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Comments Section on “Into the Lives of the Bat-Clan: Part 1 / 4” by Central City Watch
@arsonismyhobby:
Who was going to tell me that Signal is secretly a Chaotic BoiTM?!?!>>!hsjxn this baby is an ~arsonist~ he’s mine forever go away
>@SignalsBae0001:
I saw him first >:((((((((
>>@arsonismyhobby:
share? pwease?
>>>@SignalsBae0001:
…OK Signal Protection Squad go
@Mae-Sonna
Red Hood the straight-A student and favorite child becoming a crime lord is not the tea I expected, but it’s probably the tea I deserved
>@AllisonA-1984
Nightwing the rebellious and murderous (pre)teen becoming a vigilante and the Golden Child despite having one of the most wild backgrounds is not the tea I expected. It’s like they switched…
>>@Mae-Sonna
Maybe they did? Vigilantes and superheroes run into all sorts of weird stuff.
@Theonlysaneone
Anyone gonna ask why RR reacted like that to freaking Santa Claus???
>@GR34T
Literally the entire comment section is asking that.
>>@Theonlysaneone
@GR34T Okay but why???
>@finnnn__oya
One of the JL public files (a redacted one) mentioned that Young Justice (rr’s team) were “unavailable for comment, usage, or activities” about 3 years ago. I did some digging and Christmas 2016 (?? maybe, there were some weird time dilations, so it could’ve also been 1994, 2014, 2023, blame the flashes for resetting the timeline so much, it was 3 years ago) there was a Listed Localized Time Compression (group experiences time at normal speed, date doesn’t actually change, everyone outside group doesn’t experience time) of about four months of repeated Christmas Day.
Some might remember that Christmas presents didn’t appear under their trees, but once their presents arrived they exited the LLTC. Wasn’t that bad, in hindsight, but Mariah Carey was playing for four months longer than normal, and only some people remember it.
>> @Theonlysaneone
Was it really that bad for some?? I barely remember that, I got out within the week!!
@BatmanShouldBeMyFather
Someone come get this child (Red Robin) he’s about to overdose on energy drinks.
@tagyourselfim_
-the chugged five hour energy
>@lost_inthewoods
his second red bull
>@dancinINtherain
spoiler’s backup beanbag
>@1224huin4391
Signal and Hood’s profanity filter
@kjoboo
I wanna know who talked them into this
@GBconsumers
CCW needs to ask about dating within the masked community; past hero, anti hero and villain romantic partners. Let’s get them to spill the tea about one another!
@ErikaSer15
How did The Batman end up with so many kids?? Who lets this man have children???
The camera opened to a wide-shot. Veronica, a fairly popular host and interviewer, sat on the right of the screen. Her chair was comfy and low. Her smile was bright and inviting.
To the left (her right) was a single L-shaped couch. Durable, with four seats, and the person farthest from Veronica had room to stretch their legs.
There were only four people sitting on the couch: Red Hood, on the corner, with his legs stretched out and his ankles crossed; Red Robin, tucked beside him; Nightwing, perched on the back of the couch with his feet on the chair; and Spoiler, laying on her stomach with her chin on the armrest, and her feet lazily kicking Nightwing.
There were a few oddities. Red Hood hadn’t moved in about ten minutes but occasionally flicked his fingers (no one knew (he would never admit it) but there was a downloaded copy of Pride & Prejudice displayed on his hub, and his glove sensors let him turn the pages). One arm supported his head, and the other was laid across the back of the couch.
Red Robin, his knees to his chin and his back pressing into Hood’s side, had a tablet open. It was privacy screened, meaning one had to stand directly behind him (looking from overtop Hood’s head) to see what was being displayed.
Nightwing fidgeted every once in a while. He’d tap his foot, change which ankle he had crossed over his knee, and return to sitting perfectly still with his picture-perfect smile and staring directly at the camera. A statue. He might not’ve even been breathing.
Spoiler had her phone hanging over the side of the couch. It was easy to see, considering she had the brightness maxed out and the audio fairly high, that she was playing Candy Crush.
The announcement of the cameras rolling didn’t make any of them move – they had clearly chosen their starting positions.
“Welcome to the Central City Watch! Last week we had eight vigilantes with us, and today we have four! With us is Red Hood,” he nodded in greeting, moving to cross his arms, “Red Robin,” no response, “Nightwing,” he cheerily grinned, before snatching Robin’s tablet from him, “and Batgirl, also known as Spoiler!” she sat up, popping her phone in a… pocket? … before waving.
Unlike the previous interview, in which Spoiler wore only a domino mask and her “Batgirl” outfit, this Spoiler had her hood flipped up and a heavy metal mouthguard over her face. Instead of the angled white glare that domino masks gave, her eyes were two large, glowing white circles peeking out from a shadowed face. She had a purple cloak and black armor, with a purple bat on her chest.
The Red Hood also had his whole face covered and was still in his signature bright red helmet.
Well, mostly his signature helmet. Some fans would later compare the camera footage and point out the different seams and lines on the helmets, and how this one had the slightest ridges on the side that could, maybe, be bat ears.
Nightwing’s uniform was more familiar. A black, skintight bodysuit that shouldn’t be seen in broad daylight; a bright blue stripe from his middle fingers to his chest (that formed a more birdlike Bat on his chest); a domino mask with spikes on the top and bottom that framed his face (and emphasized his cheekbones) and with the classic whiteout lenses the Bats were known for.
Red Robin’s uniform was also slightly unfamiliar. His cape was a short, jagged thing: the typical Robin black on the outside, canary yellow on the inside, except it probably would reach past his knees while standing. He only had a single bandolier strung across his chest, and his belt had been slimmed down to a single utility container. His mask was a domino still, but one with very round edges.
“Our first round of questions is one our viewers have been wanting to know for a very long time. What’s the dating scene like in the vigilante community?”
Nightwing tittered before answering. “It would take us a lot longer than we have to explain the whole dating scene. There are five-ish main groups of superhero families, and we’re interconnected in so many ways that even I’m not sure how we’re all connected. Obviously, we have the Bats, but to those outside the Gotham-Haven area the ‘Bats’ include our Rogues, the Sirens, and other affiliated villains and heroes.
“Then there’s the Supers. Superman, the Superboys, Superwoman, Bizarro – basically anyone descended from Krypton – but it also includes Lex Luthor, Mxy, and even Darkseid, and a lot of people put the Wonders with them. Wonder Woman, Wonder Girl, their villains…”
Batgirl, mockingly, was counting her fingers and toes.
Hood, out of Nightwing’s line of sight, was flapping his hand in mockery of a mouth.
“But a lot of people also put the Wonders with the Shazamily. Captain and Miss Marvel, Lieutenant Lightning, but also Black Adam, Dr. Sivana, Tawky Tawny, and The Wizard. That’s because the Marvels and the Wonders have, well, the name thing, and they also source their powers from the gods and pantheons. Because it’s very supernatural (as opposed to aliens), some people also group regular magic users here like Constantine and Zatanna.
“The Green Lanterns are, thank Rao, mostly not on-planet, but they are extensive. Some people also count Darkseid over here, just because it’s a space thing.”
“Finally, is the Flashes. They’re…” Nightwing grimaced, “They’re great, but they keep using the same names – not just as Flash, but as civilians. They have Flash, Kid Flash, Impulse, and Reverse Flash, except Reverse Flash is sometimes Zoom, and there’s about three Flashes running around, and Kid Flash is being used by numerous time travelers that pop in before returning to their timeline, and there’s only one Impulse, but he keeps using the Kid Flash name.
“They’re ever-expanding. Insane. They keep breaking and resetting the universe. They invite their villains to family dinner.”
Veronica, happy to have more information but overwhelmed, simply redirected Nightwing’s rambling.
“How does dating work, with such large groups of heroes related in some way?”
Batgirl perked up. “It doesn’t, usually. Red Robin and I dated while we were both Robin, but we broke up pretty amicably after he lost it when I got injured once. And then I died and came back, and we decided to be platonic besties forever!”
“I know Goldie and I have had some of the same partners,” said Red Hood. “We both dated Starfire and I’m currently dating one of his ex-friends-with-benefits. I know that the girl he’s currently with (they’ve been off-on for a decade) also had a thing with Zatanna and a few Rogues. I’ve been with Zatanna. Nightwing might’ve also been with her. I did have a thing with one of Batman’s ex-girlfriends. That’s all I know, I think. I try not to know who [bleep]wing’s currently hanging off of.”
Red Robin – who had been counting on his fingers – spoke up, an evil grin on his face. “Are you trying not to mention that the ‘Batman’s ex-girlfriend’ is Robin’s mom?”
Hood flinched. “/-//kch/- No.”
“That static says otherwise, Hood.” Robin turned back towards Veronica. “Long story short, dating usually doesn’t work out. Unfortunately, we still long for human connection and occasionally try it out. Also, unfortunately, we have a hard time relating to non-masks so our dating pool is pretty limited to heroes and villains. This leads to whatever Superman and Lex Luthor have going on, Batman’s numerous villain ex-girlfriends, Nightwing, and a lot of breakups.”
Red Robin spun slightly so he was now upside down on the couch, and his booted foot swung dangerously close to Hood’s face.
Nightwing pushed it the rest of the way there. Hood didn’t flinch and Robin didn’t stop talking at the armored combat boot being shoved right into where Hood’s cheek would’ve been.
“We’re pretty good at keeping things professional and compartmentalizing – par for the course when you have a secret identity – so most of us stay friends after breaking up, and we have a lot individuals who end up with their friends’, siblings’, or parents’ exes.”
Veronica had to ask.
“If you’re relationships with other superheroes are so complicated,” she paused, “How would you consider yourself related? I know you consider yourselves Batman’s ‘children,' but how does that affect how you each interact?”