Robin is bisexual in new Batman comic 0:44
(CNN) -
The latest issue of a Batman comic series confirms that Batman's lovable sidekick Robin is 'queer'.
Tim Drake, one of several characters in the comics who is Robin, accepts a date with a friend in the new edition of "Batman: Urban Legends," a series that debuted earlier this year.
On the last page of the issue, Drake visits his friend Bernard at his home after the two share an unexpected connection moment (which occurred when Drake, as his alter ego Robin, had to rescue Bernard from a villain).
In the last panel, Drake says to Bernard, beaming, "Yeah ... yeah, I think I want that," after Bernard asks him out.
"[The thing] happened because that's how Tim is," comic book writer Meghan Fitzmartin said in an interview with Polygon.
"I love this character very much, and when I reread everything I could to do Robin justice, it became clear that this is the story Tim needed to tell."
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On the last page of the comic, Robin (disguised as Tim Drake) gladly accepts a date with his friend Bernard.
Fans have long viewed Batman's loyal sidekick as a potentially 'queer' character since the first Robin, Dick Grayson, made his comic book debut in the 1940s. In a 2016 article for Slate, adapted from his book on the world's greatest detective, culture critic Glen Weldon documented some cases that gave readers more clues.
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These include depictions of Batman and Robin lying next to each other, naked, on separate beds;
or Batman and Robin who wake up in the same bed;
Robin launching outbursts of jealousy when Batman had female love interests.
Former Batman comic book writer Grant Morrison even told Playboy magazine that "homosexuality is built into Batman."
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Despite decades of fans clamoring for Robin's 'queer' content, the sexuality of Batman's henchman was never overtly stated, although various iterations of Robin, from Drake to the most recent addition of Damian Wayne, have had relationships with women in the past. comics.
Speaking to Polygon, Fitzmartin said Drake's new relationship doesn't erase his past flirtations with women (most notably Stephanie Brown, who could be the heroine
Spoiler
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"I wanted to pay tribute to the fact that sexuality is a journey ... However, Tim is still discovering himself," Fitzmartin told Polygon.
"I don't think I have the language for everything ... yet."
The door is open for Drake and Bernard's relationship to evolve in the next issue of "Batman: Urban Legends." But they join a growing constellation of LGBTQ characters in the DC universe: There is Batwoman, also known as Kate Kane, who at one point was punished for her relationship with another woman under the former US military politician "Don't Ask, Don." t Tell ".; Harley Quinn, who dumped the Joker for her friend Poison Ivy in recent comic strips; and transgender scientist Victoria October, who debuted in a 2017 Batman series.
DC and his fellow Marvel comics have begun to include more LGBTQ characters in their stories.
Both companies released special anthology comics starring 'queer' and 'trans' characters in June to coincide with Pride Month.
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