#and robin tim fans were like fuck yeah

[oifaaa]

Your Tim gives big “peaked in high-school” energy, but I doubt he peaked in high-school, so maybe he peaked at being Robin, thus creating new trauma in the family, and maybe hero community

Oh Tim 100% is the peaked in high-school guy like dude was having a ball he was super popular constantly had girls falling over themselves for him and he was Robin- the fact that Tim is so reluctant to let robin go is literally the biggest tell of all that this boy is trying desperately to hang on to how things used to be

[clockwayswrites]

Orange, City Pigeon, Danny & Batfam @roanawayspoons WC: 864 CW: Blood, injury

“I’m just saying, you shouldn’t get to be Red by default.”

“Well I can’t be Robin and Hood is a unique identifier.”

“No, nope, just because you weren’t creative enough to come up with something other than Red Robin you shouldn’t get to just claim Red.”

“Creative enough? Oh that’s rich from the man who ripped off the Joker.”

“It was poetic!”

“It was lazy.”

“Look here, bird bones—” …and Tim was gone, Jason thought with a sigh. He turned back to see Tim still before the last jump, staring down into the alleyway with a tilted head. Jason’s hand went to one of his guns. “Red?”

“Blood.”

“And? It’s Gotham. I think the city is held together by blood at this point.”

“Green blood, Hood.”

“How do you know it’s blood then?” Jason asked, but stalked forward to look. Alright, maybe the splatter was pretty distinctive.

That particular shade of green was also concernedly distinctive.

“Well, fuck.”

“Yep.”

“Who bleeds Lazarus water?”

“No clue,” Tim said unhelpfully. “Guess we better find out.”

They dropped silently down into the alley, one after another, and followed the trail of toxic green blood. The trail went cold a few times, whoever was bleeding was clearly trying to hide, but they were inexperienced at it and the Bats had spent enough time stalking through the streets of this city that the cement and stone basically spoke to them. The trail couldn’t hide from them.

Without warning, Jason shot his arm out to stop Tim. He tapped the side of his helmet silently; he heard something. Tim nodded and they fanned out to search. A door in this latest alley they were in was cracked open, like someone had tried to close it and it had bounced back off the latch.

A green hand print was smeared down it.

Jason pulled a gun from his holster, but let Tim go through first. While Jason was far lighter on his feet than someone his size should be, there was no denying that Tim was stealthier. Jason would be just a few steps behind ready to provide the muscles and firepower.

It was odd, then, when Tim purposefully let his foot scrape against the ground as he rounded the corner. Jason just cursed silently as the idiot continued forward, cutting himself off from Jason’s line of sight. “Hey, looks like you could use some help with that wound before you bleed out.”

Jason couldn’t hear what was said back; he edged closer.

“You must not be from Gotham. I’m Red Robin, one of the heroes here.”

The person snorted. “Just… over… then?”

Tim laughed. It was one of his many fake laughs, but the one meant to soothe people in trouble. “Why would I do that? I’m a vigilante. Do you know how illegal what I do is? I just don’t want to see you bleed out. Maybe I can even take you to a safe house where you can rest.

“So… interrogate me?”

“I mean, I’d like to know who tried to kill a kid, but that’s to make them pay, not you.”

Jason’s hand gripped his gun so tightly it hurt.

The person… the kid laughed. It was a broken sound that no kid should have to make.

Jason had heard it a lot on the streets.

“Maybe I deserve it.” Their voice was raspy, like every word caught in their throat.

Jason came around the corner. The kid went rigid, which was the last thing they needed with how blood seeped from their fingers where their pale hand was clutched against a too big hoodie.

Tim leaned casually into Jason's space in a way he wouldn’t normally, putting on a show for the kid that Red Hood was safe. It was at least true for the kid. Jason leaned back, mostly for the comfort of having his brother close in the face of the sight. Seeing bloody kids never got easier.

“You’re what, sixteen?” Jason asked.

“…fifteen?”

“Yeah, no fifteen year old deserves to bleed out. You know who I am?”

They shook their head. It dislodged the hood a little. The tangled, chin length hair was startling white and splattered with dried green blood. Jason forced himself to take a breath.

“I’m Red Hood. I protect part of this city called Crime Alley. I’m not afraid to kill a shithead, especially ones that hurt kids, but I never harm a kid. I’ve got places to put you if you need somewhere safe; places not in the system. Or get you somewhere. Do you have a place to go to?”

The kid laughed again. Somehow it sounded worse this time. “That’s the thing. I do. I might, I guess. Just no one is going to believe me.”

“Why won’t they believe you? Where do you need to get?” Tim asked.

The kid looked up. Jason felt Tim tense against him. Hell, Jason tensed. They were the wrong color, but Jason knew those eyes, those brows, that slope of the nose. Everything was just a little sideways, but Jason knew that face. He knew what the kid was going to say.

“I need to get to Bruce Wayne.”

--- AN: Happy Trauma Tuesday~

Feel free to continue this, use it as a prompt if you'd like!

[glitter-stained]

I've seen many people point out that canon members of the Batfam would hate their fanon counterpart (rightfully), I would like to highlight that fanon Bruce would deck canon Bruce upon five minutes of meeting him

Literally the reason why comics fan who actually read the comics and people who were starting to get into the comics feel intimidated/disgusted/ are either taking a break or straight up giving up on canon recently is how exhausting it is to see him behave like an abusive piece of shit and the narrative go "um actually he was right ☝️" or "yeah they were both at fault here but don't worry they hug it out". ( Between that, the intense victim-blaming and the classist/racist/sexist/ableist narratives, I understand the fatigue, you can only eat so much shit in the hopes of finding chocolate before you give up on the cake.)

Anyway, canon and fanon Bruce meeting:

Fanon Bruce: yeah, I do wish Jason wouldn't kill people in Gotham... I let him get away with more, I know I'm being soft on him compared to the others because he's my baby and I'm afraid to lose him again, but I wish he would stop...

Canon Bruce: have you tried beating him into a coma?

Fanon Bruce: what?

Canon Bruce (half-possessed by the entity he himself created): if it doesn't work, you could install a failsafe in his dna that gives him a a paralyzing panic attack when his adrenaline spikes!

Fanon Bruce: ...did you torture and murder your son ? how the fuck is the kid still alive at that point

*****

Fanon Bruce: I don't know what to get Tim for his 16th birthday... Maybe a camera? And some kind of expensive coffee blend, he'd like that...

Canon Bruce: Tim doesn't drink coffee

Fanon Bruce : Oh really? What should I get him then?

Canon Bruce: I have a suggestion.

*****

Canon Bruce: yes, honestly Cassandra not having a legal identity does have its advantages...

Fanon Bruce : *sighs and opens the batcomputer*

*****

Canon Bruce: yeah, everyone was mad at Dick after I convinced him to fake his death to go undercover in Spyral... He was a bit unruly but we sparred it out, thankfully I could beat the stubbornness out of him. ^^ I'm also very glad I got Duke to give up on that silly Lark idea and told him to become Signal! The last thing the world needs is another reckless Robin who gets himself killed like Jason and Stephanie did.

Fanon Bruce : r/AskReddit: Is it murder if I kill my evil counterpart and kidnap his children? I have a no-kill rule but I never considered it to apply to suicide, I'm hoping there's a loophole there.

[gilverrwrites]

Call me Tim

Tim Drake/Reader, 2K

[Say his name, P2] AN: I did not expect part 1 to be se well recieved, here hoping part 2 was worth the wait! CWs: Breach of trust, teasing, semi-public foreplay, mildly stalker-ish behaviour on Tims part.

Tim had always told himself that fucking his fans was not a thing for him. Not a kink. Bernard was different, he just had so much passion. He would have been into him regardless of whatever he was fixated on.

Then you happened.

Ever since he’s been telling himself that it was coincidence, not causation. And again, he liked you before he found out you’d spent your formative years kissing cutouts of him. Well, he doesn’t know that part for sure, but he liked to imagine it. Point being; your adolescent crush on him was not the driving force behind his attraction to you.

But as he found himself plotting ways to naturally bump into you as Tim Drake-Wayne, it was becoming increasingly harder to deny that he maybe was, a little bit, kind of into it.

Hitting you up online? Too out of the blue.

Turning up at your house? Way too much.

Then one night the perfect opportunity arose. He’d overheard you making plans to meet some friends at an uptown bar later that week. He wasn’t scheduled to patrol that night. Despite the logical part of his brain telling him it was a creepy move, he just couldn’t pass up the chance. Red Robin had to be so cautious around you, but if you hit it off with Tim he could let a little loose around you.

That’s how he’s ended up sitting on the table adjacent to yours, listening in on your private conversation and praying you wouldn’t recognise him before he was ready.

“So have you guys ever had someone ask you to call them by a different name when you’re… you know?” He nearly coughs on his drink, sitting bolt upright as though it will help him hear better. He trusts you not to spill on who the guy is. You’d had that conversation already, but he wants to hear you say Tim again.

“What like ‘Daddy’? Yeah, my ex was into that.”

“No.” Your voice has grown so quiet, laced with a sheepish laugh just like the morning you’d confessed about your crush to him. God, he wishes he could turn around and look at your face. He’d bet you’re all flustered. “Like, another actual man’s name?”

“No, hon. That’s weird.”

“Who’s the guy? Whose name?”

“You don’t know him.” You shut down the first question. He bets your fidgeting, looking at anything other than your friends as you consider your next words cafeully. “But he wanted me to call him Tim. As in, Tim Drake.”

“That’s really weird. Did he know you used to be down bad for him?”

He knows it's mean to turn around now, and worse, risky. Liable to scare you away but it’s so worth it to see the five stages of grief cross your face in the span of 3 seconds when you notice him. You're like a starstruck deer in the headlights as the word “yeah” dies on your lips. If he cupped your cheeks right now, he's certain the heat would burn away any remnants of his fingerprints.

The whole table falls silent as one by one, your friend’s clue into the situation. If it weren’t for their sickly amused smiles, and the foley of the bar, you’d think the world has stopped turning. You wish the world would stop turning.

He’s staring at you with an almost impish smile and your fight, flight, or freeze kicks in. You opt for stuttering “I have to piss!” As you abruptly leave the table.

I have to piss. You just bumped into The Tim Drake, and the first things he heard from your mouth were that you’d called his name while hooking up with someone, and I have to piss.   

The queue to the solo bathroom in this place is always long, and usually you’d be annoyed but tonight you’re grateful for the extra time to compose yourself, or you would be if you apparently hadn’t been followed.

“So, is he your boyfriend?” Where the fuck had he come from? You hadn’t seen him approach at all.

“He’s…” Not, not your boyfriend. You see each other at least weekly, sometimes you cook for him, and he often brings you gifts. However, you’ve never had that conversation, you don’t even know who he is under the mask. You don’t have his phone number. Despite multiple sexual encounters, you hadn’t even seen him naked. Now that you think about it, there’s a definite power imbalance in whatever you have. “Why?”

You’re much more defensive of his teasing than you are with Red Robin. Understandable, you didn’t really know Tim, and he’s really hit you out of left field. This is all turning out a bit crueller than he’d intended, but he can’t bring himself to stop. Your apprehension tonight is as tempting as your timidness had been last time. It’s like he’s trying to seduce you on hard mode.

“Just tryin’ to find out if it would be appropriate to buy you a drink, maybe ask you to dance?” He sounds off. Not like he does in the TV interviews and podcasts you’d heard him on, but still familiar. It’s hard to focus on, however, because he’s standing so close. Close enough for you to smell the fresh sweetness of his aftershave, for you to see the features you’ve been fantasising about up close.

“This place doesn’t have a dance floor.”

“We could go to another place.”

“Oh no buddy, I’m not going to any secondary locations.” He can’t help the smile that crosses his lips. You remembered his safety tip. He just hopes it reads as anything other than prideful to you right now. “Don’t think for a second just cause you heard what you heard that I’m gonna fall all over you.”

“Buddy? You can call me Tim.” The obvious innuendo has you cracking a genuine smile. Your nerves are still apparent from the way you're tapping your fingers against your thigh, and your refusal to make meaningful eye contact with him but he’s chipping at your walls. There's four people waiting ahead, and he wonders if he can breach your shields completely before it's your turn. “Or if it makes you feel better you could call me whatever that other guy’s name is.”

“Is this how you get people to sleep with you? You tease them relentlessly until they give up just so you’ll go away when it’s over?”

“Ouch.” You have a point, he’s never behaved like this before. He’s always been a self-confessed smartass, but you just bring out something especially brazen within him. Something wicked. He’s being a jerk, but you’re chewing your lips and sneaking awed glances at him, which implies you’re more into it than you’d admit. “Am I not what you expected?”

He probably would live up to your expectations had this been your real first meeting. If he wasn’t already comfortable around you, he’d be enamoured by your appearance, too skittish to match your keen whit or ask about your hobbies, not when you look at him with those eyes. If anything, the typical Tim Drake persona might even bore you by rambling on about detective novels or WayneTech.

“You’re why people say you should never meet your heroes.”

“Okay, fine.” Maybe he had gotten a bit carried away messing with you. “Can I just ask you one more thing, and then I’ll go away, or buy you a drink? Whatever you want.”

Your eyes drift up to the ceiling as you consider his offer. It’s not an uncommon tick for people to have, but it’s certainly more endearing when you do it. Eventually, you nod, conceding to him and offering real, esrnest eye contact. You’re still willing to hear out your favourite celebrity, and a pang of guilt at once again abusing his authority thrums through his chest.

It doesn’t stop him from asking, however. “What clued this guy into your crush on me?”

“Pictures.” You frown, still not breaking eye contact. Something is different. The nervous energy you’ve been emanating since he’d followed you to the line has subsided, replaced by something tantalisingly self-assured.

“Pictures of what?”

He tries to pry but you give him nothing.

“Of you.”

“What kind of pictures.”

The answers here don’t matter to him anyway, he already knows. He’s just trying to segue into a specific set of questions.

“Just, pictures.”

“How ambiguous.” Here’s his chance to try and satisfy that burning fantasy. “Did you practice kissing on them?”

“What? No.” Your tense shoulders say otherwise. “Why would you even ask that?”

“I don’t know.” Perfect. He gives his best noncommittal shrug before leaning in closer, balancing his weight on the wall behind you until the distance between your bodies is closed. He can still pick up hints of your body wash, but it’s washed out but the smell of a parfum that he wishes he could spray on his pillows at night. “Thought I’d offer you the real thing to compare.”

Your response isn’t what he’s expected, but it is what he’s hoped. Your lips press softly against the corner of his lips, and he can’t stop from locking a hand on your hip, not to force anything further, but to stop you from backing away. Although, the wall he has you partly confined against has been doing a pretty good job thus far.

He needn’t bother, however, because it doesn’t take long for you to grow more confident. This is the moment he’s been waiting for.

His mouth parts at the first sign of your tongue and you eagerly explore his mouth. He tastes like IPA, hoppy and warm. Your hands boldly play across his chest, until you fist the fabric of his shirt and tug him closer, deepening the kiss until he moans into your open mouth.

Your sudden boldness is doing things for him. Head spinney, dick hard things. Thoughtlessly, he ruts his hips, rubbing his clothes cock against your lower abdomen until you pull away with a laugh. It’s his turn to be nervous. You’re looking at him with something fierce and canny.

“Excuse me.” A clearly unamused man interjects himself between your embrace to point at the bathroom. “Are you waiting?”

“Oh, yeah.” Tim is surprised by your chipper poise, as you smile politely at the man. He’s even more surprised when you hook your fingers into the give of his leather belt and proceed to drag him with you into the cubicle, locking him inside with you as you offer thanks to the stranger.

“What are you doing?”

“Comparing with the real thing.”  You grace him with another, hard kiss, backing him against the door. Your tongue is hot against his already heated skin as you hurriedly work it along his jaw and neck. He remembers how you’d looked when you’d first noticed him earlier and wonders if his burning face looks equally as nonplussed as he lets you have your way with him against the bathroom door.

He hisses when you plunge your fingers below his belt once more, this time unbuckling it. You’ve fucking cracked, he must have broken something in your brain. There’ll be exaggerated stories about this all over the Gotham Globe’s home page tomorrow. Hell, if he cares though.

“You’ve changed your tune.” He comments, bucking his hips, helping you free him from his boxers. Your fingers lock around his base, and it throbs at finally being touched by you. He’s wanted so badly to fuck you for months but as Red Robin, he’s had to be careful, had to put his guard up which had resulted in a very altruistic sex life. But Tim Drake could fuck you. Right here, right now, Tim Drake-Wayne would fuck whatever hole you’d give him and the thought of it has him losing composure fast.

Your lips lock in one last frenzied kiss before you drop to your knees, and you look like an Angel sent from hell, looking up at him from beneath his reddened cock, with heady eyes and salacious smile.

“So, Red.” Shit. His heart skips a beat. Shit. Shit. Shit. He’s not sure what gave him away, but he doesn’t have a chance to care before you spit on his dick and start to pump with a deliberate rhythmic pace that has his head rolling back against the door. He’s not sure if he wishes he’d never done this at all, or if he’d done it sooner. “What name should I use tonight?”

[hana-no-seiiki]

Hi! I’m the one who asked about Cat Villain! Reader theme lol. It’s nice to have a person to think as same as me, anyway civilians probably confusing about how all 4 Robins so fond of the villain but they still have that kind of rivalry to them, at least in civilians’ views. STILL

I’d like to add another trailer song that I often use when rotting over cat villain! reader

Eula’s theme is such a good one for heists/a little tango with the bois.

I feel like the general public have a general clue as to the relationship of cat villain! reader and the robins

purely because some of the guys (*cough* Jason *cough*) has fucked them in public, and as much as Gotham is unsafe at night, and no matter how many measures the boys put to protect you, there will always be fanatics that’ll witness everything you guys do.

of course, the damning info is mostly kept in small circles due to the miraculous power of ‘paying people to take shit down’ the Waynes have but a lot of fans have headcannoned and could sometimes build an entirely accurate version of your relationships.

tim was definitely one of your top fansite keepers before he became robin (even though it wasn’t his main focus). he most likely influenced a very uh… ‘sasaeng’ type of attitude in your fandom. which wasn’t regulated well until he realized his mistakes. nowadays, he makes sure your fans are more tamed.

sometimes i imagine cat villain! reader to be a celebrity, less known in america and mostly abroad (bonus if you guys aren’t from there to begin with, so your popularity can just be focused on or around your home country) that is until they were suddenly seen with Dick Grayson in public. you two were very much young and not careful.

people know you as that person that dated Dick, and is now extremely close with his brother, Tim. Definitely scandalous. The only thing stopping Damian from being labeled as one of your conquests is that, dude only realized his feelings recently and he usually approaches your civilian form as Robin. why? Damian’s just a show off, but Robin can be a show off without being seen as arrogant. he’s just doing his job

you have your fair share of villain friends you enjoy hanging out/sleeping with. some of them do you favors in exchange for a night. mostly because they know it’ll piss off the Batboys and throw them off their game though it does come with the risk of being beaten down to death.

i also think it’d be funny if in civilian form as a celeb, cat villain! reader just likes to profess their ‘undying love’ to Bruce 24/7 and how he totally slept with them once and their heart has been taken since. just like to be a menace and cause more chaos with people accusing them of using his kids.

when you found out tim protected your image and generally surveyed posts about you 24/7 you got into a little argument cause you wanted the world to breakdown about your identity and the shit you’ve done

and last but not least, the only reason you haven’t been cancelled to non-existence is cause of your large donations to charity and very humble living. sure, you liked to troll the universe in its entirety but in the end cat villain! reader main purpose is to help the needy. you’re most likely one of Bruce’s biggest investors (again, just to be a little shit)

you’re a little shit yeah, but you’re the batfam’s little shit.

OH! and you like visiting Jason’s grave even after he came back. partly due to missing his old self, but it also assists with keeping his identity unknown with how often you guys are together.

bonus: you’ve interacted a fair bit with the batgirls and duke. by that i mean you’ve bullied them all at some point that it has become almost a christening ritual for you to be a menace to each member.

[rubydubydoo122]

could you talk more about fanon vs canon tim drake? i havent gotten too far into the comics yet but have seen a lot of him (mis?)characterized by others

Just a preface, I'm not gonna crucify any Tim fans who find themselves writing these tropes, because it is fandom, and everyone's allowed their own interpretations of the character, I'm just personally not a fan of these takes on Tim because in my mind they just don't make sense for the character. If anyone has differing opinions, feel free to (politely) explain them to me, because I'm happy to hear them.

Ok, so much like Fanon Dick Grayson, there are two versions of fanon Tim Drake.

There's version A.) where where he's one minor inconvienience away from becoming a supervillain (I understand where this one comes from and I don't HATE it) and there's version B.) where he was criminally neglected as a kid and is infantalized (This version of Tim I Loathe)

I'll start with version A. I see where it comes from. Mainly the Red Robin 2009 run, but we have to remember that Tim was grieving pretty much everyone close to him during that era. He was being self destructive because of that grief, and yeah, grief changes a person, but Tim is the type of character who would still turn out good despite all the hurt handed to him. Oh! But Gun Batman-- Tim actively chose against being that. He would rather kill himself than let himself become a version of Batman who went against everything Batman stood for. I know there are multiple storylines where Tim meets and evil future version of himself, but those versions would constantly be like a weight on him to be good. All in all, if I had to choose between the fanon Tim Drakes, I would choose villain Tim Drake, as long as it's done in more of a character-study way rather than a 'He deserves to go evil, as a treat' because it's an interesting take with the right motives.

Now onto Version B. Loser Tim Drake. The reason I Loathe this version of Tim is because it usually involves Characters Assassination of the characters around him. Ok, so do I agree that Tim Drake was somewhat neglected? Yes. But goddamit, the way I see Jack and Janet portrayed, you would think that they were running from the feds or something. They were good people, just bad parents. Maybe a little immature to raise a child, but it wasn't to the point where they would probably need to call CPS. Neglect isn't black and white, and the Drakes fell into that grey-- which I personally believe to be a lighter shade. You do have to remember that a lot of Tim's introduction was written in the 90's where parenting styles were a lot different compared to Today. Still, they sent him to boarding school, meaning they made sure that some form of adult was taking care of Tim AND a lot of people try to make Jack Drake out to be the villain for stopping Tim from being Robin, and blackmailing Bruce for it, but... It's What Any Sane Parent Would Do? I'm 18, but I know if I ever had a kid, and then fell into a coma and then woke up and found out that my Kid was fighting crime in one of the most CRIME RIDDEN CITIES alongside my middle-aged neighbor who dresses up like a furry I WOULD CALL THE FUCKING COPS. But enough about the Drakes. Because not only does Loser Tim Drake assassinate their character, but why is 17 year old Tim the victim when it comes to 10 year old Damian-- "Oh he tried to kill him' They're both trained by assassins. They're both trained. They're both Trained. Why Is a Junior/Senior in high school hurt by the actions of a 5th grader. I have a similar age gap with my younger brother. We have had pretty brutal fights and the next day we're fine. I'm not going to get into "Attack on Titans Tower AUs" but I will say this, Every Time I Start To Read One Of Those, I Lose Half Of My Hair Because of How Bad the Characterization Of Both Jason And Tim are. Please, Read, The, Comic. Jason Wasn't Trying To Kill Tim. If He Was, Tim would Be Dead. ANd Tim was Snarking Jason Through The Entire Confrontation. Lastly, Why Has DICK 'BAMF' GRAYSON TURNED INTO TIM"S NUMBER ONE OP????!!!! DIck IS LITERALLY TiM's ChiLDHOOD HEro!!!!! NoT BAtMAN, DICK GRAYSON. And like, not only that, Dick and Tim are the most brotherly. I'm Begging, Please go read a 90's comic. Why is it, the only time I see Dicks Manipulative side in fanon, It's in opposition to Tim? I bet it's bc of Teen Titans Go. I bet the only Tim and Dick interaction they've seen is TTG Robin going "No BOdy cARes AbOuT TiM DrAke"

Sorry that ended up becoming rant-y, and less objective. Since actually reading comics, fanon Tim Drake gets on my nerves.

[marionluth]

I'm fairly new to the batman fandom, but today I was reminded of my favorite preteen batman animated series back in the early 2000s (damn I'm getting old 🫠) : Batman Beyond. And it got me thinking and I did some digging and found (fan-created) timelines about the ages of the characters.

So they theorize Bruce is 77 and Terry is 16 in Batman Beyond. Now I know that i’m mixing different media here (comics and DCAU), but if we go under the batman all media types umbrella, Bruce being 77 would make (again based on fan made ages analyses) Dick 62, Jason 57, Tim 55, Damian 49.

And I’m just think it would be interesting to explore these characters’ reactions to suddenly seeing a helluva young batman (at the same age they were still just Robins) roaming Gotham and kicking ass. And their enstranged toxic-as-fuck father figure bringing another teen into the bat-game AND giving that new kid the mantle (not that they'd want it for themselves, but I think it would still just rub them wrong?)

As I'm typing this I'm realizing there might actually already be numerous stories out there exploring this and I just haven't read any yet, but it just came to me and I thought it is an interesting premise to explore. Also trying to imagine all the Robins so old is 🤯

So yeah, if you happen to know of any fics like this I'd love some recs (I'll research for some myself later). And I really think that's something I might write myself at some point.

[letika]

"Timber is absolutely unreasonable ship. They never weren't supposed to be canon"

Yeah. I'm ship them. I'm well aware that they only became canon because the writers wanted it that way, not because the majority of fans wanted it.

But I think we all know what it forced ship. Who were never supposed to be a couple anyway, but the writers decided otherwise, so now they're canon. And usually looking at these ships, you can feel how uncomfortable they are with each other. You can see how closed off and awkward they are with each other. How ill-matched they are and how out of place they are in that relationship. Despite some supposed efforts by the writers, but they just look very artificial when they're trying to squeeze out their deepest love for each other and pretend that's the way it's meant to be. And just literally everyone realizes that couple these characters is just impossible as canon.

But Timber don't fall into that category. Surprisingly their dynamic is very genuine and real. I don't sense any unnaturalness or falseness in their love. They are insanely comfortable with each other. The fact that Tim feels safe in Bernard's arms, and basically with him. And Tim considers going to an amusement park or a movie as something exciting and fun, even though that these are quite ordinary places to go on dates, but Tim life in general is a living hell, so the relationship with Ber is like some kind of island of normalcy and safety for him. Like, with him he can just enjoy life and the ordinary pleasures of youth. And writers could easily have gone the way of irritating clichés, like, Bernard might not have known that Tim was Robin and end up resenting him for withholding that information. Or he could have been jealous of Tim's superhero life and demand attention. But in the end, Bernard the most understanding boyfriend ever. It's such a thrill to see such an adequate and accepting person for whom the only thing that matters is that Tim okay and happy. But it's also very noticeable that they are an important part of each other's lives. This is especially evident in Tim. Like, my boy a hero with a lot of problems that go way beyond the problems of normal people, but he'll always make time for his boyfriend. Yah, by and large all of their dates are planned, but that's also what it means that they're an important part of each other's lives that they make special time for. And looking at them you really see that they are fucking love and appreciative of each other.

I don't love Timber for HOW their relationship turned out, I love them for WHAT their relationship turned out to be.

[blackbatcass]

helloo :D

So, I keep seeing people saying that Jason is Bruce’s favorite child, and the only one that was actually like a son to Bruce. (aside from Damian) Also that just because Dick and Bruce were partners/brothers too, it means that Dick isn’t really like Bruce’s son. How Jason and Bruce are each other’s favorite and Dick wishes he could be Bruce’s son (basically it just gets worse and worse jekskenjske)

AND I DON’T REALLY GET THIS AT ALL.. I COMPLETELY DISAGREED

But then I saw SO MANY posts about this (just getting harsher and harsher LMAO) and I thought I’d ask someone who knew more. So, yeah, here I am!

Thanks for answering if you do, and have a wonderful day!

anon do you want me dead. is that what's happening here

JK JK my first fanon jason ask... what a historic day! basically you're completely right. I don't know where this frankly insane take comes from but whenever me, my mutuals, and pretty much anyone in this corner of the dc fandom sees a post like it we roll our eyes to the heavens. to put it simply the idea that jason is bruce's favorite and the only one he actually loved like a son is a complete fucking lie lol.

first of all to claim that bruce didn't love dick like a son is......I mean. let's just say people saying that have probably never read a comic with bruce and dick before. literally the number one thing to know about these characters is that the love bruce and dick have for each other can be seen from outer space. they have never been normal about each other. bruce raised dick since he was eight. they are thee og codependent father-son partners 'we saved each other we are pack bonded for life if anything happened to him i'd kill everyone in this room and then myself' duo. I mean... there is nuance to be had where they had a very complicated tangled up hard-to-label relationship that had elements of being father & son, elements of being brothers, and ofc partners as batman and robin but that is a function of their relationship being TOO crazy and close not the other way around lol. it is patently true that bruce and dick know each other better than anyone else in the world. it is pretty much true that if you're going to play the favorites game, it's hard to deny that dick is bruce's favorite. that's his eldest his most trusted his saving grace his person who understands him better than anyone. I could pull like an endless amount of panels as evidence that dick was bruce's favorite. there are so many 'dick is the only thing i did right' 'i only feel pride when i look at nightwing' etc etc. dick is his child in every way that matters basically

which is not to say that jason isn't bruce's son! he definitely is! bruce does love jason, but jason was his second kid lol. and it's...i mean jason was robin for a very short time in the grand scheme of things. you can blow through his robin run super fast because it's just not very long. the idea that bruce loved jason more or there's more of a father-son bond to be found in the few issues they were together for as opposed to the 10 years dick was robin is actually insane. bruce literally admitted that the reason he let jason be robin was because he missed dick. lol. lmao even.

basically yeah claiming that jason is bruce's favorite and dick was never treated as bruce's son is just a lie. it's not true. it's like that 'jason is tim's favorite robin' nonsense that was going around a few months ago; it completely ignores canon and essential character elements in jason's favor. I don't know why some jason fans are so obsessed with putting him up on a pedestal by bashing other characters on his behalf. and like...it is possible to have two sons? and love them both? lmfao? and that's not even getting into like tim and cass (also bruce's adopted children). I don't know why people just decided this was a thing but it is false<3

[zeroducks-2]

I've just finished Gotham Knights and I get that people aren't happy with the fucked ass haircuts but like, I do believe this is the most progressive and well written Jason Todd we've ever gotten in recent times. Even in recent comics. Like damn, bro goes to therapy, picked up his interests and hobbies again (e.g. the cooking and the reading and the shit talking) from his "Robin makes me Magic" days. Like yeah, he's still edgy, but he was murdered by a fucking Clown, he's allowed to be edgy. We got a Jason Todd that isn't diluted to "the angry black sheep character" archetype. He's healing, working on himself, his relationship with his family, and he's fighting his way (brutal and all strength and tact) to do what he stands for and what he believes is right. And his heart is just so big and full of compassion, but it doesnt blind him and make him wishful or naive. He's so well balanced in Gotham Knights. I hope this version of his character is written in future comics. I'm sick of DC writers making him this angry anti-hero who's only reasoning and purpose in life is to get back at Batman for failing him and so many others. Jason is allowed to be more than his trauma. Thank you Gotham Knights for seeing that.

I'm glad you enjoyed the game anon. I personally am not a fan, not because of Jason but because of the game itself. The dialogues felt stale, more reminiscent of tumblr "incorrect Batfam quotes" than the source material, and the NPCs felt dull compared to how full of life they were in the Arkham series (so much so I would hide in random spots just to hear them talking about the current game events, especially in AK). The most unforgivable bit to me was Tim not having ever fought the rogues because he's "young" - I've never seen anything more insulting and infantilizing for a character which already heavily suffers for being treated as the useless one, never allowed to participate in the game changing dynamics or to have meaningful arcs, and is relegated to being the cute little bisexual twink.

That being said it's a matter of taste, and Gotham Knights is surely a good game for those who prefer a wholesome loving family approach to these characters. Jason working on himself and going to therapy and having a good relationship with his "family" is surely what lots of people (especially in here) want to see. Me, I don't think any amount of therapy would help since therapy is based on shared human experiences and repetition of patterns, and Jason died and dug himself out of his own grave. That's not a trauma any therapist would have the means to help with. They indeed "diluted" the event in the game, changed the fact that Jason dug himself out of his own grave and was functionally braindead and homeless for two years, and made it so UTRH never happened in order for therapy to make any sense, because there is no reconciliation possible with a parent that slit your neck to save the person who broke all your bones with a crowbar and then murdered you.

It's kinda like when Wally went to therapy (canonically) after Barry's death. The therapist was a good one and he tried! But ultimately he didn't manage to make a real difference because Wally is the Flash, a super-powered creature with time bending powers who does things on the scale of absurdity, and who also happens to have had an extremely traumatic childhood and to have just lost the only person who ever loved him unconditionally. His problems have roots in reality but are out of the scope of any therapy method currently known to man.

And Jason is more than his trauma, but pretending his trauma doesn't inform his actions and can be solved with him "working on himself" is not an approach I hope they take in comics. I'd rather they went back to Jason doing things his way and protecting the people of Gotham in the only manner he finds helpful, because he experienced on his own skin (twice!) that Batman's methods don't work. I'd rather they allowed him to stop clashing with Bruce as main theme of his stories, and have his own plotlines in which he's in between a vigilante and a mafia lord (which they were doing with Dick by the way, before chickening out and have Slade bomb Bludhaven) with Bruce only as a cameo sometimes.

We have a high number of morally irrepressible characters who always do the right thing more or less. I'd like Jason to be something different, something darker, because there is a dramatic lack of grey characters and anti-heroes which were sanded down to either 100% bad guys or 100% good guys. I hate that, why can't we have nuanced choices and people struggling with the darkness they carry, why does everyone need to be a perfect "unproblematic" paragon of goodness who would never do anything wrong. We have A LOT of characters like that and I love them, I really do! But if everyone and their families are like that then it's really frickin boring!

Plus, I'd like the characters to actually struggle with their past traumas in a meaningful way, otherwise why even giving them those traumas to begin with. Give me Tim still grappling with how he couldn't save his father, give me Dick haunted by all the times he slipped and let go of the no killing rule in a way or another, give me Jason haunted by the tragedy of being abandoned by every person who was supposed to protect him and working from there to being the protector of everyone else.

That's what I hope DC would pick up and write about. I was never much for fluff and wholesome things unless it's in small amounts, I always preferred strife and complexity. But hey, I'm glad you enjoyed the game, at least one of us did!

[leoleolovesdc]

I really don't get what's so appealing to writers and fans who make Bruce an abusive father. Why is it so fun? Why do people enjoy doing one of the biggest superhero of all times that dirty? How does that make any sense?

People always complain about how Batman is a power fantasy, but the fact that his actions aren't justifiable if applied real life doesn't mean that you have to fuck the character's fictional morals.

Every hero is a power fantasy, but they are enjoyable because they are good people (or people who try to be good). Bruce Wayne is a human being and he is capable of bad parenting and committing mistakes, but making him willingly hit his kids is just stupid.

Batman is and has always been about hope, about rising above your trauma, protecting who you love, using your pain to make the world a little better. Bruce doesn't go around "beating the mentally ill' just because, he does because they are dangerous people, criminals, terrorists who are constantly harming citizens with their actions.

With all that said; Bruce hitting his children/sidekicks/allies (or just purposefully harming them in any way shape or form) is incoherent with his character and all that he represents.

Batman brought Robin, especially Dick Grayson, in to help him. He didn't want a child soldier, he was comforting this kid and taking him to the police station when he asked to be trained so he could get the guy who killed his parents. He asked to become like Batman and Bruce, realizing that they were very similar, saw that he was also filled with anger and needed to be guided. That's why Dick became a better person than Bruce ever was, not because he was inherently good or something, but because even if their relationship was not perfect and troublesome at times they understood each other's pain like no one else would.

With all of Bruce and Dick's history saying that this father-son bond was filled with physical abuse just sounds wild to me. Same thing goes for Cass, Jason, Steph, Tim, Duke, Damian and any other child that Bruce parented or taken care of.

Jason and Dick are usually the victims of writers and fans who are full one Abusive-Bruce-Shit™️, and honestly, I don't think that's because they have remarkably difficult relationships, but because this fandom loves to make their favorite pretty "white" boys suffer.

No one cares if it makes sense for Bruce to be abusive towards his first sons, they just care that Dick and Jason are angsty. My prove of that? When do you ever see content of Bruce being abusive towards Cass? Damian? Steph? Duke? Never. Because those characters are either women or people of color largely ignored by both canon and fanon.

I'll admit that Damian and Tim do get angsty abusive dad content at times, because regardless of their actual relationship with Bruce Tim is a sad white boy and Damian is the largely white washed blood son, but they are still not the most common alternatives whenever family angst is the focus (despite the large fanon torture porn industry that Tim Drake goes through it is usually focused on other aspects of his life).

I don't really know how to end this, at this point I'm just ranting about annoying batfam fans, but, yeah, don't fuck over legacy characters by making them abusive dads bcuz u like saying ur fav has it worst👍

Little edit: In this post I talked abt Dick as a white guy, would like to apologize for that, I do know that he is romani but ended up forgetting to add that. Either way my point still stands as, just like Damian, his race is pretty much ignored by writers and parts of the fandom

[gorogues]

tricksterrune replied to your text post: Clearly he has a pair of dice in his fist, ready to fling them dramatically at the right opportunity

Oh yes, clearly!

aukisstic replied to your ask post: THANK YOU I hate the pride special so much…

Yeah, I just did not think that story was good at all.

demonbirdsforever replied to your ask post: See this is where I go… they were in other comics!? I missed those!🥺

The Rogues are in tons of issues (cumulatively), but not all those stories are great :>

it-is-i-zim replied to your ask post: Not to be weird or anything but rn I actually feel like for Captain Boomerang, Knight Terrors Robin #1 or Suicide Squad Blaze as a whole are the worse than Suicide Squad v4

You're not being weird at all, but neither of those are canon. If I'd included non-canon stuff the list would have been really different lol, but in hindsight I should have made that clear.

it-is-i-zim replied to your ask post: Cuz Suicide Squad Blaze treated him like he was nothing more than a joke (and called him Captain Cultural Appropriation, which if we take Suicide Squad v4 #26 into account, where his mother is aboriginal, it feels like the writers just don’t know him), killed him off revealed that he was actually assaulted by whatever monster he was fighting and then killed him off for real.

Believe me, I agree that story was terrible :] It just didn't make the list because thankfully it's an AU.

it-is-i-zim replied to your ask post: And then in Knight Terrors: Robin #1 like… I understand it’s supposed to be from Tim Drake’s perspective, but it really paints Captain Boomerang in a really bad light. Like he killed Jack Drake on purpose. When he didn’t even throw the boomerang until he was collapsing from 3 gunshot wounds to the chest.

Well, Digger did go there to kill Jack, but Identity Crisis was a terrible story anyway. I should have included it in my worst Digger stories list, and am not sure how I forgot. I'll add it with a note that it's a late addition.

it-is-i-zim replied to your ask post: Like… The beginning of Suicide Squad v4, yeah, I agree, they fucked over Digger big time, but at least it got better at the end, despite issue #26 also calling him Owen instead.

It's of course a very subjective matter (all best/worst lists are), but I just thought those comics were straight up edgy and terrible. I've never liked any Adam Glass or Ales Kot comics.

it-is-i-zim replied to your ask post: Suicide Squad v1 was also Not Great™ as a whole due to the use of slurs for aboriginal people within it. Issue 4 was the worst of those where on top of using a slur for an aboriginal person to a black man, he also said black people can’t be artists and tried agree with a Nazi and made the super racist statement that minorities commit the most petty crimes.

This is also subjective, and I get where you're coming from but I don't think they're bad comics. It's fine if you don't like it -- a lot of people don't like what was done with Digger in that series, and that's valid -- but I think it's a good series. It hasn't always aged well, but it's the reason the Suicide Squad concept exists to this day. The racism is tough to read, but Ostrander was making a point about the garbage Waller, Bronze Tiger, and Vixen have to fight through to do their jobs and just exist as Black people. It does suck for Rogue fans that Digger was chosen to be the problematic mouthpiece, though, so I understand why some people don't like it. I agree it was a very drastic swing from his pre-Crisis characterization, so I don't love that aspect either.

it-is-i-zim replied to your ask post: Sorry, I have many thoughts on the true worst Captain Boomerang comic.

That's fine! :)

it-is-i-zim replied to your ask post: Also for Owen I’d argue for the Supergirl v5 comics. Cuz apparently that version of Supergirl that he’s not only rooming with, but is also trying to get with is 16. And he’s like… Literally an adult man. He literally called that version of Supergirl “jailbait” in one of the better comics of the bunch.

Yeah, I have mixed feelings on that series. It wasn't good, but unfortunately I think a lot of Owen's stories weren't great so to me it doesn't necessarily stand out. He's a good character who's been in a lot of mediocre stories…in part because a lot of DC's output was mediocre around that time.

demonbirdsforever replied to your text post: I read the Catwoman issues you recommended and now understand the kiss.

Hope you enjoyed it!

[chaoxfix]

i’m going. to be calm. i’m going to be so normal about this.

anyways obviously yeah there are 100% criticisms about YJ to be made, but they should also be made for all of 90s era comics. the fact that this writer felt the need to single this series out to punish fans … like i’m sorry, we’re not annoyed with the modern era because it exists or is diverse. most of us enjoy a great majority of the new characters and we appreciate the growing diversity of the series. we’re only upset because half our generation of characters were never given satisfying character arcs to actually develop them into adulthood (like they did with the titans and are doing with the current young era). every time our generation of heroes gets brought out, they’re dragged through the fucking mud and made ooc within an inch of their lives, if they get brought back at all.

we’re not mad that they were replaced; we’re mad they weren’t given a new role to grow into. legacy characters are meant to age out of the old role and into a new one. you just have to figure out what that role is. don’t just kill them off or write them out of existence. give them a new title, a new responsibility, and a new location.

because superboy should go to jon kent, it’s time! kid flash should go to wally west ii. robin should go to damian wayne.

but don’t just throw kon-el into a goddamn crack in space time to make jon superboy because you can’t figure out a new title for kon (THEY LITERALLY DID THIS. FOR YEARS.), and don’t constantly waver with making tim red robin, and don’t make bart feel weird about being impulse vs kid flash. all because you can’t figure out where they’re growing up into.

because, obviously impulse IS a better fit for bart! red robin IS growth for tim! supernova is the coolest goddamn name you could give kon!!!!!

and let cassie age into a new name for gods sake!!! you literally haven’t even TRIED with her!

and for context, DC knows how to do this, because they let dick grayson become nightwing, donna became troia, and the rest (like starfire) didn’t need to change bc she wasn’t a legacy character. though i notice no one’s weird about wally west being the flash alongside barry allen — that’s bc you guys are only obsessed with giving YJ characters the shaft.

for fucks sake. you did NOT do this with the titans. stop acting like YJ era fans are the most toxic when you WROTE OUR GENERATION OUT OF EXISTENCE TO MAKE ROOM FOR THE NEXT. we’re not mad because you’re adding more diverse characters, we’re mad because you fucked over our generation of heroes repeatedly but didn’t do that shit to prior generations which means it was absolutely singling us out to fuck over! holy bad writing batman!!

even the fucking batman animated movies do this. jason got the red hood movie that’s not connected to anything else — aaaaand… tim doesn’t exist. great. thanks for that.

and with tim specifically… dude. you gave him a new role … then backpedaled? are you serious rn? he’s 100% aged out of being robin wtf.

i just. i’m going to scream. how did they miss the point this fucking badly.

[danny-chase]

well maybe. if Jason actually had seen Dick be a jackass, but Dick waited till Jason went to school to pick fights with Bruce

was totally the hot-head in that fight 🙄

and made up with Jason for treating him harshly by the end of their first issue

(all the above is from Batman 1940 #416, so if you cry about Jason’s character being retconned, then this is the source you want to pick from)

In contrast Dick took longer (aka more than 1 issue) to warm up to Tim

The New Titans #61

Wasn’t a fan of Cass taking up Barbara’s old mantle

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #120

And was definitely not a fan of Damian attempts to up-surp Tim’s position as Robin 

Nightwing (1996) #138

Dick isn’t this magical golden person that meets you, instantly decides you’re an uwu baby that needs big brothering, and takes you under your wing. He’s had initial dislike for ALL of his siblings when they’ve entered into his family. So what changed?

1. With Jason it was really about Bruce, which generally fandom gets right, but what they get wrong is Dick and Bruce festering and fighting about it for long periods of time. Dick saw Jason was Robin, showed up, was rude to Jason, and stormed off. He calmed down, waited till the next day when Jason was at school, confronted Bruce about the situation, and made up with Jason that night. It was literally a 2-day long event. Not months of arguments and Jason playing the divorced child of Dick and Bruce. Dick also wasn’t living in Gotham at the time, and didn’t really have a need to be around, so he wasn’t, and Jason wasn’t alive for many more issues after this anyways, but was on the Teen Titans reserve list, so ig he did stuff with them

2. Tim kept coming back. Accounts that Tim bullied Bruce and Dick into accepting him as Robin are kinda dumb. Essentially Tim kept showing up and seeking them out, and they were like. Fine this kid is cute, also lets train him so he doesn’t fucking die, because he tried to rescue us from Two-Face single handedly

3. Barbara voiced her approval for Cass to take on the Batgirl mantle. It was literally as simple as that

4. Time. So much time. Dick and Damian aren’t this fluffy huggy pair that fandom makes them out to be. They genuinely didn’t like each other at first. Damian didn’t respect Dick, and while Dick respected Damian as a person, that doesn’t mean he necessarily liked him, because Damian was a massive brat (affectionate) at 10 years old. And so yeah. Dick made snide remarks to Damian at times, and engaged in banter/taunting with a 10 year old. Eventually they learned how to communicate in a better way. But it took time

So yeah, ALL of Dick’s siblings know he can be an asshole, they’ve all been on the receiving end of his disapproval. But all of them got past that and know he’s a good person, who won’t let grudges or first impressions get in the way of how their relationships develop. If Jason asked Tim or Damian if they thought Dick was an asshole, they’d probably reply “yeah sometimes, but after you get to know him, he’s really great” or something along those sentiments. anyways this is the fanon interpretation of Dick and Jason’s relationship that drives me nuts: that Dick was a massive bitch to poor widdle Jason and no one believes him because he’s all hugs and kisses when it comes to Tim and Damian. nah. sorry but Jason’s not special, Dick disapproved of all his siblings initially. And then five seconds later he was like actually [x] is my kid now, and if anything happens to them I’ll kill everyone in this room, and then myself

I just know Jason is so fed up with the rest of the Batfam not knowing how much of a shitbag Dick was when he was a teenager. I know this man looks like a complete nutcase when he tries to convince Tim or Damian that Dick had his asshole phase, too. Don’t believe his fucking golden boy, depressed, running on fumes, burnt out, “I’d give everything and then some for the good of the world” act. He’s a lying liar that lies. It’s ALL lies.

Mr. Professional Older Brother was a goddamn menace to society, and Jason Todd is gonna PROVE IT, DAMNIT.

“I know what you are,” says Jason.

“Lol,” says Dick. “Lmao.”

[astrologista]

i hate to say it but all bruce does these days is whineeeee. which i feel like is antithetical to how i understand him as a character. like yes, he broods and he does obsess, but he doesn’t really whine unless some of the time if only alfred is there to witness it lol.

like, fr. i haven’t really been keeping up with comics, so maybe i’m off base with some of this, but here’s what it looks like from the outside

bruce’s relationship with dick is under-served or just basically ignored, when they do bring it out, it’s only for very quick angst fuel then right back to business like they don’t know each other at all

bruce accepting jason back into the family was rushed and handled by sub-par writing which didn’t support the emotional gravitas that said reunification should have involved. i’ve seen a lot of fics that did it way better than what they did. it feels shoe-horned. also, why is bruce tacitly rubber-stamping jason as batman-affiliated when he’s still using GUNS? like WHAT. how does that make any sense. do bruce’s emotional boundaries matter at all? does everything have to be jason’s way or the highway? bruce is notoriously stubborn. much as he loves jason, i can’t see him letting that slide IF this were to work. DON’T SKIP OVER THE IMPORTANT CHARACTER WORK. like, set up the foundations and then build on top of that. don’t just jump to the payoff and try to walk things back as you go! it’s lazy and shows where editorial mandate stymied good storytelling. and there are way more issues with it that i have than just that. of course i love to see bruce and jason caring about each other and getting along as much as the next fan but the way they chose to go about it raises SO many questions

tim who?

no tim has been flanderized so fucking bad. actually he’s been transformed more into the fandom-lite version of himself, which i do kind of hate. oh yeah, he’s with bernard now. WHOOP TEE DOO! the fans have been clamoring for that pairing for years i’m sure.

there have been an assortment of good-to-middling damian comics since the 2010s as at least some writers seem vaguely interested in that dynamic with bruce but for every 2 mildly tolerable issues they drop one that’s got fucking jack shit bonkers writing in it and relies on only the most tired of “U LIED TO ME” tropes. nothing will compare to the tomasi 2011 batman and robin run and that was like the single decent output of the new 52 and the best thing dc has released in years. i’m right

among the newer characters they’ve released, it’s sad that they never really seem to... stick? PLEASE INVEST IN SOMEONE. more duke! more harper! more LITERALLY ANYONE!

bring the fun back to comics. where’s the storytelling. decide whether you want to create a new shitty joker and/or riddler iteration, or a new army of jokers and/or riddlers and/or scarecrows. or just create a new poo poo shitty villain of the week who will age like milk. why not have one based on social media. that’s a new one that i’m sure no one will ever see coming.

STOP SOFT REBOOTING EVERY ISSUE. we know, you’re going to start the next new groundbreaking run, take everything back to basics so nobody is confused, bring on the new readers with this cool new jumping on point, simple just batman alfred and the joker with juuuust enough of a new “modern” twist to it to differentiate it from the thousands of other times you did this. great job dc. doing great. when you’re done with that let’s do another mass cataclysm event across 20 books. im sure people will want to collect all those variant covers.

and i love how there are SO many fics that do it so, so, so much better. jesus fuck. and fic writers aren’t even being PAID! we’re not even being PAID!!

so, yeah, i’m kind of done with comics for time being. i’ve been dabbling in anime and games again, getting back to roots, but so far, it’s mainly been independent web content free of advertisers, executives, editorial and other bullshit that’s caught my fancy lately. the artistic freedom is really needed to tell a good story now. the multiverse / soft reboot / re-configure the universe every year bullshit that marvel popularized has infiltrated, like, everything, as well as the netflix model of “let’s cancel immediately after season 1”. there is no buildup. there is no excitement. there is no story. mba’s and boardrooms do not understand “story”. they don’t know what creativity is. they know what numbers, profits, engagement look like, and they are optimizing for that curve. i do not know why they are shocked when that curve sinks lower and lower every year. i just simply do not understand.

im so mad. kevin conroy’s dead and we’ll never get something like b:tas ever again. media has been my life since i was a baby. so i have to find some kind of stories to try to enjoy even if i have to eke it out in the margins of society lol

[softsnzstuff]

“I Might be a Teeny Tiny Bit Sick, But it’s Fine.”

@sicktember Day 14

Fandom: Stranger Things, Rockstar AU

Summary: When Eddie gets sick on tour, Steve offers to fill in for him at the next Corroded Coffin show 👀

Comments: Shoutout to @dontfeeltoohot , for making my requested edits for these fics

Word Count: 2.8k

CW: None

Eddie rubbed his nose with his palm as they sat on the tour bus. Corroded Coffin had finished their Baltimore show the night before and were on the road to Newark after a quick breakfast.

Everyone had noticed Eddie being a little quieter the past two days - something he told them was just due to his voice being tired from touring. The 28 year old knew it was more than that though. His throat was sore, but he’d also felt the congestion settling in since they finished the show last night.

“-at do you think Eddie?”

Eddie looked up, lost in thought. “Sorry?”

Jeff shook his head, laughing. “I was saying maybe we switch up the order of the setlist tonight. Surprise the fans a little. What do you think?”

“Uh yeah!” Eddie rubbed the back of his neck, “Sounds fun to me. Just make sure the crew knows before.”

“Already on it.” Tim looked up from his phone, where he appeared to be sending a message to the crew and their manager, Zoey.

“Anyone look into good places for dinner when we get there?” Gareth asked, twirling a drumstick with his right hand.

“I saw a good review for a pizza pl-”

“H’KtchiEW! T’schew! hehh AKT’chEW!”

“Bless you… this good pizza place on 4th st-”

“IKT’ssCHIEW! Fuck! sorry. snrFF Dry air on this fucking bus is murdering my allergies.” He lied, swiping a ringed knuckle under his nose.

The guys laughed, all too familiar with their bandmate’s allergies.

“You won’t have to suffer too much longer. Should be there in like an hour and a half.” Tim pointed out. Eddie nodded and got up to go find a tissue.

---

It was Corroded Coffin tradition to go out for an early dinner before soundcheck whenever they arrived in a new city. Although Steve wasn’t touring with them 24/7, he flew out for at least half of the stops, the east coast being several of them.

Steve was already waiting outside the pizza parlor when the band walked up. Eddie running ahead and jokingly straddling Steve.

“Missed having you around.” He mumbled into Steve’s neck, consonants rounded by the congestion.

Steve pulled back and looked his partner up and down. “Missed you too. You okay?”

“Mmhmm, just happy you’re here.”

The other guys approached, slapping Steve’s hand and pulling him in for a hug.

Their early dinner was filled with catching up with Steve - telling him about the crazy antics at the shows he missed and hearing about what he’d been up to in the down time. Steve was telling a story about something silly Robin had said when Eddie turned to the side bringing the fabric napkin up to his face.

“Nxxxt! MP’tssch! NG’tchEW!”

“Bless you!” Steve reached over and rubbed a hand on Eddie’s back. “You sure you’re okay Eds? You sound like you’re getting sick…”

“THANK YOU!” Gareth exclaimed a little too loud. He looked around the restaurant and then lowered his voice a little, “He’s been trying to convince us it’s been allergies the last few days.”

“Because it is!” Eddie retorted.

“Come on man…” Jeff added, “We’ve known you since middle school. We can tell when it’s allergies and when it’s not.”

“Okay fine! I might be a teeny tiny bit sick, but it’s fine.” He looked at his friends who seemed unconvinced, “It’s fine.”

“If you say so dude. Let’s roll, we’re gonna be late for sound check.” The guys all threw down some cash and made their way back to the arena.

---

The lights beamed in Eddie’s face as they stood on stage for sound and lighting check. As always, they played a few bars on their instruments and then sang or spoke a couple of things into their microphone.

They got to Eddie last. He pulled out his guitar pick and started to play when he felt a tickle. Both hands on the guitar, he scrunched his nose.

From the back of the room he heard the main AV guy say, “Perfect! Now can you say something into the mic so we can adjust?”

Eddie set the guitar to the side and gave a thumbs up, approaching the microphone, still pawing at his nose.

“Test test. This is Eddie Munson testing the AGK’tchIEW!” The first sneeze snuck up on him, sending it straight into the mic, Steve and the guys flinching as they brought their hands up to their ears.

Eddie managed to direct the next few away from the microphone, “Heh’tsschiEW! IsshEEW!!”

Jeff held his hands out to pause everyone while he made sure there wasn’t another sneeze coming from his friend. He leaned forward into his own mic and deadpanned, “Bless you.”

Gareth, being a comedy genius, hit the ba dum tss on his drums.

The long haired man straightened out, holding the mic stand with one hand, “Sorry…snurFF”

He sniffled soupily, forgetting they were in sound check, the microphone broadcasting his runny nose to the crew.

“Dude!” Tim laughed, Eddie flushing red.

“I’b so sorry. That was so disgusti’g.”

The guys behind him cracked up as Steve ran up to the stage with a tissue. Eddie walked to the front of the stage, crouching down to grab it. “Tha’gks Stevie.” He turned to the side, blowing his nose while the crew finished testing different lighting arrangements.

When soundcheck was over, they went downstairs to change and get ready. Steve and Zoey came down shortly after, looking apprehensive.

“Eddie are you sure you wanna play the show?” She asked.

“Are you joking? Of course. A stupid cold isn’t gonna stop me.”

Zoey sighed and turned to leave, typing on her iPad. Steve grabbed Eddie’s hands and looked at him fondly, “Don’t push yourself too hard okay?”

“I’ll be fine Steve. Promise.” Eddie smiled and gave him a kiss on the forehead as he resumed getting ready.

They could hear the rumble of the crowd before they even got upstairs. They were chanting a countdown from fifteen and the lights dimmed - their cue to make their entrance. One at a time they walked on stage. Gareth first, then Tim, Jeff next. Eddie came on last, slinging on his guitar and playing the opening note for their first song.

The crowd went feral, lights flashing as Gareth’s kick drum set the concert in motion. the first song was always an absolute blast.

“What’s up New Jersey???” Eddie yelled. “I’m a little bit sick tonight, but I’m thinking we’ll still rock out if you want?”

The audience screamed in response.

“You really wanna do this???”

They screamed louder.

“Okay New Jersey, let’s fucking rock!”

---

Eddie could feel his voice going halfway through the show. By the time they finished their last song it was really threatening to go.

“Thank you so much Jersey! You guys really know how to party!” He rasped into the mic. He coughed to the side and continued, “Please give a thanks to the amazing tech crew, to my band, and to yourselves! You guys are fucking awesome! Thank you! Goodnight!!”

The guys all threw up rock n roll hands as they exited the stage, Jeff and Tim throwing picks into the crowd. Eddie coughed, patting a hand on his chest as they were funneled offstage and to the backstage area where Steve was waiting.

“That was so cool! They knew the words to the new songs and everything!” Eddie croaked.

“Eds, your voice.” Steve said sympathetically.

“Yeah dude. Are you gonna be good to play tomorrow’s New York show?” Gareth asked.

“I’ll be fine. Just need some water and a good nights sleep.” He shrugged, but in the back of his mind he had the same question.

---

The answer came fairly early the next morning. It was only an hour drive from Newark to NYC and Zoey had booked them a hotel for the evening.

Steve and Eddie had crashed ‘early’ while the other guys presumably went to the hotel bar for a nightcap. Steve had been the first to wake up, sneaking off to shower in hopes that some extra sleep would do his boyfriend some good.

Unfortunately he could hear Eddie coughing as soon as he got out and it didn’t sound too good. He threw on jeans and a T shirt, hanging the wet towel to dry as he went back into the bedroom.

“That doesn’t sound too good Eddie.”

The older man cleared his throat, “Doesn’t feel too good either.”

Steve stretched a hand out, but pulled back when he saw Eddie’s eyes flutter shut.

“IK’tchew! HNG’chEW! H’AGTchiEW!”

“Bless you! Sheesh…” Steve extended his arm again, placing a gentle hand to Eddie’s forehead. “You feel pretty warm… how do you feel?”

“Like shit, man.” Rock n roll hands once again in front of his face. “Can you hand me my phone? Needa call Zoey.”

About half an hour later, a band meeting was called in Eddie’s hotel room. Steve sat next to him on the bed, band mates and Zoey on the chairs and sofa around the room.

“So we need to address the obvious which is the show tonight,” Zoey started, “Eddie, what do you want to do?”

Steve didn’t think it was fair to put the question on just Eddie like that.

The older man seemed to think, “Well I don’t want to disappoint the fans at all. They bought tickets and everything. But I also don’t want to-”

He paused to cough wetly into his elbow, Tim wincing at the sound, “I don’t want to give a shitty performance either. I’m like. 90% mucus right now…”

Gareth spoke up, “We’ll do whatever you feel comfortable with. If you want to just play guitar and save your voice, we’ll cover you. If you want to cancel altogether, we have your back on that too.”

Jeff and Tim nodded in solidarity. Steve looked over at Eddie who seemed so disappointed and heartbroken. He knew he should cancel but they’d never cancelled a gig before. And NYC was a big one.

“I can do it.” Steve spoke before he realized.

“What?” Zoey looked up.

“I said uh… I guess I said I could play like… if you want. Eddie’s been teaching me guitar so I know the songs. Not nearly as well as him, but I know them.” Steve blushed, thinking the idea sounded stupid.

“I’ll tell you Zoey, he’s being modest. Steve knows his shit.” Eddie was supportive of this idea. “He played a small gig with us before we left for tour. If the guys help him out I’m sure he could do it.”

“I’ve heard him sing in the shower too.” Jeff added, “He’s good.”

Steve blushed even harder at the supportive comments coming from his friends. A hand on his wrist brought him back to realist. Eddie was looking up at him with his big brown eyes, “Is that really something you’re okay with doing Steve?”

“Yeah I mean. I’ve heard your songs so many times, I know them all by heart.”

Zoey scrolled on her iPad checking other token items to bring up, “You’d be okay doing the meet and greet as well, Steve?”

“Anything you need me for, I’m game. Just want Eddie to feel better.”

“Aww. You’re too khhh HEH’gktchiEW! … kind.”

Steve laughed, “I didn’t finish my thought. I want Eddie to feel better because he’s so disgustingly sick right now.”

Eddie elbowed him in the side. “I thi’gk it’s settled then? Harri’gton will take my spot.”

---

The New York venue was different from the others. It wasn’t a stadium, but a huge outdoor stage in Central Park. A couple local news outlets were present. The performance was being streamed for a televised music festival.

Since it was so public, AV crew did sound check for them prior to their arrival. Everything was already set up. Steves eyes were wide as he took it all in.

“Nervous dude?” Jeff asked.

“I mean yeah.”

“Don’t be. Fans already know who you are. They’ll eat this shit up.”

The guys took their positions on stage, leaving the spot front and center empty. Gareth leaned into the microphone by his drums. “Hey everyone! What’s up? We’re Corroded Coffin!”

The crowd screamed in anticipation, “So… we got some bad news. Our pal Eddie? He’s real sick. It’s actually pretty fucking gross.”

There were some ‘awwww’s and ‘wait what??’s from the crowd.

“So anyways!!!! Instead of cancelling we roped in his boyfriend!!! Please welcome to the stage - filling in for Eddie today - Steve ‘the hair’ Harrington!!!!”

Immediately the crowd went nuts as Steve walked on stage, waving at the fans. Fans knew him, and the diehards LOVED him.

“Oh my god STEEEEEEEEEVE!!!” They screamed.

The crowd simmered down as the guys got ready to play the first song, one fan taking the opportunity to yell, “I LOVE YOU STEVE HARRINGTON!!!”

The guys laughed and Steve got close to the mic, “That’s so kind of you, I love you too. This song is called Sleeping with Sativa. Hope I don’t butcher it too much.”

The younger man smiled and turned to Gareth, who counted them in with his drumsticks before they went full metal, Steve shredding away on his boyfriend’s guitar.

Throughout the gig, Steve tried to take in the crowd. He scanned everyone’s faces, understanding why this gives Eddie a high.

In between songs, the guys would banter or tell funny anecdotes about Steve or Eddie. By the time they made it to the last song, Steve was on top of the world.

“Thank you guys so much for an amazing show!” Tim yelled into his microphone. “And for welcoming King Steve here with open arms! He really fucking rocks doesn’t he???”

“Give it up for Steve Harrington!!” Jeff added as Gareth played them out on drums.

Steve bowed and waved, grinning from ear to ear. “Thank you, New York!!!! We’ll be around for about an hour to meet you all if you’re interested! Swing by the smoothie stand!”

A bunch of people cheered and ran over to the area already. The guys came forward to join Steve and waved to the crowd before jogging off stage.

“Oh my god Steve I didn’t know you had it in you!! I mean, I did, but like. That was amazing!” Tim yelled, lifting Steve up and carrying him towards the smoothie stand.

Jeff and Gareth followed suit, chanting, “STEVE. STEVE. STEVE. STEVE!”

Zoey was already at the smoothie stand, creating a somewhat orderly line for the fans who wanted to meet the band. They all had shirts to be signed or wanted pictures.

The next hour was filled with a ton of fans saying, “Steve that was amazing!”

Or

“You need to join the band!!!!”

Or, in the case of one crying girl,

“Oh my god I’m dead that was so good! I love you and I love Eddie and please tell him to feel better!”

Steve grabbed her by both hands and said, “I will, love, thanks for coming out.”

Zoey took the opportunity to snap a few pictures and text them to Eddie. “Steve with more than a few fans after the show. He killed it!”

---

Steve had gone out for drinks with the rest of the band after they finished up the meet and greet. The 26 year old was a little bit tipsy when he sauntered into the hotel room he was sharing with Eddie.

The man in question was propped up in bed, sipping on a tea from room service. “How did it go??”

Steve just grinned as wide as possible and held up his own rock n roll hands.

“That good huh?” Eddie smiled, “Zoey sent me some pictures! Come here.”

The older man opened his arms for a hug and Steve came over leaning into it. “That was so fun Eds, thanks for letting me fill in.”

“Are you kidding Stevie?? Thank YOU for covering my ass. Geez.”

“Can I see the pictures?” Steve asked.

“Ummm Absolutely.”

Eddie showed Steve the pictures, his heart warm watching Steve’s face light up as he pointed at them. “That’s me!”

Eddie immediately took to Instagram with his favorite of the pictures:

Zoey sent me this pic of @KingSteve meeting some of our younger fans tonight after the show! New York, thanks for giving him all your love and support while I was sick as hell! Feeling better and hope to be back for the Chicago shows! Stay metal! 🤘🏻

Steve quickly reposted to his Instagram a picture that a fan took of him during the set:

THANK YOU NEW YORK!!!

They both chuckled at Robin’s surprised reaction to seeing Steve performing on stage instead of Eddie.

“We’ll call them tomorrow.” They decided.

Steve hopped in the shower before joining his boyfriend in bed, still incredibly happy, but energy wearing off. He let his eyes close.

“Hey Steve?”

“Yeah Ed’s?”

“Metal looks good on you.”