#Gates of Gotham

[casscainmainly]

Thinking about Cass being shunted off to Hong Kong and having all sorts of feelings about it again.

I think Gates of Gotham is the only series (besides bits of Red Robin) to even touch on how Cass reacts to it.

Gates of Gotham #1

When Dick tells her he didn't know she was back, Cass responds "I'm not". This is mostly referring to the fact she's back for a mission, but it also sheds light on how she's feeling. She doesn't belong in Gotham anymore, not the way she used to. In Red Robin #17, we see she was fighting without a Bat symbol, until Tim gives it back. Bruce sending her to Hong Kong wasn't just a geographical distancing, but an ideological one as well (whether he intended it or not). Cass understood him sending her away as a rebuke of her right to the Bat mantle.

Gates of Gotham #2

How does Cass feel about being 'relegated to Hong Kong'? She sidesteps Damian's comment here (mostly 'cause she knows not to engage), but her silence indicates it's not an easy answer. I wonder if there is some resentment/negative feelings towards Bruce.

Gates of Gotham #4

This exchange is so interesting if you look at it through Cass' perspective. Dick is grappling with his insecurities about not being a good enough Batman, and says "if you don't belong [in Gotham], she'll never keep you." Dick and Cass both don't come from Gotham - his comment unintentionally reflects on Cass' ability to be Batman as well. And given that Cass just returned from Hong Kong, it makes her feel even more like an outsider.

So her response - "you're[...] wrong.[...] It's not about the city. It's about how you choose to see the world. Everything else is just an excuse" - is not only addressing Dick's problems, but also her own. Her whole story is about choice and agency, and here she's making it clear: upholding the Bat mantle is their choice. No one can take it from them, not the opinions of Gotham citizens, not their own insecurities, not even Bruce himself.

Gates of Gotham #5

Cass asserts her desire to stay in Gotham (a decision tragically followed by the New 52, but I'll ignore that for now). Where Dick's arc ends with him telling Bruce he can be Batman, Cass doesn't interact with Bruce at all - her right to the Bat mantle no longer requires a Bruce stamp of approval. It shows the difference in Dick and Cass' approaches to Batman (Cass' loyalty is to the symbol, Dick's loyalty is to the man), but also highlights Cass' growth. She chooses to stay in Gotham because she wants to, not because of anyone else.

I'm not actually sure if her feelings on going to HK are elaborated elsewhere, so if anyone has more info please let me know!!! But I think it's very interesting that her first entry into Gotham is in defiance of David Cain, and her re-entry into Gotham is, in this interpretation, in defiance of Bruce.

[dailytims]

Batman: Gates of Gotham #3

[dailyhush]

Batman: Gates of Gotham (2011) #2 - The Four Families of Gotham by Scott Snyder, Kyle Higgins, Trevor McCarthy, Guy Major, and Jared K. Fletcher

[kelaeri]

With the addition of House of Hush today, I have finally completed my main series collection for Dick as Batman! I'm still missing some other (more minor) story lines, but very happy with this so far <3

[wateroflifefrommountains]

RANDOM THOUGHT AT 4AM: Wouldn't Damian see Steph as his sister rather than Cass?

I understand that Steph has not been adopted by Bruce; hence, they are not sisters per se. But it must be stated that during her 2009 Batgirl run, Steph was the de facto sister to the little demon we call Damian and, in my opinion, this should remain.

It was shown that Steph took the time and effort to connect to the little guy. While this was erased during the New52 and the "introduction to a childhood" role was given to Duke Thomas during the Rebirth Era [end of We Are Robin], as everything is canon now; hence, this bond is back.

They did not immediately get along, then again, this seems to be a trend with Steph's relationships. Case in point, brick to future love interest's face. not to mention, Cass giving her one of the coldest replies during training.

On the other hand, the relationship between Cass and Damian has been casual at best pre-New 52. While Damian tells Stephanie that he would prefer to have met Cass; it is shown in the 5-part story, Gates of Gotham [if it is cannon], that Damian does not like Cassandra and is willing to push her buttons. Unfortunately, unlike Steph, Cass isn't going to banter, she has a lot of heart for forgiveness and second chances but little patience for taunts. [Cass is the same person who openly admitted to getting taunted by Shiva into a deathmatch.]

At the end of the Gates of Gotham run, Cass and Damian establish some levels of respect but their interactions are sparse. While Damian is shown to trust Cass's decisions, I interpret this as professional courtesy. Steph and Damian's connection is more fleshed out and Steph's patience and willingness to meet Damian in the middle leads to a sisterly bond between them. She cares for him and actively treats him as the 10-year-old he is. She has been shown to slip and deal a low blow every now and then but that actually worked in her favor as Damian would have walked all over her otherwise. IIRC, Steph and Duke were the ones who encouraged Damian to have a childhood. Recently, Bruce is giving it a go in the Batman and Robin Comics but this should not erase Steph's connection to Damian. In more recent comics, Cass was teasing Damian about his loss at the Lazarus Tournament sometime before the Lazarus Planet event started. The two were shown to have developed enough of a bond to tease each other though these interactions are VERY rare. This leads me to conclude that Damian still considers Steph as her de facto sister [sister based on the performance of the role] while Cass is the de jure sister [sister according to law] as the former actually extended their hand to him during his formative years.

[gffa]

LOOK AT THIS BABY BIRD PERCHING ON THE BACK OF A CHAIR THAT IS IN NO WAY A BRUCE WAYNE MOVE, THAT IS A DICK GRAYSON MOVE DAMIAN IS COPYING DICK HERE AND I’M EMOTIONAL ABOUT IT

[tomoleary]

Dustin Nguyen Batman: Gates of Gotham #1-5 (2011)

[dudethatsmyundeaduncle]

TIM'S JIMMY NEUTRON LOOKING ASS IN GATES OF GOTHAM IS SENDING ME 💀💀💀

[zahri-melitor]

Oh goodness, I was RIGHT to save Gates of Gotham. This is so satisfying.

Look at that Black Bat art! I love the way they make her ragged cape float.

Cass and Tim being buddies and swapping tips. I love how far they’ve come together.

The opening scene was Dick and Tim working a case together!

Just the DYNAMICS of the four of them here looking over plans. You can tell so much.

Also every pairing between Dick, Cass, Tim and Damian gets some time together. It respects their different dynamics! It SHOWS they all have different dynamics!

[mostsanescarletspiderfan]

Batman: gates of gotham has the coolest grappling hook action I've ever seen.

[misspickman]

Remember gates of gotham... Sound of the summer

[casscainmainly]

I know they're probably not related, but I like to connect this scene (from Gates of Gotham #2) to Dustin Nguyen's story "What's In The Box?" in DC Festival of Heroes:

(Nguyen also uses the Black Bat costume, placing it around Gates of Gotham time).

I like to think that, while Cass more or less brushes off Damian's insult in Gates of Gotham, she can't help that it does get to her. That being shipped off to Hong Kong was genuinely something she had to process. And I like that, because this is in DC Festival of Heroes, her feelings about Bruce shipping her to Hong Kong are tangled up in her understanding of her race.

Idk I just like reading these as connected, because it indicates that Cass had a lot more feelings about leaving Gotham than she let on.

[dailytims]

Batman: Gates of Gotham #1

[dailyhush]

Batman: Gates of Gotham (2011) #2 - The Four Families of Gotham by Scott Snyder, Kyle Higgins, Trevor McCarthy, Guy Major, and Jared K. Fletcher

[gffa]

“The thing that scared me the most about becoming Batman was the chance the city might change me into you.  But Gotham doesn’t change you.  She just reveals things, whether you like them or not.  And today she showed me that I can be Batman.” “I never doubted it, Dick.  Given enough time, I’m sure you’d make an even better Batman than me." I LOVE THIS A LOT, because Dick does have his darker sides, he still has so very much rage inside of him, he’s still so angry, but the thing about Dick Grayson is that he’ll choose love over anger, that that’s who he is at his core.  Bruce gave him the tools to help channel that anger so it no longer blinded him like when he was a child, and that’s what being Batman reveals about him, in these circumstances. He won’t turn into Bruce, despite that the temptation and pull is there, Dick knows what it’s like to get lost in the fury and fear and pain of trying to hold a city like Gotham together, of seeing the worst over and over, being Batman will expose that same anger that’s always been there.  But it also shows him that he’ll choose connection over isolation, he’ll choose faith in himself over the fear, that he can be Batman without getting lost in it. And Bruce has that faith in him as well, he sees his son is a better man than he is, he sees that Dick has those dark sides, but he doesn’t lose himself in them, and maybe Bruce has a sharper detective’s mind, maybe Cass will always be a better fighter than either of them, but Dick’s heart is what makes all of this work, it’s what inspires and leads others, and Bruce is so, so proud of how much more valuable that is than how hard you can throw a punch.  Like, don’t get me wrong, Bruce struggles to get to the place where he can say it, he still tends to isolate when the shit hits the fan, but at the end of the day, he does say it to his kids, he sees that they’re growing beyond what he is and he’s so damn proud of them.

[mysterycitrus]

writing dick and damian’s relationship without demeaning talia and bruce challenge….. we must progress past the need for nuclear family dynamics