Robin (1993) Issue #138.

1) Gets kidnapped. Looks absolutely furious in his ransom photo, which would be understandable were it not for future context.

2) Becomes Plucky McGee as soon as Bruce shows up. There are guns trained on his goofy ass and he’s flashing the dimples LMAO.

3) The side eye and the “Shall we begin?”. Like, okay bucko.

4) Breaks out. Note that there have been no changes to his status since before Bruce showed up, meaning he had the ability to escape whether or not Bruce came.

Conclusion: Not only was Dick fine, I’m pretty sure this was just an opportunity for Dick to say hi to Bruce and get out of college.

He didn’t actually give them any evidence for it before running away. Didn’t even try to convince them beyond saying “he’s alive, I’ll prove it.”

He’d spent the past year trying to resurrect his dead family and friends. After 100+ cloning attempts and almost stealing Lazarus pit water, this just looks like Tim’s typical grieving pattern.

Dick, Tim, and Clark personally examined Bruce’s dead body and determined it was his!

Tim’s inner monologue in Red Robin 1 shows even he knows he’s driven by desperate hope and compounded grief: “He’s all I have and he has to be alive…Please, god, don’t let me be crazy.”

If Tim had turned out to be wrong I honestly believe he still would’ve gone looking for a way to bring Bruce back. Just like he did with Kon, Bart, Steph, Jack, and Janet.

Red Robin follows so clearly from Tim’s grief from losing Jack Drake and everyone else. DCU Halloween Special ‘09: “Our Father’s Sins” made this even more obvious by showing Red Robin Tim reflecting on his grief over Jack while he’s searching for Bruce.

I'm a sucker for a character that dooms themselves to be a hero. Chefskiss fr. 😈

NIGHTWING #143 10/21/2026

Written by Dan Watters

Art by David Lapham

Idk, people often explain their opinion with "he only knows his own experience with grief", but actually, his experience is why he is so good. Nobody was there for him the way he needed (Alfred being one of the people to fail him), and he does want to help children so they aren't failed like him, he knows how they feel and so he can help them!

In some comics, he is even seen by others as this specialist of grief, so they go to him to open up about their feelings and get comfort. It's the case of Mr Terrific, Michael Holt, who had never talked to anyone about his late wife, but he went to Batman to open up. Because he knew that, even tho Batman never lost a spouse, he knows enough about grief and pain to understand him in a way noone else will.

It's like if we called cars "spaceships" because a car salesman once lied about their product being capable of space travel

Dick Grayson, y'all.