WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Teen Titans Academy #1, by Tim Sheridan, Rafa Sandoval, Jordi Tarragona, Alejandro Sanchez and Rob Leigh, on sale now.
The Teen Titans are certainly no strangers to team romances, with the young group having to feature many surprise romantic pairings over its nearly 60-year history.
And as the classic New Teen Titans lineup reconvenes to become mentors to the next generation of young superheroes in Teen Titans Academy #1, two prominent instructors and longtime teammates appear to have decided to quietly rekindle their romance in between their instructional responsibilities by embarking on a private date night: Nightwing and Starfire.
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Ever since Starfire joined the team, after being introduced by creators Marv Wolfman and George Perez in DC Comics Presents #26, Koriand’r was romantically linked to Dick Grayson, kissing him upon their first meeting to learn the English language. From there, the two embarked on a whirlwind romance and were nearly married before their wedding was attacked by a demonically possessed Raven, who interrupted their nuptials. Since then, the couple has run on-again/off-again over the years, with Starfire starting a romance with Jason Todd and Roy Harper during the New 52 era. And while Dick and Koriand’r are poised to rekindle their romantic relationship, it does appear to put a kibosh on one of Dick’s other longtime amorous pursuits: Barbara Gordon.
If there’s anyone in the DC Universe that Dick potentially holds in higher romantic regard than Starfire, it’s DC’s most iconic Batgirl. Dick and Barbara have known each other far longer than he has known Koriand’r, and they’ve had their own on-again/off-again romance. Dick was similarly engaged to Barbara for a brief period, before the two decided to put their wedding plans on hold after the cataclysmic events of Infinite Crisis. And while the couple entered a non-committal relationship at the start of the DC Rebirth era, they impulsively took things to the next level during the recently concluded crossover event Dark Nights: Death Metal.
After regaining his memories following suffering a grievous gunshot wound to the head, Dick asked Barbara to marry him on the eve of Death Metal‘s final battle, reasoning that he would always love her in whatever continuity they found themselves in. Barbara accepted and Batman married the two on the spot, presumably in a non-legally binding ceremony before the rest of the surviving DC superhero community. With the entire DC Multiverse restored following Death Metal‘s climactic battle against the Dark Multiverse, it’s unclear how much of this romance is intact, but Nightwing and Barbara remain major parts of each other’s lives, with Barbara helping Nightwing after she reclaimed the mantle of Oracle following the events of “Joker War.”
While Future State reaffirmed Dick and Barbara’s romance as they fought to liberate Gotham City from the dark forces that had overtaken it, their Infinite Frontier relationship status appears to be far more complicated. While it may just be a matter of time before Dick and Barbara find their way into each other’s arms once again, Dick currently has eyes for Starfire as the two take advantage of their renewed proximity as they work together to shape the hearts and minds of the next generation of DC heroes. And with old demons coming back for Dick Grayson as he moves onto this new mentor role, Dick and Koriand’r’s romance is far from the only ghost come back to haunt the original Boy Wonder.
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