Stephanie Brown is a fictional superheroine appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics , most commonly in association with Batman . The character first appeared in Detective Comics #647 (June 1992), and was created by Chuck Dixon and Tom Lyle .
156-600: Deathwing may refer to: Literature [ edit ] Deathwing (comics) , an alternate-future incarnation of Dick Grayson/Nightwing in DC Comics The Deathwing, a fictional organisation in Douglas Hill 's Last Legionary novel series Games [ edit ] Deathwing (board game) , a 1990 expansion of the Space Hulk board game Space Hulk: Deathwing ,
312-507: A near death experience . Then, in Batgirl #72–73, Cassandra is near death following a battle with Mad Dog when Stephanie's "ghost" appears before her again and informs Cassandra of her true parentage and of Blüdhaven 's destruction. During the Titans East storyline, a glass case with Stephanie's Spoiler costume (alongside cases with clothing representing Tim Drake's parents and Conner Kent )
468-455: A parallel world that was retroactively established as the home of characters which had been published in the Golden Age of comic books . This allowed creators to publish comic books featuring Robin while being able to disregard Golden Age stories, solving an incongruity, as Robin had been published as a single ongoing incarnation since inception. Robin's origin and history begins the same as
624-673: A 2016 video game Deathwing, antagonist in World of Warcraft: Cataclysm Deathwing, a 2019 patch of Heroes of the Storm Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Deathwing . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Deathwing&oldid=1243411169 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
780-412: A Gotham vigilante, she would initially have a hot and cold relationship to Batman and his allies. She even replaced her longtime love interest Tim Drake as Batman's partner and sidekick to enjoy a difficult spell as the fourth Robin . She would earn her second chance and eventually come into her own as the third Batgirl , under the tutelage of former Batgirl Barbara Gordon . From 2009 to 2011, she
936-512: A Q&A at a convention in March 2007, DC executive editor Dan DiDio responded to questions about the absence of a Stephanie tribute from the Batcave, saying that the official position of DC Comics is that "She was never really a Robin", despite on-panel claims to the contrary. When Alfred Pennyworth asks if Batman 's acceptance of Stephanie as Robin was conceived by him as only a temporary measure from
1092-510: A Watson to talk to. That's how Robin came to be. Bob called me over and said he was going to put a boy in the strip to identify with Batman. I thought it was a great idea." The following fictional characters have assumed the Robin role at various times in the main DC Comics Universe continuity : In the comics, Dick Grayson was an 8-year-old acrobat and the youngest of a family act called
1248-492: A bit of a crush. At first, Robin thinks of her as a pest, but later comes to enjoy her company. He was dating Ariana Dzerchenko at the time. However, the two sometimes work as partners, and during a point in which Robin and Ariana were unable to see each other, he and Stephanie grew even closer. Robin soon realizes that his feelings for Stephanie have grown into something more, and, after breaking up with Ariana, he begins dating Stephanie. Unfortunately, because Robin needs to maintain
1404-409: A blackout in the city while draining its power. Fortunately, Stephanie's costume is insulated, and she is able to overpower the villainess. Stephanie also develops an attraction to Gotham PD's newest young recruit who just transferred from Coast City PD, Detective Nicholas "St. Nick" Gage, who is also attracted to her as Batgirl. However, this budding romance is complicated by Commissioner Gordon , who
1560-468: A criminal and anthropological investigation into an apocryphal Haitian vodou cult (revealed by Batman, asserting anthropological and investigative authority, as a front for extortion and crony capitalism ); 3) the murder of Drake's mother by vilified cult leaders; 4) the beginning of Drake's recurrent nightmares and trauma ; as well as 5) the perspective of a child of one of the cult's Haitian followers, unknowingly and inadvertently orphaned by Batman at
1716-480: A dark version of Raven shortly after his arrival, changes his name to " Deathwing ", and serves as her assistant. He becomes so twistedly evil that he at one point tracks down his one-time lover, Mirage, and rapes her. She becomes pregnant and has a child named Julienne. During the Zero Hour event that retroactively erased this timeline, Mirage, Terra and Deathwing survive. It is later established that they are from
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#17328812721971872-471: A decade, until her death in the 2004 crossover storyline Batman: War Games . Her death was revealed to have been faked in a 2008 story, and she became the eponymous lead character in the 2009 Batgirl series written by Bryan Q. Miller , with pencils by Lee Garbett . The title was canceled after 24 issues and replaced with a new Batgirl series starring Barbara Gordon as part of the New 52 relaunch. There
2028-413: A few brief confrontations, helps capture Cluemaster. Although she initially wishes to kill her father, Batman convinces her to allow him to be arrested. Each time Cluemaster escapes or starts some new plan, Stephanie dons her costume again. Eventually, she decides she likes being a superhero , and she begins regular patrols as Spoiler. This also brings her into regular contact with Robin, on whom she has
2184-622: A fictional character shown in Teen Titans #38 (2006), the former sidekick of Owlman , created by Geoff Johns and Tony S. Daniel . He is a former member of the Crime Society and a member of the Teen Titans during the one-year gap after Infinite Crisis . According to an interview with Tony Daniel at Newsarama , Talon is supposed to look like his mentor Owlman. He briefly battled Black Adam with his fellow Titans during World War III . It
2340-561: A force for good. Bruce asks BJ to assume control of the organization so that he can become Batman once again. A story in Generations II has Bruce's dying wife imply that BJ isn't his biological son, but this is not explored until Generations III , where BJ uses a Lazarus Pit and becomes Robin once more, ultimately learning that he truly is Bruce's son and everything was a plan by his mother to make up for never allowing father and son to work together as heroes. In Generations III , BJ's life
2496-427: A former child of trauma, guided "other trauma victims down a path of righteousness." Tim Drake, for example, endured trauma and "emotional duress" as a result of the death of his mother (father in a coma and on a ventilator). Drake contemplated the idea of fear, and overcoming it, in both the "Rite of Passage" and "Identity Crisis" storylines. Grant and Breyfogle subjected Drake to recurrent nightmares , from hauntings by
2652-415: A gang of robbers, Batman offered Todd the position as Robin. Believing that readers never truly bonded with Todd, DC Comics made the controversial decision in 1988 to poll readers using a 1-900 number as to whether or not Todd should be killed. The event received more attention in the mainstream media than any other comic book event before it. Readers voted "yes" by a small margin (5,343 to 5,271) and Todd
2808-423: A ghoulish Batman to the disquieting lullaby (or informal nursery rhyme), "My Mummy's dead...My Mummy's Dead...I can't get it through my head," echoing across a cemetery for deceased parents. Drake ultimately defeated his own preadolescent fears "somewhat distant from Bruce Wayne" and "not as an orphan." By the end of "Identity Crisis", an adolescent Drake had "proven himself as capable of being a vigilante" by deducing
2964-424: A homemade Robin costume, Stephanie sneaks into the Batcave and demands that Batman train her as the new Robin. Batman reluctantly accepts her as the new Robin, puts her through several months of intensive training, and makes her a better costume with roughly the same design as Tim's. As Robin, she patrols with Batman, but he thinks she isn't skilled enough to replace Tim. Batman later fires her after she disobeys him in
3120-536: A leader of the Outlaws, a superhero team that includes Starfire and Arsenal who had spent years with Grayson in the Titans. DC Comics was left uncertain about readers' decision to have Jason Todd killed, wondering if readers preferred Batman as a lone vigilante, disliked Todd specifically, or just wanted to see if DC would actually kill off the character. In addition, the 1989 Batman film did not feature Robin, giving DC
3276-720: A lexicon of teenage behavior from which to draw, unlike when Dick Grayson was introduced and the concept of the teenager was still nascent. They wisely mobilized the expected adolescent behaviors of parental conflict, hormonal urges, and identity formation to give Tim emotional depth and complexity, making him a relatable character with boundaries between his two selves." In the Robin ongoing series, when Drake had fully transitioned into an adolescent character, Chuck Dixon depicted him as engaging in adolescent intimacy, yet still stopped short at overt heterosexual consummation. This narrative benchmark maintained Robin's "estrangement from sex" that began in
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#17328812721973432-417: A limited series that served as a continuation of Tim Burton's Batman films Batman and Batman Returns , ignoring the subsequent films Batman Forever (1995) and Batman & Robin (1997), in which actor Michael Keaton did not appear following Burton's departure from the franchise. This series featured a new version of Robin named Drake Winston (whose appearance is inspired by Marlon Wayans , who
3588-556: A memorial for her in the Batcave. Since her secret identity had been compromised, Leslie faked her death so villains could not use her against Batman as Black Mask had done. Living with Leslie in Africa under an alias, Stephanie had been performing volunteer work until an attack from a local witch-hunting tribe prompted her to return to crimefighting, and subsequently to Gotham. Stephanie reunites with her mother, enrolls in Tim's high school, and rejoins
3744-437: A middle-aged Dick Grayson reclaims the Robin mantle and becomes Red Robin , not at the side of his former mentor Batman, but rather with Superman's League. His uniform is closer to Batman's in design, rather than any previous Robin uniform. Age has not slowed him down, as he possesses all of his stealth and fighting skills. In this story he has a daughter with Starfire ; Mar'i Grayson ( Nightstar ). Starfire has apparently died by
3900-486: A new costume, which is an amalgamation of her Spoiler outfit and her previous Batgirl suit. In Infinite Frontier , Barbara Gordon – now primarily operating as Oracle again – explains to Huntress that Stephanie and Cassandra will share the Batgirl title, but that she reserves the right to occasionally suit up as Batgirl in future. In Batman: Urban Legends , it is revealed she and Tim broke up and are not speaking, although she
4056-653: A new network of heroes that will replace Batman, who is missing after the Batman R.I.P. storyline. She is able to turn completely invisible while fighting the Vigilante, though Fabian Nicieza , current writer of the Robin title, said he knew nothing about it. However, in Gotham Gazette: Batman Alive , Nicieza incorporates the new ability, with Robin stating she stole the technology to make herself invisible. In Teen Titans (vol. 3) #66, Stephanie appeared as one of
4212-603: A new state-of-the-art transportation known as the Ricochet (based from Batman's Batcycle designs) from Barbara. Stephanie was later asked by Barbara to shut down the vigilante operations of John Raymond , a wealthy young superhero who had been giving powerful exo-suits to a number of people in hopes of creating a nationwide army of crime-fighters he dubbed "Web Hosts". After being convinced by John that he could keep his Web Hosts in line, Stephanie and Barbara agreed to not only allow him to continue his vigilante actions, but also upgrade
4368-462: A price on his head), and went under the identity of Red Bird. Damian met his end at the hands of the Heretic, an aged clone of Damian working for Leviathan , bravely giving up his life. Despite his status as deceased, Damian starred in his own miniseries, Damian: Son of Batman , written and drawn by Andy Kubert , set in a future where Damian is on the path to become Batman after his father fell victim to
4524-562: A principal character in Batman and Detective Comics , Lauren R. O'Connor argues that "A Lonely Place of Dying" served as the denouement of a transition from Dick Grayson 's "absent sexuality," which earlier incited reader interpretations of homosexuality , to definitive heterosexual presence as a maturation narrative. O'Connor offers multiple examples from this 1989 storyline, such as Drake's encounter with Starfire and Grayson's heeding of Drake's concerns over Batman's psychology, to substantiate
4680-464: A protégé) remain as Robin, he gave the role to Damian, who he felt needed the training that his father would have given him. Following the Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne and Flashpoint events, Bruce Wayne returned to his role as Batman, while Dick resumed as Nightwing. As of The New 52 , Damian continued to work with his father, but temporarily gave up being Robin (as his mother had put
4836-403: A reason to keep him out of the comic book series for marketing purposes. Regardless, Batman editor Denny O'Neil introduced a new Robin. The third Robin, Timothy Drake, first appeared in a flashback in Batman #436 (1989) as a preadolescent boy, introduced by writer Marv Wolfman , interior penciler Pat Broderick , and inker John Beatty . Drake's first name was a nod to Tim Burton , director of
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4992-466: A red torso, long sleeves, and pants. It also included black gloves and boots, yellow stitching and belt, and a black and yellow cape. Tim Drake continued the motif of a red and black costume when he assumed the role of Red Robin before and during the events of The New 52 . Tim Drake assumes the identity of the Red Robin after Batman's disappearance following the events of Final Crisis and " Battle for
5148-525: A sneak peek into the future of the Batman Eternal series; she is seen tied up in a vault by Selina Kyle , with Kyle stating she is the only one who knows how to stop what is coming next for Gotham. In Batman Eternal #3 (July 2014), Stephanie is a purple-clad teen who stumbles into a meeting between her father, the Cluemaster, and his criminal associates. She manages to escape their murderous plot, and over
5304-557: A son who was driven mad, took on the mantle of Lord Chaos and conquered his world. This version of Dick stayed in his identity of Nightwing and helped train squadrons of superpowered teenagers that became known as the Teen Titans . He was involved with the much younger Titan Mirage during this time. This alternative-future Nightwing came back in time and briefly joins the Team Titans when their mission takes them to their past, our present. This version of Nightwing, attacked and corrupted by
5460-641: A student in Batman Incorporated . During the Convergence storyline, Stephanie (who still uses the Batgirl title) is chosen as the champion of her version of Gotham City, and must fight other city's champions if they are to survive. In the New 52 , a 2011 reboot of the DC Universe, Stephanie Brown's history was completely removed from continuity. She makes her first appearance in the new mainstream continuity as Spoiler in Batman (vol. 2) #28 (April 2014),
5616-511: A target. Because of Garcia's abduction, Stephanie and Barbara join forces with Batman and Robin, as some of the Gotham rogues are involved in the crime, including Roulette . After they rescue Garcia, Dick, after seeing Stephanie's fight with Roxy Rocket , although still not completely approving of her as Batgirl, realizes that she reminds him of Barbara when she was in the role, so he allows Barbara to continue training Stephanie. Stephanie also receives
5772-622: A time-travelling adventure with Cassandra and Barbara, the Royal Flush Gang attacking her at her college graduation, and eventually training the new Batgirl, a girl named Nell. She ultimately breaks free from the Black Mercy and confides in Barbara that despite the wonderful things she experienced while in the fantasy world, she preferred to live in the here and now. Stephanie was later tasked to infiltrate Saint Hadrian's Finishing School for Girls as
5928-464: A title currently belonging to the Dark Knight. Batman himself stated that one day Drake will surpass him as a detective. Despite his combat skills not being the match of Grayson's (although there are some similarities, in that they are far superior to Todd's when he was Robin), his detective skills more than make up for this. In addition, Batman supplied him with a new armored costume for his transition to
6084-746: A trap set by the Joker. Batman eventually started a difficult quest to resurrect him, returning Damian to life with Darkseid 's Chaos Shard. Failsafe created a clone of Bruce Wayne to serve as his Robin of Zur-En-Arrh in retaliation for Damian Wayne rejecting him. To make sure the clone didn't turn against him, Failsafe made it start to rapidly age. Robin got away following Failsafe's defeat. With his memories awakeneing, Robin made his way to Crime Alley to attack any criminals that entered there. Batman and Mister Terrific arrived to confront him. When Robin reached Batman's age, he severed his right hand so that it can be transplanted onto Batman. When Robin became elderly, he
6240-499: A vigilante, as she still saw Stephanie as an impetuous youth, remembering her role in causing a citywide gang war and her near-death experience at Black Mask's hands. However, a new type of recreational drug is hitting the streets of Gotham known as "Thrill", which they discover was manufactured by the Scarecrow and the second Black Mask , and the two women need each other to stop the drug trade. Stephanie eventually confronts and defeats
6396-429: A vital medical treatment that could have saved Stephanie's life had been denied by Doctor Leslie Thompkins . When Batman confronts the doctor, Thompkins claims she willfully withheld such treatment to send a warning to any of Gotham's youth intending to follow Stephanie's example. Following her death, Stephanie Brown appears twice in the Batgirl series. The first time, in Batgirl #62, Cassandra Cain meets her during
Deathwing - Misplaced Pages Continue
6552-527: A wedge between the two. Spoiler begins to train with Batman, Batgirl , and, briefly, the Birds of Prey . Stephanie and Tim, as she now knows him, reconcile. Even after Batman, having decided that she was not crime fighter material, tells her to hang up her costume and have the Birds of Prey stop mentoring her, she still patrols secretly, in addition to going on occasional dates with Robin in their civilian identities. When
6708-461: A young Grayson. Like Dick Grayson, Jason Todd was the son of circus acrobats murdered by a criminal (this time the Batman adversary Killer Croc ), and then adopted by Bruce Wayne. In this incarnation, he was originally red-haired and unfailingly cheerful, and wore his circus costume to fight crime until Dick Grayson presented him with a Robin suit of his own. At that point, he dyed his hair black. After
6864-504: A young adult Tim living alone at the marina, developing a closer relationship with Bernard, and adopting his own crime-fighting partner in the form of Sparrow (Darcy Thomas), a former member of the We Are Robin movement. Stephanie Brown, Tim Drake 's girlfriend and the costumed adventurer previously known as the Spoiler, volunteered for the role of Robin upon Tim's resignation. Batman fired
7020-426: Is Batgirl , and Tim Drake has picked up the mantle of Robin again after a stint as Red Robin . Damian has left behind the title Robin, but remains the title character of the Robin comic book. In recent years, Batman has also adopted new sidekicks in the form of Bluebird , whose name references Robin, and The Signal . About a year after Batman 's debut, Batman creators Bob Kane and Bill Finger introduced Robin
7176-429: Is Robin . After Warlock's death, Tim's father orders him to hang up his cape, and Tim is forced to live a normal life for a time. One day after school, Stephanie attempts to surprise Tim with a visit. As she arrives, however, she catches a female classmate, Darla Aquista, attempting to seduce him. Assuming that Tim is being unfaithful, she breaks off ties with Tim and angrily decides to put her attention elsewhere. Creating
7332-510: Is "killed" by Jacob Kane's Colony drones, Stephanie becomes depressed and questions her purpose and the world she wants to live in the "Victim Syndicate" storyline. The story ends with her challenging the rest of the team and threatening to expose their secret identities if they don't give up their vigilantism. After disarming her by refusing her offer, she leaves the team and tells Batman that until he gives up his cowl, she'll be standing in his way. Stephanie actively opposes Batman and his allies in
7488-509: Is a citywide gang war in which Stephanie is captured by the Black Mask . She is tortured extensively by Black Mask to get information about Batman, as well as learning enough information to allow him to take control of Batman's plan and assume command of the gangs himself. Although she escapes and makes her way to a hospital, she is severely injured, and supposedly dies in a hospital bed as Batman sits beside her. Batman later finds evidence that
7644-463: Is a student at Gotham University, and is still living with her mother. Cassandra Cain has apparently become disillusioned following Bruce Wayne's apparent death and gives Stephanie her Batgirl costume. After operating as the new Batgirl in Cain's costume, Stephanie is confronted by Barbara Gordon who was notified of her activities by Dick Grayson. Barbara tried to reason with Stephanie to get her to stop being
7800-416: Is able to get across to and bond with many different kinds of people. Although not a martial artist of the caliber of Cassandra Cain, she is an expert in her own right; an unpredictable fighter and a match for Tim Drake. She carries a belt similar to that used by other Gotham vigilantes containing a grappling hook, tracking devices, and various other crime-fighting paraphernalia . During Gotham Underground ,
7956-425: Is actually returning to crime, this time not leaving his trademark clues behind. She decides something needs to be done. Stephanie Brown tailors a costume for herself, and calls herself "the Spoiler" due to her attempts to spoil her father's plans. She learns where her father is hiding out, finds out his plans, and leaves clues so that the police and Batman could stop him. Robin (Tim Drake) tracks her down and, after
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#17328812721978112-648: Is alive, she briefly rejoins the team to help them stop the Victim Syndicate, but leaves again after the death of Clayface and breaks up with Tim since he was consistently dishonest about his intent to remain Red Robin instead of attending Ivy University. When Ulysses Hadrian Armstrong, the General, infects Tim with the OMAC nanites and threatens to control Gotham, Batman and Cassandra ask Stephanie for help, and she reluctantly agrees. Using her drones, she leads an infiltration into
8268-472: Is convinced that he is cheating on her, and refuses to see him afterward. Shortly after this, Robin disappears from Gotham for several days, because he is in Tibet on a secret mission. In his absence, Spoiler realizes that she still wants to be with him. Batman approaches Spoiler to try to discover Tim's whereabouts, and then offers to train her. He also tells her Robin's real name, and this betrayal by Batman drives
8424-505: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Deathwing (comics) Robin is the alias of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics . The character was created by Bob Kane , Bill Finger , and Jerry Robinson to serve as a junior counterpart and the sidekick to the superhero Batman . As a team, Batman and Robin have commonly been referred to as
8580-417: Is dressing up as Spoiler, Robin falls into Violet's trap after Spoiler addresses him by his real name. After escaping the ambush, Robin and Batman track down the woman in a bid to force her to stop imitating Stephanie. When confronted, she removes her mask and reveals that she is indeed Stephanie, with Leslie Thompkins having faked her death. Batman reveals his doubts about her death leading him to not erect
8736-513: Is fifteen, he and Superman 's daughter Kara ( Supergirl ) sneak out to have an adventure and, with the help of Wonder Woman 's daughter Wonder Girl and The Flash 's nephew Kid Flash join forces to defeat some of Flash's Rogue's Gallery. Afterward they decide to form their own team called the Justice League . BJ and Kara become romantically involved as adults, but BJ puts the relationship on hold when Joker kills Dick, forcing him to become
8892-479: Is greatly extended by the use of the Lazarus Pit so he can help the human resistance battle the forces of Darkseid , but when he is mortally wounded he decides to pass on, feeling that he's kept Kara waiting far too long; the sight of their spirits departing together is enough to make even Bruce Senior shed a tear. For more information on a similar concept, see Damian Wayne , Bruce Wayne's son by Talia al Ghul . In
9048-416: Is in a room Deathstroke uses to torture Robin. Barbara Gordon uses photos of her autopsy to dissuade another young superheroine, Misfit , from using the name Batgirl. In Booster Gold (vol. 2) #5, Rip Hunter 's chalk board shows the phrase "No Trophy = Stephanie?" written on it. In Gotham Underground , an unidentified female in a Spoiler costume (later revealed to be Stephanie) is shown working for
9204-401: Is intrigued by her motivations to be a vigilante. While meeting a classmate, Francisco, Stephanie is left unconscious after being shot while trying to protect him from a group of kidnappers. Stephanie survives the gunshot wound and it is later revealed that Francisco's real name is Fernando Garcia, a son of a real estate mogul whose father's unethical business practices have led to him becoming
9360-427: Is later injured during Tim's battle with the occult hitman Johnny Warlock, breaking her leg. In a fit of rage, Tim apparently beats Warlock to death (though he would later be magically resurrected ), which sends him into a deep, angry depression . He refuses to speak with Stephanie, whom he blames for him killing Warlock. Stephanie Brown snaps Tim Drake out of his depression just as his father Jack Drake discovers he
9516-497: Is supportive when he comes out as bisexual and starts dating Bernard Dowd. In 2022, Stephanie and Cassandra received a series called Batgirls by Becky Cloonan and Michael W. Conrad where they take up residence in one of Gotham's poorer areas after Fear State made them fugitives. Stephanie and Cassandra acquire a new vehicle they name Bondo. Like most of the Batman family, Stephanie Brown has no superhuman powers. She has been trained extensively by Oracle, Batgirl, Batman, and
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#17328812721979672-470: Is trying to set the young detective up on a blind date with Barbara. The Commissioner finds their mutual attraction unsettling, because despite the fact that Batgirl's identity is yet unknown to him, Gordon knows that the superheroine is still a teenager. Her activities also have led her and Barbara into conflict with the new Dynamic Duo, Batman (Dick Grayson) and Robin (Damian Wayne). However, even though Stephanie and Damian initially do not get along, he
9828-633: The Arrowverse series Batwoman , portrayed by Morgan Kohan . Anna Lore portrays her in Gotham Knights . Stephanie Brown was introduced in a three-issue story arc in Detective Comics #647–649 in which writer Chuck Dixon reinvented a villain called the Cluemaster . Dixon created the Cluemaster's daughter Stephanie as simply a plot device for this story, seeking to "spoil" her father's plans. Even so,
9984-744: The Caped Crusaders and the Dynamic Duo . The character's first incarnation, Dick Grayson , debuted in Detective Comics #38 (April 1940). Conceived as a way to attract young readership, Robin garnered overwhelmingly positive critical reception, doubling the sales of the Batman titles. Robin's early adventures included Star Spangled Comics #65–130 (1947–1952), the character's first solo feature. He made regular appearances in Batman-related comic books and other DC Comics publications from 1940 through
10140-504: The General , who eventually tries to kill her. Her martial arts skills were able to save her from getting shot in the head—she is instead shot in the shoulder, escaping just in time to save Tim's life when the Scarab goes rogue. The General, now using the identity of Anarky, decides to plunge Gotham into anarchy by starting a citywide gang war, and Stephanie aids Robin in keeping order and defeating
10296-593: The Penguin . In the events following The Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul , Robin follows the trail of a female thief called Violet. This leads him to reunite with his friend Ives during social service classes at St. Camillus Cathedral. He also has random encounters with a blonde student in high school that trigger his memories of Stephanie. During his quest to find Violet, he is followed by a character dressed as Spoiler. This Spoiler reveals herself to Robin, trying to warn him that Violet led him to an ambush. Believing someone else
10452-492: The Red Hood . The premiere Robin limited series was published in 1991, featuring the character's third incarnation, Tim Drake , training to earn the role of Batman's vigilante partner. After two successful sequels, the monthly Robin series began in 1993 and ended in early 2009, which also helped his transition from sidekick to a superhero in his own right. In 2004 storylines, established DC Comics character Stephanie Brown became
10608-763: The Super-Sons . Grant Morrison used the Bruce Wayne Jr. character in JLA #9 (September 1997), in the story "Elseworlds." After the supervillain Key traps the Justice Leaguers in dream worlds, Batman dreams of a future in which he is married to Selina Kyle/Catwoman . They have a son named Bruce Junior, who was raised from birth to be a superhero and serves as Robin II alongside a Tim Drake Batman. John Byrne created his own Bruce Jr. in
10764-550: The U.S. government comes to Stephanie and her mother and tells her that Cluemaster had died while working for the Suicide Squad , Stephanie is shocked. She temporarily cuts off ties with Tim and goes on a vigilante rampage, hunting down the Riddler , her father's former associate, to try to get a better idea of who he had been in life. Eventually, she makes peace with his memory, and she and Tim rekindle their relationship. Stephanie
10920-457: The "Flying Graysons". A gangster named Boss Zucco , loosely based on actor Edward G. Robinson 's Little Caesar character, had been extorting money from the circus and killed Grayson's parents, John and Mary, by sabotaging their trapeze equipment as a warning against defiance. Batman investigated the crime and, as his alter ego billionaire Bruce Wayne, had Dick put under his custody as a legal ward. Together they investigated Zucco and collected
11076-555: The 'Year of the Bat'] that featured Robin sales went up because Robin did have his own fans." Although both Grant and Breyfogle initially believed that their Anarky character could potentially become the third version of Robin, they were quick to support the editorial decision to focus on Drake. The social anarchist duo adopted the character as their own in the early 1990s, during Grant's shift to libertarian socialism but before his late 1990s emphasis on Neo Tech . Breyfogle agreed that "it
11232-421: The 1989 Batman film. The character first donned the Robin costume, and became associated with the third version of Robin, in the acclaimed "A Lonely Place of Dying" sequel storyline, which culminated in issue #442, written by Marv Wolfman with cover art by George Pérez , storyline interior pencils by Pérez, Tom Grummett , as well as Jim Aparo , and inks by Mike DeCarlo . In addition to establishing Tim Drake as
11388-824: The Bat-Family. Before being revealed to Robin and Batman, Stephanie works freelance for the Penguin and gets information that helps him in his gang wars. She abruptly stops aiding him, after which he loses the advantage and leaves Gotham. She sends Penguin a note apologizing for leaving him when he needed her the most. During the Batman R.I.P. storyline, Stephanie played the role of both ally and betrayer to Robin. Following Batman's disappearance and descent into madness, Robin attempts to balance his search for Bruce with his attempts to maintain control over Gotham's criminals. Tim asks that Stephanie help him locate Batman, but having anticipated his downfall, Batman has ordered Stephanie to hinder
11544-478: The Batcave to seek the current Batman's aid, only to find Stephanie as Batgirl. After their confrontation, Stephanie and Tim reluctantly work together to protect Ra's al Ghul's possible targets. After saving Leslie Thompkins from the League, Tim attempts to rekindle his and Stephanie's old romance. She rejects these advances before Prudence, another member of Ra's al Ghul's men, interrupts them with her assignment to target
11700-489: The Birds of Prey in martial arts , acrobatics , strength training, interrogation, engineering, computer operation and detective work. She's spontaneous, inventive and quick on her feet, known for her creative solutions and 'leap before you look' attitude in her vigilante work. Bruce Wayne likens her mobility, wit and determination to that of fellow ex-Robin Dick Grayson . She has a strong intuition when it comes to people and
11856-501: The Boy Wonder in Detective Comics #38 (1940). The name "Robin the Boy Wonder" and the medieval look of the original costume were inspired by Robin Hood . Jerry Robinson noted he "came up with Robin because the adventures of Robin Hood were boyhood favorites of mine. I had been given a Robin Hood book illustrated by N. C. Wyeth ... and that's what I quickly sketched out when I suggested
12012-551: The Cowl " and Damian Wayne becoming Grayson's Robin. Following 2011's continuity changes resulting from The New 52 DC Comics relaunch, history was altered such that Tim Drake never took up the Robin mantle after Jason Todd's death, feeling that it would be inappropriate. Instead, he served as Batman's sidekick under the name of the Red Robin . However, in DC's Rebirth relaunch, his original origin
12168-586: The General have been using to manipulate Tim, showing him the truth, and convincing him to destroy the OMACs himself. After the dust settles, Tim decides to investigate the divergence in timelines Steph discovered, and she joins him in his quest. During The Joker War , Stephanie and Cassandra fight the Hench Master in Bludhaven. At the end of the story, both she and Stephanie reclaim their Bat symbols. Stephanie receives
12324-399: The General's Belfry 2.0 stronghold, and hacks into the system to shut it down. The evil AI Brother Eye confronts her with images of her past in the alternate timeline from which Batman Tim Drake from the future appeared, mocking her as "lesser" than a timeline where she was both Robin and Batgirl. Instead of being cast down, Steph laughs and cracks into the timeline history that Brother Eye and
12480-491: The General. Afterward, Robin reveals that he is aware that Stephanie had worked with the villains to help him become a better Robin under Batman's orders. He notes that her actions were successful, but her methods were questionable. No longer in love with Stephanie, Robin orders her to abandon the Spoiler identity as he can no longer trust her. In Batman and the Outsiders (vol. 2) #13, Batgirl recruits Spoiler and Vigilante to
12636-497: The Girl Wonder for not obeying his orders to the letter on two occasions. Stephanie then stole one of Batman's incomplete plans to control Gotham's crime and executed it. Trying to prove her worthiness, Brown inadvertently set off a gang war on the streets of Gotham. While trying to help end the war, Brown was captured and tortured by the lunatic crime boss Black Mask . She managed to escape, but apparently died shortly afterwards due to
12792-493: The Grayson years. Erica McCrystal likewise observes that Alan Grant, prior to Dixon's series, connected Drake to Batman's philosophy of heroic or anti-heroic " vigilantism " as "therapeutic for children of trauma. But this kind of therapy has a delicate integration process." The overcoming of trauma entailed distinct identity intersections and emotional restraint, as well as a "complete understanding" of symbol and self. Bruce Wayne,
12948-631: The Multiverse was recreated in the DC Universe event, Infinite Crisis , a new Earth-Two was born, with a Dick Grayson that resembles the original Earth-Two Grayson. It was established that this new Earth-Two was not the same one as before the Crisis on the Infinite Earths, although Grayson's attitude and his status as a crime-fighter with the Justice Society certainly reflected what had gone before. After
13104-424: The Penguin gave her an unknown device that allowed her to become completely invisible. According to Tim Drake, this "ability" was achieved through stolen technology. According to Batgirl writer Bryan Q. Miller, the ability to become invisible has not been incorporated into Stephanie's Batgirl costume. After Stephanie took on the Batgirl identity, Barbara Gordon designed a new costume for Stephanie more in line with
13260-453: The Penguin. Tim initially suspects Jason Todd of reprising his Red Robin persona. Jason claims innocence, supposing that someone may have stolen his suit when he discarded it earlier. The new Red Robin breaks up a scuffle between Tim and Jason, and later is revealed to be Ulysses Armstrong . Armstrong later changes costumes when he reveals himself to be the new Anarky, and after being severely burned in an explosion, an embattled Tim Drake dons
13416-486: The Scarecrow, impressing Barbara and proving that she now has the maturity and the responsibility to face her fears and failures. Barbara decides to allow Stephanie to continue on as Batgirl. Barbara later takes a job as an assistant professor at Stephanie's school to continue to keep in contact with her. Barbara also designs a costume for Stephanie to replace Cassandra's tattered costume, incorporating various elements of both
13572-401: The Spoiler and previous Batgirl costumes. As Stephanie is taking steps to balance her double-life as a college student and a vigilante, Barbara makes a test run on Stephanie's Batsuit, which includes monitoring Stephanie's vital signs and allowing both women to communicate through wireless links . After some warm-up against minor criminals, Stephanie finds herself against Livewire who causes
13728-554: The Spoiler, Robin, and Batgirl was retconned to have never occurred after the Flashpoint event, with her being reintroduced having just become the Spoiler in Batman Eternal . However, her history as Robin was later restored. Damian Wayne was the child of Bruce Wayne and Talia al Ghul , thus the grandson of the immortal Ra's al Ghul . Batman was unaware of his son's existence for years until Talia left Damian in his care. Damian
13884-538: The Teen Titans after Young Justice disbanded following a massive sidekick crossover during which Donna Troy was killed. Tim served as leader of this version of the Titans until 2009, at which point he quit due to the events of Batman R.I.P . Following Infinite Crisis and 52 , Tim Drake modified his costume to favor a mostly red and black color scheme in tribute to his best friend, Superboy (Kon-El) , who died fighting Earth-Prime Superboy . This Robin costume had
14040-461: The adolescent Robin. Tim Drake's first Robin costume had a red torso, yellow stitching and belt, black boots, and green short sleeves, gloves, pants, and domino mask . He wore a cape that was black on the outside and yellow on the inside. This costume had an armored tunic and gorget , an emergency "R" shuriken on his chest in addition to the traditional batarangs and a collapsible bo staff as his primary weapon, which Tim Drake continues to use as
14196-590: The aftermath of the gang war in that title, Barbara Gordon took Stephanie under her wing for a time. Stephanie also appeared as Spoiler fighting the supervillain Mother alongside the Robins in Batman and Robin Eternal . In DC Rebirth , the 2016 relaunch of DC Comics, Stephanie was recruited into Batman's emergency response team headed by Batwoman , along with Red Robin , Orphan (Cassandra Cain) , and Clayface . After Red Robin
14352-532: The bunker. Jason keeps his new suit and identity for the rest of his tenure as a "Challenger of the Unknown", only to discard it on his return to New Earth and revert to his "Red Hood" street clothing. During the Scattered Pieces tie-in to Batman R.I.P. , a new Red Robin makes his appearance, at first only as a glimmering image following Robin ( Tim Drake ) and suspected to have stolen a briefcase of money from
14508-608: The cape and cowl. The Red Robin costume was stated to be more symbolism, than an actual costume choice, as Jason has been both the Red Hood and Robin , being shown as Red Robin . However, in Countdown to Final Crisis #17, Jason dons a Red Robin suit from a display case in the "Bat Bunker" (Earth-51's equivalent to the Bat Cave) as he and Earth-51 Batman join the fight raging on the Earth above
14664-464: The character of Robin was intended to be Batman's Watson : Bill Finger, writer for many early Batman adventures, said: "Robin was an outgrowth of a conversation I had with Bob . As I said, Batman was a combination of Douglas Fairbanks and Sherlock Holmes . Holmes had his Watson . The thing that bothered me was that Batman didn't have anyone to talk to, and it got a little tiresome always having him thinking. I found that as I went along Batman needed
14820-416: The character starred in the five-issue miniseries Robin, written by Chuck Dixon , with interior pencils by Tom Lyle and cover art by Brian Bolland . The new Batman and Robin team went on their first official mission together in the story "Debut", again written by Grant and penciled by Breyfogle. Lauren R. O'Connor contends that, in early Tim Drake appearances, writers such as Grant and Chuck Dixon "had
14976-430: The character was well received by fans. The following year, Dixon launched the first ongoing Robin series and featured the Spoiler as a foil and love interest for Tim Drake . The character was at the center of a high-profile teen pregnancy storyline in 1998, which caused Wizard Magazine to name Robin the best ongoing comic book of the year. Stephanie remained an integral part of the Robin supporting cast for over
15132-524: The classic version except the timeframe occurs when the Detective Comics #38 was originally printed: 1940. This version of Dick Grayson ceased to exist after the multi arc DC Universe spanning event Crisis on Infinite Earths . He was killed by the Anti-Monitor 's Shadow Demons while trying to save civilians, along with Earth-1's Kole and the daughter of Earth-Two's Batman, the Huntress (Helena Wayne) . When
15288-602: The course of the series, works to "spoil" her father's plans by becoming a vigilante, calling herself the "Spoiler." At first, she merely attempts to spread news of the Cluemaster's plans on the internet, then works actively as a costumed crimefighter to capture and foil him. Following the Batman Eternal storyline, Brown as Spoiler helped other teens fight the Joker's chaos in Detective Comics: Endgame , and sought training from Selina Kyle and Eiko Hasigawa in Catwoman . In
15444-567: The current timeline, and were shunted through time and given false memories by the Time Trapper , who wished to use them as sleeper agents against the time travel villain Extant . It wasn't revealed until one of the later runs of the Teen Titans that this was not Dick Grayson, in fact his true identity was never uncovered. After this storyline, this version of Nightwing has not been seen since. In Kingdom Come (a post- Infinite Crisis Earth-22),
15600-542: The early 1980s, until the character set aside the Robin identity and became the independent superhero Nightwing . The character's second incarnation, Jason Todd , first appeared in Batman #357 (1983). He made regular appearances in Batman-related comic books until 1988, when he was murdered by the Joker in the storyline " A Death in the Family ". Jason later found himself alive after a reality-changing incident, eventually becoming
15756-424: The early 1980s. The character was rediscovered by a new generation of fans during the 1980s because of the success of The New Teen Titans , in which he left Batman's shadow entirely to assume the identity of Nightwing . He aids Batman throughout the later storyline regarding the several conflicts with Jason Todd until he makes his final return as the "Red Hood". Grayson temporarily took over as Batman (while Wayne
15912-615: The end of the four-issue arc. Tim Drake eventually transitioned from late preadolescence to adolescence, becoming the third Robin over the course of the storylines "Rite of Passage" and "Identity Crisis", with all issues scripted by Alan Grant and penciled by Norm Breyfogle. Story arcs that included Drake only in subplots or featured his training in criminal investigation, such as "Crimesmith" and "The Penguin Affair," were either written or co-written by Grant and Wolfman, with pencils by Breyfogle, Aparo, and M. D. Bright . Immediately afterwards,
16068-550: The epilogue of the Batman/ Captain America crossover from 1996; this Robin is a red-head and resembles a male Carrie Kelley. Captain America wakes up in modern times after having been frozen in ice towards the end of World War II. He reunites with Batman, a friend who had helped him when Joker and Red Skull joined forces. Cap is amazed to learn that in the time he slept, Bruce Wayne has retired from being Batman, has passed
16224-535: The equipment he was using. In the first part of the Red Robin/Batgirl crossover story "Collision", Tim Drake returns to Gotham with proof that Bruce Wayne is not only still alive but also lost in time. At the same time, immortal terrorist Ra's al Ghul begins his attack to destroy everything the Wayne family has built, in response to Tim crippling his League of Assassins organization during his quest. Tim returns to
16380-460: The event of his death or disappearance. Around this time, during The Lesson arc, Stephanie was forced to deal with a mysterious group known as The Order of the Scythe, who briefly framed her for murdering a student on her campus. During her final adventure as Batgirl, Stephanie confronts her father and is ensnared by a sample of Black Mercy . Stephanie experiences a number of future events, including
16536-399: The events of Flashpoint , Helena Wayne, daughter of Earth-2's Batman and Catwoman served as Robin and became the only partner that Batman had ever had. In this continuity, Bruce Wayne had never adopted Dick Grayson as his ward, so he never became Robin on Earth-2. However, he does appear later, married to Earth-2's Barbara Gordon, who never became Batgirl on Earth-2. The second Talon is
16692-529: The evidence needed to bring him to justice. From his debut appearance in 1940 through 1969, Robin was known as the Boy Wonder. Batman creates a costume for Dick, consisting of a red tunic, yellow cape, green gloves, green boots, green spandex briefs, and a utility belt. As he grew older, graduated from high school, and enrolled in Hudson University , Robin continued his career as the Teen Wonder, from 1970 into
16848-401: The fact that Stephanie still did not know his real name. During his time away, Robin befriends a girl named Star. One night, after seeing her go into an alley with some suspicious-looking people, Robin decides to follow her in costume. He runs into Stephanie, also on patrol, and she follows him as he tracks down Star to a gang meeting that erupts in a violent shootout. He saves Star, but Stephanie
17004-430: The field, while still fighting criminals like Wrath. It also appears that she is falling under the influence of Anarky, who is attempting to build a (literally) underground society of people who were impacted by Batman's activities. Eventually, Stephanie sees through Anarky's lies and helps Batman apprehend him. However, she walks away from Batman before he can tell her that Tim Drake is still alive. After discovering Tim
17160-409: The field. In an effort to prove her worth to Batman, Stephanie steals one of his long-term plans for dealing with the entirety of Gotham's criminal underworld, arranging a meeting to bring them all together. Since this plan is predicated on the involvement of "Matches Malone" who, unbeknownst to her, is a persona that Batman uses to infiltrate the underworld, it quickly spins out of control. The result
17316-526: The first half of 1990. Preorders for Batman and Detective Comics issues featuring a revived Joker and Penguin began to compete with, and even edged out, the last three parts of Grant Morrison 's and Klaus Janson 's Gothic storyline in Legends . Todd McFarlane 's Spider-Man arrived in the second half of 1990, inaugurating six months of Spidermania (or Mcfarlamania, depending on the reader). DC closed out 1990 with vendors under-ordering issues, prompting
17472-478: The fourth Robin for a short time before the role reverted to Tim Drake. Damian Wayne succeeds Drake as Robin in the 2009 story arc " Battle for the Cowl ." The current and former Robins always feature prominently in Batman's cast of supporting heroes ; Dick, Jason, Tim, and Damian all regard him as a father. In current continuity as of 2021, Dick Grayson serves as Nightwing, Jason Todd is the Red Hood, Stephanie Brown
17628-472: The intervening years). The child, named Clark Wayne, becomes BJ's Robin and is offered the mantle of Batman when he becomes an adult. Clark turns it down, having deduced that he isn't BJ's biological son, and believing that only a real Wayne should be Batman, instead adopts the identity of Knightwing. In the 1990s, BJ goes on a quest to locate his missing father, whom he eventually discovers as having taken over Ra's al Ghul 's criminal empire and turned it into
17784-446: The investigation, believing that Tim needs to learn how to handle things on his own. Tim discovers the deception, and pulls away from his relationship with Stephanie. Unbeknownst to Tim, Batman has also ordered Stephanie to make Robin a stronger hero by challenging him, so Stephanie hires the Scarab, an assassin she encountered while she was Robin. After ordering the Scarab to use non-lethal methods, she also begins working with Tim's enemy,
17940-417: The last few months of her pregnancy, but he returns to her when she is giving birth. With Robin's help, she is able to cope with placing her child up for adoption . Although a painful experience, she feels it best to give her daughter a chance at a better life. Soon after, Robin's father sends him away to boarding school, and the couple is forced into a long-distance relationship, made even more complicated by
18096-455: The less-revealing Red Robin costume to hide his wounds. He later returns to his standard uniform. In 2009, a new on-going series was introduced titled Red Robin . The new Red Robin was revealed to be Tim Drake. Stephanie Brown (comics) The daughter of the criminal Cluemaster , the character originated as the amateur crime-fighter Spoiler , who had taken it upon herself to foil her father's villainous schemes. Establishing herself as
18252-560: The mantle of Robin from Tim to Damian Wayne . Furious, Tim comes to believe that Bruce is still alive, and goes in search of him under the guise of Red Robin. When he cuts off all communication with the Bat-Family and the Teen Titans, Stephanie approaches Tim in his private base. This action, however, only infuriates Tim more. Kicking her in the chest after she sneaks up on him, he reiterates that he cannot trust her and orders her not to follow him on his mission, leading her to return to Gotham. Stephanie Brown graduates from high school off-panel,
18408-479: The mantle to Dick Grayson and that his son Bruce Junior is the new Robin. Byrne revisited Bruce Jr. in his Superman & Batman: Generations series. There, Bruce Junior is son of Bruce Senior and his wife, who is never identified but is implied to be Julie Madison . "BJ" greatly desires to be a hero and trains in the hopes of following in his father's footsteps. His mother refuses to let BJ become Robin until he turns eighteen. On Halloween night of 1964, when BJ
18564-641: The miniseries Crisis on Infinite Earths , much of the DC Comics continuity was redone. Dick Grayson's origin, years with Batman, and growth into Nightwing remained mostly unchanged; but Todd's character was completely revised. He was now a black-haired street orphan who first encountered Batman when he attempted to steal tires from the Batmobile . Batman saw to it that he was placed in a school for troubled youths. Weeks later, after Dick Grayson became Nightwing and Todd proved his crime-fighting worth by helping Batman catch
18720-451: The name Robin Hood, which they seemed to like, and then showed them the costume. And if you look at it, it's Wyeth's costume, from my memory, because I didn't have the book to look at." Although Robin is best known as Batman's sidekick, the Robins have also been members of the superhero groups the Teen Titans (with the original Robin, Dick Grayson , as a founding member and the latter group's leader) and Young Justice . In Batman stories,
18876-576: The new Batgirl. Stephanie, however, bested the assassin in combat. Prudence subsequently reveals her true allegiance to Tim, which apparently overcomes her supposed loyalty to The Demon's Head. After narrowly escaping Tim's safehouse (which the League of Assassins had booby-trapped before the three arrived), they encounter members of another organization of assassins, the Council of Spiders. The League of Assassins are eventually defeated after Tim thwarts Ra's al Ghul's plan strategically with Bruce Wayne's will that
19032-435: The new Black Mask. She later appears alongside Batwoman and fellow teen superheroines Stargirl , Supergirl , and Lightning as part of an all-female team created by Wonder Woman to repel Professor Ivo 's faux-alien invasion of Washington, D.C. After Bruce Wayne's return , it is revealed that the true reason Cassandra Cain handed over her Batgirl mantle to Stephanie was that she was acting under her mentor's order in
19188-451: The notion of a heterosexual bildungsroman subplot . The ensuing Tim Drake storylines, authored by Alan Grant and penciled by Norm Breyfogle , coupled with the 1989 release of Burton's Batman , spurred sales of both comic book titles Batman and Detective Comics . For the latter, Grant attested in 2007 that "when the Batman movie came out, the sales went up, if I recall correctly, from around 75,000 to about 675,000." 1989–90
19344-407: The outset and constituted part of an effort to lure Tim back to the cape, Batman evades the question. However, when a dying Stephanie asks, "Was I ever really Robin?", Batman answers, "Of course you were." However, her memorial has been present in different publications since the controversy arose. In September 2011, The New 52 rebooted DC's continuity. In this new timeline, Barbara Gordon takes
19500-543: The potential candidates to help fill Miss Martian 's vacant seat on the team's roster. She was drawn into a fight with Bombshell , who mocked her and accused her of being a coward. In the end, Robin revealed that Stephanie had not come to join the Titans, but instead to help him with his preparations to leave the team. In the Red Robin series, Stephanie and Dick Grayson (now, the new Batman, following Bruce Wayne's apparent death) become concerned about Tim after Dick transfers
19656-414: The publisher to push Batman #457 and the first part of the Robin mini-series into second and then third printings. The next year, 1991, witnessed the ascension of Chris Claremont 's, Jim Lee 's, and Scott Williams 's X-Men against Magneto , as well as Fabian Nicieza 's and Rob Liefeld 's X-Force , into the top of the preorder rankings. The only exception to this X-mania was, again, Tim Drake and
19812-446: The residents of his neighborhood. He is initially distrustful of both Bruce Wayne and Batman, but after witnessing his dedication towards helping people and figuring out they are the same person, the two become partners and work together to stop the corrupted Dent and arsonists terrorizing the city. The Robin of Earth-Two is a parallel version of the fictional DC Comics superhero, who was ntroduced after DC Comics created Earth-Two ,
19968-483: The rest of the Bat-family's. It is equipped with kevlar and carbon fiber-reinforced polymer to protect against ballistic, flame, and electrical attacks. Stephanie's Batsuit also carries a wireless relay within the cowl, permitting her to remain in contact with Barbara. The suit also allows Barbara to monitor Stephanie's vital signs. Stephanie now also uses a collapsible bo staff, similar to the one that Tim Drake uses. It
20124-562: The role of Batgirl once again, with Stephanie Brown no longer existing in mainstream continuity. In June 2012, fans of the character attempted a letter movement, sending waffles, waffle mix, or letters to the editors, expressing a wish to see her published once more. Shortly thereafter, Dan DiDio claimed in an interview that about ten waffles had arrived and expressed doubt that her fandom was really as strong as it appeared. On October 11, 2013, writer Scott Snyder announced at New York Comic Con that Brown would appear as Spoiler beginning in
20280-617: The role of fear in instigating a series of violent crimes. In the comics, Tim Drake was a late preadolescent boy who had followed the adventures of Batman and Robin ever since witnessing the murder of the Flying Graysons. This served to connect Drake to Grayson, establishing a link that DC hoped would help readers accept this new Robin. Drake surmised their secret identities with his amateur but instinctive detective skills and followed their careers closely. Tim stated on numerous occasions that he wishes to become "The World's Greatest Detective",
20436-491: The role of the Caped Crusader. Bruce Jr., having secretly trained on his own, volunteers to become the new Robin, despite objections from his mother. As Robin II, he fights alongside Batman II. Several subsequent " imaginary stories " featuring Bruce Jr. followed; the last in this series was "Bat-Girl—Batwoman II" in Batman #163 (May 1964). Bruce Wayne Jr next appeared in World's Finest Comics #215 (January 1973) as one of
20592-421: The role, Matt was eventually asked to stop being Robin after his encounter with the Joker. In the digitally rendered tale Batman: Digital Justice , James Gordon the grandson of his namesake, Commissioner Gordon , takes on the mantle of the Batman. A character named Robert Chang , who is somewhat reminiscent of the post-Crisis Jason Todd, takes on the mantle of Robin. In 2021, DC published Batman '89 ,
20748-542: The secrecy of Batman and his allies, Robin is unable to reveal his true identity to Spoiler. At first, she seems happy with this arrangement. Stephanie then finds out she is pregnant by an ex-boyfriend who had run from Gotham City after the earthquake depicted in Batman: Cataclysm . Robin, under the alias Alvin Draper, takes Stephanie to Lamaze classes, and the two become even closer. Robin moves to Keystone City during
20904-433: The sequel to the Robin miniseries, the first variant issue of which garnered the third spot, firmly wedged between variant issues of X-Force and X-Men . The mini-series pitted solo Robin against the Joker, in response to fan demands for a matchup since "A Death in the Family." The 1990s comic booming bust had begun. In a supplemental interview with Daniel Best, Alan Grant added that "every issue from about that time [after
21060-629: The severity of her injuries. Tim Drake keeps a memorial for her in his cave hideout underneath Titans Tower in San Francisco . She appeared alive and stalking Tim, after his return from traveling around the globe with his mentor. It turned out that Dr. Leslie Thompkins had faked Stephanie's death in an effort to protect her. For years she operated on and off as the Spoiler, but was then recruited as Barbara Gordon 's replacement as Batgirl. She had her own series, as well as making appearances throughout various Batman and Batman spin-off series. Her time as
21216-411: The superhero Red Robin . Neal Adams redesigned the entire costume with the exception of the "R" shuriken logo, first sketched by Norm Breyfogle. Tim Drake is the first Robin to have his own comic book series, where he fought crime on his own. Tim Drake, as Robin, co-founded the superhero team Young Justice in the absence of the Teen Titans of Dick Grayson's generation, but would then later re-form
21372-410: The third Batman. BJ and Kara eventually marry, but their wedding is halted by Kara's brother Joel Kent. Joel, who had been manipulated his whole life by Lex Luthor to hate his family, kills Kara by punching through her chest. Joel dies shortly thereafter, and BJ agrees to raise his powerless son in order to prevent another such tragedy from happening (he also marries Joel's widow, Mei-Lai, sometime in
21528-503: The third issue of DC's 2014 weekly series Batman Eternal . Brown made her first New 52 appearance in Batman (vol. 2) #28, a teaser issue for Batman Eternal . Stephanie Brown is the daughter of the Cluemaster , one of Gotham City 's third-rate criminals, and a registered nurse named Crystal Brown . Her father spends most of her childhood in jail or away from the family and claims to be rehabilitated upon his return to Gotham. Stephanie becomes furious when she discovers that he
21684-504: The time of the story, according to the Elliot S! Maggin novelization , and Nightstar calls Bruce Wayne "Grandpa", despite no blood relation. At the end of the comic and the novel, Bruce and Dick reconcile. Red Robin reappeared in promotional material for the DC Countdown event. Eventually, it was revealed that this Red Robin was not Dick Grayson, but rather Jason Todd who appeared under
21840-461: The two fled. It is unknown how the two managed to flee to New Earth, or what has happened to Talon beyond that. In "The Second Batman and Robin Team" ( Batman #131, April 1960), Bruce Wayne's butler Alfred writes a story about the possible future of Batman and Robin. In it, Bruce Wayne marries Kathy Kane ( Batwoman ) and they have a son named Bruce Jr. When Wayne retires as Batman, Dick Grayson takes over
21996-514: The wake of his father's apparent death, his father's first Robin, Dick Grayson, took over as Batman with Damian serving as the new Robin. The version of Damian depicted in Batman: The Brave and the Bold has more in common with Bruce Jr. than with his portrayal in comics. Introduced as an alternative Dick Grayson in the pages of Team Titans from a timeline when his Titan teammate Donna Troy had
22152-417: The writers were told from the start that Spoiler would die in this crossover and she was made Robin "purely as a trick to play on the readers, that we would fool them into thinking that the big event [War Games] was that Stephanie Brown would become Robin". The decision was unpopular with both him and Nightwing writer Devin Grayson , and he felt "pleased and vindicated" over the eventual controversy. During
22308-469: Was a big thing to bring in the new Robin, yes. I know my fans often point specifically to that double page splash where his costume first appears as a big event for them as fans and I usually have to point out to them that Neal Adams was the one who designed the costume. The 'R' symbol and the staff were all that was really mine." In the "Rite of Passage" storyline for Detective Comics , Grant and Breyfogle intertwined 1) Drake matching wits with Anarky ; 2)
22464-461: Was affectionate to his father. After Batman's apparent death during Final Crisis , Talia left her son under Dick Grayson and Alfred Pennyworth 's care and Damian was deeply affected by his father's absence. In the first issue of "Battle for the Cowl", Damian was driving the Batmobile and was attacked by Poison Ivy and Killer Croc . Damian was rescued by Nightwing , who then tries to escape, but
22620-517: Was indeed the "Year of the Bat:" Capital and Diamond City Distributors reported that the Year One -inspired Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight dominated four out of the five spots for preorders ( not total sales and second printings). The only exception was the third preorder spot, snagged by Batman #442, the conclusion to Tim Drake's "A Lonely Place of Dying" storyline. The "Year of the Bat" continued into
22776-456: Was made before his disappearance. Stephanie would also show up against her mentor's nemesis, the Calculator , with his daughter, Wendy Harris , to rescue Barbara and Gotham itself after the villain injects nanites into the citizens and heroes of the city and controls them. In another storyline, Stephanie made a cameo appearance as a member of the assault team led by Dick Grayson to go against
22932-519: Was originally attached to play the role in the Burton films). Winston is a mechanic who works at Royal Autobody, an auto shop in Burnside owned by Harvey Dent's childhood mentor, Jerome Otis. His ancestors had their own automotive company that was acquired by Bruce Wayne's great-grandfather in a forced buyout. He strongly dislikes cops and authority figures and dresses up as a masked vigilante at night to help
23088-444: Was restored. In 2020s comics tying in with DC's Infinite Frontier era, Drake returns to the Robin mantle as Batman's primary crime-fighting partner when Damian goes on a soul-searching journey. Meanwhile, in his solo adventures, he goes on his own soul-searching journey, and reconnects with his old friend Bernard Dowd, whom he begins to date. Tim later comes out to Batman and is accepted. His solo series Tim Drake: Robin explores
23244-511: Was revealed in The Search for Ray Palmer : Crime Society that there have been several Talons. The first one is shown dressed parallel to that of Grayson's classic Robin costume, including brown pixie boots. On post-Crisis Earth-3, the Teen Titans' Talon and Duela Dent , the daughter of the Jokester, had been dating. When Duela revealed their relationship to her parents, her father denounced her and
23400-439: Was shot down by Black Mask's men. Nightwing tried to fight the thugs, but the thugs were shot by Jason Todd. After a fight between Nightwing and Todd, Todd eventually shot Damian in the chest. In the final issue of the series, Alfred made Damian into Robin. Damian's first task as Robin was to rescue Tim. After "Battle for the Cowl", Grayson adopted the mantle of Batman, and instead of having Tim (whom he viewed as an equal rather than
23556-486: Was some controversy in the fan community about both the character's death by torture and the fact that even though she served as Robin for a time, she received no monument or memorial in the Batcave during the years of her apparent death unlike the second Male Robin (Third Over All) Jason Todd . Regarding the former issue, at the 2011 Auckland Writers and Readers Festival, the former Batgirl writer Dylan Horrocks said that
23712-490: Was subsequently murdered by the Joker in the storyline, A Death in the Family , in which the psychopath beat the youngster severely with a crowbar, and left him to die in a warehouse rigged with a bomb. Jason Todd later returned as the new Red Hood (the original alias of the Joker) when he was brought back to life due to reality being altered. After the continuity changes following the New 52 DC Comics relaunch, Jason becomes
23868-573: Was taken to see the graves to Thomas Wayne, Martha Wayne, and Alfred Pennyworth until he died peacefully in Batman's presence. Batman buried his clone on the property of Pennyworth Manor. In the Future's End event and later in the DC Rebirth run, Matt McGinnis , brother of Terry McGinnis , becomes the newest incarnation of Robin in order to save his brother from the villain Payback. Initially excited about
24024-414: Was the star of her own ongoing Batgirl comic book series, up until DC's company-wide relaunch of all their titles. In 2014, the character returned to the Spoiler identity in Batman Eternal , completely resetting her to the beginning of her crime fighting career. She is the only character to have been both Robin and Batgirl in mainstream continuity. Stephanie Brown appeared in the second season of
24180-412: Was traveling through time), using the aid of Damian Wayne, making his newish appearance as "Robin", to defeat and imprison Todd. With Bruce Wayne's return, Grayson went back to being Nightwing. DC was initially hesitant to turn Grayson into Nightwing and to replace him with a new Robin. To minimize the change, they made the new Robin, Jason Todd, who first appeared in Batman #357 (1983), similar to
24336-500: Was violent and lacking in discipline and morality, and was trained by the League of Assassins . Learning to kill at a young age, Damian's murderous behavior created a troubled relationship with his father, who vowed never to take a life. Conceived to become a host for his maternal grandfather's soul as well as a pawn against the Dark Knight, Batman saved his child from this fate, which forced Ra's to inhabit his own son's body, and thus, Damian
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