Batman, Meet Bluebird: Harper Row's Role Revealed in Today's Issue

We're still a ways off from finding out just when and how she does it, but Harper Row will take on the costumed identity of Bluebird, fans learned in today's Batman #28. The story is a flash-forward that takes place "soon" and also featured the first appearance of a major Bat-family character in the New 52.

When concept art featuring the Bluebird costume first turned up, fans were immediately suspicious that the blue-and-black color scheme and the V-design on the chestplate indicated she could be taking over the role of Nightwing if Dick Grayson were to change identities, retire or die as a result of the Forever Evil storyline. The design seen above and in the pages of today's Batman #28 appears more purple than blue, matching Harper's hair. While fans have long suspected she would turn out to be the new Robin, following the death of Damian Wayne, series writer Scott Snyder denied that, saying that he had big plans for the character, but not as Robin. "Harper wasn't designed with the purpose to be Robin," said Snyder during DC's All Access panel at WonderCon last year. "She was designed to give a different lens on Gotham. Because I felt like I wanted to create a young woman as the main character for those story lines, that's where she came from. Without directly addressing who she's going to become, she's a big part of my personal mythology for Batman." That seems to be technically true--since she's called Bluebird--although the role she's filling here is very much that of a partner, and she even refers to herself on the page as his "sidekick."