#since it's a DC comic every character gets Trauma

[gon-and-killuas-mother]

due to the Naruto/Batman crossover i've been reading i will now be stepping into the Batman fandom

i mean, i've always liked Batman, but i never got into the comics bc there's so MANY so i settled for the animated tv shows and movies

specifically, i wanna see more Bruce being a kind person! also i need more Nightwing in my life. Dick Grayson might be one of my favorite DC characters next to Bruce Wayne

unfortunately for y'all this DOES mean i will be composing a self-insert story in my head. there's already one simmering on the mental back burner. it's how you know i love a story or group of characters; i write a self-insert fanfic as a coping mechanism for whatever shit is happening in my life. and boy do i need to pretend there's an edgelord billionaire taking the streets during my waking hours and investing part of his fortune to studying my illnesses during the day

whoops i already wrote something under the cut

i think, for my story, my self-insert has my basic personality and definitely my gender. they're an artist living either in Gotham or Blüdhaven. they use a wheelchair, sometimes a rollator, and deal with my same chronic pain and fatigue. oh and bc i rarely hear southern accents in these shows, this pal is from good ol' Arkansas but moved to follow their kid brother to either Gotham or Blüdhaven

the basic Plot that my brain generated to connect my character to the Bat family hinges largely on chance. Nightwing is on patrol, maybe following leads on the current Mystery. he stops on the roof of an apartment building towards the end of his patrol and takes a breather, sits on ledge and goes through files of evidence etc etc

enter my character (uh let's call them Rhys?) who opens the door to the roof and pulls out their rollator that they've managed to lug up the last flight of stairs, since the elevator doesn't go all the way to the roof. they also have a large art canvas, an easel, and their bag of supplies precariously balanced on the rollator.

Rhys spots Nightwing, who was surprised to see anyone else on a rooftop at 4 in the morning, and they look around and go "I'm not. I'm not interrupting anything, am I? Usually one mask brings more."

Nightwing stands up and assures them they're safe. he's about to leave when they pull a huge thermos from their bag (how did they get all of this up here??)

"My brother gave me this for my birthday a few years ago," Rhys says, lifting the thermos so Nightwing could see it. They pop off the lid, which turns out to be two that can be used as mugs. "Weird kids don't make a whole lotta friends. But he said the easiest way to someone's heart is through a shared cup of coffee."

and how could Nightwing, running on a handful of hours of sleep with at least another eight hours of detective work ahead of him, possibly say no to that?

he accepts the coffee and quietly sends a message to Barbara that he's taking a brief detour, all the while Rhys is setting up their easel and canvas. there's already some rough sketches and a couple layers of paint. Nightwing knows the skyline of this city well enough to recognize it even through an artist's eyes.

Rhys tells him that the sunrises here are unique. back home, the skies were crystal clear and nearly every sunrise was hallmark-worthy. but here, the pollution and glass windows reflect and refract the light in more ways than they could've imagined, and they have a series of paintings stashed in their tiny apartment devoted to color studies.

for one reason or another, this becomes a regular thing. several times a week, Rhys takes the elevator to the top floor, then heaves their rollator and supplies up that last flight of stairs. and every so often, when they open the door, they find Nightwing waiting for them. he starts bringing breakfast with him, but tells them he likes their coffee better (bc there's something about a coffee shared in a thermos that can't be replicated by any coffee shop)

eventually they ask each other about family. obv Nightwing doesn't give too many details, but enough to add to conversation. Rhys only has their brother, as their parents have been out of the picture for years.

one day, Rhys is quieter than usual, and hasn't touched their canvas yet, instead sketching and scratching out and balling up scrap paper etc etc. Nightwing asks what's wrong, and it takes a bit of nudging, but Rhys eventually tells him they haven't heard from their brother in a little over a week. it's not so unusual, but they get anxious anyway. they assure Nightwing that their brother probably just forgot.

then a week passes, and Nightwing is alone on the roof longer than usual. he's about to leave when Rhys opens the door, and he doesn't even have to ask how they're doing because they're pale, fidgety, and the circles under their eyes are much more pronounced.

their brother hasn't returned any calls or texts. more worryingly, his phone seems to have died or disconnected several days ago. Rhys doesn't ask any favors, but they don't have to, because as they're piecing together what info they have, Nightwing is already looking through police databases and missing persons and so on.

he hits a dead end, but one that is more informative and condemning.

Rhys's brother has a file in the system, and it's buried behind a top secret confidential report. something, something, Nightwing makes a loose connection to the case he and Bruce are working on for the A-plot. he promises Rhys that he'll find their brother.

and he does. he and Bruce bust the A-plot scheme involving (insert name of gang) that was responsible for dozens of disappearances. only a few of the victims were saved, the rest had been killed long before Batman and Nightwing stormed the keep.

Nightwing finds the brother. his body is floating face down in the canal a few blocks downstream, along with a dozen or so others. he's been dead for two days at least.

once the bodies are retrieved and safely transported to the nearest hospital morgue, Nightwing heads back to Rhys.

the sky is already turning from black to grey as he lands on the rooftop. Rhys has their easel set up and looks to be halfway through their current painting. they look up, about to greet him, but their smile vanishes when they see how grim Nightwing seems.

they blink back tears threatening to fall, turn their attention back to the canvas and pick up a different paintbrush. they quietly mix different colors on their palette until they're satisfied, before slapping the paintbrush to the canvas.

"Please," they finally say. the tears are flowing freely now. "Tell me what happened."

Nightwing sits on the ledge next to his cup of coffee. he remembers how his heart shattered when his parents were killed. he remembers the crushing despair upon learning of Jason's fate.

he isn't new to delivering this message. to telling an innocent family that their loved one is gone. he's learned how to keep it professional yet empathetic, to hide the worst details while satisfying their desperate need to Know.

there was something different about this one. maybe it was the determined focus Rhys was giving their painting, despite the tremor in their hands and their short breaths.

Nightwing tells them everything he can, save for the worst details. Rhys doesn't need extra imagery for their inevitable nightmares. but he explains the gang, the villain, the blackmailing, and Rhys paints on, only stopping to wipe at their eyes or blow their nose.

he finishes his story and watches them paint.

after some time of sitting in silence, the city slowly awakens and the sun rises. it isn't until the sun is nearly level with the tallest buildings that Rhys drops their paintbrush and buries their face in their hands.

the painting depicts their usual imagery, the sunrise filtering through smog and glass towers. the foreground shows a rooftop, not so different from the one they currently sat on. at the farthest edge of the rooftop, standing on the ledge with his hands raised--perhaps greeting the sun, or waving goodbye to the viewer-- was a boy. Rhys hadn't given him much detail, but they didn't need to.

Nightwing saw not just their brother, but his. that boy could just as easily be Jason as any other kid whose lives were cut short.

Rhys packs their things and stands to leave. they don't touch the painting. Nightwing asks what they'll do with it. Rhys looks at it one more time.

"Take it," they tell him. "I can't look at it anymore."

when Dick comes home with the canvas, he leans it against the wall and stares at it. one of the other Bat family, maybe Steph? Tim? comes in and sees the painting.

"Whoa," they say. "It's beautiful. I've never seen a sunrise look so sad before."

[annah-kitathryne]

Helena Bertinelli/Huntress Reading List/Completionist Guide

Helena Bertinelli is the Huntress of Prime Earth. She has existed as a character since 1989, and has appeared in her own series as well as multiple other series throughout the years. Most well known for being a Bird of Prey, she has a long history that tends to be hard to track. Instead of hunting down all of the issues, this guide has every one of her appearances in the attempt to follow her chronologically, but where her movements couldn’t be followed the natural passing of time was used to follow the story. 

This is both a reading list and a completionist guide. This means there will be times when the issue only has a cameo of Helena. For a casual reader this list may be a little much. If that is the case click [here] for a shorter list that can get you started on Helena. 

Moving onto Content Warnings. 

There will be mentions and depictions of Sexual Assault of Adults and Minors, Slavery, PTSD, and Murder. These are some of the big Content Warnings. That being said let’s get started. 

[Start Here]

Huntress (1989) #1, #2 

Justice League America (1987-1996) #26 

Huntress (1989) #3 - #6 

Justice League America (1987-1996) #30, #31

Huntress (1989) #7 - #12

Justice League America (198-1996) #35 

Time Masters (1990) #1 

Huntress (1989) #13 - #19 

Justice League International Special (1990) #1

Justice League America (1987-1996) #42

Justice League International Special (1991) #2

Armageddon (1991) #2 

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #652, #653 

Robin III: Cry of the Huntress #1 - #6 

Justice League Europe (1989-1994) #47 - #50 

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #662

Showcase ‘93 (1993)  #9 , #10

Black Canary (1993) # 9 - #12

Green Arrow (1997-1998) #83 

Showcase ‘94 (1994) #5 

Robin (1993-2009) #6 

Showcase ‘94 (1994) #6 

Huntress (1994) #1 - #4

Robin (1993-2009) #17

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #686

The Batman Chronicles (1995-2000) #1 

Underworld Unleashed (1995) #2 , #3

Batman (1940-2011) #529

Batman: Shadow of the Bat (1992-1999) #49

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #698

The Batman Chronicles (1995-2000) #4

Batman: Shadow of the Bat (1992-1999) #53

Batman (1940-2011) #533

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #701

Robin (1993-2009) #33 , #34

Birds of Prey: Manhunt (1996) #1 - #4

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #703

Green Lantern (1990-2004) #81 

Robin (1993-2009) Annual #6 , #45

Genesis (1997) #1 - #4

Catwoman (1993-2001) #51 , #52 

Spectre (1992-1998) #62

JLA (1996-2006) #16 - #19 

Nightwing and Huntress (1998) #1 - #4 

Batman 80-Page Giant (1998/1999) #1 

Green Lantern (1990-2004) #103

Superman: Doomsday Wars (1998-1999) #1 - #3 

DC One Million (1998) #1 , #2 

JLA (1996-2006) #1,000,000 

DC One Million (1998) #3, #4

JLA Secret Files (1997-2000) #2

JLA (1996-2006) #24 - #26 

Hourman (1999-2001) #1

Nightwing (1996-2009) #26 - #29 

JLA (1996-2006) #27 

JLA/Titans (1998/1999) #1 - #3

Batman 80-Page Gaint (1998/1999) #2

The Batman Chronicles (1995-2000) #19

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #720

Batman: Huntress/Spoiler - Blunt Trauma (1998) #1 

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #721

 The Batman Chronicles (1995-2000) #14 

Robin (1993-2009) #65

Batman: No Man’s Land (1999) #1 

Batman: Shadow of the Bat (1992-1999) #83 

Batman (1940-2011) #563 

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight (1989-2010) #116 

Batman: Shadow of the Bat (1992-1999) #84

Batman (1940-2011) #564

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #731

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight (1989-2010) #117

Batman (1940-2011) #565

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #732

Batman: Shadow of the Bat (1992-1999) #86

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #733

JLA (1996-2006) #28 - #31

Martian Manhunter (1998-2001) #6 - #9

JLA (1996-2006) #32

Martian Manhunter (1998-2001) Annual #2

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight (1989-2010) #119

Batman: Shadow of the Bat (1992-1999) #87

Batman (1940-2011) #567

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight (1989-2010) #120

Nightwing: Secret Files and Origins (1999) #1

Batman (1940-2011) #568

Catwoman (1993-2001) #72

Batman (1940-2011) #570

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #737

Batman: No Man’s Land - Secret Files & Origins (1999) #1

Batman: Shadow of the Bat (1992-1999) #93

The Batman Chronicles (1995-2000) #18

Nightwing (1996-2009) #38 - #39

Batman: No Man’s Land (1999) #0

Batman (1940-2011) #573

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #740

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight (1989-2010) #126

Batman (1940-2011) #574

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #741

Batman: Shadow of the Bat (1992-1999) #94

Batman: Gotham Knights (2000-2006) #1

Batman: Gotham City Secret Files and Origins (2000) #1

JLA: Foreign Bodies (1999) #1 

JLA (1996-2006) #34 - #41

JLA: Secret Files and Origins (1997-2000) #3

Azrael: Agent of the Bat (1994-2203) #63 - #65 

Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E (1999/2000) #8

The Batman Chronicles (1995-2000) #15

Batman: Gotham Knights (2000-2006) #7

Batman/Huntress: Cry For Blood #1 - #6 

Batman: Outlaws (2000) #1 - #3

Nightwing (1996-2009) #52

Wonderwoman (1987-2006) #164 - #167

Justice League: Justice League of Amazons (2001) #1

Justice League: JL? (2001) #1

Superman: The Man of Steel (1991-2003) #109

Batman (1940-2011) #586

Batgirl (2000-2006) #18 

Batman (1940-2011) #591 

JLA (1996-2006) #58

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #763

Joker: Last Laugh (2001) #5 

Robin (1993-2009) #95 

Joker: Last Laugh (2001) #6

JLA: Incarnations (2001-2002) #7

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #773

Batman: Gotham Knights (2000-2006) #34, #35 

Nightwing (1996-2009) #75

JLA: Welcome to the Working Week (2003) #1

Batman: Family (2002-2003) #2, #4, #8 

Batman (1940-2011) #609

Batman: Gotham Knights (2000-2006) #37 - #40 

Action Comics (1938-2011) #802

Batman (1940-2011) #617 , #619

Bird of Prey: Secret Files and Origins (2003) #1

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #57 - #61

Robin (1993-2009) #120

Batman: Gotham Knights (2000-2006) #48

Superman/Batman (2003-2011) #5 

Outsiders (2003-2007) #8 - #10

The Adventures of Superman (1987-2004) #623

Gotham Central (2002-2006) #17 , #18 

Batman: Gotham Knights (2000-2006) #50

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #64 - #66

Outsiders (2003-2007) #12

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #67 - #80

Teen Titans (2003-2011) #21

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #81, #82

The OMAC Project (2005) #2

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #83 , #84

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #809

JLA (2005-2008) #117, #119

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #85 - #87

Nightwing (1996-2009) #112

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #86 

JSA: Classified (2005-2008) #3

JLA (2005-2008) #121

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #88 - #91

Infinite Crisis (2005-2006) #5 , #7

Adventures of Superman (1987-2006) #648

Villains United: Infinite Crisis Special (2006) #1

52 (2006-2007) #1 

Robin (1993-2009) #148

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #92 - #99

Nightwing (1996-2009) #127

52 (2006-2007) #34

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #100 - #103

52 (2006-2007) #48 , #52

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #104 - #108

Justice League of America Wedding Special (2007) #1 

Green Arrow / Black Canary Wedding Special (2007) #1 

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #110

Green Arrow and Black Canary (2007-2010) #1

Detective Comics (19337-2011) #837

Gotham Underground (2007/2008) #2 , #7

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #111 - #115

Countdown to Mystery (2007/2008) #6 , #8, #9

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #116

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #117 - #119

Huntress: Year One (2008) #1 - #6

Manhunter (2004-2009) #33 - #36

Trinity (2008-2009) #9, #13 , #14 , #50

Final Crisis: Requiem (2008) #1

Final Crisis (2008/2009) #3

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #120 - #123

DC Universe: Decisions (2008) #3

Secret Six (2008-2011) #1 , #7

Batman and the Outsiders (2007-2011) #13

Birds of Prey (1998-2009) #124 - #127

Batman and the Outsiders (2008/2009) #4 , #5

Batman: Battle for the Cowl (2009) #1 , #2 

Batman: Battle for the Cowl: Network (2009) #1

Batman: Battle for the Cowl (2009) #3

Batman: Streets of Gotham (2000-2011)  #3 - #6 , #9, #13

Blackest Night: Batman (2009) #2

Batman (1940-2011) #693 - #695 , #697 

Azrael (2009-2011) #2

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #859 - #663

Justice Society of America (2007-2011) #38

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #864, #865

Red Robin (2009-2011) #12

Batgirl (2009-2011) #10 , 11

Birds of Prey (2010-2011) #1 - #4

Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne (2010) #3

Birds of Prey (2010-2011) #5 , #6

Superman/Batman (2003-2011) #78

Birds of Prey (2010-2011) #7 - #10

Brightest Day (2010-2011)

Birds of Prey (2010-2011) #11

Batman Incorporated (2011) #6

Secret Six (2008-2011) #36

Birds of Prey (2010-2011) #12 - #15

Batman (1940-2011) #713 

Convergence: The Question (2015) #1, #2

New - 52 

Batwoman (2011-2015) #2

Secret Origins (2014-2015) #8 

Nightwing (2011-2014)  #30

Grayson (2014-2016) #1 - #5 ,Annual #1 , #6 - #11

Batgirl (2011-2016) Annual #3

Midnighter (2015) #3

Harley Quinn (2014-2016) #20

Grayson (2014-2016) Annual #2 

Batman & Robin Eternal (2015/2016) #2 , #3

Titans Hunt (2015-2016) #1 

Grayson (2014-2016) #13 , #14 

Batman & Robin Eternal (2015/2016) #5 

Midnighter (2015) #8 

Batman & Robin Eternal (2015/2016) #17

Grayson (2014-2016) #16 

Midnighter (2015) #9

Batman & Robin Eternal (20115/2016) #18 - #20

Grayson (2014-2016) #17

Midnighter (2015) #10

Batman & Robin Eternal (20115/2016) #23 , #24 

Grayson (2014-2016) #18

Batman & Robin Eternal (20115/2016) #25

Midnighter (2015) #11

Grayson (2014-2016) #19

Midnighter (2015) #12

Grayson (2014-2016) #20 Annual #3

Rebirth 

DC Universe: Rebirth (2016) #1 

Nightwing: Rebirth (2016) #1 

Batgirl and the Birds of Prey: Rebirth (2016) #1 

Batgirl and the Birds of Prey (2016-2018) #1 - #4

Nightwing (2016-) #9 

Batgirl and the Birds of Prey (2016-2018) #5 - #13 

Nightwing (2016-) #26 - #28 

Batgirl and the Birds of Prey (2016-2018) #14

Nightwing (2016-) #30 , #31

Batgirl and the Birds of Prey (2016-2018) #15 - #22

The Hellblazer (2016-2018) #19 - #24 

The Unexpected (2018-2019) #3 , #4 

Green Arrow (2016-2019) #45

Aquaman/Justice League: Drowned Earth (2018) #1 

Detective Comics (2016-) #1000

Batman (2016-) #71 

Action Comics (1938-) #1011

Harley Quinn (2016-2020) #64 

Batgirl (2016-2020) #39 

DC Villains Giant (2019) #1 

Batman (2016-) #81 - #83

Birds of Prey: Sirens of Justice (2020) #1 

Birds of Prey (2020-) #1 

Batgirl (2016-2020) #50

Dark Knights: Death Metal (2020) #5

Infinite Frontier 

Infinite Frontier #0 

Detective Comics (2016-) #1034 - #1039

The Other History of the Dc universe (2021) #5 

Batman Secret Files; Huntress (2021) #1

Detective Comics (2016-) #1041 , #1042 , #1046

Robins (2021-2022) #4, #5

Detective Comics (2016-) #1047. #1049 - #1058 , #1061

Nightwing (2016-) #95

Batman: Dear Detective #1 

Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths (2022) #5

Batman (2016) #129

Nightwing (2016-) #98

Lazarus Planet: Dark Fate (2023) #1

[Current Present: July 2023]

Else Worlds and Others 

Harley Quinn and the Birds of Prey (2020) #1 - #4

Superman and Batman: World’s Funniest (2000) #1 

JLA: Act of God (2000-2001) #1

Future State: 

Future State: Dark Detective (2021) #1 , #3

Future State: Nightwing (2021) #1 , #2 

DCeased: 

DCeaased (2019) #3, #4

DCeased: Unkillable: #1

DC vs. Vampires: 

DC vs. Vampires (2021-2023) #2 , #10 , #11

DCAU: 

Superman & Batman Magazine (1993-1995) #1 , #4

The Batman & Robin Adventures (1995-1997) #19 

Justice League Unlimited (2004-2008) #20 , #22 , #27 , #31 , #36

Batman: The Adventures Continue Season Two (2021-2022) #3

Injustice: 

Injustice: Year Zero (2020-2021) Chapter #1 , #2 

Injustice: Gods Among Us (2013-2016) #6 , #7 , #9 , #11 , 12

Injustice: Gods Among Us - Year Two (2013-2016) #3 , #6 , #7 - #11 , Annual #1

Injustice: Gods Among us - Year Three (2013-2016) #2 , #6 , #9 - #12

Injustice: Gods Among Us - Year Four (2013-2016) #1 

Flashpoint: 

Flashpoint: Emperor Aquaman (2011) #2 , #3 

Flashpoint: Wonder Woman and the Furies (2011) #2 , #3

Flashpoint: Lois Lane and the Resistance (2011) #2

Convergence (2015) #6 , #7 

Tiny Titans:

Tiny Titans (2008-2012) #45

Bombshells: 

DC Comics: Bombshells (2015-2017) #6 , #10 , #16 , #17 , #18 , #26 

Bombshells: United (2017-2018) #36

Batman: The Brave and The Bold:

Batman: The Brave and The Bold (2009-2010) #11 , #14

All-New Batman: The Brave and The Bold (2011-202) #4

Lil’Gotham: 

Batman: Lil’Gotham (2013-2014) #3 , #5 , #6 , #8 , #10 , #12

Scooby-Doo: 

Scooby-Doo Team-Up (2018) #34

The Batman & Scooby-Doo Mysteries (2021-) #5 , #12

Other Appearances (Crossovers) 

Batman Versus Predator II (1993/1994) # 1 - #4

JLA/Witchblade (2000-2001) #1

Avengers/JLA (2003/2004) #4

Other Characters to hold the name, Huntress: 

Paula Brooks

Helena Wayne

Carol Danvers (Amalgamverse)

Charlotte Gage-Radcliffe

>~<>~<>~<>~<

To the Helena Bertinelli fans I hope you enjoy! 

@inkareds​ I finished the complete guide if you want to check it out. 

If I made any mistakes or forgot something leave a comment, or send me a message. I tried to include everything, but I could have messed up. I will also try to update this as new Huntress stuff comes out, so the list may grow. 

[carmineskiesandspidereyes]

How would one get into batfam 🤨 there are so many graphic novels dios mios

oh man, I don’t know if I’m the one to ask, but I’ll try—

(and uh. Warning in advance lmao because holy SHIT this answer got long—whoops—)

But yeah, the way I got into dc and the batfam was by first listening to my beloved @bluutunes ramble about Jason Todd at 2 am,,, and then by reading the 2 fics they sent me afterwards that had made them so rabid about him. I, too, was quickly ensnared. (We then watched Under The Red Hood, now we’re on young justice—if the comics are daunting, you can 100% ask around and get good dc movie/show recs too! :)

From there? I just kept interacting w the fandom. I went looking for more Jason stuff, (and ofc, where there’s good Jason stuff there’s inevitably also other bat family dynamics.) They’re all entwined enough that you eventually get a vibe for the others no matter who you start with. before i knew it I’m reading Damian-centric fics and watching YJ89 just for silly young Dick Grayson and—you get the point lmao. Jason hooked me right off the bat because a) he was bluu’s fav, and b) because. Well.)

I am, in my heart of hearts, a shameless sucker for undead/revived characters. (But beyond that, there’s also his particular lovely mix of “terrifyingly smart and terrifyingly strong and a vengeful force of nature. This character is a reckoning. This character is a consequence.” Slotted in riiiiiiight next to “untethered barely-adult who can’t to fully trust his mind and body not do something he’ll regret, and his entire mission since returning—the core reason he does any of it, takes over an ENTIRE criminal underground—is just to gain proof that. That he’s cared about. by any parental figure. ever.”

Ouwgh. Yeag. I just think .he’s neat

And like. ALL of the siblings have stuff like that. Every single one has their own wealth of lore, experiences, roles, trauma, literally all else that you can delve into as deep as you please <3. (Dick narrowly avoided getting his brain overrides to be a bird soldier. Tim is missing an entire spleen. Duke is the only meta in the whole batfamily (and the only one besides Jason to grow up in Gotham’s slums.) Damian could take down a fully grown and trained assassin three times his size by the time he was like. six. Steph got told by pretty much every other batfam member, REPEATEDLY, that she should put the mask down and stop fighting crime. (Spoiler alert. She did not.) (why yes, I do think I’m funny.) and cass…man, I need to learn more about. I should have a random fun fact on hand for her. Damn. She’s cool as hell though👍)

Gods—ok, I think I’m done. I hope this wasn’t too egregiously long but also. Ask and ye shall receive :)

happy batfamily-ing my guy

[distort-opia]

Hey what's up. Huge fan of your blog and like your thoughts. I gotta lot of respect for your analysis, your writing, and how you work with the material for batman in general. You've mentioned a couple times or atleast hinted at possible diagnosis for Bruce and Joker, and while I do subscribe to the idea that due to the nature of comics, thier respective mental health issues are more symbolic than literal, I do, however, find it interesting and fun to try to identify them, especially since writers seem keen to slap stuff onto them on a whim. Also, I'm a psych graduate, but unlike you I'm getting my PhD in Communication research but I still work in neuro and psych spaces. Anyway this is my long winded way of asking if you have a general set of conditions that the two have. I personally think that they both have CPTSD and both display traits from both ASPD and BPD but to differing extents. Additionally, for Joker dissociative amnesia is a given, however like most things it's doesn't fit most descriptions for it.

Thank you for the kinds words, I'm glad you like my blog! And hey, another Psych graduate... somehow I know of at least 5 of us in this fandom, it's quite funny.

Indeed, it's tough to ascribe any kind of diagnosis to comic book characters, both because of how inconsistent characterization can be and because of how bad DC's approach to mental health has been. For Joker it's especially difficult, because "insanity" has been written as almost his superpower. Oooh he's so random and crazy! No one can understand his twisted mind! But well, I agree it's still interesting to try and parse the sheer knot of trauma these two characters are tangled in.

For Bruce, CPTSD (Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) is almost a given, since it's not just that he suffers from PTSD as a consequence of his parents' death, but that he also re-traumatizes himself pretty much every day, by being Batman. And even leaving that aside, there's such a long list of traumatic events Bruce has experienced since then, including almost committing murder or the death of his Robins on multiple occasions. Though I don't know if he matches the ASPD (antisocial personality disorder) criteria that well. Sure, by being Batman he fails to conform to social norms, uses violence and lies to people and does things worthy of arrest-- but it's by no means impulsive, or a consequence of an incapacity to control his actions. Bruce is much too capable of planning in advance, that's his whole schtick. And he's not doing these things with a selfish purpose, to benefit himself; he does them to help others. As to BPD (borderline personality disorder), I do see it more, though not to a large degree as I do for Joker. Bruce is terrified of abandonment, he's got unstable relationships, but that speaks to me more towards him having a disorganized type of attachment and not full blown BPD. When it comes to personality disorders, Bruce is much more on axis A-- closest to schizoid, I'd say (prefers to be alone, appears cold/disinterested in human interaction, limited expression of emotion, seems not to enjoy many activities, trouble with social cues, disinterest in the pursuit of sexual relations). With a dash of C when it comes to obsessive-compulsive traits (overly focused on details, order and rules, needs to be in control at all times, ignores personal relationships for work/the Mission/the Vow, cannot throw things away, rigid and stubborn, inflexible over values or morality).

However, I think a lot of this could also be due to him being on the autistic spectrum. His troubles with social cues, his inflexibility and need for order and categorization... and how successful he is at "masking", which is pretty much what the Bruce Wayne persona is. Besides, the thing is, Bruce is empathetic (though it's complicated). Individuals on the autistic spectrum tend to display intact or even excessive emotional empathy and lower cognitive empathy, with research showing that this can be overwhelming; they might have trouble regulating how much they empathize (potentially due to less self-other distinction) and thus end up avoiding it (like avoiding eye contact, for example). Look at Bruce's Family alone: so many of the people he took in were people he strongly related to, one way or another... this isn't something someone with ASPD would do, for instance.

Meanwhile, Joker's definitely much more on axis B. CPTSD for sure, as well as BPD, ASPD... I'd agree there's a lot of ground for both of the latter, including potentally NPD (narcissistic personality disorder). Joker is suffering through the consequences of trauma too, and he is impulsive, grandiose, reckless, uses violence, deceives and cons people, has an unstable sense of self, etc. Hell, I'd say he has traits that fit histrionic personality disorder too. His need for attention, overly dramatic behavior... I mean, the man nearly got himself killed in Devil's Advocate because he was enjoying the attention he was getting from Gotham so much. And if Bruce is potentially more on the autistic spectrum, Joker's on the psychopathy one, which -- again -- could account for many of the traits described above. I mean, just the first result Google puts out is incredibly fitting (glibness/superficial charm, grandiose sense of self-worth, need for stimulation/proneness to boredom, pathological lying, conning/manipulative, lack of remorse or guilt, shallow affect/reduced emotional responses, callous/lack of empathy). Coupled with ADHD (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder) traits out the wazoo, which was an official diagnosis we got in comics for him. Although personally, I think Joker isn't a primary psychopath, but a secondary one. As in, while there's surely a genetic component, childhood trauma is what tipped the scales and led to him displaying these traits. I also definitely agree with the dissociative amnesia, though I'd group it together with the CPTSD, and also tie it to the unstable sense of self characteristic of BPD.

Got a bit too long, but yeah! To differing degrees, one could argue for a multitude of disorders... we haven't even touched depression (though I think Bruce and Joker are more likely to be diagnosed with recurrent major depressive disorder; they have episodes of depression, but don't always display the symptoms). Sorry for how long this took, but hope you found this interesting, Anon. And God, best of luck with that PhD, I hope it's going well!

[canonmisogynyvictimstournament]

PROPAGANDA

STARFIRE (DC COMICS) (CW: Sex Trafficking)

1.) She is frequently put down in the og 80s comics due to being more expressive and open with her emotions, and ever since the og she has frequently been painted as just eyecandy (ignoring her sexual trauma) when her character is so incredibly complex. Special mention goes to red hood and the outlaws (2011) (written by a sexual harasser) for just terrible stand out awful reasons which will be seen in the below photos and her 2015 solo for combining her vapid portrayal there with her cartoon quirkiness to culminate in a trash comic that is just her basically being the born sexy yesterday trope.

2.) 2011 reboot, in RHATO she was turned into a walking fetish by retconning most parts of her character and erasing all personality displayed in the past 30 years of comics. in that iteration she is only interested in sex and is dehumanised and ‘exotic’. she ‘forgot’ all her past relationships because she doesn’t care about them only sex. her only purpose in that book is as a powerhouse and a sex/love interest for one of the male characters who view her as a trophy because she used to date someone he dislikes (in this continuity) let’s also not forget that she was first created just to be a love interest and although she did grow into a hood character at some point, she is treated horribly time and time again by writers because of conflicting ships. she’s written as a ‘vixen’ as opposed to another ‘good girl’ female character who is shipped with the same guy in canon

3.) Her original characterization was fairly decent, however it still had her stuck in relationships with men that weren't very good for her and had overtones of racism with how she was written. Post that her characterization was slowly chipped away at, some writers with harder sledgehammers than others, culminating in current writing where she's dismissed as "just a fling" to her original counterpart (Dick Grayson) to prop up a different ship (Dick Grayson/Barbara Gordon) and frequently has been used as eye candy in other comics. Simply open the first comic of Red Hood and the Outlaws, which obliterated her personality to make her associate/be subservient to the Red Hood, and you'll find plenty of panels of her appearing simply for eye candy in the boobs and butt pose for absolutely no reason. This is not the only time she's been used to cater to the male gaze (I'd argue even in her original context that was part of her appeal) but in this comic she essentially has no personality beyond "i want sex" as her memory of all past events has been erased. She's essentially just a tool for her male counterparts in the comic to bounce off of, and eye candy to bring more male readers in. She does eventually get more storylines later on, but that doesn't excuse the bad writing she was put through. Her own solo series also cashes in on her sex appeal, by infantilizing at the same time as drawing her in skimpy outfits + more boobs and butt poses galore to go for the "born sexy yesterday" misogynistic trope.

NYA SMITHA (LEGO NINJAGO)

1.) it would take way too long to talk abt all of it but like… in the series colors are very important for characters and everyone has their own color but from episode one for the next 8 seasons her colors were specifically tied to her brother.. and then when she finally got her own ninja outfit she wasnt given her own color the colors were specifically red for her brother and blue for her boyfriend. shes constantly diminished to just the men who are closest to her. also every time she meets someone they Must become a love interest (including the man who was significantly older than her and trained her to use her powers. and also she was kidnapped and forced to marry a thousand year old djinn (when she was like SIXTEEN) because she looked a little bit like his dead wife. weird as hell.)

2.) she was given NOWHERE NEAR as much development as the guys (except for the bullshit love triangle!!!) despite being at the time leagues more competent than her brother in their debut, was damsel’d so he had to Save The Girl. again, the Bullshit Love Triangle. even after she got her own “thing” she was just boiled down to “oh look it’s the girlboss!! she’s just as good as the guys!!” while still getting sidelined. as time went on and flanderization increased she pretty much just became The Team Girl, and she was ALREADY The Team Girl!!! they left her behind with the fuckin grandpa!!!

3.) Left behind to take care of the kid simply because “she’s the girl” for the first season and a half, is fairly blatantly excluded from the team, is believed to be unable to protect herself or others by antagonists throughout the series, and repeatedly dehumanized and referred to exclusively as “girl.” When the ninja are public figures in season 6 she is shown dealing with misogyny from the press in several ways, and in her focus season (Seabound) she speaks out against how she’s been treated as an object rather than a person. All around a girlboss who deserves better

[jasontoddenthusiastt]

I think fans want Jason to be a good person or be becoming one. To have a character that is well meaning and compassionate but decided murder is ok and to stand against main heroes who’s beliefs and actions go against the people he cares about and wants in his life. It’s confusing for people. People want their fav characters to be happy. But Jason can’t have his family’s support and follow his moral code. He’s cares about people and Gotham, and he’s an asshole who kills. It’s messy. It’s not black and white. I don’t even think Jason cares about being a good person or in the right anymore. I think he cares about what will save the most people instead.

Oh my goodness gracious I’ve been bamboozled

Batman’s definition of Good is not synonymous with absolute good/right no matter how much dc insists it is. Torture, battery/assault, surveillance, those are all condemnable actions too. I won’t get into the exhausting and frankly dumb debate of comic book morality wrt killing because I’ve already reblogged plenty of posts from other people who explained my thoughts on the matter far better than I ever have the patience to sit down and articulate. I also just think the notion that there’s something to be done about fictional characters who kill nazis and senseless murderers is stupid. Jason’s point is that the “main” heroes’ sanitized definition of right has its unaddressed holes and flaws which ultimately result in more preventable fatalities, and that he’ll work to correct those missing spots.

He doesn’t not care about doing what’s right. What he doesn’t care about (at least during his Winick characterization) is whether Batman thinks he’s right or wrong, because he sees the flaws in Batman’s methodology (and since he has a mind of his own). Batman’s methods alone cannot address Arkham’s revolving door and the rogues that come and go through those doors who have no intention (or capability from the doylist pov) of ever changing or undergoing redemption. Jason knows that he’s minimizing the number of preventable deaths by killing his targets, typically Characters Who Simply Do Fucked Up Shit Just Because, Why The Fuck Not?

Secondly, Jason is compassionate … to a fault. That was his fatal flaw. If he wasn’t so hell-bent on saving his potential birth mother he just met from that bomb despite everything she did to him prior, he could have protected himself instead, however slim his odds of survival were. What about his relationship with his other parents? He was a caregiver during his early childhood years for Catherine, until her death. Even mature adults who are financially stable find being a caregiver to a dying parent to be extremely burdensome on their bodies and minds, but he never complained about it or resented Catherine for being unable to care for him. Despite how none of his parents have really been what he needed them to be, he doesn’t blame them for their failings, and even continues to think highly of them (Bruce included).

And post-death? Enter Lost Days. Despite being dead set on plotting his revenge on Bruce, he constantly sidelines this in order to save other victims who are helpless like he once was. His own anger, trauma, and mission don’t remain his priority. (Sound familiar? Something something my own trauma above my son’s, mission above all else, etc.). Why would he waste precious time and risk his own life to do this if he wasn’t empathetic towards these victims or didn’t care about doing the right thing. He is simultaneously horribly traumatized and full of rage, and also incapable of ignoring what’s happening to victims around him (even as he claims that it’s indeed not his priority). And in that same vein, the entire premise of his rebirth outlaws run was that he doesn’t care if the public views him as a villain, an outlaw, so long as he can protect Gotham. And anyway where is this portrayal of him not caring about being in the right anymore. Almost every modern Jason story is about him grappling with where he stands with Bruce/Batman. During the early 2000s was probably the last time he did not care (hello, tentatodd??).

Jason has very evidently been portrayed as a kind and compassionate character. He is also simultaneously a calculated killer who doesn’t hesitate to kill when he deems necessary, and does so without remorse. It’s called being a Complex Character With An Edge™ that as you said, people so often claim to love. However when he fulfills that latter part, that seems to upset people because “killing bad”, and they then try to shave off and round out all his edges and claim he shouldn’t be that angry. In that case I guess you should just stick to liking traditional one-dimensional characters instead of claiming to like Jason but then encouraging his character assassination attempt by dc. Lol.

Lastly, who said anything about the batfam making Jason happy? Just because he’s written nowadays to want acceptance from Bruce (a shoddy attempt at forcing a non-existent nuclear batfamily), doesn’t mean that it’s a sound decision or that it does his character justice. I certainly don’t empathize with the idea that Jason needs the family’s approval or acceptance to be happy. (And anyway he has enough outlets for angst and pain aside from the batfam hello explore his other sources of trauma and do more deep dives into how he thinks when he’s alone). I don’t want them to magically make up and become one big happy family. This is not disney Lol. Besides, there are plenty of stories from dc that have that type of “wholesome” (hate that word utilization) characterization for Jason (Li’l Gotham, Tiny Titans, wfa, and even new stuff like the brave and the bold mini) and that is sufficient imo. Jason fans who are invested in the character deserve accurate, nuanced characterization and well-written stories, whether they be from his robin days (e.g., Batman: The Cult) or as red hood.

[serpentinegraphite]

...re: your tags on the WFA Jason crowbar incident -- might one be directed to your referenced essay?

Since it's been a min, here's the DC meta post this ask is referencing.

I thought it was on my blog, but I haven't been able to find the essay in the weeks since this ask came in? It might have been a tag rant more than the proper essay I thought I had posted. Or I might have been thinking of a broader and more general essay on the current trauma in fanfic portrayal, which I have definitely posted on this blog somewhere and in several friends' inboxes.

The gist of the essay is that a) fandom as a whole has a tendency to treat panic attacks/flashbacks as the Only and Right Way to experience trauma, even though that's by far not universal and b) will apply this even to characters who have canon trauma and show specific trauma reactions!

With Jason Todd in WFA having a Crowbar Sound Flashback, it's a perfect microcosm of both! The problem, therefore, isn't necessarily WFA being Uniquely Terrible and Inaccurate; WFA just exclusively plays with a lot of softball, fandom-popular tropes, so it remains popular even and especially with people who aren't super familiar with the canon. And because WFA thrives on softball, popular tropes, of course it's going to pick up on the Best Way To Write Trauma.

The essence of the problem is actually the way trauma symptoms in fanfic are homogenized to the most palatable, most sympathetic reaction guaranteed to woobify even the most hardened crime lords and war criminals: a panic attack. But not ANY panic attack! Specifically the hyperventilating on the floor, curled up in a ball kind of panic attacks! (Characters who lash out in anger when they're scared? Characters who shout mean things? Not anymore! Now they're hyperventilating on the floor and they need tender care and possibly a hug.) The momentary full helplessness is integral to creating a miniature h/c journey for the characters (panic –> helplessness –> rescue –> bonding).

Panic attacks actually have a pretty wide range of symptoms! Sometimes they're focused more on derealization reactions or heart racing (loads of people irl end up in the ER thinking they're having a heart attack, when it's actually a panic attack).

This specific portrayal of trauma as panic attacks is, I think, most egregious with characters who would actually fucking die if they had this exact trauma response. E.g., Jason Todd, who infamously both commits crimes and fights them. If he has a panic attack at every scum bag who waves a crow bar at him, he's probably getting beaten to death with a crowbar again. If even one of his regular criminal contacts or enemies catches wind that he has a crowbar panic attack weakness, he's dead! And this could be played for drama in this kind of fanfic, but it never is. (Because drama isn't the point, quick and dirty h/c is.)

Distilling his trauma about dying into panic attacks dismisses his entire history and canon trauma response (rage and vengeance and trying a completely different tactic from Batman to better the city of Gotham when the Red Hood is being a good guy and not just being a crime lord for profit). Here is a solid discussion on how Jason reacts to his own death (I'm new here and this essay is already long lol, I'm not citing whole comics runs or anything myself), with a great addendum from Ragnarok-hound in the tags on the Doylist reasons for why the canon goes over Jason's death again and again anyway.

The problem further stems from everyone learning panic attack symptoms from a combination of personal experience (which for the AO3 crowd in the shippy tags does not as often include people with uh combat or crime experience) and actual mental health web resources, so any panic attack scene reads like it was written by someone between high school and college age checking off a list of psych textbook panic attack symptoms. So it makes sense why they would go with the thing that is easiest to write for them and stick with the approved symptoms they know will garner the most sympathy from the audience and, importantly, other characters in the scene. E.g., to return to bullying WFA's portrayal, having Bruce arrive to tell Jason everything will be okay and fix everything.

(I think ymmv more on Bruce portrayals, depending on Your Preferred Batman, whether that's the corresponding era of comics with Red Hood, the animated series, or some campy/classic live action Batman portrayal, but one thing that is pretty consistent in every Batman media is that he's not fucking great at feelings, so even with a generous reading, WFA simplifies a lot of fraught history between Jason and Bruce here. Further, I could write an entire second essay on how bystanders in fanfic always have the perfect response, to either use the right therapy speak and handle a panic attack perfectly or hug the person to help them calm down or what have you, but this is long enough as it is. To be brief, though: sometimes, especially in a situation like Jason and Bruce's, it's perfectly normal to see someone panicking and then also panic and fuck things up even worse! It's also common to feel frustrated or tired of seeing someone panic over the same thing! Like I know fanfic and WFA are wish fulfillment, but like. There's a lot of nuance and basic trauma understanding missing here.)

And that brings us to another point, which is that PTSD triggers don't necessarily manifest as anxiety disorders and textbook panic attacks. I mean, this feels obvious, but there are a lot of ways to experience PTSD! and that's the thing about Jason Todd! He has trauma, not an anxiety disorder! While panic attacks as the default and most common trauma reaction are very common in fanfic, it's not like even the top most common trauma trigger reaction? And it's weird that it's everywhere like this. Trigger responses have a wiiiiide range, e.g., nightmares, lashing out (the Netflix Jessica Jones show was especially good at this actually! Billy Hargrove on Stranger Things is a fucking perfect example too), dissociation (The Raven Cycle books do a great job with this, and then the fanfic forgets that it happened entirely), or simply activating one's fight or flight instinct (and we've seen with Jason, it's often a fight instinct!). There are probably also loads of Batman comics exemplifying each of these variations, but a) as stated I'm new here, I don't have comprehensive citations for every character (yet) and b) I really want to illustrate how fanfic specifically keeps sticking to one particular portrayal in a way that most canons don't.

Jason Todd can be easily written as having a Specific Traumatic Incident (dying hideously via crowbar) or having complex PTSD (little daily bullshit! you can do an entire deep dive on complex PTSD resulting from poverty, homelessness, and regular repeated exposure to violence as a child e.g. by being Robin, which is not even getting into the stuff you can gather from popular hc/later retcons about his mom's drug use or how his dad's working for Two Face and getting sent to prison might have affected him; another example it's a common hc that he's straight edge because of what drugs may or may not have done to his mom depending on the canon you're working with, but I don't see a lot of people writing him with the corresponding control issues that often pair with that). There are a lot of options is what I'm saying.

WFA choosing to double down on the sound of a crowbar scraping (when also like he's the one using a crowbar for actual mechanic things in this scene, he's probably used to a variety of metal scraping sounds, okay I'm nitpicking here again) over any of the more complex trauma under his belt is very lazy writing. They're distilling his entire history to one specific sound that causes a very targeted panic response, which I know. Is the format. That's how WFA works, it's not supposed to be deep, but this is again, a pattern I keep seeing again and again in fanfiction (to bully another fandom: Stranger Things fans insisting that Steve Harrington is afraid of his own swimming pool when the canon strongly contradicts that; he's swim team captain for 3 years running after this AND that's actually Nancy's trauma reaction, not Steve's).

Again, the problem isn't necessarily specifically with WFA or people who enjoy it or with h/c. But, yeah, the crowbar scraping sounds panic attack is a huge disservice to Jason's character, and it's like a ubiquitous pattern of writing trauma in recent years.

[agentnico]

Agatha All Along - season 1 (2024) review

Down down, down the road, down the Witches Road…

Plot: A spell-bound Agatha Harkness regains freedom thanks to a teen's help. Intrigued by his plea, she embarks on the Witches' Road trials to reclaim her powers and discover the teen's motivations.

I’m not going to waffle about my complaints with the current state of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I’ve already rambled on a substantial amount in my previous reviews regarding this subject matter, so let’s leave it at the fact that my opinion and thoughts have not changed. That being said, WandaVision was one of the few enjoyable projects in the post-Endgame MCU era, as it had that original and unique flavour with messing with different television formats, and additionally was interesting in how that show explored the effects of trauma and grief. Naturally due to its success, Disney being Disney and Marvel being Marvel meant a sequel or a spin-off was inevitable. In this case it’s Agatha Harkness, who was played with a lot of funky energy by Kathryn Hahn in WandaVision. As enjoyable as she was, I never considered her to need her own show. I guess really anyone can get their own Disney+ series these days!

Kathryn Hahn is the primary reason to watch Agatha All Along. She’s as enjoyable as ever, cackling and wincing her way through each episode, and it was entertaining to constantly question her moral code, if she’s a villain or if she was turning to the good side. Hahn is great, and I am so glad she’s getting the recognition snd good roles now. As for other cast members, they are okay. Joe Locke as the teen came off a little pretentious, and Patti LuPone was the only witch I actually cared about. Aubrey Plaza as the mysterious Rio ends up being exactly what you expect her to be, and though Plaza nails the sarcasm, it’s nothing you haven’t seen her do before.

In regard to the series’ style, it’s really campy. The trailers in my opinion promised more horror aspects which were not present in the final product, but my main complaint is with the show’s look. It feels cheap. From the costumes to the sets, the whole thing is reminiscent of a CW or SyFy show, and you can tell Disney is probably tightening their budgets following the backlash of recent releases. But with something like Marvel you still expect to see something of visually interesting style, especially as they are sourcing a lot of narratives from comics and graphic novels, which one would assume would inspire more colourful and memorable set pieces. Unfortunately this show doesn’t offer any of that. The best you get is some rip-off witch costumes from other Disney projects, which I felt was more so for Disney to show-off how much Hollywood they own.

As for the narrative, for the most part this show is dull. It’s a very repetitive concept where in every episode our witches take on yet another trial, and though some trials do stand out more than others (episode 7 where a character time-jumps using tarot cards was particularly memorable) as a combined package it meant that catching up every week with a new episode was at times a chore. The other infuriating factor was the endless foreshadowing. This show consistently would bash you over the head with clues of what’s to come, but the clues were so predictable that when the reveals finally did pay-off they were not surprising even remotely. Reminded me a little of that Walk Hard segment where the kid says “ain’t nothing bad gonna happen today” only for him to get spliced in two 5 minutes later.

Superhero fatigue is real everyone! It’s happening! I’m kidding of course, I’m still holding out hope that Marvel and DC will get back to their former glory, but evidently there is still a long ways to go. Agatha All Along didn’t do it for me, however I do admit that Witches Road song is a banger and has been stuck in my head ever since!

Overall score: 4/10

[toast-with-jam38]

WATCHMEN PLAYLIST !!!!!

I love my Watchmen playlist that I wrote down every song and why it is on it😭

Why each song on my WATCHMEN playlist is on it:

Unforgettable- Nat King Cole: The ad that plays for Veidt as Dan and Laurie kiss in Chapter 7

Im Your Boogie Man- KC & The Sunshine Band: The song from the riot scene in the movie.

The Comedians- Elvis Costello & The Attractions: The title of chapter 2, Absent Friends.

The Times They Are a Changin’- Bob Dylan: Credit Scene in the movie.

Desolation Row- Bob Dylan: Title of chapter 1, At Midnight All the Agents.

All Along the Watchtower- Bob Dylan: Title of chapter 10, Two Riders Approaching.

All Along the Watchtower- Jimi Hendrix: Title of chapter 10, Two Riders Approaching. 

Sanctus (Sanities)- Music For a New Society- John Cale: Title of chapter 11, A Stronger Loving World.

Please Mr. Kennedy- Elvis Costello, Oscar Isaac, Adam Driver: Fits the era. About not wanting to go into outers space/ the space race.

Swamp- Live- Talking Heads: About War, multiple aspects fit.

Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood- Elvis Costello: Elvis Costello, could be about multiple of the characters. “I'm just a soul whose intentions are good/ Oh Lord please don't let me be misunderstood” Could have multiple meanings. Rorschach’s vigilantism, and trying to clean up the city while also obviously breaking the law. Could also be about guilt over other things.

You’re My Thrill- Billie Holiday: From Chapter 7.

I’ll Be Seeing You- Billie Holiday: Just another song by Billie Holiday since Daniel loves her. I’ll be seeing you is also a song about missing a loved one, so I chose it because Dan would obviously miss Rorschach and might be reminded of that by listening to the song.

Snow Owl- The Mountain Goats: Dan is Nite Owl, and wears a snow owl costume in chapters 10 and 11. Thats it lol.

99 Luftballons- Nena: Played in the scene where Dan and Laurie get dinner in the Watchmen Movie.

Dance Music- The Mountain Goats: Reminds me of Laurie and her snow globe in chapter 9. The entire song reminds me of Daniel and Laurie.

Die Walkure, Act III: Ride of the Valkyries- Richard Wagner: From the section of under the hood after chapter 1.

Southwood Plantation Road- The Mountain Goats:

Nuts (feat. rainy bear)- Lil Peep, rainy bear: There is a really good watchmen edit to this of Dan and Laurie lol

 Yeh Yeh- They Might Be Giants: I dont really know why I just think it fits the vibe.

I Bet On Losing Dogs- Mitski: Daniel and Rorschach sadness. Rorschach is said losing dog that Daniel bets on.

Once More to See You- Mitski:Daniel and Rorschach sadness part two. Gay.

Heart To Heart- Mac DeMarco: There is a really good watchmen edit to this of Dan and Rorschach.

The Hand That Rocks The Cradle- The Smiths: Reminds me of Daniel and Rorschach. About wanting to protect someone from evilness and harm.

Kryptonite- 3 Doors Down: Besides being about DC comics, the chorus about going insane and still being there to support the person reminds me of Daniel and Rorschach after the Blaire Roche Case.

Ain’t No Sunshine- Bill Withers: The entire section of “Wonder this time where she's gone/ Wonder if she's gone to stay/ Ain't no sunshine when she's gone/ And this house just ain't no home/ Anytime she goes away” Reminds me of Daniel wondering where Rorschach is and if he is okay and if he is going to survive.

Watching The Detective- Elvis Costello: Another Elvis Costello song, also it is about detectives which reminds me of watchmen lol.

I Should Be Allowed To Think- They Might Be Giants: The priest quotes the first section of the chorus to Walter in the Before Watchmen for Nite Owl. Obviously hes quoting the poem and not the song, but the song quotes the poem so yk.

Army Dreamers- Kate Bush: Reminds me of Rorschach. It is talking about the potential everyone had before going to war just to die. Walter/ Rorschach had potential to be something greater. He was very intelligent and hard working, but due to his experiences and traumas from childhood and then soon vigilantism, he never could really be the person he should have turned out to be.

Real Men- Mitski: Reminds me of Rorschach and his judgment of everyone and most likely himself.

Little Dark Age- MGMT: There is a really good Watchmen edit to this song.

Back to the Old House- The Smiths: Could be about literally any single one of the people in watchmen besides The Comedian or Veidt, but even then you could probably twist it to fit in their favor.

This Night Has Opened My Eyes- The Smiths: Also could be about any of the Watchmen characters. The section “You kicked and cried like a bullied child/ A grown man of 25/ Oh, he said he'd cure your ills/ But he didn't and he never will” is like Rorschach (and there is a good edit to this song about him.)  The lyric “This night has opened my eyes And I will never sleep again” fits for all the characters. 

The Comedian: Him learning about Karnak and going to visit Moloch, having basically a mental breakdown.

Rorschach’s mental break over the Blaire Roche case.

Daniel and Laurie after witnessing Karnak.

Doctor Manhattan's death and rebirth in the test chamber. 

With Veidt I think this part relates to Doctor Manhattan talking to him after Karnak and making him question his choices. The talk has opened his eyes and he doesn’t know if he can live with himself after.

I Know It’s Over- The Smiths: Also just about Rorschach

Cold Island- My Singing Monsters: There is a wonderful Doctor Manhattan edit to this song.

She- Elvis Costello: Another Elvis Costello song. DanRor?? LMAO

Wake Up (It’s 1984)- Oingo Boingo: Rorschach. Him trying to preach his beliefs.

Old College Try- The Mountain Goats: This entire song is so DanRor it is so awfully wonderful.

Sun To Me- Zach Bryan: “​​The only bad you've ever done was to see the good in me” ….. danror.

I Don’t Smoke- Mitski: Also Danror, sorry there is ALOT of songs that remind me of danror haha.

[romancomicsblog]

8 Characters who should appear in Young Justice Season 5

Hoping and praying for another season of Young Justice is something I'm very used to.

After its initial cancelation way back in 2013, Young Justice was revived for a third season on DC Universe, DC's attempt at a streaming service, and lived past that to get a fourth season on HBO Max.

It is now under hiatus with no current plans at a fifth season.

I however will continue to remain hopeful for another season. Young Justice (with the exception of the Harley Quinn animated universe) is my favorite version of the DC Universe. With an exceptional voice cast, a focus on younger more relatable heroes, and a realistic political element to a superhero world, Young Justice cements itself not only as one of the best DC animated shows, but one of the best pieces of superhero media.

So while I have nothing but time until Warner Bros sees the gem that they have and give us a fifth season, I thought I'd pitch the characters I'd most like to see in the next season.

Greg Weisman and Brandon Vietti, if you're reading this, know if you don't put these in, I trust the season will be great anyway.

But you know, consider it!

*Spoiler Warning for Every Season of Young Justice*

The Bad Boys of the Bat Family

Let's start with the obvious!

Jason Todd AKA The Red Hood has been teased ever since Season 2, and while has made a few appearances, we have yet to see the menace he can be to both Bruce and The Bat Family.

I particularly want his story to tie in with Tim, who has only been seen to be the loyal soldier to Bruce. This can be an opportunity to reflect upon the life, and how Bruce's trauma trickles down.

Another Bat pairing I'm itching to see is Damian Wayne and Nightwing. The blood son and the favorite son can lead to some fun comedic beats and a lot of tension for the team.

Whatever team they decide to position Damian on, it could lead to disaster. Damians presence can also lead to less trust amongst superheroes, as he is a known killer, and Robin is a pretty public title in the Young Justice universe.

The Forgotten Sidekick

Sometimes even sidekicks need sidekicks!

For those not in the know, Gear was an original character for the DCAU show Static Shock, Virgil's best friend Richie.

Using technology, including a robotic backpack and flying boots, he was simultaneously Virgil's guy in the chair and right hand man in the field.

Static has been on the show for multiple seasons, but really hasn't had much to do since season 2. Giving him a protege of his own while paying homage to what came before.

Speaking of what came before...

The Final Titans

Who doesn't want a Titans reunion?

In Season 3, Cyborg was introduced into the fold and Beast Boy was given a much more expanded role. Ever since, I've been waiting for the Daughter of Trigon and the Tamaranean Princess to arrive.

An episode where the 5 Titans meet for an impromptu mission would be a lot of fun, perhaps battling one of their classic villains like Brother Blood or Deathstoke!

In the long run, both characters fit very well into the already established universe.

Raven would make an interesting member of Zatanna's Sentinels of Magic, and Starfire would be right at home with Forager and Miss Martian as aliens on Earth.

Would it be fan wish fulfillment? Absolutely, but Young Justice has done it before. In Season 4, Razer of Green Lantern Animated Series was given one of the best episodes, continuing his arc to find Aya.

I'm not sure how you could get all these characters and one of the Robins together for a mission, but I'll leaving the writing up to the experts.

The Incompetent Time Traveler

We've had the Legion, we've had Bart, but we have yet to have a time traveler who has no idea what he's doing.

Enter: Booster Gold.

Booster Gold is a fan favorite character across comics and animated media. He is a failed football athlete in the 25th Century, who steals tech in the future to pretend to be a hero in our time.

The character is soon to enter James Gunn's DCU, and recently made his Arrowverse debut in Legends of Tomorrow, played by Donald Faison, right before the show got cancelled (I bring this up mainly because he deserved a shot at voicing him and it could be a fun nod).

Boosters interference with the timeline could lead him to the worlds only time traveling expert, Bart Allen, effectively making him the Outsiders responsibility.

The character also leaves the door open to potentially a big bad, and maybe even thee big bad of the season....

The Professor

Much like General Zod and the Kryptonians became an overarching threat for Season 4, making it a Superboy/Superman focused season, I think it's high time the Speedsters of the team have a new threat.

Professor Zoom or the Reverse Flash is Barry Allen's greatest enemy. Another future man of the 25th Century, Eobard Thawne was a brilliant scientist, so opposed with The Flash, he decided to become his greatest enemy to become part of the story.

Reverse Flash has quite a few similarities with Bart actually. Future speedster hoping to be a part of the story and change the timeline for "the better". It would be an interesting rivalry between them.

While I would like him as the big bad of the season, I understand we JUST did a time traveling menace

My potential pitch would be Reverse Flash needs access to our time now for a power source, something to bring his power to the next level. Something or someone with Speed Force to spare, making him a battery for Eobard. So I believe Reverse Flash has returned to the past to get...

The Prodigal Son

Did I write this piece just to pitch a Wally West return season?

Yes. Yes I did.

Young Justice has left just enough wiggle room for Wally to return. We never hear about his soul, we never found a body, and Wally has been trapped in the Speed Force in the comics before.

Most notably, The Speed Force has not been mentioned yet. Currently, I don't believe any speedsters actually know it exists.

Eobard showing them the speed force and releasing Wally to drain his power, only to be foiled by the team, would not only bring back Wally, it could make him the Fastest Man Alive.

Wally becoming the Flash could be his arc of the season, which I argue would’ve been his destiny if Bart didn’t save Barry’s life.

Giving us a Wally with a power boost, lost time and lost love could lead to a lot of drama and potential for storytelling.

And of course, an Artemis/Wally reunion is well in order.

Again, if none of these characters make an appearance in the next season, I’d still just be happy there’s a season at all.

But time will tell if I’m right.

Thank you for reading! If you'd like to support me you can by following me here on my socials!

[bluejaysandblackbats]

Hair Trigger

Fandom: DC Comics, Batfam, Superfam, YJ98

Summary: A junior at Gotham University, Jason finds it difficult to conceal his worsening mental health from his family and his friend, Jon Lane Kent. Family secrets are revealed and boundaries are pushed as Jason and Laney struggle to navigate through school, their romantic feelings, and their trauma. Could the reintroduction of Laney Kent be more trouble than it's worth, or is it just what Jason needed to confront the demons of his past?

I will also do trigger warnings for chapters and if there is smut I have the chapter(s) tagged so you don't have to worry about nsfw in the fic if you're just here for the story itself.

Chapters: 20/?

Characters: Jason Todd, Jonathan Lane Kent, Bruce Wayne, Clark Kent, Lois Lane, Cassandra Cain, Tim Drake, Conner Kent, Natalia Knight, Jonathan Samuel Kent, Cassie Sandsmark, Chris Kent, Bart Allen, Original Character(s)

Relationships: JayLaney, Clois, TimKon

Additional Tags: University AU, No Powers AU, Sharing A Bed, Romance, Angst, TW // Kidnapping , TW // Gun Violence

Chapter Twenty: Disjointed

Laney sat on Jason's bed as Jason picked up their dirty laundry and put it in the hamper. "Jason?" Laney whispered. Jason took the blankets off his bed and checked the plugs to make sure everything was plugged where it was supposed to be. "Jason—."

"Who is Caleb Forrester, and why do I feel like he means something to you?" Jason raised his voice slightly. Laney's shoulders tensed.

"He was my counselor when I went to boarding school... And I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I just wanted to put it all behind me. Jason, he doesn't mean anything to me anymore. I'm terrified of him," Laney's voice cracked. Jason sat across from Laney on the bed. "I told you a lie about the first guy I was emotionally involved with, and I had to change details about it because I didn't know how you would see me—."

"I love you, Laney. Even if we were just friends or married or any of it... I love you in every way, and I wouldn't have judged you, but I'm sorry for being pissed. I just thought that maybe you wanted someone else," Jason whispered as he grabbed Laney's hand.

Laney kissed Jason's knuckles. "Jason, no, I don't want anybody else," Laney mumbled as tears flooded to the surface. "And I don't wanna cry... Caleb and I might've had something, but whatever that was was wrong. I just want it to be over. I want him to stop following me." Jason held Laney's hand over his mouth and kissed his palm.

"Wait, how long's he been following you?" Jason asked. Laney took Jason's hand and tried to cover his face. "Lane, please. Be serious with me."

"Since I was seventeen. Caleb showed up at a party I went to, then in Metropolis, he showed up at my dorm room, and now he's here in Gotham. I don't know," Laney whispered, "Maybe this is my fault for trusting him so much at first."

"It isn't your fault... Hey, look at me. It's not," Jason whispered. Laney looked up at Jason, and they met eyes.

Laney lay back on Jason's bed and took a deep breath. "Jason, I don't know what to do other than put down roots and hope that he will eventually go away," Laney mumbled as he pushed his hair back.

"Lane, I know you don't want to hear this, but I think you need to get a restraining order. I will go with you, and we can go out of town for a little bit. Okay?" Jason asked. Lois knocked on the door, and Jason invited her in.

"Your dad is on speaker right now," Lois whispered.

"Lane, how do you feel?" Clark asked.

"I'm okay... I mean, I'm screwed up because I knew Forrester was following me. I'm sorry," Laney mumbled.

Clark clicked his tongue. "Laney, maybe you should come home—."

"Dad, I can't come home. I came to Gotham because I thought he wouldn't follow me here. If I go home, he'll just follow me there... Jason's right. I have to make this stop. I'm gonna go down to the courthouse in a little while," Laney mumbled.

Lois leaned against Jason's nightstand, still holding the phone. "Lane, take the phone. Jason, can I talk to you?" Lois asked. Jason nodded, and Lois gave Laney her cellphone.

Jason stepped into the living room with her, and Lois plopped down on the couch. "Did you know anything about Laney's counselor?" Lois asked. Jason shook his head.

"Laney told me something about some guy from boarding school, but it wasn't true... I didn't really know anything about the counselor until this morning after breakfast," Jason answered. Lois pinched the bridge of her nose.

"I thought that maybe he said something to you about it... Maybe I should stay longer—."

"No, don't worry... I've got him. I'm gonna take him to the courthouse later on today, and—."

Laney came out of the room and grabbed his keys off of the kitchen counter. "Laney, where are you going?" Lois asked. Laney took a deep breath.

"I have to go get my laptop from my apartment. I forgot I have an assignment due at eleven... I'll be right back," Laney replied as he left the apartment. Jason went back to doing his laundry and cleaned his room before noticing something strange.

"Mrs. K.? Can you come in here for a second?" Jason asked. Lois came to the door and looked at him.

"Jason—."

"His laptop is in the bedroom," Jason pointed out. Lois cursed and slipped on her shoes, and she asked Jason to follow her downstairs. They got in the car and drove straight to Laney's building.

Jason texted Sylvia and motioned for Lois to stay out of sight while waiting for Sylvia to answer the door. Sylvia answered the door in tears, and she embraced Jason.

"Hey, Sylvie, is Lane here? We just had a weird conversation before he left, and I just wanted to come and apologize to him," Jason whispered. Sylvia burst into tears.

"I said that guy was weird, and Laney came here and left with him—."

"Sylvia, slow down," Jason whispered, "So he's not here?"

"No, Laney went with the guy, and he told me not to say anything, but he packed a bag—."

Jason cursed. "Sylvie, stay here, and I'll call you when I see him—."

"Jason, I'm so—." Jason smiled and shook his head.

"It's okay... I'll find him in a minute," Jason whispered as he left the apartment with Lois.

"What happened?" Lois asked as she rushed behind Jason.

"He left with him. Lane went with him. Sylvia said Laney packed a bag and went with him," Jason replied as he unlocked Lois's car door, and Jason's phone rang. Lois answered and put it on speaker.

"Caleb, I get why you're mad. I said a lot of crazy things last night," Laney said over the phone, "We can go to the farm, but I need you to tell me why you're still so mad at me."

"Because you said some really nasty things to me last night. Lane, you know that I adore you. You know that, but it hurts me when you run from me," Mr. Forrester replied.

"But, Caleb, listen to me. What do I have to do to prove it to you? Hm?" Laney asked.

"Come to Hershey with me. To the farm," Mr. Forrester answered.

"Caleb, baby, I said I was gonna go with you. I did. I wanna go to Pennsylvania with you. I want to, but you're scaring me. Can you please put that away?" Laney asked. "No, Caleb, please. We can do whatever you want to do. I just can't be honest with you when I'm scared like this."

"Lane, do you think I'm stupid—?"

"No! But I'm gonna be sick if you don't put the gun away!" Laney screamed. "Like I'm so upset right now because I feel like you want to hurt me, and all I want is to go away with you! Can you please pull over behind this grocery store? I feel like I'm gonna throw up!"

"Lane, okay... I'm gonna put the gun away. Just calm down," Mr. Forrester's voice softened, and the call grew near silent. They heard a smacking noise, and Jason looked at Lois and back at the road. She took the phone off speaker, and Jason wiped a few tears from his eyes.

"Jason, are you okay?" Lois asked as she held the phone to her ear.

Jason chuckled uncomfortably and shook his head. "No, no, I'm not okay. It's not that, though. It's not the kissing. It's just—."

Lois gasped and put the phone back on speaker before yelling for Laney. "Laney! Lane! Answer the phone!" Lois yelled.

"What happened?" Jason asked.

"Mom? Jason?" Laney sobbed before telling them where he was, and he hung up. Jason sped to where Laney was, and he ran into the police and the ambulance.

"Lane! Laney!" Jason screamed as he jumped out of the car, and the police stopped him and Lois from entering the scene. Laney sat in the back of an ambulance wrapped in a blanket with blood on his face and hands, and Jason and Lois ran to him and embraced him. Laney sat there in a daze.

"Cricket, look at me," Lois whispered, "Cricket, it's Mama."

Jason got on his phone and called Clark. "Hello?" Clark's voice answered on speaker, and Laney blinked hard before bursting into tears. "Jonathan?"

"Is he dead?" Laney asked. Lois looked around, and she shook her head.

"Don't worry about that. Did you talk to the police?" Lois asked. Laney nodded.

"What happened?" Clark asked.

"He pulled over, and I shot him," Laney whispered. Lois wandered off, and Jason stood with Laney.

"I'll be there tonight," Clark replied before hanging up. Laney reached for Jason, and Jason embraced him. Jason moved to kiss Laney, and Laney turned his head.

"Don't kiss me. I threw up," Laney mumbled.

"I don't care. I'll gargle," Jason whispered, and Laney let Jason kiss him. "Please don't scare me like this again. You know how scared I had to be to kiss you after you threw up?" Laney let out a little laugh.

Lois came back. "Let's go home... Okay? I talked to the police, and they said it's okay. Let's go home," Lois whispered as she took the blanket off of Laney, and Laney grabbed Jason's hand as they walked to the car. The ride to Laney's apartment was silent.

When they got back to Laney's apartment, Sylvia hugged him. "I thought you'd be hurt," she wept, "Are you okay?"

Laney didn't say anything for a moment as he looked around the apartment. "I need to take a shower and lay down. Sylvie, I'm sorry," Laney whispered before kissing the top of her head and going back to his room.

Jason waited until Laney went to the bathroom before making sure Laney's CPAP was plugged up and pulled the sheets back. He burst into tears. Lois entered the room and gave Jason a hug. "Jason, it's okay. Don't worry," Lois whispered.

"No, but it's not. I've never seen Lane like that," Jason wiped the tears from his eyes. "There's so much that I really don't know about this."

"Jason, Laney isn't guarded because he wants to be. Lane's got so many feelings about everything, and it's easier for him to push through them or lie about them than it is to just stop and feel something...

He loves you. He's just gonna need time to sort through this. This all seems sudden for us, so imagine how it was for him. I'm gonna order us something to eat," Lois whispered. Jason nodded.

"Mrs. K.?" Jason stopped her.

"Yeah?" she asked in a soft tone.

Jason stood there for a while in near-silence before whispering, "Did Laney kill him?"

Lois shook her head. "Almost," Lois whispered, "But I think it's better for Lane's conscience this way." She closed the door behind her on her way out, and Jason sat in a desk chair, waiting for Laney to return.

When Laney came back to the bedroom, he took off his shirt, climbed into bed, and lay there, staring up at the ceiling. Jason opened his mouth to speak, but he didn't know what to say. "I can understand if you're mad about what you had to hear," Laney whispered. Jason rolled the chair around to Laney's bed.

"I'm not mad at you. You did what you had to," Jason whispered, "I just hate I wasn't there for you." Laney turned on his side.

"Jason, I have to tell you something," Laney whispered, "I didn't want him to die... I still don't." Jason nodded.

"That isn't a bad thing... That's just how you feel—."

"How do you feel?" Laney asked.

"I would've put him in the ground," Jason whispered. Laney looked at Jason's unflinching face before turning away. "I know it's not what you wanted to hear, but he could've killed you."

"Jason, can you sit by me?" Laney asked. Jason climbed over Laney on the bed, and Laney rolled onto his stomach and turned to look at Jason, wincing as he settled into the bed.

"Where does it hurt?" Jason asked.

"My back's been hurting ever since we got home," Laney whispered. Jason reached over Laney and went into his drawer.

"You don't have any heat cream for your back," Jason announced.

"I know. I've got a little massage oil to the back right of the drawer," Laney explained, and Jason took the small bottle of massage oil and squeezed a few drops into his hands.

Jason pressed his hands into Laney's back firmly, and Laney took in a breath just loud enough for Jason to hear. "Too much pressure?" Jason asked.

"No, you—. It just startled me," Laney murmured. Jason nodded and continued to apply pressure, loosening the muscles in Laney's back. Silence fell between the two of them, and Jason's mind drifted away as he massaged Laney's lower back. Laney clutched his mattress before letting out a faint crying noise. Jason stopped and snapped back to attention.

"Does it hurt?" Jason asked. He took Laney's shirt and wiped his back off. Laney pressed his face into his pillow and burst into tears. "Lane?"

Laney curled up and grabbed the bottom of Jason's shirt, pulling it to his face as he let out loud gasping sobs. Jason froze as Laney pulled himself up onto Jason's lap and continued to cry. "Lane, I've got you. I promise," Jason reassured him as he pulled Laney up into an embrace. Laney sobbed until he was too tired to cry anymore, and he drifted off to sleep, still holding on to Jason. Jason lay down beside Laney, watching as he slept.

As the sunset on Gotham, Jason lay still, only moving to put his arm over Laney. Jason never realized how painful silence was between them. Someone knocked on the bedroom door, and Jason sat up slowly, careful not to wake Laney from his sleep. "Come in," Jason whispered. Clark cracked the door and slipped through.

"How long has he been asleep?" Clark asked.

"Just before sunset... Maybe four o'clock, five-ish," Jason whispered. Laney made a soft noise before complaining about the cold.

"Hey, Laney... It's dad," Clark whispered. Laney perked up and opened his eyes before throwing himself into his father's arms.

"Dad!" Laney exclaimed. Clark relaxed his shoulders before giving Laney a tight hug and a kiss on top of his head. "What are you doing here?"

Jason and Clark exchanged looks before Clark answered with a gentle, "I wanted to check on you. Remember we talked on the phone?"

Laney shook his head. "No? Not today, I don't think," Laney mumbled.

[aingeal98]

I do feel sorry for batfam stans who due to being fanon only are under the impression when they get into these characters that Bruce is the world's best dad who saves all these children from horrible situations and gives them a better life. Like imagine you get enamoured by the idea of batman and his army of child menaces who all love each other like siblings and who's past trauma is the only source of conflict that Bruce gets to fix with hugs. And then you actually start getting into the source material all these fandom posts are from and realise the family and premise you're so invested in does not exist outside Wayne Family Adventures, which itself relies on understanding the source material in order to know the depth of the conflicts it brings up.

Your new fandom is made up of a batfamily that don't exist on any comic pages. Is it a nice concept? Absolutely. Is batman being a good father and not an abusive one the path dc should have gone down years ago? I'd say so yeah since he's their flagship hero. But that's not the direction they chose and when you try to talk about the fanon versions with comic readers you'll end up with confusion because the characters and the relationships you think they have just do not match up with the canon unfortunately. The kids may love each other but they have issues with Bruce and given his canon actions they have every right to feel that way.

[trekkele]

General complaint, not directed at you:

*sigh* I know the batfandom likes to play trauma olympics, but if i see one more take that argues that the batkids have so much more trauma than bruce who has been in comics since *looks up specific number* 1939, almost a century, and has everything bad happening to him at least once. Not to mention how DC wants to keep him young, which means they condense all his stories into less than twenty years. And this is how we could have a dead batman, an outcast batman and a family dad batman all in different runs simultaneously. Dude gets tortured in one comic and has a messy love life in the next, while losing his mind because fucking... six or more entities are fighting over him in the other six runs.

What I'm getting at is, trauma olympics are not allowed unless my fave is winni-

JOKING! I'm joking!!

My real point is this: where did bruce's character trait of internalising things vanish to? Because now it's more like lashing out and blowing up all the time. Something bad happens to him, he bottles it up, doesn't wanna talk about it and pushes people away who try to push him to open up. No, he doesn't just arbitrarily lash out every chance he gets. Yes, he loses control when reaching a breaking point but that can't be happening every issue in every comic because that man has been shown to be able to work under immense pressure and not to lash out unless it's all over and some time has passed and somebody's needling him to talk about it.

This is really badly writting (my comment, not the comics, although this applies to them too lmao) and not coherent at all but if you have opinions about this, please share.

To summerize my incoherent ask: Has batman lost his character trait of internalising things and was it changed to lashing out because of literally anything? I'm aware the answer changes depending on if you're talking about Batman comics with no Robins in sight, a JL comic, or a Batman comic WITH Robins in it.

Thank you for reading this mess. Sorry for making you read this mess.

Have a great day!

Such a good point about the trauma Olympics tho, I really agree because it feels like everyone's favorite has to have All The Traumas before they can be valid for feeling some way about them which is, slow down, it's fine, they can be complex characters without the entire CPS checklist

Bruce is winning though (<- mostly joking but also seriously give my boy a BREAK)

I think you did answer your own question though, with "depending on if you're talking about a comic with no Robins, or a JL, or a 'batfamily' comic" because the problem I have with how Bruce is written a lot nowadays is that he's not so much a character as a plot device. Need an ally to betray the JL? Bruce. Need someone to misunderstood Robin? Bruce. Need someone to get all the love interests and inter-dimensional entities drooling over his brain? Bruce.

Some of those scenarios will make sense, obviously, but sometimes it feels like the writers needed a big name to act a certain way to move the story along.

Take for example the Tower of Babel storylines, where Bruces paranoia? Makes sense! He has been betrayed by allies, he has experience with mind control and the consequences of actions taken under mind control, he understands the need for containment in those situations!

His actions tho??? The contingency plans, specifically for Superman? Are torture. And that doesn't fit his personality or the purpose of his plans at all!!!!! It's about containment and harm reduction, always. Not. Whatever the fuck is going on there.

So I think the problem with Batman, beyond bad faith criticism of his concept, and bad writing, is overexposure. He should not be in so many titles, with so many people writing him, and so little care about his consistency.

Until then unfortunately, he's going to feel wildly different in every comic he's in.

[bitimdrake]

Do you think there could be a compelling and well-written way for Jason to ever start healing from his trauma? I get the tragedy and all is why so many people like his character and all but it’s been over 18 years since he came back and I’ve grown apathetic to the whole “I died boohoohoo” thing. Idk the way DC is written makes it hard to me to feel the same way I did when he first came back as Red Hood because death is so meaningless in that universe, now more than ever. I feel the same way about Bruce and his whole mess of trauma and want to see them do something new, yknow? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

.

Absolutely!!

I think I end up hammering on the tragedy and angst aspect a lot because it's the part I feel gets most lost--certainly in fluffy batfam fics, but also in DC canon just abruptly declaring him totally part of the family now don't worry about it after Flashpoint. I think the legitimate trauma Jason has, the significant differences in principle with the other bats, and the harm he's done them in turn, have gotten worn down and minimized, and it's a bummer!

But I would like to see him heal from his trauma and like. have a real arc.

That's my biggest problem with Jason in canon thus far*. It's not that he is a hero now and aligned with his family. It's that we never got to see how that really happened. He was a villain one second, and then the universe got rebooted, and suddenly we were supposed to just infer this off-screen development.

(*Thus far being up to where I have read, which is through the New 52. Cannot comment beyond that yet.)

In my dream where I get to rewrite the history of DC, we would have spent like five years watching Jason gradually progress from the remorseless antivillain he became by the end of preboot into someone healthier, with more actual morals, a principled antihero. And working out his various relationships with his family along the way.

Unfortunately, because DC skipped to the end of that theoretical arc without ever actually doing the arc, we're sorta...stuck.

The status quo is where it is. DC can't pretend Jason has been an antagonist this whole time and give him the arc now. Red Hood has been a significant part of the batfamily for years. They can't just insert the 'Jason heals' arc because theoretically he's already done that. But also, so long as we never actually see that arc, it's never truly going to feel resolved.

This is the crux of the Jason Todd problem.

Anyway, I feel you on the death thing as well. When Jason died (I'd argue even when he came back), death was a lot more meaningful and significant. His death really meant something, and his return was a huge shake up.

But since then...everyone's died. And now there's this awkward disconnect between (a) in story, all these people having gone through the traumatic event of dying and returning which should probably be significant for them all, and (b) out of universe, Jason's death being considerably more significant than anyone else's and a core part of the character.

Jason's death can't really be a meaningless joke (though he absolutely can recover from the trauma), because we all know it wasn't; it was a huge deal. But we also can't have all the characters act like his death was significant while a bunch of other death's aren't, because then they just seem insane and myopic. But we can't have everyone act like every death is significant, because then we wouldn't be able to do anything else except reflect on the massive amount of death and trauma around here, plus it would be so hollow to most readers who know a lot of these comic books deaths were just cheap shock value that got immediately reversed. And around and around and around--

It's a fucking mess. I have plenty ideas of how I could fix it in a rewrite (whether fanfic or magic time travel where I Fix DC Comics). But I don't have a lot of ideas of how to fix it now, over a decade after the problem started.

Although, to return to your very first question: even if we can't fix everything, yes, I do think a good writer could give a compelling story of Jason healing from his tragedy, without a doubt. I do think that angle can still be explored and developed, because it has not be closed off.

...the biggest problem there would just be that comics are cyclical, and you know some other writer would come in two years later and revert him back to brooding about his death all the time, because that's the version of the character they're used to.

[evilwickedme]

Do you ever find yourself slightly resentful of how fanon DC has completely overtaken canon DC? I like fanon most of the time but it is so difficult now to find stories that are based in canon. Batman stories are by far the worst offender.

I'm not 100% sure if you're referring to the fact that a lot of recent stories in the comics are pretty ooc or if you mean fic, but based on the last few days of asks, I'm going to assume you're referring to fandom works specifically. And the answer honestly is yes.

I in general have complicated feelings towards fanon. While certain types of fanon can actually create stories that are more complex - for example most of the Spider-Man fandom has pretty much accepted that Peter is Jewish and has depression and anxiety - or even just make for pretty fun concepts - I just love stalker!Tim okay I don't know what to tell you, or purring!Spider-People!! - the vast majority of fanon is mostly really flat characterization or actively damaging. Going back to Spidey, pretty much every bit of MCU!Spidey fanon is fucking awful. And yeah, a lot of Batfam fanon, especially surrounding Jason - is really fucking awful.

I think it's fine for fanon to exist, but the fact that it so often overwhelms the actual canon stories means that sometimes canon gets actually rewritten in people's minds. Like the people who've been in my inbox recently asking me if pit madness is actually a thing - because if you've had minimal contact with canon, how the fuck are you even supposed to know it isn't? It's so rare to come across a fic that doesn't bring it up, even as a sidenote, and when it doesn't, it's not like it's an active mention that pit madness doesn't exist - it's just there. And it's such a damaging piece of fanon, I know I keep bringing it up but it's because I have to, it's really harmful, especially since it's basically NEVER given a trigger warning. But there's also other annoying fanon - Cass as a perfect angel or Steph being reduced to a waffle fan and Tim to a coffee addict and nothing else and erasing Dick's canonical anger issues entirely, which is maybe my favorite character trait of his (although this one can also be blamed partially on Tom Taylor's terribly ooc writing of the character in the current Nightwing run...).

And the thing is yeah, sometimes we read fic purely for the escaping and the fluff, but I know a lot of us are looking for angst and hurt/comfort and fics that take themes (whether from canon or not) seriously, and it's really frustrating how difficult they are to find. I much prefer a fic that takes Dick's trauma seriously than one that relegates him to supportive older brother only. I much prefer a fic that wrestles with Bruce's inability to love Jason the way Jason wants him to and the physical abuse he's inflicted on his children than one where he's perfect and never done anything wrong. Yeah, I don't mind reading stuff for fun where there's never been anything wrong ever in the batfam. But I'm also low-key upset that my second most kudos'd fic ever is the stupid ooc batfam 5+1 I wrote in an hour. I'd much rather people read hang on which verges on character study and has, you know, themes and stuff. Also parallels, which if you've noticed my tags, are like, my favorite thing.

So yeah, I do dislike the fact that fanon has overwhelming taken over so many fandoms, and especially since batman has become my main fandom over the past few months due to brainrot, I'd love if people took these characters seriously, damnit. But this is what happens when a fandom is so majorly comprised of people who outright admit to have never read a comic in their life.

[yvtro]

thoughts on task force z? I’m not sure if you’ve talked about it before but I’m curious what you think of jason’s characterization there

disclaimer: i’m moving blogs. still here to go through my askbox, but you will find me at @boyfridged most of the time.

it's been almost two months, but i've been postponing replying to this ask because i rarely read recent comics, and infinite frontier is a dumpster fire. but i finally got to it!! here are my general thoughts that i noted during that read-through:

so i know that i’ve been talking a lot about how interesting the cyclical nature of jason’s story is, and how it makes a lot of sense for him to be stuck in this loop on the peripheries of the narrative, but reading this series made me want to retract this statement purely because dc doesn't know how to make it work. stories about cycles like that require awareness of why the cycle occurs, research about the source material (how was it perpetuated before?) and a good idea about how the same storyline structure can be written to feel fresh and novel for a reader.

spoiler alert: the storyline did not feel fresh nor novel. it was incredibly dull. i think rosenberg just isn't a very good writer, you know? his dialogues are stiff, and i swear he has not heard in his life about "show don't tell" (and while i'm not even that committed to the idea of "show don't tell" in regular literature, comics entirely rely on show don't tell. not to take the rule too literally, but this is what you have pictures for!! use them to mean something, maybe?)

i think i get why i've seen people praising tfz though, and that's because rosenberg has a surprisingly good general grasp of jason's character (compared with zdarsky, for example.) then again, this is the bare minimum, the bar is on the floor or below, etc. and he could fit that comprehension of jason’s character in a tweet. no need for a 12-issues series.

so, let's take an overview of things that jason says: “you didn’t make me, you raised me” “i made mistakes because i was scared, and i was angry, and i was hurt” “i died trying to save someone i cared about. (…) i died a hero” all good points! all true. so what's the issue? well, to me it's that he would not fucking say that. why does he talk like he's in therapy? when did he come to all these conclusions? the thing about good storytelling is that characters very rarely have a clear picture of their own place in the world; and while it is the case that jason is interesting in the sense that he's always verging on a brink of that awareness, and he is quite vocal about his feelings, the thing is that nevertheless, he rarely brings himself to openly speak about things that matter; he deflects. and it makes sense for him to be quite repressed (it's self-preservation. it's the dialogical nature of identity.) why would a character suddenly start monolouging on their relationships and their status in the narrative (lol.) etc? the whole series is like that, and it's exhausting, because it doesn't mean anything at all. you can tell me all of these things, but how about you show me how and why he came to this realisation? where's the internal conflict? ever heard of symbolism? parallels? plot devices? figures of speech?

on the topic of talking like in therapy, i think the only interesting bit was barbara telling jason that he's basing his identity on his trauma. it has potential, and it makes sense it would be barbara to say it.

but since i'm on the topic of other characters already: every single other character acts like they're a cardboard cut-out. we see the same confrontation with bruce we've seen hundred times before (okay. maybe not hundred but def more than 10 times. hell, there was the same confrontation in cheer that came out the same year, i think?), and bruce sounds like a broken record. i have to stress that i do think there are good reasons for them to be stuck in the same place when it comes to their relationship, but once again, if you want to write about it, try to make a point about why this is the case. and atp, it's just so inconsistent with bruce's current characterisation, that it feels like he just appears in red hood stories as a prop. same with pretty much all the batfam really. since when is the whole batfam sooo eager to agree with bruce when it comes to every single one of his decisions? if you need to make everyone seem to be mindless to make your main character right, then you're doing it wrong. whatever happened to nuance? get off ao3, rosenberg, this is not a whump fic.

in general, i couldn't tell you what that story is trying to say. and i consider myself a very charitable reader. i've found elements in rhato that i thought were note-worthy. here?? there's no substance. at all.

my favourite part must be the ending and jay essentially saying that he wants to heal and start a new life, and steph replying that where he’s going is where the joker was last spotted. ok i see. a classic jason todd move: “starting a new life <3" -> doing exactly the same thing he’s done before but now isolated and even more mentally disturbed. go girl:) this i can stand behind.

btw i haven’t caught up with all of infinite frontier stuff (and I don’t even know if I want to) but why does everyone and their mother know jason’s identity? what is up with that.

also: amazing how you can write a whole series filled with harv & jay's interactions and never once mention that two-face got jason's father killed! but for that you would have acknowledge a storyline in which jason cares about willis and forgives a villain, right? and dc is not doing that.

in conclusion. it was tedious.