WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Robin #1, by Joshua Williamson, Gleb Melnikov and ALW’s Troy Peteri, on sale now.
Throughout his superhero career, Damian Wayne has demonstrated an interest in little more than swords, beating up criminals, and showing up other heroes. However, out of all his arguably unique interests, one featured in the first issue of the new Robin series is totally unexpected. And he’s not the only Teen Titan who’s a part of this particular fandom either.
Shortly after winning his ticket to take part in the tournament on Lazarus Island, Damian kills time waiting for the boat by reading an unexpected comic. Suddenly the style of the issue shifts into that of a typical Japanese manga entry. The manga story centers around two students, Ren, who always sticks to a plan when painting, and Hana, who paints from the heart. Damian’s reaction to Hana’s technique shows that he doesn’t understand how she can do what she does, believing that she must have a plan — much like Damian’s father, Batman.
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There are a number of reasons why Damian might be a fan of manga over other western comics. For one, he wasn’t initially raised alongside his father in the US. He grew up in the care of his mother, Talia Al Ghul, and trained with the League of Assassins. While having agents all across the world, the League’s base of operations, Nana Parbat, is located in the Himalayas in Asia. It makes sense then that Damian may have encountered other Asian forms of storytelling, like manga, before western ones and gravitated towards them early in life. Certain manga tropes could appeal to Damian rather than western superhero comics that would remind him of the father he’s currently running away from.
Although it might be expected that Damian would identify with the lone Samarai figures in manga, his choice of a Slice-of-Life story gives insight into something deeper. While many people would go to a Shonen story for escape, Damian’s life isn’t far from the plot of those books. The Slice-of-Life style seems totally alien to Damien, a strange world he can escape to since he’s never really experienced it.
There’s another angle to consider with Damian’s reading a Slice-of-Life manga that’s further characterized by the appearance of Alfred’s ghost. Alfred acts almost as a guide to Damian here. Damian’s clearly lost in life judging by being in denial of Hana’s lack of a plan. He’s looking for wisdom from the characters, who are of a similar age to him, believing that they may be struggling with the same problems he is.
Damian isn’t the only Teen Titan with a love for Manga. Wallace West’s Kid Flash was seen dressed in Naruto cosplay in DC’s Love is a Battlefield #1 story “A Tale of Two Titans” by Marquis Draper, Pop Mhan, Chris Sotomayor and Rob Leigh. Fellow speedster Avery Ho, the Flash of China, teased Wallace about it by telling him that the Central City Anime Convention was the previous month.
Perhaps Damian found his secret love for manga from the time he spent with fellow Titan Wallace West. Or maybe that was one of the ways the two Titans bonded when they were part of the same team. Maybe there are more members of the Teen Titans recommending each other their favorite manga and anime. Regardless of how Damian came to find his love for manga (and the Slice-of-Life genre in particular), his love for the form is very telling of some of the deeper aspects of the character and where he is in his life at the moment.
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