Battle for the Cowl. We see Dick training Damian some.
Batman: Streets of Gotham #7, #10-#11: love this plotline for him. Good show of competence and characterization.
Blackest night: batman: More focused on Tim and Dick, and Tomasi sucks at writing Babs, but at there is some Damian content that I remember enjoying.
Red Robin #11-15: as long as you read this one with your brain turned on, it's good for explaining some Tim and Damian stuff. Sadly some fans are like "woooo arrogant 10 year old gets beat up". Nicieza makes some missteps (frames Tim's thinking around Damian as coldly logical, when it is anything but and he is reacting from a place of emotion), but one can ignore those.
Batman #703: shows Damian's character pretty well in a default Batman and Robin adventure, and his relationship (or lackthereof) with Bruce and his dynamic with Dick and Alfred
Teen Titans #88-92 (including Red Robin #20 in a crossover plot): surprised by how well I liked this one. I think it portrays Damian pretty fairly, and we can see that he is trying hard, but hasn't been given a lot of support up until now (or even now, Dick kind of just drops him off with a bunch of older kids who all also have issues and are predisposed to disliking him XD). His dynamic with rose is fun and I think it is notable how quickly he does acquiesce to following Cassie's orders when she's like (at first) the only Teen Titan who is OK with him being there and assures him its not personal when she makes a comment he doesn't like.
Bruce Wayne: The Road Home: Batman and Robin: Has some nice Dick and Damian banter, showcases how they've worked together well
Batgirl #17: more damian and steph interactions.
I will probably add more (either editing this post or in a reblog) as I keep reading.
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mamawasatesttube · 17 days
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i wish i could organize a timkon giftswap or week or whatever event, but like only for people who actually care about kon as a character, without coming off as a gatekeeping asshole or something lmao
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jaysgirlx · 29 days
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nerdy shit jason does hcs? :3
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Nerdy Jason Todd Headcanons
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— Jason Todd loves his classics, especially his poetry. He annotates his spare Slyvia Plath books just for him to do it again because he believes to fully understand a book you have to read it a million times until it really clicks.
— As a joke he likes to reference or recite poetry lines but no one really seems to get it except Tim and Duke.
— No matter what poor Jason cannot DNF a book even if it is complete and utter shit. This is because he believes all books deserve a chance.
— He tries to buy a new book every week to keep himself on his toes and just so he doesn't lose his reading habit. He even uses Booktok for the occasional book recs.
— Yes he's on Booktok but only for the recommendations. he does give a duck for Booktok drama unless somebody is talking shit about his beloved Emily Dickinson.
— Jason loves Star Wars and growing up used to look up to Han Solo. He never brings it up though because he know Dick will use it as blackmail.
— He hates when people assume he's a himbo because he works out especially Bruce because what hurts more than your own father believing you're an idiot?
— He loves chilling at the library or sometimes studying random topics for the fun of it. It makes me wonder how things would be if he went to college.
— He has glasses but only wears them when he's reading so that he doesn't strain his eyes. He's gotten a lot of compliments on them but he's still not used to them.
— If he were to ever meet a girl it would either be a library or bookstore since he's really only ever at those two places. You might catch him at the videogame or even the comic book store.
— He enjoys gaming but more with his brothers, it's just not as fun alone and they all usually go to the comic bookstore together since they're all a bit nerdy too. Our Jason is the best at hiding his.
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damianbugs · 6 months
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with all this gotham war stuff (most recently the comic sc you posted on your twt with jason and bruce), can u explain what is actually going on? like, i’m not that far so i haven’t read it, but… like is it actually bruce saying all that stuff about the kids? or is it this zur person people keep talking about?
oh my friend, it's crazy around here, but i will try my best to explain it!
A GUIDE TO UNDERSTANDING WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING TO BATMAN IN GOTHAM WAR:
firstly, the comic reading list to catch up with gotham war is: as of 01/10/23 (the ones in italics are core issues to the story)
for some background on what happens leading up to gotham war:
Batman (2016) #125-136
(Optional) Knight Terrors: Batman
(Optional) Knight Terrors: Catwoman
and then the actual gotham war story:
Batman/Catwoman: The Gotham War - Battle Lines
Batman (2016) #137
Catwoman (2018) #57
Batman/Catwoman: The Gotham War - Red Hood #1
this is everything that is out right now, but from the third of october to halloween we will also be getting: Batman #138, Catwoman #58, Gotham War: Red Hood #2, Batman/Catwoman: The Gotham War - Scorched Earth.
secondly... who is Zur En Arrh.
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Zur En Arrh taking over Bruce, Batman (2016) #126
zur en arrh, in the simplest way of explaining, is this alter ego/personality (it's unclear) bruce created for himself should batman (bruce wayne) ever be psychologically compromised or brainwashed. it's not him, but a more sadistic and crueler person that is the "ultimate batman" who doesn't care about anyone or anything but getting the mission done.
during Batman #125-130, zur takes over the role of batman because bruce was losing very badly to the robot Failsafe (which is zur's own creation, that bruce has no memory of making). after getting vaporised by failsafe and sent travelling through dozens of alternate universes, losing his hand and fighting a flying shark (Batman #131-135), bruce returns to gotham incredibly mentally unstable.
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During a peaceful dinner with his family, Bruce suddenly imagines the entire world on fire, Batman (2016) #136.
during everything, bruce managed to mentally fight back and kind of... merge their ideals together in order to survive and win in the moment.
and then successfully trapping failsafe back into his mind where he can no longer take over!
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Bruce uses some sort of mental technique to lock Zur away in his mind, Batman (2016) #136.
except he didn't succeed! at all!
you see, when travelling through all those universes, bruce somehow brought back every single version of zur en arrh with him. now all of then combined, plus his already deteriorating and weak mental health from the last few years, bruce is currently operating under the impression that he's locked zur away, when he actually hasn't.
zur is the one partly, or even entirely, in control. right now, he's just pretending to stay locked away so bruce continues to do what he thinks is 'right' despite them being incredibly out of character for the run.
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During his eight week coma, Bruce sees Zur 'locked away' and he is, apparently, not alone, Gotham War: Battle Lines (2023)
an example is when zur referred to robin as batman's solider, bruce mentally fought back to make it clear that tim was his son. but then, a few issues later, bruce refers to his children as his soldiers and that they've all betrayed him, implying that zur has always had control and isn't locked away.
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Bruce and Zur get into a fight inside his mind about Robin [Tim Drake], Batman (2016) #127
so yeah, zur is not bruce! they're both batman, but zur en arrh is like his somehow unimaginably even worse twin. if you're interested more in him, i would suggest giving his character history a read! be warned it gets changed A LOT and is definitely not everyone's cup of tea (personally i hate him and need him shelved for another forty years).
now that that's all done and explained, the current state of gotham war is Bruce (thinks he's okay) fighting everyone else (except Damian) because in his (Zur's) point of view, they're all against the mission and therefore are now his enemies (he's lost his mind). totally not convoluted.
to answer your original question, yes, this is all bruce saying and doing these things but he is being HEAVILY influenced by Zur. we can't tell for certain how much of this is bruce and how much is zur, but we can definitely prove zur is partially or completely controlling him again.
even jason points it out after bruce implants that fear toxin chip into him in Batman (2016) #138:
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like we can see the intention is to keep jason out of this, because compared to everyone else, jason was the most directly opposed to bruce. but zur is twisting how this concern gets expressed, since forcing jason into feeling fear everytime he gets an adrenaline rush is hardly the reformation bruce is usually encouraging. the other batfam members also talk about how uncharacteristically violent bruce is being.
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"He's out of control." / "He's gone [In more ways than one.]" Batman (2016) #137
as the story progresses we see more and more of zur replace bruce, but because he can't have bruce trying to stop him again, zur is playing along and convincing bruce he's locked away. so really, bruce is at war with not only his entire family, but also his own mind. just another average tuesday for batman. he's being tricked and is unknowingly doing exactly what he was trying to prevent.
to understand what the actual war in gotham war is, give the comics listed above a read! if you find the story boring/ridiculous/stupid, don't worry, it is! the social commentary leaves a lot to be desired, as does most of the characters writings (especially selina's).
bruce and his one sided battle with zur is sort of an overarching story happening alongside it (along with a bunch of other ongoings. i don't even understand how detective comics and batman and robin are going to tie into this once it starts up again).
sorry the answer isn't a simple one, but unfortunately nothing is ever simple with bruce. also apologies in advance if any of the future gotham war comics come out and completely debunk all of this! who knows what will happen in this dramatic family drama.
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phoenixkaptain · 22 days
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DC is so silly because none of them can agree on what Batman’s motivation actually is.
Like, does this guy only care about Gotham City? Is he obsessed with keeping this one specific city safe? Is obsessed to the point that he’s willing to risk other people’s lives in the pursuit of justice?
Or, does he care about other people? Alfred, Dick, Jason, Tim, Damian, even Selina. Is he obsessed with keeping his loved ones safe? Is he obsessed with keeping Gotham safe because he wants the people in Gotham to be safe?
Does he train Robin out of a desire for a soldier or a need to cling to a thread of humanity? Does he keep Alfred employed primarily because Alfred is good at keeping secrets or because he trusts Alfred to keep his secrets? Does he ever love any of the women he dates, Selina included, or does he see them as another part of his disguise?
What is Batman’s motivation? What is he feeling at any given time in a story? What keeps him going when the nights drag on endlessly? What makes him get out of bed? What makes him take care of himself so that he can take care of it? Is it Gotham, or is it the people in Gotham?
And honestly, the answer is all of the above. The writers don’t agree on the answer, so the answer is that all apply. Batman would die for Gotham, Batman would die for Robin, Batman would die for Alfred. Batman wants to protect Gotham more than anything. Batman finds that he wants to protect Robin and Alfred and those he loves even more than Gotham. Batman views Robin as a soldier to be kept at arm’s length. Batman views Robin as his son and loves him like a father would.
It affects everything that Batman touches, this inconclusive motivation. Batman views the Justice League as his friends, his family even. Batman never gets close to any members of the Justice League because he only views them as associates and nothing more.
Batman can be conceivably anything. His motivation can become anything. Because his motivation is set up and reset and reset and reset- his motivation, what he cares about, it can be basically whatever you want. Whatever the writers want.
And this is why you have people hate Batman because he’s cold and uncaring and nigh abusive. You have people who love Batman because he thaws for those he loves and is kind and caring. You have people who like Batman because he’s good with children. You have people who like Batman because he’s awkward and doesn’t even know how to hold a child.
All of these versions have been portrayed, and sometimes multiple versions are portrayed in the same comic line. Batman lets Robin tease him and misses Robin when they’re apart, but he also gets mad at Robin for something that he has to know isn’t Robin’s fault. Batman is cold and distant to Robin but also says he trusts Robin as much as he trusts himself. Batman doesn’t know what Tim’s family life is like because he doesn’t feel it’s important, as long as it doesn’t affect Tim’s work, and he also asks Tim to tell him about his family’s situation because he sees himself in Tim and wants to offer comfort.
These are all Batman, but are also not Batman. Because the writers want you to view Batman as whatever they’re portraying him as in that one specific comic. What is Batman like? Well, it depends on the comic issue, not the comic series.
I like to focus on Bruce having interests and cares outside of Gotham alone. I like writing him as having friends he trusts and kids he loves. Because this is more interesting to me than the Bruce who is cold and uncaring. But, I also understand that this isn’t the only way he’s portrayed. This is the way I perceive him, the way I read all of his comics and the reason why I can make excuses for his actions that others find objectionable or unforgivable.
My way of reading Bruce isn’t the right or wrong way to do so, because there is no wrong way to read Bruce’s character. He’s genuinely been portrayed as just about all the versions you can find. And of course people exaggerate, they worsen him or (in my case) make him better. Which isn’t wrong either.
Batman is both a loving and a distant father. Batman both cares only for Gotham and has interests beyond Gotham. Batman has no friends and a few close friends. Batman is serious and dark and brooding and Batman is silly and playful and pretending to be emotionless. The writers don’t agree, the fans don’t agree, no one agrees so Batman is a nebulous character of clear motives only when it suits the narrative he’s engaged in.
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punkeropercyjackson · 24 days
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Genuine advice for people who joined the Batfam fandom because of fan content and are too scared to get into actual comics or not sure where to start:Please don't buy a single word 'Fuck canon!' people tell you about ANY Batfam member and i do mean ANY.They're lying to you to get you to sanatize them and deprive you of deserving to know what they're actually like because their peabrains can't process multilayered characters and relathionships in favor of bigoted stereotypes and writing that's insanely insulting to them and if you're a minor especially,they're lying to you about whatever they say about shipping the male members with eachother not being in*cest or ped0 too-Bruce has been Dick's adoptive dad since Dick's debut issue,he legally adopted Jason and Duke too,Damian's his bio kid and with Tim it's a bit more complicated but it's very much canon that they see eachother as father and son and Tim has lived at Wayne Manor at several points in canon and would be brothers regardless of anything else due to this but they also use that exact word to describe their dynamic and so does everybody else
This applies to Cass being their sister too because Bruce adopted her after they formed a dad-daughter bond a while into her being Batgirl but as Stephanie has a mom she lives with and has never seen Bruce as a parental figure nor he her as one of his kids,you're freegame to ship her with Tim or Cass and in fact i highly encourage doing both.Batfanon stans are once again doing mass lying(damn they should get a different hobby)by saying the four male Robins are the 'core' ones.Stephanie has been included in Robin stuff for a long time now and Duke dosen't get the same treatment due to antiblackness so THAT'S an actual 'Fuck canon!' moment so you should make it six Robins and know that the intention with only four is always misogyny and whitewashing(also just saying but those fanarts are always ugly anyway,they make them look like shitty anime boys instead of themselves)
Dick is an almost perfect eldest sibling and the other Batkids deeply appreciate him for it,he was Tim's Robin and him and Cass are his favorite siblings,Duke is Jason's favorite brother and vice versa but he's also extremely close to Cass,none of them make Damian go through 'normal youngest sibling treatment' because none of them are normal so they grew a sense of basic decency and Damian's closest to Dick and Stephanie and Stephanie's a canon csa victim so kindly keep your paws off her with your 'date all of your s/os siblings' jokes because she has self-worth and class,thanks
Ignore the original Red Hood and The Outlaws run and anything to do with Jason and Roy friendship in fandom and read the original Teen Titans run,New Teen Titans,Arsenal 1998,The Titans 1999,Green Arrow 2001 and Outsiders 2003 if you want to understand Roy too or at least ask around blogs centered on him for context.Ignore Tom Taylor's Nightwing run and Teen Titans 2003 and Batgirl of Burnside and anything by Devin Grayson(she's quite literally done irreperable damage to Batman lore and i wish i was kidding).Read Robin 1993,90s Young Justice,Batgirl 2000,Batgirl 2009,Red Robin,Son of Batman and literally everything Duke's in which i can provide a reading list for instead and i'm working on a megapost of all the Jason media that's actually good so new fans don't waste their time.I'm genuinely saying this to be helpful because 'fandom isn't activism' is a puratical priviliged phrase that should've never existed just like Batfanon shouldn't either
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420ruffy · 8 months
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⟡ general Jason todd headcanons and how i view and portray him in my works cw. soft gentle clingy needy desperate touch starved jay
i need to start off with certain stereotypes/ways in which he gets potrayed sometimes that i hate with every fibre of my fucking being :
he’s not some aggressive horny flirty asshole jock. he’s grown and too old for that hs bs. like literally he would think of that behavior as annoying, disgusting and stupid
and he’s most definitely (and i can’t stress this enough) not a yandere kidnapper or a stalker or any of that weird bullshit. yall are weird & need some help fr.
idk if yall read the comics but he’s literally so caring and sensitive and he would be so gentle and soft. he’d be rather awkward and wouldn’t exactly know how to go about his feelings for someone.
he knows what its like when no one cares and when you grow up in an unstable home or on the streets so he has compassion for outcasts, children, women, non-cishetmen and animals
he’s canonically a nerd. he’s literary and he used to like going to school and learning. ppl always get him and tim mixed up bc tim hated going to school and would rather play video games all day long whereas jason wished he wouldn’t have had to drop out
also obviously very much an intersectional feminist ! he’s read all the books abt it and is actively working against his indoctrinated misogyny
he loves all women but he has a soft spot for woc, fat/chubby/muscular women, women with big noses, you name it. just women who don’t fit the stereotypical beauty standard in general
he’s scared and ashamed of how needy and clingy he actually is. he knows himself (sadly) and it’s not something that he can just get rid of. it’s pent up from early childhood bc he never got enough love and then from after his death bc of all the shit he had to go through with bruce.
this side of him will haunt him until he dies- again. he can’t change it but he sure as hell won’t embrace it either. it’s a secret he wishes he could take to his final grave. actually- deep down he wishes he would find someone who understands and accepts him the way he is and someone who he can trust to be himself with.
!! aroace spec , bi (women+)
he is secretly so incredibly desperate.. desperate for love, intimacy, being understood and accepted, desperate to be touched and hugged- loved.
he’s just so touch starved, he doesn’t even know what it feels like not to be. what it feels like to be loved or happy. to be content. how to not feel like something is missing.
he needs someone to take care of him bc he just does a very poor job at that.. also it feels nice being able to just shut off and not having to think about anything
he wants to be hugged and caressed
gentle touches
he loves forehead kisses and headpats or just your hand on his head and in his hair
he wants to kiss you passionately and deeply
prefers making out and hugging/cuddling over sex tbh
all he wants is to lay in bed or sit on the couch hugging someone who truly loves and accepts him and never let go
switch with a sub/bottom lean
i think it goes hand in hand with him having a sub lean but he’s attracted to strong dominant people. preferably someone who’s a switch too
everybody knows this already but he LIVES for praise
praise him and he’s in heaven. you’ll literally get him to do anything if you praise him. want him to give you head? just be a little clingy and loving, telling him how much you love him and how good he always makes you feel and he’s already dropping to his knees taking off your pants.
definitely a service / pleasure dom
if you’re fem/afab :
eating you out is his favorite thing. he goes in like it’s all or nothing (to him it is). no penetration if you didn’t cum at least once from his tongue.
he loves it when you ride his face and use him to make yourself feel good. there’s not a single thing he likes more than seeing you on top of him.
he loves watching you go from humming and gently playing with his hair to breathing heavily and tugging on his hair- to whining, moaning and grunting while grinding your pussy into his face deeper and faster to finally reach your high
also loves it when you ride his dick. being able to relax a little and just look up at you feeling good because of him makes him moan so much
he’ll also pull you down a lot when you’re riding him just to hug you and hold you close and to hear you breathing and moaning into his ear
he’ll thrust up from under you as fast as he can just to catch you off guard and see your face in pure bliss. he loves it when he makes you cum in this position.
he also loves missionary and the mating press
you know he’s close when he starts holding you close and mumbling/whining your name over and over again
if you’re male/amab :
he loves giving you head and eating your ass and wants you to use him. it really gets him going. it’s bc of his incredibly patent inferiority complex and feeling like he’s a good for nothing piece of shit
he also likes being the one that penetrantes you though. he’ll start begging for praise even though he’s the one topping saying things like “tell me i’m a good boy, tell me i’m your good boy.” “tell me how good i make you feel” “please just tell me i’m doing a good job.” “wanna make you feel good.” all while his big tall frame is hovering above you and ramming into you
a whimperer. he whines and moans a lot, shamelessly. he grunts and groans too. especially when he’s a little bit too frustrated or stressed. and he shamelessly breathes heavily during sex. any noise that he can make will escape his lips. all in all he’s just incredibly vocal and he doesn’t care if people can hear.
he really likes handjobs. preferably with you sitting in front of him so he can look up at you but he also likes it when you’re sitting behind him and you say things in his ear while kissing his neck or cheek and sucking on his earlobe
but he especially loves it when you’re sucking him off and fingering his ass at the same time. add a little praise and you’ll have him whining, whimpering and even crying. he’ll be a mess
he often gets teary-eyed during sex because of how sensitive he is. and i mean both his body and his feelings.
he wants and needs someone who'd accept him for who he is and wouldn't wanna change him. someone who shares the same morals as him and doesn't have a problem with him being morally grey.
he would want someone he doesn’t have to explain everything to. he knows it’s toxic and not really fair but he hates having to put his thoughts into words. he’s not really good at it.
so he needs someone who’s observant and pays attention to details. maybe even someone who can read body language. just so he doesn’t have to go through the uncomfortable experience of having to say that he’s needy and broken out loud.
he wants someone to pay attention to him and figure him out so well that he doesn’t have to ask for things and you instead know what he wants and needs at certain times and just give it to him
he gets pissed and sighs while rolling his eyes when he’s showing clear signs of what he wants and you’re not picking up on it.
it took great cruelty to make him this gentle. but to an extent he’s grateful for it because he now knows exactly why it’s so important to treat people kindly and gently.
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mysterycitrus · 4 months
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hi! i just got finished with the second chapter of persephones in hell and!! such a great dick fic and i loved getting to see the titans. but i’m feeling like i’m interpreting things wrong wrt bruce and wanted to clarify.. what are you thoughts on bruce? ik he’s obsessive and has a tendency to manipulate and shut out those close to him, but i’ve never gotten the feeling he’s actually physically or emotionally abusing these kids. i’m picking up a vibe in the fic tho that some of the titans think bruce is abusive (towards dick at least) and i’m wondering if it was your intention to write bruce that way, or just that he’s perceived as such? (i’m aware also that dicks perspective is justifiably skewed)
i could just be over thinking it. sorry for bothering you. i don’t mean this in a “problematic bruce get cancelled” kind of way. i feel bad if it comes across that way sorry i’m just genuinely curious :)
hello! i won’t go into specifics cause this is like… the thesis of part three, but no — i personally don’t subscribe to the idea that bruce is an irredeemable abusive asshole. there’s plenty of evidence for him being one in comics, but a lot of it is dregs of frank miller era masochismo, and i prefer batman to be fundamentally kind.
in saying that tho — the titans are right. i think u would be very hard pressed to find a comic where bruce and dick (of all his kids) don’t have an unhealthy, codependent relationship. bruce inspires debilitating loyalty in many people he works with, but dick has it the absolute worst of everyone because he’s been emotionally regulating bruce since he was eight years old.
when people say dick was parentified, i think there’s some confusion about what it means in this context. it’s not about a child raising their younger siblings (dick was out of the house and an adult by the time jason came around) but more that a child is made responsible for the emotional well-being of their parent. we see this in scarecrow year one, in teen titans year one, and sporadically all over canon. the titans, looking in, see dick still carrying bruce’s expectations well into adulthood and hate it.
i also think bruce being a maliciously abusive character is a disservice to the characterisation of everyone else — there is absolutely no way dick would’ve let bruce adopt anyone else if that was the case. there’s no way babs would. tim isn’t an idiot, he would’ve kept his distance. same with jason. cass has a very twisted understanding of pain, but she could literally read his body language and be able to tell if he was hurting someone on purpose. clark and diana would snap him like a twig.
i think it’s a lot more interesting if a kind person who wants to do good is so pathologically afraid of losing the people he loves that he’ll hurt them in response, and was so traumatised that after twenty years his sole pillar of emotional regulation was a boy who’d just suffered the same trauma he had.
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celaenaeiln · 5 months
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C: Hi there! Even if I've been reading dick Grayson(and in turn batfamily) fics for a few weeks now, I've never actually watched/read DC stuff because even if I liked superheroes, I'm not invested enough to read the actual comics. The most I watched was the Teen Titans 2003 cartoon(which I love). I was brought into interest cause I was brought in through crossovers of other fandoms (which may be hated by some/many😅)
To give myself context, I tried to read around for Robin, and imagine my surprise there's more than one? Which, okay mantle thing I guess. But in the end, Dick Grayson caught my attention(not rlly for his looks and design, but more of his heroism and entire personality and affect in the DC world). Which leads to looking at other tumblrs and I love reading yours and when you answer the asks cause it's so much easier for me to understand the kind of person Dick is and how he interacts with the world.
Sorry for this long context, but I just want maybe your opinion, what if your opinion in the combination of how Dick Grayson should be written for him to Thrive
- Should he stay in Gotham, being in with the batfamily more? Soloing in Bludhaven? Staying with the titans? Or others?
- what about his romantic relationships? Who should be is one true one(based on canon gfs), or maybe stay single? (Just gonna be biased, but I've only knew about dickbabs and dickkory (but I heard he has other girlfriends and I've remember reading he was almost married...a few times??) but dickkory had always been for me)
- What about mentally wise? (Of course, I do think Dick needs a long vacation because of all the trauma that he has to go through), but even if I like the idea of Dick being admired for his looks because he deserves it, but I do rmbr posts that he is uncomfy with this(sexualisation, Def only staying true to the person he loves (then there's the whole...Tarantula and more thing)
Tbf, I do think is a little bit of all is what makes Dick, Dick. Haha
Sorry for the long ask, feel free to not answer because i just needed to get this out😅. I know it's actually bad I'm reading fics without canon knowledge for personality, but your posts makes me understand him more that I understand what's real and what's fanon in fics (that makes me..ugh.. but I read anyway for plot cause i don't know better)
But thank you anyway for reading this and I love your content!
(last one for this ask I swear: I've been seeing stuff where Robin name is actually Dick's mom calling Dick that. Then it's passed down as a mantle starting from Jason without Dick consenting. I tried to read at wiki, maybe I missed out but I can't find anything. Is it true? Does the other bats (except Bruce and Alfred?) know the actual meaning? Because as much as I love Dami, the whole bloodson, birthright to take the mantle of Robin beside Batman give me ugh feelings if it's true) :C
First of all, thank you so much!! I'm so happy to hear you like my stuff <333!!
I think it's fine that you started in the fandom since I sort of started out that way too lol. I had only watched Teen Titans Animated show and Young Justice before I got into fanfics and my first comic I ever read was actually Teen Titans (2011) which was Tim's run. It's been a journey.
Dick's personality was also what captivated me so here I am!
"Should he stay in Gotham, being in with the batfamily more? Soloing in Bludhaven? Staying with the titans? Or others?"
That's a really good question and a complex one. Ironically, for being such a people person, Dick seems to be doing best when he's by himself. When he's soloing, he has a sense of freedom and independence that he's been craving for a long time. The whole reason he left Bruce was because he felt like Bruce was suddenly treating him like a kid, like someone to look after, when he had been treating Dick like a partner the whole time. When Dick feels like his independence is being stepped on, it unsettles him. This is another reason why the Tom Taylor run and Dick's relationship pisses me off but that's for another time. As much as he likes Gotham, he loves Bludhaven. He thinks it's a dirty, crime-filled city, sure, but he loves it there.
He's a little crazy like that.
He doesn't have the same attachment to Gotham that Bruce does. Instead he feels that for Bludhaven.
The only reason I'm saying Dick is better off staying alone than with the Titans is because of his leadership mentality. There's a comic that I forgot the name of but Dick teams up with members of the Justice League and they trapeze through a jungle under the orders of this corrupt military general. He teams up with Arthur and automatically starts commanding people to which Aquaman tells him off, saying this isn't the Titans. Dick is genuinely sorry and backs off. For a minute. But immediately goes right back into command mode but Arthur lets it go, realizing that Dick's not conscious of it and that his behaviour is automatic. "Too many leaders" he calls the situation in his head. For Dick, the Titans have become a responsibility now. He loves them like crazy but they look up at him automatically for directions and order and he's gotten so used to leading them that it's his go to mode.
He just likes doing stuff without someone hovering over his shoulder or having to take care of others.
"what about his romantic relationships? Who should be is one true one(based on canon gfs), or maybe stay single? (Just gonna be biased, but I've only knew about dickbabs and dickkory (but I heard he has other girlfriends and I've remember reading he was almost married…a few times??) but dickkory had always been for me)"
Yeah, I've actually loved almost all of his romantic relationships. I hate Dickbabs but every other one has been fantastic. Kori was great for him.
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Action Comics (1938) Issue #618
Dick says it again here. He used to envy Roy's freedom. He's also said in another comic that he fell in love with Kori for her freedom.
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Secret Origins (1986) Issue #13
You're right, he has gotten almost married a few times
The first time was with Kori
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The New Titans (1988) Issue #100
But then
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The New Titans (1988) Issue #100
their pastor gets vaporised and body-controlled Raven feeds the soul of one of Trigon's children into Kori and she goes crazy but she recovers but it's a whole ordeal. In the end they don't get a chance to complete their marriage. They were spectacular together though. The only reason their wedding didn't go through is because the Batfam writers wanted Dick back so they took him from the Titans' writers and they needed a big dramatic scene to cut him off from the Titans. Another reason why Barbara was deaged and created as a love interest- to gatekeep him in the family.
He's also gotten married to Barbara before the retcon though.
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Batman Family Issue #11
But here they were forced to by Maze and they went along with it and tricked him. At the end though, they just grab a bite to eat.
Ngl I actually would've supported this marriage. I really love this Barbara. Yes the age difference is a bit much but whatever, I still like them.
Dick and Barbara have gotten married in an alternate timeline.
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Convergence: Nightwing/Oracle Issue #2
yeah, definitely didn't like this one.
Dick's also gotten fake married to a woman because Batman and Dick thought she was killing her husbands after marrying them so Dick married her to see if it was true.
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Nightwing (1996) Annual #1
I liked her. She wasn't the killer and Dick did a fantastic job raising her son but even though she loved him, he didn't love her and they divorced amicably. I wish I could see more of her and her son though.
To be completely honest, my favorites for Dick are Kori and Bea.
Bea was a fantastic partner. She was understanding, loving, caring, and responsible. She was there when he was Ric Grayson and just loved him for who he was.
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Nightwing (2016) Issue #53
If Kori's truly out of the picture, then Dick really should've settled down with her.
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Nightwing (2016) Issue #57
She and Kori, they don't tell Dick what to do or who to be. They let him be free which is why I loved them an extraordinary amount. I'm a sucker for soft moments and Bea and Dick are couple goals.
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Nightwing (2016) Issue #62
They give him the freedom he craves.
"What about mentally wise? (Of course, I do think Dick needs a long vacation because of all the trauma that he has to go through), but even if I like the idea of Dick being admired for his looks because he deserves it, but I do rmbr posts that he is uncomfy with this(sexualisation, Def only staying true to the person he loves (then there's the whole...Tarantula and more thing)"
I think Dick does need a break. His life has been a series of unfortunate events but despite all that, I think he loves it that way. Dick loves the thrill of adventure. It's the heart of who he is and why he became robin. The excitement he gets when fighting or doing crazy stunts - he loves all of it and that is his coping mechanism. I guess in order for him to thrive, Bruce needs to stop dumping all his trauma and stop expecting him to be there for him at all times of the day. Dick keeps getting dragged back to Gotham to take care of Bruce and his problems and he would go in a heartbeat but he's much happier wacking his own goons in Bludhaven. But since Bruce is so codependent on Dick, this pattern's not gonna stop anytime soon.
Truth be told I also like Dick being admired for his looks. I don't like him being called out by it though. First of all why would you comment "hot booty" to someone? It's degrading and humiliating even if you think it's a compliment. Some things are better left untold. But regardless of what people think, Dick will always be pretty and everyone in the DC universe knows this. Heroes, civilians, villains - they're all attracted to him on some level because he's so beautiful. And honestly? I'm all for it! Because that boy is the prettiest human in existence and he deserves that recognition. Just not vocally or physically.
The best thing is that Dick's beauty has no bearing on his mentality toward people. This man will choose one person and stick with them forever. He values intimacy and trust and love in his relationships which is why he's so attached to each one. This plays a massive role in his relationship with Kori. He would never cheat. Actually in all the future comics, after his spouse passes away or leaves, he never remarries. The only one exception was Batman Beyond (2016). The only one and he remarries Barbara after his wife passes away. Aside from that he remains a single parent. That's how dedicated he is.
"I've been seeing stuff where Robin name is actually Dick's mom calling Dick that. Then it's passed down as a mantle starting from Jason without Dick consenting. I tried to read at wiki, maybe I missed out but I can't find anything. Is it true? Does the other bats (except Bruce and Alfred?) know the actual meaning? Because as much as I love Dami, the whole bloodson, birthright to take the mantle of Robin beside Batman give me ugh feelings if it's true)"
Yup Dick's mother called Dick Robin.
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Nightwing (2011) Issue #0
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Robin (1993) Annual #4
Here's a couple but there are more instances of his mom calling him Robin.
Dick had no idea Bruce passed on the Robin costume. He finds out through the newspaper because Bruce is pissed at Dick. Like he's so mad that when he told Dick to leave, Dick actually left.
You know how there's a saying about not being able to take back words of anger? Bruce is feeling that heavily. He already had suspicions that Dick wanted to leave but before Dick could tell him, he fired him so he wouldn't have to hear those words. But Bruce is super mad that Dick left anyway. So what does he do? He makes the first boy he sees Robin.
And Jason finds out Dick was Robin when he confronts Bruce why Nightwing knows Bruce's identity. And that gets Bruce more mad because he's now feeling guilty which is when Dick comes to confront Bruce.
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Batman (1940) Issue #416
But instead of meeting anger for anger, Dick expresses his hurt. About how they were partners and then talks about his life after leaving Bruce.
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And Bruce loves Dick. His best friend, son, brother, and partner for nearly 11 years. They raised each other and despite his anger, he smiles in pride and love.
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Batman (1940) Issue #416
Look at his smile!! He's so proud of his son.
And that's when Dick stops pulling his punches.
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Batman (1940) Issue #416
Bruce looks so wrecked. The guilt and sorrow is tantamount to his pain.
Then Dick asks Bruce why he choose someone new.
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Batman (1940) Issue #416
So Bruce tells him. But Dick and Bruce's relationship go way deeper than just friends or family. They know each other. They revolve around each other so Dick calls him out.
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Batman (1940) Issue #416
And out comes the truth
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Batman (1940) Issue #416
But Dick has always been the bigger man and instead of letting Jason become some sort of spite move, he turns Robin into a legacy.
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Batman (1940) Issue #416
He passes it down like it was meant to be passed down. Because let's be honest here. The Robin name and costume is Dick's. If he wanted to, he could've taken it back, Bruce be damned. And that was one of Jason's fears.
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Batman (1940) Issue #416
But despite Bruce's words to Jason
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Batman (1940) Issue #416
He's not sure himself.
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Batman (1940) Issue #416
But it's only with Dick's approval that he becomes Robin which is what Bruce is thanking at the end.
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Batman (1940) Issue #416
And this has been a sort of tradition.
Dick approved of Jason being Robin, he endorsed Tim, and he made Damian Robin. The only exception being Stephanie. This is why Dick feels a heavy sense of responsibility over the robin predicament. He created the tradition. He approved, supported, and mentored every robin that walked in his colors and name. That's why he feels the burden of it.
I don't think any of the other robins know the meaning behind the name. Maybe they do. But ironically, the one who wasn't robin is the one who knows the meaning of it.
Duke.
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scintillyyy · 2 months
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actually though, to me (and this might sound a bit meaner than i intend, truly, i'm not trying to mean here, just spitballing some thoughts), sometimes with fanon concepts it's not necessarily the transformation or alteration of characters into something they're not that bothers me so much as. hm. the general unawareness that something is a transformed concept. if that makes sense.
so like. overtly and excessively abusive and terrible drakes for example. i, clearly, am not a fan of it. but that doesn't mean it's not a concept that couldn't potentially be interesting so long as there is a general understanding that the person is aware of some of the actual canon behind the character & understand how they're specifically twisting and altering for the explicit purpose of transformation & exploring non canon things. so not like 'never touched an actual full issue of a comic at all & are only going based on what i think they are in my head' or genuinely thinking that the character or event is actually like that and are completely unaware it's going against canon & canon intentions (and this is not a 'there's only one true read thing' this is like 'the basis of how things work in canon would mean that this is probably what was meant'). if that makes sense.
like for example. a jack who is much more malicious than he is in canon & a tim that is trying to navigate being severely abused by his dad could be interesting. how does this tim handle it? does he struggle with being a victim yet having the power to stop his dad and yet also can't. is he having issues with tim drake is being abused, but robin is not (the tim/robin dichotomy). is he hiding things from his friends, like ives. is he flittering around dick, wanting to confide in dick but not wanting dick to think less of him? (does this take place during canon events, like prodigal?) are things like that happening? if so, then it's an interesting angle to me.
hell, you could even take dana and completely transform her into something she's not--rather than just a nice woman who's doing her best, is she a gold digger who preyed on her rich patient? is her niceness towards tim a facade? is trying to kill tim & jack & take the money. this clearly isn't true of her at all, but it could be a potentially interesting transformation if you have jack & tim at least acting like their canon selves around this. when does it take place? right after the wedding? when jack loses his money, does she take out a life insurance policy on him? (should she have lbr) does dana push for tim to go to brentwood to get him out of the way? does this end in bruce/jack endgame after batman saves jack? does it have references to nightwing annual 1 & the black widow story there for dick? the world may never know. (knowing dana even exists is a sign that there's some awareness of the canon that's being altered.). this wouldn't offend me as much so long as it was clear that it was an intentional alteration of canon dynamics and a clear what-if exploration.
just my thoughts.
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irrealisms · 1 year
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if you can live your life without an audience, you should do it.
The Truman Show // MAG188 - Centre of Attention // Twitter: TubboLive // Can't Handle This (Kanye Rant) - Bo Burnham // Wilbur Soot VOD (Oct 17th 2020) - [DreamSMP] Speedy Stream Festival What festival // MAG117 - Testament // Margaret Atwood - The Robber Bride // @elytrians // MAG188 - Centre of Attention // The Truman Show (edit by @parakeet) // Untitled #15 by @that-house // something about a truman show complex, greek heroes, and the illusion of free will. by @yuker // Tom Stoppard - Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead // Bo Burnham - Inside // you're fairly certain there's a curtain somewhere by @irrealisms
[IDs under cut]
Images 1 and 2: Screenshots of the Truman Show. The Closed Captions read "Let me get you some help, Truman. You're not well."
Image 3: ARCHIVIST: Hm. You want a show so badly?  Fine.
Image 4: a twitter poll by @TubboLive. text of the tweet is "What do we do..." Options are "Exile Tommy", with 55.8% of the vote, and "Don't Exile Tommy", with 44.2% of the vote.
Image 5: The truth is, my biggest problem's you/I want to please you/But I want to stay true to myself/I want to give you the night out that you deserve/But I want to say what I think/And not care what you think about it/Part of me loves you/Part of me hates you/Part of me needs you/Part of me fears you/And I don't think that I can handle this right now"
Image 6: WILBUR: You're saying "do it", chat, but you're-- this isn't-- you aren't affected, you just want to see explosions, you guys aren't affected, I understand, I understand, I-- I've been hasty.
Image 7: TIM: All right. I don’t know what you are, I don’t even know if you’re listening. I don’t care. Just, if you’re there, I want you to know that I hate you. I hate you for, for witnessing what’s happened to us.
Image 8: “Male fantasies, male fantasies, is everything run by male fantasies? Up on a pedestal or down on your knees, it's all a male fantasy: that you're strong enough to take what they dish out, or else too weak to do anything about it. Even pretending you aren't catering to male fantasies is a male fantasy: pretending you're unseen, pretending you have a life of your own, that you can wash your feet and comb your hair unconscious of the ever-present watcher peering through the keyhole, peering through the keyhole in your own head, if nowhere else. You are a woman with a man inside watching a woman. You are your own voyeur.” ― Margaret Atwood, The Robber Bride
Image 9: a tumblr post by @elytrians. text: *coughs up blood* how do i look? do i look good? was that hot?
Image 10: She had once counted how many times she could spot a camera watching her during her morning run: thirty-one in ten minutes. At least, it had been back then. Last time she had tried it there were hundreds. They tracked her movements, and made so much noise she could not have ignored them if she tried. It was halfway between the mechanical whir of a focusing lens and the low rattle of mean-spirited laughter. Carmen didn’t go running anymore.
Image 11: The last scene of the Truman Show, edited to add a twitch chat full of PogChamp emotes.
Image 12: a comic of two squares talking. RED: I realized something. BLUE: Yeah? RED: This comic could just end. Without warning. The Creator could just get bored. BLUE: No closure, no catharsis, nothing. RED: Our recent few strips would make for unsatisfying ends. Maybe we should give every comic a satisfying conclusion. BLUE: But that’s life. Life doesn’t always have a satisfying ending. RED: This isn’t life, this is a comic. We can control it. We can make sure there’s a happy ending. BLUE: We can’t control jack shit. The comic’s ending is up to the Creator.
Image 13: a comic of Technoblade. He is sitting amongst scattered papers with his hands on his face. The scattered papers have the titles of various Technoblade DSMP Youtube videos written on them. Text on the image reads: “It can hurt, knowing you’re just a character with predetermined lines instead of a person with feelings. The voices are the audience and they’re constantly critiquing your performance.”
Image 14: ROS: I wish I was dead. (Considers the drop.) I could jump over the side. That would put a spoke in their wheel. GUIL: Unless they're counting on it. ROS: I shall remain on board. That'll put a spoke in their wheel. (The futility of it, fury.) All right! We don't question, we don't doubt. We perform.
Images 15, 16: Bo Burnham stands outside a house on a stage; there is a spotlight on him. the caption is [disembodied applause] He tries to reenter the house. the caption is [disembodied laughter].
Image 17: WILBUR: It’s better to play along. Give them what they want. Put on a show. Who cares who it hurts, as long as it’s fucking—influential? God, I hate it so much sometimes, I want to scream. And then I think, would they like that? Would that be entertaining enough for them? Still have to give them their performance. Even when I was dead I was still—I rehearsed my resurrection.  TECHNO: Dude, you need therapy.
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I deserve financial compensation every time I have to read a post that posits that Jason is actually the good big brother that's there for his siblings and Dick is the big mean golden child that can do whatever he wants and turns his siblings away when they need help. I'd have like a gajillion dollars now.
This bothers me so much specifically because it's the exact opposite of canon, in Dick's case anyway. Ain't nobody going to Jason for help in the first place. I really can't get past the backwards logic of it all. No, the utter lack of logic. Like it's the Exact Opposite.... The Exact Opposite!!! How did you come to this conclusion???
Well, I mean, I know- you don't read the comics AND you take everything at face value. I get it, when I first entered the fandom- the way people talk about Dick and Jason and Tim and Damian? They'd have you believe that Jason and Tim were delivered to Earth by angels with a chorus singing in the heavens and a light following them everywhere their delicate, innocent feet went. Everything they do is either Justified or Morally Correct. Nothing is Ever Their Fault. They deserve your sympathy and awe, and nothing short of worship is an attack on their character. They'd have you believe that Dick is a Monster, that Everything is his fault, that he's an inherently bad and selfish person because He Tried but He Didn't Devote Himself Entirely to Jason and Tim and Thats Bad and He Deserves To Be Punished For It and that Damian is a Demon, that he's always going to make the choice that serves himself and hurts others, that even though he's a 10 year old boy with a complicated, abusive upbringing, Everything is His Fault Entirely and He Doesn't Deserve Understanding or Mercy.
That's what you see and hear when you enter this fandom. And unless you actually read the comics or do the research by looking through blogs with meta commentary on the comics (with panels provided) or interact with fan media that is based on the comics And Not The Fanon- this is the false opinion that remains.
It drives me crazy that people refuse to engage with the actual canon of something they claim to be a fan of. What are you a fan of if you have no idea what you're talking about? It drives me crazy, because theres so much of this fanon content, you have to literally dig and dig and dig and dig and dig and dig to find the truth. And the truth is so Unbelievably, Undeniably
Not That.
In fact, in most cases whatever you read- the opposite is what actually happened. Or what you read is Entirely Made Up to make one character, (Dick and Damian), look bad in order to prop up the other character, (Jason and Tim). Then people get angry when you point that out, for ruining 'the fun' or their false perception of their fave character. Well I'm angry for having to do it in the first place.
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mamawasatesttube · 3 months
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hi do you have any kon comics recs?
oh boy do i!!!!! ♥
for his origins, you'll want to read "reign of the supermen" (probably easiest to read it as a tpb, because the individual issues are all over the place). this details his creation and escape from cadmus, his relationships with clark and john henry irons, and his early attitudes!
after that, of course. well. superboy (1994). i love this comic. it is deeply flawed. it's 100 issues long, so it's a bit of an undertaking, but in my opinion it's essential reading to actually understand kon as a character. he gets groomed and exploited in many ways in this book, and it is not handled well because it's treated as acceptable as the fantasy of any teenage boy (the grooming and sexual abuse), or played for comedic effect (the financial exploitation). but understanding those facets of kon's backstory are vital to get a read on him as a character. sb94 also does a really great job of establishing him as someone kind, creative, and incredibly lonely and depressed. he's passively suicidal for pretty much the entire run. he's a really good boy. and some of his relationships with his supporting cast (roxy, serling, dubbilex, guardian) are just sooo <333
next up: young justice (1998)! this is the fun one with a lot of shenanigans. the depth here is mostly understated for characters like kon, tim, and bart (who have their own solos outside of it) and i'd say the kon experience here is enhanced by having read sb94 first, because there are certain arcs that follow up on things going on at cadmus and stuff. after yj98 is teen titans/young justice: graduation day, which basically shows how yj disbands after donna troy's death.
after that is the unfortunate mess that is teen titans (2003). this comic is not good, but it is important. this is where the lex retcon happens, the mind control arc happens, and the tie-ins to infinite crisis all happen. kon dies in infinite crisis, returns in final crisis, and rejoins the team towards the end of tt03.
next up is adventure comics (2009), the first six issues of which get into what kon does in the wake of his resurrection. superboy (2011) (i) (not to be confused with the n52 superboy solo) follows up on some of these themes and shows his adventures in smallville! both are pretty solid.
if you Really wanna dig into everything going on towards the end of postcrisis continuity, i'd rec getting into a tpb of the new krypton arcs! kon isn't around for everything there (he's dead for the first parts), but by last stand of new krypton, he's back and running around with the legion (this includes the last few issues of adventure comics '09, too).
in n52 kon is just. not there. the "kon-el" in n52 is just straight up an entirely different guy. (incidentally, this guy is where the edgy "kon means abomination" thing comes from. this is a retcon. kon's name originally is the name of a dead cousin of clark's that clark says he would be honored if superboy would accept.)
if you want to read anything post flashpoint, he gets reintroduced to continuity in young justice (2019). then the house of kent arc in action comics sort of explains his situation in prime earth continuity. stuff like yjdc (which i have not and will not be reading, so i certainly can't recommend it) takes place after this, and kon appears some in various other action comics arcs going on lately, but none of those are major appearances really. he did have his recent mini solo superboy: man of tomorrow, which was... fine. nothing spectacular imo, but the covers are cute and i have all six issues sitting on my desk because kon <3!
i know this is kind of long. my bad i love to ramble about kon kjsdhf but!! if you have any questions or anything i'm happy to elaborate or clarify further!! but in the meantime. go forth, and happy kon reading ❤️🧡💛💚🩵💙💜🩷💖
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sugarlesswriting · 6 months
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After the leak for the new Batman issue came out I've seen some Batman fans make some.... choice opinions.
Be to be fair they always have some... choice opinions.
Like guys idk how to tell you but the writing is not making him the good guy here. It's like the whole Tower of Babel incident and how fans misinterpreted the plot.
Some of the things that I have read and made me roll my eyes
'Jason deserved it.'
He did in fact not deserve to be mind fucked because he decided to work with Selina. Batman made him a god damn agoraphobic. We see him sitting down, in a prison cell, trying to convince himself to get up but can't because he is in so much fear. Have you guys ever been in a position where you know you need to move but can't because your anxiety won't let you? Let me tell you it sucks and I know that this is fiction but it just rubs me the wrong way to see how people treat this situation. (Probs because that type of anxiety hit to close to home)
'Bruce has been betrayed by his entire family so of course he's going to fight them.'
Shut up. Just shut up. We all know that it's Zur en arrh that's making him think that what he's doing is rational but no it's not. The writing shows that he is not in the right for doing so. Reading comprehension is nice and you guys would be lucky to have it.
'Selina's a dumb whore and Tini Howard is the one who made this plot happen.'
Selina's plan is dumb but your misogyny is just POPING with that one. And you guys know how I feel about people saying Howard forced the Selina plot. No Editorial told them that they wanted an event with the batfamily because it would sell a good amount of comics. That's what these events are for. Please, guys, you have to understand how marketing works. Comics have been doing this for a long time.
I feel the same way when fans bitched about Tom King and how he ruined the wedding. No editorial ruined the wedding because THEY WANT TO SELL COMICS 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻. (And this is said by someone who also doesn't vibe with Kings Batman)
I just think Zdarsky had more to work with when it came to the plot because he wanted to continue his Zur arc. Idk if Howard had anything to bring with Catwoman, but if someone who's read her work let me know if she could have done something else (genuinely curious not being a jerk lol)
I also find the premise of the batfam going against Bruce himself interesting. I just think it's neat. I liked to see how everyone reacted to what Bruce did to Jason. Like, when Dick came down HARD when he found out about Jason. How he was about to just beat the shit out of Bruces face even if he passed out. Dick had to be stopped by Tim who was trying to be the voice of reason. Damien was ditched by Bruce and we had the moment with Tim hugging Damien and telling him it's going to be okay. Then you have Bruce slightly coming back to his senses by throwing the batarang down for Dick to use.
Was the Selina vs Bruce a bait and switch to what the actual war was going to be? Because the Gotham war that involves the batfam going up against a Batman who's a danger to himself and others is a plot that I like.
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aingeal98 · 3 months
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How do you think Tim and Cass would get along?
Which is the better sibling pair: Tim and Cass or Steph and Jason - WHY?
plz just give me fluffy Tim and Cass working together okay I have read exactly two (2) comics and I have watched SOME young Justice and I have read so many angst fics all I want is for these children to be happy
Sorry it's taken so long to answer this, I got carried away and kept rambling haha.
Tim and Cass in canon is so interesting because it starts out with Tim being Tim, more than a little wary and judgemental because of Cass's past. But he actually owns up to this, apologises for his biases, and asks Cass if they can be friends. And they are! Fresh blood is where they're front and center, and in batgirl volume 2 he's the one most supportive of her, along with being the one in the family to reach out to her after Bruce dies and the one she clearly is closest to in Gates of Gotham. But what really makes Tim and Cass for me are all the little moments in canon where they're Batgirl and Robin and they're not even the main focus of the story, but their sibling twin menace energy is off the charts.
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Just little moments of their teamwork really cemented their bond for me. To me it's like... More than any other batgirl and robin duo these two should be almost creepily in sync. Batman says "Team assemble." and they drop down from their various hideyholes in the roof with perfect timing. They could be having a fight that very day and not a single criminal would know if from the way they bounce off each other in combat.
But as well as that, they've seen each other at some of the lowest points in their lives, and been there for each other. The loss of Steph, Tim's dad, Cass getting brainwashed by Slade, Bruce's death. They never had to be the first priority for each other to still end up on the list of people to take care of and I kind of love that. The reassurance that no matter what happens with all the other important relationships in your life, batgirl and robin will always have each other's backs, in whatever way they can.
For me, they're the better sibling pair to Steph and Jason because Tim and Cass do actually have a solid arc you can trace through comics, even despite editorial having it out for Cass at certain points. There are comics and storylines you can pick up and see them acting like siblings even before Cass was adopted.
Whereas with Steph and Jason it was all about the potential, and still kind of is tbh. It's about Bruce projecting Jason on Steph and Steph dying as a result, it's about both of them being familiar with taking care of an addict parent, it's about both of them knowing how much a loaf of bread costs, it's about how they were let down by people they trusted and how Bruce (thanks to the writers) puts both of them down to uplift Tim, it's about their attitude to killing and to criminals and how death changed both their perspectives permanently but in very different directions.
But the issue is that they started interacting during the new 52 where all of Steph's history had been erased and Jason had been defanged off screen into a batfam member. And then from rebirth onwards they suffer from a similar issue a lot of batfam relationships do, where instead of developing the bond the writers just go yeah this is how they interact now. How did they get close? How come they trust each other? Idk, it just happened.
And this is not unique at all to Jason and Steph nor does it stop me from enjoying their interactions, but it does put Cass and Tim on top for me.
And now, for more fun Cass and Tim panels from Red Robin, featuring Cass vs technology:
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(OK the last one doesn't look fluffy but you gotta understand fake murdering each other is their favourite form of enrichment)
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They're unhinged your honor.
Thanks for the ask!
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