#but we all know what his opinion was on bart so...

[radioactive-earthshine]

On the other hand Geoff Johns did to Tim and Kon what any fan probably would have done; immediately canonized their deepest and most fervent headcanons. He wanted them to be the bestest of friends soooo bad as confirmed in at least two letters to the editor he sent in the 90s.

[cosmicpoutine]

leaving a lil rant here :]

I love Tim and his ships sm. Me personally, I only really ship TimKon. Those two are perfect for eachother and have so much clear queer coding that it’s crazy, and they have dialogue that’s just. gay shaped.

I also get TimBart, I don’t ship it romantically but I get why people do!! Tim and Bart are close as well, and the balance they get between ‘depressed tired wet cat’ and ‘living breathing embodiment of adhd’ is great.

I also get TimBartKon, they’re a trio. They are always a trio, so many people like to bring up how TimKon has so much coding and one of the big examples they use is when Tim tried to clone Kon. You know who else he tried to clone? Bart.

The only Tim ship I don’t get is TimBern, or any ship involving those two. When Bernard first appears, he’s Tim’s bully. He actively makes fun of tim and puts him down and then that character is forgotten about until Tim comes out as bi, then they just rework his character and go “haha guys this is his boyfriend not bully ygs are crazy” and just forget about all the bad stuff Bernard did? Reworking a character is great and all but, it just feels a bit weird and out of place for me. There’s always going to be that certain toxicity for TimBern, at least for me.

homie... bully??? im flabbergasted- im speechless- im jason todd (dead)

okay, im gonna start off by saying you have all the right to not ship them, and im not here to defend timbern as a ship. im here to defend BERNARD DOWD.

first thing bernard does is give tim advice about teachers, and he clearly says they're gonna be good friends.

if bernard was a bully, tim wouldn't hang around him so much. besides, i hate it when people place tim as a helpless little boy who would get bullied. he has put himself in situations where he looks weak on purpose to keep his identity safe, but he's not a victim at all. tim is a social butterfly because he's really good at masking and reading people.

not to mention, both bernard and darla push tim a lot because they're trying to get him to open up and be closer to them, but he keeps pushing them away. tim is a professional liar.

and when tim has to quit robin and start hanging out with normal people, he invites bernard over.

and bernard is acting relatively normal, and he wants to play video games and talk about how hot tim's stepmom is.

bernard is a normal teenager who has no idea one of his friends is the hero he's so obsessed with. he even shows concern for robin dying and makes up an entire conspiracy theory about batman havin a robin orphanage. you can tell he's afraid of robin being gone for real because at this point they haven't seen robin in months bc tim retired.

i dont know what about all of these interactions gave you the vibe that he's a bully because all i see is a normal teenager teasing his friends and being jealous tim gets more bitches.

im not saying that bernard was never mean or weird around tim, but he definitely wasn't actively bullying tim.

bernard is obnoxious and cocky, yes. but thats just because they wrote him as a real person. he's the school's chameleon, maybe even a little bit of a loser, too. he knows everyone but keeps a safe distance so that he doesn't get pushed into a box. im not sure if, at this point, he was already in a cult or being indoctrinated, but when we see his parents and the dowd home in tim drake: robin that just doesn't look right.

also homie talk about "forgetting all the bad things bernard did" (which in my opinion is none but okay lets follow that logic) everyone forget about all the bad things batman did to tim, he was not a kind and loving mentor, he was cruel to both tim and steph. we forget that batman was kind of an asshole to damien in the beginning. all those things are forgotten for the sake of the batfam.

in conclusion: we're just so used to the idea that superheroes can only ever form strong friendship bonds by having near death experiences together that we forget that the secret identifies exist and that the people who know them by their legal name also means a lot to them. after all, these people are the reason why they're heroes.

[reddblight]

I feel like I see so many contrasting opinions on jobs for Bart when he’s older, ranging from scientist, super suit designer, cop (ew), unemployed and bouncing between part time things, etc. Honestly of those I know my personal favorites are fashion design and kinda bouncing between part time courier jobs (he’s never seemed like a full time kinda person to me tbh).

But I got to thinkin about it, what is one thing that we know Bart loves more than most other things? Video Games.

I propose this, indie video game designer/freelance artist Bart.

It makes sense in my head, Bart’d be bitching to Preston or Kon about how he’s beat like an ungodly amount of games and is getting bored/needs something new to play. They would make an offhand comment, joking about making one himself and I think he would find the idea intriguing. (Or honestly Helen could have suggested it after listening to Max get on Bart about needing to do something responsible to make a living & Bart shutting down).

I think that between hero work it would give him a creative outlet for his hyperfixations. Plus he’d probably have a blast figuring it all out. The first couple of games would be simple, figuring out the basics, but after those I can see him getting like really focused on a passion project game that he fully codes and illustrates. (He probably makes a young justice game, or skins in the games of his friends)

He’d definitely become a hit in the indie gaming community for the unique controls and mechanics in his games. People would reach out and ask him to help make their games, and eventually people would just start becoming really excited for whatever project he was working on.

Meanwhile he’s still just chilling with his friends in his free time, letting them playtest his games and taking suggestions on what the funniest easter egg could be. I think he’d mostly be couch surfing, hopping between staying with friends and “family” members on a whim. Usually chilling wherever the YJ was or hanging out at Carol, Preston, or Rolly’s.

Just feels more fun than him being a DC brand of “scientist” (no specific generalization or study) or cop (again ew). Plus he could still design hero suits while doing this (i like that headcanon, its fun)

[chainsawcorazon]

WELLS: Eventually, Impulse gave way to Kid Flash and Kid Flash, in turn, morphed into an adult Flash. Do you think those changes necessarily served Bart Allen well? WAID: Nah. Listen, Geoff Johns and I made our peace about this. I love Geoff. Geoff's one of my best friends, and Geoff is an incredibly talented writer and is the only writer alive who loves these characters as much as I do. And I don't blame him for paving over the Impulse identity. The shoehorning of Impulse into Kid Flash was, as I understand it, not his idea. It was a wrongheaded edict passed down by an editor that never got the character and has made it his mission to purge DC of anything even remotely fun and lighthearted. But even as Kid Flash, he was still largely recognizable as Bart. And then he became the Flash, and a more boneheaded move you couldn't have made with that character. Geoff and I fought against it, we fought like you wouldn't believe. Steve Wacker, who was slated to be the original editor, Geoff, me...we all fought the good fight, knowing beyond any shadow of a doubt that squeezing Bart into that costume would go against absolutely everything about that character. And we lost. We lost every step of the way. Ultimately, someone else's ego outweighed my opinion about what Bart would and wouldn't do, but that's how it often goes with corporate-owned heroes and is the price you pay dealing in them. Ask Keith Giffen sometime how many lectures he's had to endure about what Lobo "would and wouldn't do." So, in their infinite wisdom, DC Editorial made Bart The Flash, and that relaunch was one of the greatest critical failures in all of DC publishing history. WELLS: Really? WAID: In terms of sales they had on the first issue and the sales they posted by the fifth or sixth issues, it was just a crashing, crashing disaster. It was one of the most disastrous, embarrassing launches in DC history. And we were all " I'm not trying to sound all "I told you so," because it broke our hearts because we loved that character " but we warned them. We told them, "Don't do that, it won't work." Sure enough, six issues in, they realized they had a mess of a series they couldn't make work, no matter what. At that point, Dan DiDio called me up, a courtesy call, and said, "So we're going to kill Bart. I just thought I should let you know." My honest feeling at that point was like, "Dude, you killed Bart years ago." [mutual laughter] "That's so not Bart in that suit. I don't care. Everything in comics is cyclical. Bart'll be back eventually at some point anyway so, sure, go ahead and put the bullet through his head. I don't care." I figured Bart would be better off dead than misunderstood and mishandled.

Thinking about one of my favorite Mark Waid interviews of all time. Bro really said, my son is better off dead than misunderstood and mishandled 😂😂😂

[byfulcrums]

Things that have definitely been said in YJ (the Cartoon)

M'gann: WAIT WALLY DON'T EAT- that....

Kaldur: Wally, that was a highly dangerous and toxic object. You should go immediately to the hospital

Wally, with his mouth full of one of M'gann's failed attempts at mixing martian and human cuisine: Mmmhph????

The team: *Arguing*

Tim, whispering to himself: We don't kill we don't kill we don't kill we don't kill we don't kill-

Kaldur: Your opinion is valid, yes, but given it is a stupid ass opinion, I have elected to ignore it

Wally, following Artemis around the place, gesturing wildly: Yeah but if you add water to water it grows, right? It makes sense, Artemis, it makes sense–

Artemis, covering her ears and groaning: *Whispers* I hate every single one of you

Dick, filming the whole thing: *Snorts and accidentally chokes on his saliva, causing him to fall on the floor coughing like crazy*

Conner, having just walked into the room: ...Nope. Bye. I'm leaving this team

Artemis: Honestly I think Dick Grayson is way better than Bruce Wayne

M'gann: He's also more handsome, not gonna lie...

Wally: *Laughing his ass off on the floor*

Dick, curled up inside the vents, holding his head with his hands: Worthless... you are all worthless...

Conner, unaware of heterosexuality because CADMUS didn't teach him all that stuff: Wait, girl's aren't supposed to like girls? And boys aren't supposed to love boys? But I thought humans were called ‘homosapiens’

Zatanna: Oh my god-

Wally: I'm so smart. The smartest person here, if you will

Artemis: ...“sHoULdN't wE cAll sTrAiGht pEoPlE hEtERoSaPiEnS?”

Wally: Shut up shut up shutupshutup SHUT UP-

Kaldur, sighing: I just- I just want to know why you threw Wally off the mountain

Conner: Wally dared me to. It was consensual

Kaldur: Conner that doesn't make it any better.

Zatanna: I have decided to blame every kind of emotional instability I've having on my period. I don't have it yet, but I'm about to, so it counts

Kaldur: *Sigh* What did you do

Kaldur: Wally GET OFF THE CEILING honestly I should not have to say that...

Jaime: Fuck.

Bart: Double fuck.

Both of them at the same time: Triple fucking fuck

Wally: Hey, who's the stupidest one here?

Everyone else: You

Wally: Oh

Wally: And that's how you finish this equation!

Artemis: Wait you know science?

Wally: ...yes? Did you think I didn't go to school?

Artemis: No, no, it's just that if I had to think of someone who is an expert in science I wouldn't think of you

Wally: Well that's just rude. Hey M'gann, do I look like I didn't go to school?

Artemis: I didn't say you didn't go to-

Conner, immediately appearing: Yes

Wally:

Zatanna: Oh yeah! I remember when a branch on fire almost fell on me. We were camping. It was a big branch.

Zatanna:

Zatanna: I almost died.

Dick, didn't get any sleep in two days: Milk is... bone juice. Calcium...

Wally, also didn't get any sleep in two days: I feel like I should be concerned about that statement but honestly I'm interested

M'gann, who cannot stand being around them while they're sleep deprived: Both of you. Sleep. Now. Please

Dick: Baby

Tim: What

Dick: Baby... baby brother. Baby

Tim: No

Jason, has been Robin for almost three months now, training with the team and having to pretend to be a ‘villain’: I will hold your decapitated head in front of your weeping mother and hang it on her ceiling so that you will never get any rest even after death! :D

The team:

Wally: Dick, what are you feeding this child?

Kaldur after Wally and Dick pranked the team: Violence is not the question nor the answer, but sometimes we must take drastic measures

Kaldur, handing Jason a sword: This is war.

[nari-writes]

...........

The thing is, Tim doesn’t realise Kon doesn’t know his secret identity until Kon sighs, looks over at him longingly, and says, “Man. You’d be so good at this.”

“Good at what?” he asks, distracted by the plans he’s got spread out in front of him. Bruce wants an update on Lex’s new office, but Tim’s been trying to figure out why the old one has an extra hallway that seems to go nowhere. The last time Lex had a hallway that went ‘nowhere’, Tim and Bart had found a cloning lab.

“All the hero stuff, you know?” Kon says, and Tim blinks. He blinks again, trying to catch up while Kon keeps talking, “Like, you’re super smart, you’re super organised, and you’re totally obsessed with mysteries. You’d make a great Robin.”

“What?” Tim asks, feeling vaguely like he’s been shoved into a mirror dimension. But his undershirt is definitely half-hanging out of his laundry basket, and the R’s on the outside, so he can’t have been transported to an alternate dimension sometime within the last two minutes of conversation. Also, wait! he thinks to himself, he’s literally working on a plan to break into Lex’s building with Conner – why would he be doing that if he wasn’t-?

“Yeah!” Kon says, gaining enthusiasm at Tim’s bafflement, “Dude, you’re awesome. We could totally make a case. Where’s your computer? I bet I could get one of your powerpoints in front of Batman. Reasons why Tim Drake should be Robin, created by Superboy and validated by Young Justice.”

“Is it even my powerpoint if you’re going to take credit on making it?” Tim asks, and Kon waves off the question with one hand.

“Well, we can’t present a biased opinion,” Kon says, “and everyone in Gotham knows Robin’s the coolest, so if it was just from a civilian Batman may not take it seriously.”

Batman may not take it seriously, Tim’s brain repeats to itself, and then Tim has to stop himself from cracking up at the thought of Bruce sitting through a powerpoint on why his current Robin would make a ‘super cool’ Robin.

Presented by Superboy.

“Kon,” he says, unable to hide the laughter in his tone. Of course his friend is trying to joke - what other option is there? That Kon doesn't realise he's Robin? “What are you talking about? I can’t give Batman a presentation on why I should be Robin.”

Kon’s mouth twists in a mulish scowl. “Don’t,” he says, sounding more annoyed than Tim would’ve thought at such a joke, “You’re amazing, Tim. You would make an awesome Robin.”

“I know,” Tim says, and tries to ignore the flip in his stomach at how solemn Kon’s expression is, the way he’s serious about every word. It’s making his face feel hot, that Kon hasn’t immediately dropped the compliments, or paired them with an overly flirtatious wink. “Come on, dude, I get it. What bought this on?”

“It just- it’d be cool to hang out with you at the tower. Or do missions with you,” Kon mumbles and Tim stops entirely.

“Kon,” he says, because before it may have been a weird joke Kon was playing, some sort of ego-boost but he knows Kon well enough to read that expression, and- “Kon, I’m Robin. I can’t get Batman a presentation on why I deserve to have my own position.”

This time it’s Kon’s turn to look shell-shocked. “-what.”

“How did you not know?” Tim asks, feeling pained and also a little bit like a bad friend – had he inadvertently lied about something, made Kon think he and Robin were different people? Was he not clear enough when he’d introduced himself to Conner and Bart and Cassie, that weekend before Jason’s attack on the tower? Did Bart and Cassie also not know? Also, wait, back to his first thought of the day: “Why- why did you think I was helping you plan a break in to Lexcorp?”

“Lex sucks?” Kon says, the words an offering, and Tim squints at him.

“You think a normal civilian would help you commit crime?”

“What! How is this a crime?”

“This is literally breaking and entering! Technically, since I’m Bruce Wayne’s ward, it’d also be considered corporate sabotage.”

“It’s not a crime if the victim sucks,” Kon mutters bitterly, and Tim’s squint gets even more aggressive, brow furrowed.

“Kon. What was your explanation for how I knew you were Superboy?”

Kon shrugs, but his face has steadily been getting more and more closed off as his embarrassment deepens. “Dude, I said you were good at mysteries. I thought you just- figured it out. I wasn’t subtle the first time we met.”

“You didn’t have a name the first time we met!”

“What? Oh-” Kon says, “no, okay, the first time I met you as a civvy?”

"Huh?" Tim asks, and Kon cocks his head to the side.

"Yeah! Remember, it was the Mudders charity thing, and Superman and I volunteered in civvies but that girl got stuck in the mud pits so after I went to get her out you helped me hose off and said 'good job Superboy', and then I freaked out and you laughed at me."

"What," says Tim. He does remember that, but there's a key difference between his memory and Kon's- "you were in civvies?"

"Why did you think I kept showing up here as Superboy!" Kon says, this time his turn for exasperation.

"Because I told you my identity?!"

"You said your name was Alvin Draper! You wore contacts!"

"You have x-ray vision! I live with Batman!"

"Tim!" Kon yells, and it's not entirely angry but Kon's suddenly in his face, his hands wrapped around Tim's biceps. "Tim I didn't know! I just thought you were my cool civvy friend who figured out my identity while I was covered in mud and- and-"

Kon's suddenly beaming, and Tim has whiplash.

"Hi, Robin," Kon says, so soft that Tim's heart crawls up his throat with sticky fingers, his face burning. Is there a connection, between the blood rushing to his cheeks, and the migration of his pulse? He knows there's a connection between Kon's palms on his skin and the movement of his heart, at least, but this is-

"Yeah?" he says, and Kon's grin gets bigger.

"I am never ever letting you forget this."

[suzukiblu]

Happy Wednesday! Oh, what's on the menu today... ... Hm, can i get a scoop of 'YJ Accidental Baby Acquisition' please? *beams at you* Thank you so much, friend!

“So these people were trying to make a custom metaweapon, basically?” Dick asks, leaning against the nearest table and folding his arms as Tim starts setting up the testing equipment he’s going to need on it. “That was their idea?” 

“Apparently,” Tim says. “And Kon decided that was bullshit, so now we’ve got Kenley.” 

“You’ve ‘got’ Kenley?” Dick raises an eyebrow at him. Tim starts to say that’s not what I meant, but . . . well. Maybe it was. 

“I think so,” he says finally. “Depending on their opinion of it, anyway. They like Kon a lot more than Bart or Cassie or me.” 

“Yeah, that’s weird,” Dick says. “You’d think any mental programming would’ve identified everyone breaking into the lab as a threat, right? Not just whatever gene donors they managed to grab. But if there isn’t any programming, then why do they only like him?” 

“Kon’s a clone too. And was also supposed to be a weapon,” Tim says. They both know all this, obviously, but they’re saying it out loud to work it out. “Plus he’s specifically the one who saved them. We didn’t even know they existed ‘til he walked out with them all wrapped up in his jacket.” 

“He does have a sick leather jacket . . .” Dick muses mock-seriously, and Tim snorts. “And an actual fashion sense.” 

“Look who’s talking, Discowing,” Tim says. 

“I won’t hear slander against adventurous new innovations in style,” Dick retorts primly, making a show of tossing his hair. 

“Do you mean adventurous new innovations in leaving your chest exposed for easy stabbing access?” Tim inquires dryly. 

“Sexy stabbing access,” Dick corrects.

[zahri-melitor]

Newish Comics:

Big big week here on what came out 4 weeks ago! I have many opinions! You all have to put up with me being insufferable over A Nice House by the Sea (but you should totally read the Nice House series if you have not).

I am also going to contain my comments on Absolute Power stuff in this to titles I'd be reading anyway; I'm putting together a separate post for my feelings on the first 4 weeks of the event.

The Nice House by the Sea #1: So I have been so excited for this and I am delighted to announce it lives up to my expectations.

If you are new to this, I do suggest going back and reading Lake, because Sea is written with clear expectation that the readers already know the conceits of the mysteries of Lake, as this household does as well.

But I love the way Tynion's connected the two households, with one of the members of Sea (Oliver Landon Clay) being a friend of Walter's who didn't go into Walter's house, and instead was invited and accepted Max's invitation instead. And the reasons why that we get in the first issue are so juicy - Oliver is clearly set up to be an echo of the decisions made by Reg, which is going to be fascinating, in that they both have responded to their childhood knowledge in such different ways.

Also there's an fun Animorphs joke and I was reminded that yeah, Tynion is exactly the right age to have been an Animorphs kid.

Zatanna: Bring Down the House #2: this remains enjoyable, though I was reminded with this issue that it is definitely Black Label, because all the explanations going on here do not match my understanding of any of the Homo Magi stuff or versions of Zatara's fate that I've encountered previously. However! Still a rollicking yarn!

Green Arrow #14: yes this is a tie in, Thunderbirds a Go!

Okay, okay, there are a bunch of cute references and throw backs in this. As someone who has a lot of feelings about 90s Green Arrow plots and Ollie being awful in them, I really wish someone other than Joshua Williamson was writing this. (mostly because I suspect we are going to get soft soaped on the 'no seriously, Ollie failed people and was terrible' front when Ollie eventually gets around to his triple cross)

The Flash #11: God. When the art in this run is on it is ON (though. How is Bart shorter than the twins now. What is going on).

Batman: The Brave and the Bold #15: ...it is incredible how this story reminds me of how much Tim Seeley irritates me as a writer, largely because he loves using beats I prefer to diminish.

Important note: The Renee story looks like it is the bridge into the new run? Same writer. So if you're down for The Question: All Along the Watchtower, you should probably look at BatB #15 & #16.

The Warlord #62: this week in Skartaris! A fantastical world within our own, lying undetected in primeval splendour! (thanks Grell)

Tara and Graemore are still angsting about their affair and whether to tell Travis.

"Organise a Royal Hunt--and make it a real outing! I'll get to try some of my bawdier material, Morgan blows off some steam, you rest easier, and the farmers are rid of their problem!" "Brilliant, Graemore! Thank you! I'll go sound Morgan out on the idea right now."

Seriously why will the three of you not contemplate polyamory???

Well, if you won't, then Travis is going to find himself having an extremely manly wrestle with *checks notes* Rostov, the local werewolf.

(Grell, thank you again for your bondage and power dynamics kinks)

Tara decides to deliver an ultimatum when Travis heads out to try and help Rostov find a cure for lycanthropy by visiting Jenny to see if she can help; apparently she has finally reached her limit in terms of "Travis's attention span is half an issue long" for the present. Tara! Let a man go visit his daughter!

[pluckyredhead]

🍊🍌🍐 for the emoji meme???

🍊 Who’s a character you don’t write for that often, but keep meaning to write for more? (They’re so interesting! But maybe you have trouble pinning them down, or keep getting distracted by another blorbo…)

Tim Drake! I think Tim's relations with the rest of the Batfam are so interesting, I just have no actual story to put him in. Someday I'll come up with a long plotty Batfam genfic and then you'll see, you'll all see!

🍌 In your opinion, what’s the funniest joke/reference/pun you’ve made in a fic?

Unfortunately the one that immediately came to mind is from a WIP and it's so good I don't want to spoil it. But I will also say that almost every line I gave Bart in Say It Just One Time makes me laugh, especially this scene:

Jon moved, but Bart got there first, wrapping his arms around Kara and letting her cry. “Hey, it’s okay, we can still get married. We don’t need the rings. Or we’ll get placeholders. We’ll get Ring Pops! Or we can steal some money from Tim, he’s loaded.” “I would just give you the money, you know,” Tim said, but he didn’t look too annoyed, probably because the joke had drawn a wet laugh out of Kara. “There’s no need to try to make Drake feel useful,” Damian drawled, stepping forward and holding out a little velvet box. “The clone’s clone might be strong, but he’s too stupid to notice when his pockets are being picked.” Kara stared at him. “You...you got them back?” Damian shrugged. “It was a simple matt—oof!” He staggered back a little as Kara grabbed him in a hug. “Thank you,” she said, her voice still a little shaky. “Thank you.” Damian very clearly had no idea what to do with either the hug or the gratitude, but Kara let him go before Jon started feeling guilty enough to rescue him. He did take a quick step back when Bart approached, as if to avoid another hug, and Jon had to bite his lip not to laugh. “Thank you so much, Damian,” Bart said. “You were killed by your evil clone once too, right? We should form a club!” “We absolutely should not,” Damian said.

🍐 Is there anything in canon that you absolutely hate and love to fix in fics? A wrong choice made, a fuck-up in characterization, a misunderstanding never cleared up, a conversation never shown onscreen, etc…

Lian's death, hands down. You'll note that the only fics I've ever acknowledged it in are post-Infinite Frontier ones where she's already back.

Also in general I love to acknowledge relationships DC has forgotten about. Jason and Eddie, Roy and Grant...actually literally anyone and Grant...

Ask me more fruits!

[givemewallywestorgivemedeath]

Alright so thoughts on YJ Dark Crisis after having read it:

1) Most importantly, Bart Allen.

Amazing. 10/10. An inspiration to us all. But seriously though, Meg writes Bart really well and seems to understand his core character. While I take some issues with how his powers were represented in this issue, I can excuse it because I understand that stranding a speedster anywhere is difficult and Meg had to tweak some aspects of Bart's powers for the plot to work. It annoys me because of who I am (a Flash fanatic) but I can understand that it's for the sake of the plot.

2) The Weird Imp Guy

Yeah, I didn't like it. I don't like this character or what he represents at all. For starters, this is a Dark Crisis event and this guy is completely unrelated to the rest of the crisis. This book might as well not be a tie in. Actually I think it'd be better if it wasn't. Making this series a tie in to Dark Crisis and then making it have nothing to do with Dark Crisis really hurts the series in my opinion. Write a good solo YJ book or write a good tie in. Don't half ass both.

Also, I just don't think the imp was a good villain. I know there are people who disagree with me (and that's valid, people are allowed to have their own opinions) but I don't think what he represents makes any sense. He was written to be a stand-in for the audience. He's someone meant to represent DC fan's ideas and attitudes so that the characters in the story could address those ideas/attitudes within the narrative. It's a meta text and it's not inherently a bad thing. However, I do not think that this was a good application of that at all.

The imp is supposed to represent toxic DC fans. He's homophobic, sexist, ableist, racist and just generally bigoted. He doesn't like that Tim is bi, he belittles Bart and implies that his neurodivergent behaviors/traits make him dumb, he dislikes when Cassie speaks her mind and prefers a brainless puppet of Cassie, he creates racist caricatures for the boys to fight, he says that all the new diverse characters have 'replaced YJ', ect, ect. The imp is just generally a bad person with bad ideas and he wants "everything to be like it was in the 90's".

The problem here is that this is addressing Young Justice fans. The text is accusing the Young Justice fandom of being sexist, homophobic, racist, ableist and bigoted. Maybe I just surround myself with good people and maybe there is a lot of toxicity in the YJ fandom that I'm just not aware of but I haven't seen any of this.

Have I seen DC fans in general get upset that Tim is bi? Yeah, I have. Have I seen DC fans in general be racist. Yep. Are DC fans in general sexist? Absolutely. Is there rampant ableism in the general DC fandom? 100%. These are absolutely problems that exist within the DC comics fanbase but this isn't a YJ issue.

YJ fans have been calling for Tim (among others) to be LGBTQ+ for a long time. They've been calling for Bart's neurodivergency to be canonized for a long time. YJ fans get angry when Bart is mischaracterized or when there is a sexist interpretation of Cassie. Sure, YJ fans get nostalgic for old comics but being nostalgic for old dynamics does not mean we want those dynamics back. Young Justice has undergone so much character growth and I don't think there's a single YJ fan that wants to reverse that.

Additionally, saying that YJ fans are mad that 'Alan Scott, Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn, ect' have replaced YJ is just... what? When has that ever been a complaint? In what way is Alan replacing YJ? It just feels like they took all the LGBTQ+ characters and threw them on one page to really drive home the homophobia.

I guess my point is that I don't think it's a bad message, I think it's a bad forum. Do this in a Batman comic where the majority of DC fans will actually see it. Don't take what little Young Justice content we've been given and twist it into a PSA about why we should feel bad for even asking for YJ content.

3) Conner Kent

Are we just not addressing what an asshole Conner has been in this series? Not even a little bit? Not gonna state that the world has been affecting his mind? Not going to have him actually apologize in any real and/or meaningful way?

We have one issue left so this might be addressed next time but jeeeeeeeez.

[clambuoyance]

I know that you are a stalwart TimKon Shipper

But what are your opinions on other Kon ships?

KonCass

KonCassie

SuperMartian

KonBart

I am a firm KonCass Shipper through and through

even if i have my own personal hcs, i mean i don't mind any of these ships

koncass had a couple of cute issues and they very much feel like young teens trying to date kinda clumsily but i liked that they agreed to just be friends at the end of it T-T also given what cass says about how she's looked at and her relationships with other characters i cant really see her with a guy >_> they are definitely cute tho and glad you have a cute ship to enjoy!

i actually think koncassie are sweet to each other in tt03 but it's like very basic and surface level to me (that's just how johns wrote everyone there though so) and within canon, cassie had something of a celebrity crush for him at first, but there's the issue where cassie looks in the mirror and wishes she was beautiful and wishes kon would stop looking at her as if he only sees her as a sister and nothing more and then they kiss and i was like >_> okay i guess (if we had seen more of this romance from kon's pov i might have bought into it more) and later in tt03 johns writes cassie as if it was a flaw to act so boyish in her youth and while there's nothing wrong with characters growing up and changing it just felt cheap or whateverrr like at least write her realizing she doesn't need to be doing this for a man and only for herself. again, theyre okay to me as a ship on its own and are cute and i joke that kon got domesticated and learned to be a decentish boyfriend i guess (altho i think he was always going to be a loyal bf and the persona from his youth was more of an act). i could enjoy them more maybe in cases where they are presented in a way i find more interesting (such as both having similar journeys in exploring gender, making cassie's stories revolve less around kon or boy drama etc) or outside of canon but personally i also cannot see her with a man </3 koncassie really doesn't do it for me </3

supermartian really only exists within the yja show which i havent watched in over a decade so i can't say much except that i remember being obsessed with them in s1 and then i kinda lost interest and never finished s2

konbart is neat too even if i don't talk about them much either, they also have a lot of canon scenes showing their devotion and support to each other, not to mention the humor in all of yj and dynamic esp during the parts surrounding the apokolips-ish era(the guilt and worry kon felt, associating bart for a chick etc etc). they also have a lot in common origin/character wise (very sci-fi/experiment origins, inertia and match, interesting relationships with adult figures and expectations, both dying, being written off as stupid or immature, etc etc) so i can definitely see the appeal and think theyre also cute. honestly for me it probably just came down to preference and the order i read things in bc if i read yj2019 first or didn't tend towards tim drake/annabeth chase/rose lalonde coded characters i might've had a different main dc ship but theyre neat :)

ofc again these are just my personal opinions and hcs i have nothing against the people who like em (except maybe for the writers of some of these comics)

[radioactive-earthshine]

What do you think of Bart adaptations like the cartoon Young Justice, Smallville and CW The Flash?

YJA - That was a GOOD Bart. However his eyes are green so that's a lot of points knocked off for me because I see people drawing COMIC BART with green eyes. While he did not have the same history as the Bart from the comics, it still captured the spirit of his character - how he is from the future, he was clearly in a tightly controlled and abusive situation, he saved himself and actively became a refugee from the future with no ability to return home. So they captured the essence of his character, tweaked it to fit in with the story they wanted to tell, then gave him fucking green eyes. Mars was the PERFECT cast for him. All in all he was a good adaptation.

Smallville - It's been a long while since I have seen the episodes he is in but from what I remember I do know they got elements of his personality bang on and we got a great actor with the FLUFF to his hair. I cannot remember his backstory, but I do remember him being homeless I think and being a little more rough around the edges, which honestly fits Bart because he is, in fact, violent.

CW Flash - No opinion as I have not seen it. Not even worthwhile clips.

BONUS - Legion of Super Heroes Tie-in Comics for the Animation

10/10 amazing Bart go read NOW.

[songbirdblues]

theres much to be said about the woobification of tim drake as a character entirely in fanon, but one thing in particular that tends to irk me is the misinterpretation of this scene.

now, i generally dont have a problem with fanon interprets of events like this!!! in fact, im an avid fanfic reader and i can honestly say i dont mind when comic events get squashed or stretched out of proportion. people want angst and fluff, and hurt and comfort, and i can respect that a lot of dc fans get their info from fanon and dont bother/simply dont want to read comics because they lack those feel-good moments/that emotional depth that fanfics have. thats fine, thats none of my business, and thats perfectly valid!

...but i think it does get to a point where a comic is SO misinterpreted, like this one (or just this series in general, really), that it loses all that makes it good and interesting in the first place.

dick isn't a bad guy here. whether you think what he said was warranted or not, or if you think him saying that he thinks tim should seek help is insensitive or wrong, he's not some evil abusive guy who hates tim (tim literally calls him his brother in the scene???? in a positive context??)

i just see a lot of people think dick is some terrible villain for this event (and for the "firing and replacing tim just so damian can be robin for no reason" thing which is also a misinterpretation of what happened, but thats something else). when in reality dick himself is already struggling to keep his family from falling apart even more than it already has, has been forced to become batman, and has to raise this random, murderous kid that just popped into his life (i love damian but bro was giving dick gray hairs in his twenties in the beginning lol), all while dealing with the loss of his father for the second time in his life. on top of this, to him, his 16 year old brother is off doing god knows what across europe going on a wild goose chase looking for their (presumably) dead father and doesnt know what to do about it.

but despite all that, in tims eyes, dick massively messed up. we know he thinks this by what he says in the comic.

which leads me to my last point; tims own thoughts. this is a bit more of my opinion on tims character rather than objective fact so bear with me. tims internal monologue and emotional journey across red robin are why i think this series is so heavily (sorry to keep using this word) misinterpreted by fanon.

throughout the course of the story, tim is being forced to suffer with a grief that that he doesnt know how to deal with. like dick, this is the second father tim has lost. but the difference between them is that when tim experiences loss he... doesnt really know how to deal with it, like at all. he goes crazy when he loses someone close to him. at least dick can kinda sorta keep it together. after jack died and bruce tried to adopt him, tim literally hired a man to pretend to be his uncle to avoid it. when kon died, he tried to clone him 99 whole times with old luthor tech, (and later when damian died, tim hallucinated hugging him, or at the very least pretended to, which while a lot tamer than these other instances i still think it speaks to how deeply he feels these losses and how badly he handles it). i dont know the specifics of how he acted about other people hes lost like bart, stephanie, and his mom, but tim even says himself that part of the reason why he's doing all this is because of how many people he's lost, so it can be assumed he reacted harshly to their passing, too.

tim also admits, multiple times throughout red robin, that he knows he sounds/acts crazy, he admits that he goes farther than he ever went as robin when dealing with criminals and cases because as red robin he's now "tainted" and agrees with connor in a later issue that "red robin" is his punishment for himself.

so what i mean by all this is that, simply put, tim is an unreliable narrator. of course we as the readers feel angry at dick and cassie, tim himself is angry at them. he feels hurt and betrayed, and it could even be assumed at that point that he feels they abandoned him, and he thinks that they think hes crazy. he isolates himself from everyone, he feels unworthy of everything, and he "knows" hes lost it. "except for everything, im perfectly fine." is a quote he says, and there are plenty more like it in the series.

my point is that in tims eyes for the majority of his character arc as red robin, nearly everyone hes ever loved has either died or abandoned him, but as the audience we know thats not the case. cassie loves him, dick of course loves him, they just both made mistakes and hurt him, but that doesnt make either of them irredeemable or mean that they dont care about tim. tim himself, in that moment, just doesnt believe that, or doesnt even seem to consider that. he sees the bad, and blinded by his own grief and anger, doesnt see the good.

i just think a lot of people miss that, and just write dick off as borderline abusive or purposefully hurtful in red robin fanfics, because comics tend to get telephoned so much in the fandom that thats what people see him as, when it's not the case, which is how we got the "dick threatens to send tim to arkham" thing. (but thats just gonna happen i guess. did you know that in the actual jasons attack on titans tower comic jason wears his robin costume?? yeesh i'll have to stick with fanon on their interpretation of that whole thing. see its not bad all the time)

besides the idea of the whole arkham trope thing, theres still plenty of canon angst to pull from in red robin! you can write about how tim thinks hes losing it, ra's weird infatuation with tim and everything that comes with that, tim being forced to deal with losing robin, tims rocky relationship with tam fox, tims super rocky relationship with damian, any interaction between kon and tim, OH. the fact that at one point tim got kicked out of a tall building and accepted his death (only thinking about how bruce would be proud), only to be saved by dick last minute and then lying about knowing dick would save him (yeah right buddy) ((its issue #12)). theres also the idea of bruce and tim talking after tim finds him (canon bruce hug!!!). and theres more im forgetting for sure. all that to say theres plenty of ideas already there for the taking!!!!! red robin is a great comic filled with plenty of emotional moments.

moral of the story, dick isn't a terrible person, tim needs help but he isn't a little baby incapable of doing anything, and i believe writing them differently in the context of red robin (2009) is a disservice to their characters and their relationships with each other in the actual comic.

...but i mean, im not your dad. write what you want

[jon-cantlain]

what is your opinion on each of the Wayne's?

oh that'll be good

bruce is a bit slow and i never understand what he's saying when he goes on about some rich stuff, but he's cool to my dad and always gives me candy

dick is awesome he always shows me cool tricks and acrobatics shit when I'm there and he knows all of my secrets, so if we ever stop being friends I'd have to wipe his memory

jason is cut off but in a good way, he's like the emotionally unavailable teenage sister i never had

tim is kind of annoying sometimes but he's a great friend when needed and is very smart and knows how to fix almost everything

damian is my best friend so of course I'll say he's amazing although sometimes he doesn't get my jokes and i gotta stand there waiting for him to just not laugh at all

cass is cool, she's all quiet but is very sweet and i know she'd beat anyone's ass if needed

steph is like that single aunt that's always around for the food and alcohol, but i like her she's fun

duke is chill, he always has some nice stuff to say and never gets mad at me for breaking his stuff. or maybe it's cause dick takes the blame every time

alfred is like that ancient creature that everyone knows is real but doesn't know why or how, so we'll obey him otherwise who knows what that old fella is capable of

conner is my stepbro but he's also dating tim so ig that makes him a wayne too. he's a jerk when he's awake, but he's still my bro and I'd do anything for him

bart is dating connor and tim and tbh idk much about him just that he always looks like a caffeinated squirrel

roy is cool but i get the feeling he's up to some criminal stuff like jaywalking

wally gotta be the most normal guy there, maybe one day I'll wake up and find out that he's a government agent undercover or something

barbara is not a wayne but shes always in the gd manor so she either works there as tech support or shes cursed to never leave

and now there's ric.. don't know him that much yet but he's with duke, so how bad can he be?

[bluejaysandblackbats]

Bloody Valentines

Fandom: DC Comics, Batfam, Young Justice 98, Titans, GL Corps, Legion of Super Heroes, Flashfam, New Gods

Summary: 90s vampire slasher AU

Chapters: 2/?

Characters: Dick Grayson, Joseph Wilson, Jason Todd, Charley Parker, Zatanna, Eddie Bloomberg, Daniel Cassidy, Chester Williams DC, Guy Gardner, Kyle Rayner, Lilith Clay, Raven Roth, Kole Weathers, Bette Kane, Donna Troy, Roy Harper, Jenni Ognats, Bart Allen, Virgil Hawkins, Richie Foley, Ayla Ranzz, Zoe Saugin, Rol Purtha, Darla Aquista, Lori Zechlin, Hal Jordan, Helen Jordan II, Orion DC, Lightray DC

Relationships: DickJoey, Daniel Cassidy/Zatanna, Jenni Ognats/Virgil Hawkins, Raven/Lilith Clay

Additional Tags: POV First Person, Unreliable Narrator(s), Vampires, No Capes AU, 90s Slasher AU, Homoeroticism, Horror, Slasher

Chapter Two: The Premonition (Charley's POV)

I sat on the roof, smoking while I waited for Jason to page me. He didn't like me smoking around him, so I tried to smoke before and after we hung out. I gave myself enough time to shower and change clothes if I needed to. He never complained, but I knew he preferred I didn't smell like I just smoked a bowl when we hung out.

I met him through Eddie a few years back, and he seemed chill. A little weird, but we were all kind of strange. I was new to Jersey, but he welcomed me in and made me feel like I fit in there, even though I didn't. I didn't stay on the roof long because it was freezing out.

I showered and changed clothes before grabbing my keys to head out. Jason came in the door with an empty suitcase. "We're going," Jason announced, "We're going to Happy Harbor this weekend."

I burped smoke and apologized before plopping on the couch. Jason said a lot of weird crap, but I chalked that up to brain damage. He'd been having premonitions about his brother, and he told me something loomed just outside the gates of the immortal. I didn't know what it meant, but I don't think he did either. Jason washed his hands and poured a glass of milk. "Why are we going to Happy Harbor?" I asked.

"Because my brother is at the center of the disturbance... And he's going. Do you wanna come?" Jason asked. I shrugged and nodded. "Do you?"

"Yeah, yeah. I'll come... Jason, did you sleep here last night, man?" I asked. He shook his head. Sometimes he didn't sleep, and he'd drive around. He'd been like that since I met him. I met him in the kitchen, took a frozen pizza out of the fridge, and slapped it onto a pan. Jason sighed and took the pizza out of the box before placing it in the oven.

Most people would think two people like us shouldn't live together, but I think I reminded him of somebody. And I liked having somebody around that didn't treat me like a freak. He also didn't lose it when he walked in on me with some guy I met, in flagrante delicto, as one of the Sisters of Mercy would call it. I call it the Lotus.

Actually, that was recent. I tried to hide the fact that I preferred to drive a stick from time to time, but it was always hard to hide it from the people I lived with. Jason was different, though. When the guy left, I collected myself and tried to explain, but he shrugged it off and said he'd seen worse. So, sue me if I don't judge the guy for his hallucinations.

"I drove up to Blüdhaven to see my brother. He got in right before I got ready to leave. I waited for him all night... You should probably start packing tonight. We leave tomorrow morning so we can beat my brother there," Jason mumbled. I sat down and pulled my hair into a bun.

I didn't tell him what to do unless I thought he was doing something dangerous, so I didn't give him my opinion on the whole vacation thing. Besides, I wanted to get out of Gotham for the weekend, and Happy Harbor sounded like a relaxing vacation spot. "Jay, what's the weather like?" I asked. I laughed involuntarily and ran a hand over my face to pull myself together.

"It's in Rhode Island, so I imagine it's freezing. The hottest it gets up there is eighty," Jason answered, "And it's the middle of fall, so I wouldn't bank on it being a nice sunny seventy out there."

I forgot how sarcastic he could be when he wasn't having premonitions. I didn't hate it, though. I think that was his way of telling people he was okay. Jason wasn't a touchy-feely emotional guy, but neither was I, so it worked. "Your brother's gonna be okay," I whispered. I didn't have any siblings, so I didn't understand all the feelings surrounding him and his brother. Whenever I saw them together, I thought they hated each other.

"I got you a suitcase... Charley, remember to pack. We leave at six tomorrow morning," Jason explained. I zoned out after that, but I think he was monologuing. I came to when I smelled the pizza he'd taken out of the oven, and I watched as Jason took a slice for himself. I blinked hard and started eating.

There was something so sensual about the first bite of food after a smoke. I shut my eyes and made a soft noise as I ate the crust first. Jason chuckled. He didn't like me smoking, but he got a kick out of me eating after a smoke. "I've never seen anyone eat a pizza ass first before," Jason laughed.

"Listen-." I fell into a fit of laughter mid-sentence. "Ass first?"

"Yeah, because the crust fucking sucks. No one eats the worst part first," Jason cracked up. I hate to say it, but he was cute when he smiled. I always wanted to go there with Jason because he felt safe, but I never got any indication that he was anything other than straight. Besides, it never would've worked. Jason had a lot going on in his head, and I did too. He was a for life type, and I was more of a for the night type. I was bummed after that because I stopped laughing and returned to my large pizza in silence. About an hour after I ate, I took a nap and packed for our trip.

Jason took his shower and fell asleep on the couch, where he talked in his sleep. I tried to ignore it because some of the stuff he said in his sleep made me feel paranoid. But this time, it was different. Worse. Jason tossed and turned on the couch so roughly that I sat on the floor in front of him to keep him from falling. He grabbed my shoulder in his sleep and scared the shit out of me. "Stay out of the water. Stay out," Jason moaned, "Charley. The water." A chill ran up my spine, and he shot up, panting as he searched around the room.

"Jason... Jason," I whispered as I grabbed his wrist. "Jason, are you-."

Jason jumped off the couch and into my arms. I never saw him that emotional before. It freaked me out. "Please don't swim this weekend, Charley. Promise me you won't swim," Jason begged. I hesitantly rubbed his back to calm him down, but I was as scared as he was. Jason held on so tight my back cracked. Oh yeah, I forgot to say the dude was jacked. Thick neck, giant biceps, built like a fucking tank.

"If I promise to stay away from the water this weekend, will you let go of me?" I asked. Jason let go and nodded. He had to pull himself together, but I was still spooked. "I promise... And next time you call my name like that in your sleep, I'm gonna need you to take me out to dinner, Kid." Jason chuckled and shook his head. "Why'd you want me to come with you tomorrow? Be real with me."

"We'll all be together... I think we'll be alright if we stay together," Jason whispered. He stood up and walked away before hiding his face in his hands. "I've never had one that vivid before... Charley, please don't forget what you promised me... Please don't forget."

I felt terrible for him. Eddie said he wasn't always like that. Before the accident, Eddie said he wasn't as fearful. Everyone warned me not to listen to his delusions or feed into them, but his instincts were good, and he'd never been wrong before about the normal-sounding stuff. It was more than reasonable for me to believe that staying out of the water in an area where it'd be freezing out was a solid warning.

Jason paced back and forth by the fire escape, and my hands shook as I tried to pull myself together for him. We couldn't both be scared. I owed it to him to be the brave one for once. If I owed anybody anything, it was Jason. "Jason, c'mere. Stop-. Stop pacing and look for a minute. Nothing's gonna happen to me because I'm gonna listen to you," I reassured him. Jason nodded, but I could see his mind was already made up. He looked like he wanted to cry. It was like I was already gone. I'd never seen him like that. It was weird and fucked up, and I dreaded the trip ahead. I was so fucked up over it that I couldn't even think to smoke. Instead, I decided to keep my head straight until we got to the Harbor on Saturday. I thought it'd give us both some peace of mind. Still, I didn't think Jason would sleep after that. There was no way. And there was no way he'd be able to drive on forty-five minutes of sleep. Relaxing trip, my ass.

[mamawasatesttube]

Need your full opinion on the recent smot issue

overall, i was... pretty disappointed in it, honestly. spoilers below!

i have always found kenny porter's writing to be kinda heavyhanded, and smot has been no exception, but i was pretty willing to go with the flow because heavyhanded or not at least it seemed to be a fun story. with the hints and buildup in #3 i was worried we were essentially setting up for a reprise of knockout arc from sb94, with kon aiding and abetting someone shitty while being manipulated into thinking they were misunderstood and wanted to do better, and i had misgivings about that idea, but...

...but honestly like. this isn't actually better. i feel like porter is really, REALLY hammering in this idea that kon hasn't actually matured, that he's still the same kid from sb94 just trying to relive his glory days, which is just. like. did adventure comics/superboy (2011) mean nothing to you kenny? (i know they did. i know.) it's also just a disappointing angle to take on his MANY issues with being in a new universe that literally forgot him. of all the things he could be struggling with, i don't think naivety is a particularly interesting OR in character one to focus so hard on.

it's also just REALLY been getting me that we're supposed to believe that everyone on earth didn't notice he vanished for 2 weeks, and yet ALSO that they do genuinely care for him. smot is set before house of metallo arc in action comics, which means we know at the end of it kon still comes back to be generic background superman #3 or whatever; i find that pretty jarring especially with the idea that none of the superfam even noticed he left the planet for two whole weeks. of course, given porter's heavyhanded writing style i know that'll simply be glossed over and ignored, because... subtlety? implication? what are those? it's the same with the entire idea of EVERY SINGLE PROBLEM ON EARTH being solved--that makes no sense and will be summarily never mentioned again, of course. and ditto re: tim, bart, and cassie going on a mission in paris without so much as a text to kon about it. it's all pretty contrived as setup, and the execution continues to feel contrived and unsatisfying to me. smot4 in particular felt like they were Really rubbing in the complete nuking of the pre-flashpoint kon&clark relationship :(

i'm ALSO really just not happy with the ridiculously centrist take of "what if the guys fighting back against the genocidal imperialists were JUST AS BAD AS THEM? OR WORSE?" but i mean. the bar is on the fucking floor and dc just loves to bring industrial excavators.

on the plus side, at least there are some cute kon panels in it :) i'll take those where i can even if i'm going :/ at everything else going on. i'm pretty sure the ending will involve the superfam coming to the rescue in issue 6 and kon going WOW... i DO have a place on earth after all... despite none of the actual issues he had at the beginning of the run being remotely resolved. also i won't be surprised if they don't actually condemn the imperialists particularly much. travv and the cosmoteers have been set up as the primary antagonists so... eh.

overall i'd say smot 4 was where the plot stopped really being fun to me. i'd had my hangups and nitpicks with 1-3, but 4 just dropped the ball a LOT. maybe 5 and 6 will be better, but i'm not too optimistic that it won't just entirely fall flat (again, though, i just know i don't actually like the entire setup for kon in rebirth, so i'm biased). still gonna buy em though ofc. gotta get my good good kon covers even if the story isnt very consistent or satisfying!

ETA I FORGOT TO MENTION. CAN THEY STOP CLONING HIM?????? FOR THE LOVE OF GOD how many plots from sb94 are they gonna try to squeeze into the end of this run at the same time (and inevitably do worse than they were originally written). how many