#midday rants

For Bruce I think it's something his kids wanted for too long but it was probably too expensive for them to get with their own money so he gets it for them. Besides, those are his babies, he wants to care for them even in this simple way, money isn't a problem to him after all (the kids pretend it doesn't mean the world to them that their dad noticed and got them the thing they wanted, but they'll hug him extra tight every time without fail).

For Dick, I believe with my heart and soul that he gets two gifts: one is always a "joke gift" and the other is something mostly sentimental that he just thought would be appreciated (not handmade though, he tried that once and he almost lost his apartment to a fire). He has gotten things made, like specialized mugs or keychains. The "joke gift" most of the time is the star of the night though. The real gift is of course treasured.

Jason probably gets something that's incredibly sweet and based on the hobbies of the others. He'll always pretend it was random and he'll grumble about it because "shut up Dick, I don't care, it was a lucky guess" (nobody mentions that Jason hasn't given a bad gift in years, somehow his "random" presents are always spot on).

Tim, like the little stalker he is, will hack their every device until he finds something he knows they want and like. It's mostly stuff the gift receiver will absolutely use within 2 months and Tim does make sure the person he gave it to enjoyed it. Also, Tim wasn't supposed to know they wanted the thing. They will glare at him for 3-5 business days for stalking them again.

Damian also gives two gifts, even though he genuinely doesn't count it as two. He always makes a drawing/painting (the theme/subject is the result of careful scouting, thorough investigation and polls in-between the family) and he also gets the most practical gifts. They do always have character though and the person celebrated loves whatever the little gremlin gets them.

Dick is the one who procrastinates like there's no tomorrow. He plans to start studying slowly over the course of his semester, he can do this. But the days and the months pass and he doesn't do anything. Until he's 5 days away with the material sitting on his desk untouched. And suddenly the Max Verstappen song plays in the background and Dick pulls 3 all nighters. He's exhausted by the end and he doesn't remember a thing he studied. He will ace his exam nonetheless.

Jason is very much in tune with his studying capabilities. He knows exactly what his mental capacity is that day and he studies efficiently. One day he will study for 10 hours, another for 1 hour. It doesn't matter. He's very productive studying makes him understand the subject to the extent he should be the professor instead. He will of course get a perfect score.

Tim. Oh poor Tim will dedicate his whole time into planning the perfect study schedule. He will research studying techniques, he will divide his time using the pomodoro method, he sets timers on his phone. He is so disciplined it's honestly ridiculous. His only problem is that he will fall too deep into the rabbit hole that's the subject for his exam and he will study extra points that he isn't required to know. And that will affect his score because he studied everything and he used the methods he wasn't supposed to use. He passes but his score isn't as good. He will go to his professor's office to fight him about it.

Well if I'm being honest, I don't think there would have been a vote at all. The reason the whole debacle happened was because they needed something for shock value. And the reason Jason was voted to die was because he was compared to Dick. He was seen as a bad replacement (kind of ironic ngl) and they didn't want to see him in comics anymore.

If Jason had been adopted by Dick though? Totally different situation. For one, if Jason became Robin then it would have been more endearing for readers. The new father Dick passes the mantle of Robin to his son. It wouldn't be a replacement that followed the firing of Robin (which was unfair of Bruce to do but conversation for another day). It would have been a natural continuation and people would have been more open to the change. Also I'm pretty sure that pre crisis Jason Todd was quite literally a discount Dick with even similar backstory. But that was because he was centered around giving Batman a new Robin.

If Jason was introduced in a Batman/Nightwing crossover and then jumped to the Nightwing and Titans runs it would have been so interesting and no one would bat an eye.

Anyway, just my opinion.

This comes from my personal opinion with limited comics knowledge.

Dick and Jason are my personal favourite sibling duo. I think they're fun and I love their relationship. They are the og sibling dynamic: fighting and arguing, the whole "I'll beat you up no questions asked but nobody messes with you but me". They were having a good relationship pre-death and they were truly siblings but then Jason died and then came back and "Dick wasn't there to help Jason throughout". (Which are things he didn't even know were happening but anyway, my boy has guilt complexes the size of Europe and Asia combined). So yeah, I think the guilt impacts their relationship a lot. Oh, an honourable mention to Jason's personal issues (think how in Grayson he put the "Robin code" as his reason for being angry. He was definitely about to say brother/family but couldn't, hence, his personal issues).

Dick and Tim. Ahhh, poor Timmy. That's Dick's baby brother. You can't convince me he doesn't want to constantly baby Tim and wrap him in a hug and bubble wrap. Their bigger age difference alone (compared to Dick-Jason) is enough to support the baby brother role for Tim. And even though they had a kind of rocky start (with Dick initially dismissing Tim about the Robin thing) they became so close. You can't tell me they aren't close. I will simply mention that Tim makes a big appearance in Tom Taylor's Nightwing run and the famous panel about Dick's escrima accomodating for Tim's bo staff. I rest my case.

Dick and Damian. That's tricky. Because I stan for Dick being Damian's father/older brother. I like this dynamic because it's like a full circle moment for Dick's own dynamic with Bruce (conversation for another day). Damian and Dick are just so precious, they spent a lot of time during a difficult time and they forged a bond. There are so many panels to support this but I will only quote a phrase about Dick's and Damian's Batman and Robin era. "We were the best".

Conclusion! Dick's favourite sibling? Doesn't exist. Each sibling has a different distinct dynamic and that can't makes it impossible to grade them. Jason is Dick's favourite younger brother closer in age, Tim is the favourite baby brother and Damian is the favourite son-brother.

...

No? Just me?

...

...

Is that how Dick felt when Jason finally started coming back to the manor and spending time with the family?

I remember many things; the sound of your laugh, the way you could always make me smile, the sound of your breathing at night, singing anime openings with you on long car rides, birthday trips, driving 11 hours out of our way to see a show, carving pumpkins for Halloween, Valentine’s Day pizzas, avoiding laundry, buying furniture, moving in with you... It feels a lot like that La Dispute song, “Objects in Space”. Everywhere I look, I see reminders and I transcend time back to a memory we once shared. And I think of you.  I remember how even after six years I still felt butterflies every time I would hear your voice. My heart would fill with love when you would walk in a room.  I was so in love with you.  Two months. It’s been two months since all this chaos started. But it seems like you’ve been gone for longer than that. I don’t know how I missed all the signs. Maybe I just never considered that one day you would actually wake up and not want to be with me anymore, that you would find comfort in someone else’s arms, that I wouldn’t be enough for you anymore.  I gave everything, and I lost everything. And yeah. Maybe that is mostly my fault. You can’t give everything to someone and expect them to be careful with it. You can’t make someone treat you how you want to be treated. You can’t make them love you.

For a while now, I’ve felt lost, adrift at sea, and angry. I’ve lacked purpose, motivation, desire, willpower. Nothing felt like it was going right. I hoped that we could work through everything. I hoped that you would see that you had made a monumental mistake, that you would come running back to me. But you haven’t and I know you won’t. That’s not in your nature, not now anyways. 

So here I am, left with all this frustration and anger. What do I do with it?  I want to make you hurt so badly for all the hurt you’ve caused me, but surely that’s not the answer. Is it? I feel in my heart the desire to lash out, to even the score. I’ve made plans to see you. Will I do it or will I finally break free of this cycle?