Dick Grayson & Damian Wayne
| Gen Relationship | |
|---|---|
| Relationship: | Dick Grayson & Damian Wayne |
| Alternative name(s): | Dick & Dami; DickBats & Robin V; Nightwing & Robin V |
| Fandom: | Batman; Batfamily |
| Type: | Brothers; partners |
| Canonical?: | Yes |
| Prevalence: | Very popular |
| Archives: | |
| See also: | Bruce Wayne & Dick Grayson Bruce Wayne & Damian Wayne  by restless-arts (2021) |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
This article or section needs expansion. |
Dick Grayson & Damian Wayne is the canon familial relationship between Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne in Batman fandom.
Canon
When Dick took up the Batman mantle after the apparent death of their father, Bruce Wayne, Damian served as his Robin. The two became very close, and Dick was the first positive parental figure Damian ever had, and the person with whom he was closest.
Fandom
Fanon and common tropes
- Dick as Damian's parent
- Compare to Bruce - The story highlights the parallels and inversions between Bruce & Dick and Dick & Damian
- Contrast to Bruce - Dick is a better parent than Bruce is; Dick is more supportive, emotionally intelligent, compassionate; etc.
- Nicknames and forms of address
Comments
Dick does indeed act plenty brotherly towards Damian in the comics! It’s no coincidence that they’re the two always paired up in the family; they’re closer with each other than they are with the other siblings. I wouldn’t call it favoritism so much as that they were each other’s Batman and Robin for a long time, so they work incredibly well as partners and Dick has become a brother/father/mentor/friend figure for Damian.[1]
Dick’s involvement with Damian starts very much as a duty thing. Someone has to take up the Batman mantle after Bruce’s death. Someone has to keep Damian in line and guide him. And there’s no one else to do either, so Dick steps up. He didn’t particularly seek to engage with Damian before he lost the luxury of the choice, much like he lost the luxury to be Nightwing.
It’s a stage of transition for both. Taking on the mantle is an extremely delicate process for Dick. Damian’s identity was built entirely around the fact that he’s Bruce’s son and heir, but his father isn’t here anymore and he’s got no interest in knowing what he thinks is an usurper. But Damian is terribly out of place too. He struggles to adapt to values that contradict everything he was taught, reins himself in against every instinct, and is still told he’s too aggressive, too violent, not enough in a sense. Unworthy of his father’s legacy, and unable to change that with the means he knows.
They’re both at a crossroads. That specific configuration complicated their early days to no end, but it’s also the reason Dick invested so much into their duo. It was hardly a natural thing to do for him– much like becoming Batman.So, how do I do it? Dick thinks, on both front. He has to settle on what he’ll make of Batman, and what he’ll make of this improvised partnership with Damian. Let’s discover it together, he tells him.
[Batman (1940) #688]
And this right here is another defining point of their dynamics: Dick includes Damian in every step of the process.
It doesn’t make everything easy or instinctive. At this point uncertainty defines their relationship. They both have to learn their new personas. There’s a lot of bumps on the way. Dick has to settle on the kind of Batman and mentor he’ll be, and Damian’s still an insecure, uncooperative brat.
[...]
Dick gave Damian the fragment of security that made it possible for him to realize his potential, then grow into his own person, something that’s absolutely crucial to Damian’s development.
Damian comes to confide in Dick and accept the provided comfort. A vulnerability he didn’t allow himself before, because this is the kind of weakness that Damian thought would nullify his chances of being accepted as a worthy heir/partner. But Dick worked hard on establishing that Damian already had his place as a bat, that he had nothing to prove, and that he could feel comfortable accepting reassurances.
[...]
Dick was entirely in charge of Damian. It’s a mirror situation of Bruce taking Dick in. They’re each other’s first Batman and Robin.
Dick probably first thought of Damian as a responsibility. Alfred helped him see Damian’s potential & good heart, but once Dick saw it, I don’t think he ever doubted of it. I don’t know if he now sees Damian more as a son or as a younger brother. Probably a bit of both.
It’s a multi-faceted dynamic that I can’t sum up with one word. They’re the guys who reinvented the dynamic duo.[2]
Fan works
| Examples Wanted: Editors are encouraged to add more examples or a wider variety of examples. |
Meta
- https://bat-lings.tumblr.com/post/183343847863/do-you-think-dick-and-damian-have-a-brotherly
- https://fyeahdickgrayson.tumblr.com/post/44826323919/an-ode-to-dick-and-damian-in-masterpost-form
- https://www.tumblr.com/yicruz48/617840829547118592/damian-dick
- https://sohotthateveryonedied.tumblr.com/post/685447172576149504
- https://theflyingwonder.tumblr.com/post/108975438041/talk-to-us-about-dick-and-damians-relationship
- https://fyeahbatmanandrobin.tumblr.com/post/19249446076/batman-the-return-1-1-bruce-and-damian-both
Fan fiction
- "it holds me 'til i ache (overflow and start to break)" by discowing (2020) - Damian is starting to fledge, and it brings up memories for both him and Dick.
- "Leaping and hopping on a moonshadow" by ShariDeschain (2020) - Or, the one where after a long, long time the Batman and The Red Hood meet on a rooftop.
- "Where They are Just and Loyal" by withthekeyisking (2020) - Everyone who meets Damian is sure that he's going to be a Slytherin, like his father and mother before him. Dick's never had a doubt in his mind that the kid would end up in Hufflepuff. It's just that now that it's actually happened, they have to deal with the fallout.
- "To love a child not your own" by Literarian (2021) - He didn’t know what to expect, but it certainly wasn’t Talia with colourful sling wrapped around her body and an honest to God baby.
- "A little more heart and soul" by ruesyblues (2022) - What do you do when the brother you raised and loved and left now seems to be withdrawing and you want the best for him but you're not sure if you did the right thing and oh fuck what if you made a mistake?? (Dick wants Damian to be happy. He just has no clue how to accomplish that.)
Rec lists
Fan art
Like farther, like son. Damian changed his Batman fast by pichichu-studio (2023-03-26)
-ive
- https://www.tumblr.com/yuishin-the-bunny/616766177020100608
- https://www.tumblr.com/laquilasse/184417578415/another-commission-for-arabian-batboy-more-dick
- https://www.tumblr.com/marisolez/698785801502343168
- https://arabian-batboy.tumblr.com/post/181914888606/if-youre-in-the-batman-fandom-and-you-never
- https://www.tumblr.com/fallen-jpg/712895224010162176/aka-the-best
Collaborative projects, challenges, and events
- https://dickanddamiweek.tumblr.com/
- https://gabzilla-z.tumblr.com/post/7234053623/gamblemysoul-ameru-batman-robin-fanbook