DC Has Let Tim Drake Get Boring (But I Know How to Fix That)

Before DC’s company wide reboot known as the New 52, Tim Drake was one of the most prominent sidekicks in all of comics. Having starred in Young Justice by the late Peter David, Geoff Johns’ reboot of Teen Titans, and having the distinction of being the first Robin to lead his own solo comic from 1993 to 2009, Tim Drake was everywhere. After the events of Grant Morrison’s incredible run on Batman, Final Crisis, and Tony S. Daniels’ Battle For the Cowl, however, Tim was kicked out from the role of Robin for Dick Grayson to take on Damian Wayne as his Robin when Dick became Batman. Now forced out of the role of Robin, Tim donned a new costume and became Red Robin. While not the most original name with Tim admitting it himself, he was able to branch out as his own hero and not merely Batman’s sidekick. Shortly thereafter Flashpoint occurred and thus the New 52 was born.

With Batman being one of the only heroes to keep his continuity, that meant almost all of his sidekicks were able to keep theirs as well, Tim included but not without its drawbacks. While he was retconned into always being Red Robin and given a more complicated origin, Tim mostly remained the same. That was until Rebirth, however, when he switched back to a more classic looking Robin costume and added a second R to his logo. That’s where it takes us to now. Gone is Red Robin with Tim now fully reverted back to Robin, but he’s not alone in that role. Damian is also Robin just with a different costume. Unfortunately, that’s led to the once-prominent Tim being shuffled largely off to the side. Tim has struggled to have guest spots in Batman’s own comics, he’s not on any team currently, and his latest attempt at a solo series backfired. To put it bluntly, DC has let Tim get boring. Fortunately, I think I have some ideas on how to fix that.

How to Fix Tim Drake

Fixing Tim Drake is no easy task at the current moment but I have a few ideas how to bring him back properly. First and foremost it’s time for Tim to retire as Robin entirely. While Tim is still a relatively young character canonically, Tim has outgrown the sidekick role. Whether he returns as Red Robin or goes under a new identity, it’s time to do something new. The simplest thing would to have him return as Red Robin (or even a version of that character with a new name, like the fan-favorite suggestion of Cardinal) and strike out on new adventures of his own.

That means that it is also time for the bird to leave his coop, so to speak. One of the best things to come out of Chris Yost’s run on Red Robin was the international super spy element to the book. While Tim did stay in Gotham City for many occasions, he also traveled the globe including Spain, France, Germany, and Moscow. Tim made his way across the globe in search of answers for proving Bruce Wayne was alive. While he doesn’t need to prove that anymore, the idea of him traveling the globe would be a great element to incorporate back in. With the news of Red Hood getting a new series where he’s leaving Gotham for Louisiana, and Nightwing in Blühaven, why not have Tim pop in and out when needed for storylines in those books while also pursuing mysteries of his own away from home?

Tim Drake’s Personal Life Also Deserves Expansion

While branching Tim away from being merely a Batman sidekick would give him more time in the spotlight, DC can also lean into Time’s personal life to help revitalize the character. In 2021, DC made Tim canonically bisexual. Not only was this a huge development for the character, but it was a great step in terms of LGBTQ+ representation in comics. Leaning more into that element of Tim’s life and having what it looks like to be a bisexual young man who is also a superhero would only enhance his stories. We’ve seen a little of what that looks like as Jonathan Kent is also canonically bisexual and Jon’s relationship with Jay has become a key element of his stories, particularly in the current Secret Six written by Nicole Maines. The same could easily apply to time with his boyfriend, Bernard — a character that could frankly use some further development.

By breaking Tim away from the Robin identity, giving him his own independent stories again, and leaning into his personal life for further exploration, DC could easily fix the problem of the best Robin having become a boring character. Tim Drake is simply one of the best on not just Batman’s roster, but in DC’s cache of heroes. It’d be nice to see him back in the spotlight.

What would you do the fix Tim Drake as a character? Let us know down in the comments.

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