Nightwing

**Richard John Grayson** (リチャード・ジョン・グレイソン, *Richādo Jon Gureison*), or just simply "**Dick Grayson**" (ディック・グレイソン, *Dikku Gureison*) for short, was youngest in a family of acrobats known as the "Flying Graysons", Dick watched a mafia boss kill his parents in order to extort money from the circus that employed them. Bruce Wayne, secretly the vigilante Batman, took him in as his legal ward after witnessing their deaths, he was trained, and eventually served as his sidekick at the same time as the young Barbara Gordon, the first **Robin** (ロビン, *Robin*).

Throughout Dick's adolescence, Batman and Robin were inseparable. But looking forward to prove his independence, he moved to Jump City at age 15, he became the leader and one of the five founding members of the Teen Titans. However, as Dick grew older and eventually decided to take on the identity of **Nightwing** (ナイトウィング, *Naitowingu*), when decided his "Robin" alias was becoming old to him.

Nightwing almost matches Batman physically, can outclass him acrobatically and has a very astute mental prowess. His personalized gadgets and tools - most notably Escrima sticks and Wing-Dings - are inspired by Batman, but customized for Nightwing's own unique fighting style.

He is a natural leader and has headed up many teams of other heroes. He is also Starfire's main love interest and finally becomes her boyfriend.

"*There is good and there is evil, but the line between can be almost impossible to find. Does one good deed make him a hero? Am I to blame for all of it because of a single mistake? In the end, all I really know is that the answers don't come easy. It's supposed to be simple, but it's not.*"

## Appearance & Biography

*Voice actor (young):* Evan Sabara (English), Not Known (Japanese), Not Known (French), Not Known (German), Not Known (Italian), Not Known (Arabic), Not Known (Korean), Not Known (Latin American Spanish)
*Voice actor (teenager):* Scott Menville (English), Takashi Onozuka (Japanese), Mathias Kozlowski (French), Julien Haggége (German), Alessio Filippis (Italian), Dani Bustani (Arabic), Gang Su-Jin (Korean), Not Known (Latin American Spanish)
*Voice actor (Nightwing):* Scott Porter (English), Not Known (Japanese), Not Known (French), Not Known (German), Not Known (Italian), Not Known (Arabic), Not Known (Korean), Not Known (Latin American Spanish)
### Biography

Dick Grayson was part of a circus family, dubbed the "Flying Graysons" for their death-defying stunts and acrobatics. After a performance that Bruce Wayne was in attendance to, as was Tim Drake, Dick was left as an orphan by the hands of the mob. Feeling sympathy for the child, Wayne decided to take the boy in as his own and treat him as family.

Eventually, Batman gained enough respect and trust for Grayson that he bestowed upon him the great secret, even going as far as to train the acrobat and develop a new sidekick, Robin. Through hard work of training and exercising, the duet was almost unstoppable. Tim Drake watched them, and put together the facts that Batman and Robin were very close, and Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson were very close. He put together the conclusion of Dick being the same person as Robin. After years of partnership, Dick grew tired of Bruce's power over him and his strict personality.

Once Dick decided to go solo, he left the Bat to fight crime on his own, formed his own team in the end, and, over the years, developed a new alias, Nightwing, a Kryptonian god (being that Dick always looked up to Superman). Though being his own superhero, he continued to occasionally fight crime with the Dark Knight. His successor as Robin was Jason Todd, also an orphan. Years went by, and Jason grew older, as did Dick. Unfortunately, when Jason was believed to be killed by Joker, and Batman was left alone.

Tim Drake convinced Dick that Batman needed a sidekick to keep him in check, and Dick went to assist Batman, despite Tim knowing Bruce needed a Robin. Eventually, Bruce and Dick were captured by Two-Face, and Tim came to their rescue. Batman decided to train him, and had Alfred train him, along with Nightwing and himself.

### Appearance

#### Dick Grayson

Dick was fairly short for his age when he was 13-years-old, and had a slight, lean, well-toned build, since he was an acrobat and skilled at martial arts and gymnastics. A caucasian male, he had short black hair and dark blue eyes. He typically wore either a mask or sunglasses to cover his eyes, depending on his current attire. At 19-years-old, Dick has grown considerably taller, roughly the same height as Batman and as well-muscled. His hair has grown considerably longer past his ears.

#### Robin

His original Robin uniform was comprised of a red vest, black leggings, boots and gloves, all of which seemed to be made of a sort of protective body armor, that still allowed him great mobility. On his chest, a stylized "R" symbol was visible, and around his waist he wore a gold colored utility belt with various pouches for his equipment. He donned a cape that was black on the outer lining but pale yellow on the inside. To protect his identity, Robin wore either a black stylized domino mask or sunglasses at all times. While sporting the mask, his eyes appeared completely white. His short black hair was left unkempt, hanging over his forehead.

#### Nightwing

As Nightwing, his uniform now comprises a black unitard, black shoulder pads, boots and gloves. The chest area of his uniform is emblazoned with a blue bird with its wings expanded and his abdomen area is coloured in a lighter grey. He wears a black utility belt and carries his eskrima sticks in a holster on the side of his right leg.

* Hair Color: Black
* Eye Color: Blue
* Height: 6 ft. 0 in.
* Weight: 175 lb.

### Attributes:

* Like Batman, Nightwing has black hair and blue eyes.
* Nightwing relies in his agility (more than Batman or Robin) and his fast reflexes when it comes down to facing enemies.

### Gallery

Richard John "Dick" Grayson.Dick Grayson as the first Robin.

## Relationships

### Friends/Allies

* Bat Family
	+ Batman
	+ Alfred Pennyworth
* Robin

### Familiy

* The Flying Graysons
	+ John Grayson (father; deceased)
	+ Mary Grayson (mother; deceased)
	+ Richard Grayson (uncle)
	+ Karla Grayson (aunt; deceased)
	+ John Grayson (cousin; deceased)
* Batman (surrogate father and mentor)

### Enemies

* Tony Zucco
* Joker
* other Arkham inmates

## Abilities and Traits

### As Dick Grayson

Dick was taken under the wing of Bruce Wayne, and was given the mantle of Robin the Boy Wonder. To do so, he had to be trained by the Dark Knight himself. Though technically possesses no true superhuman powers, he has undergone a vigorous and intensive training regimen under Batman to physical and mental peak, being almost as trained as Batman, conditioning his body and mind to peak human levels, to such a scale that he has been called a "one-man army" by the Master of Games. His strength is beyond most humans, barely falling under uncanny. Some other versions of the Teen Titans have suggested the reason for his obsessive training and order is that he must be his very best at all times in order to be the same level as his teammates, given that they all have powers of some sort.

### As Robin

As Robin, his costume is composed of light body armor that protects from forceful impact (including bullets), yet still allows for ease of movement. It incorporates a cape made of high-density polymerized titanium that serves as flexible armor, and has resilience to heavy artillery and various kinds of high-intensity flame, even that generated by super-humans, such as Hot Spot. His boots have platforms made of metal, giving traction in most terrains and weighing his kicks for considerably more power. He has mentioned upon occasion that parts is his uniform (namely his cape) is one of a kind, but we see that he has many versions of his uniform.

**Peak Human Condition**: He represents the pinnacle of human physical ability possible for his age, with his physical characteristics greater than that of even an Olympic level athlete. With continued physical and mental growth, he will continue to go even further. As Robin, he engages in intense regular rigorous exercise (including aerobics, weight lifting, gymnastics, and simulated combat) to keep himself in peak condition, and has often defeated opponents whose size, strength, or other powers are much higher than his own.

He is arguably one of the strongest non-metahumans on Earth, seen punching out nearly invulnerable opponents like Cinderblock, and he could support a large bear guardian on his back. Robin's durability is such that he can be struck large amounts of blunt force trauma, and his endurance allows him to go a long period of time without stopping, both in the physical and mental sense. He was raised in an acrobat family known as the "*Flying Graysons*" and began agility training at the earliest age. He is shown to be able to scale city buildings, can leap the length of a rooftop, and maneuver the through the air in battle with ease. Robin is particularly stealthy, and can infiltrate and sneak up on opponents, and silently leave an area without a trace. His balance and coordination are superb, and he has incredibly quick reflexes, which allows him to dodge energy blasts and gunfire at close range. He can also run at an above average speed for a human in small bursts, sufficient to chase down vehicles.

#### Other Skills

* **Martial Arts & Hand-to-hand Combat**: Dick is one of the finest human combatants on Earth, his skills honed to such a level even super-humans and armed adversaries can be overpowered by them. He has mastered several different martial arts styles from across the world, learned from Batman and the True Master. He also has knowledge of Tamaranean fighting techniques.
* **Genius Intellect**: Robin holds expertise in numerous areas, both academic and physical. He is the second most technologically adept Titan (after Cyborg), and helps maintain the security and computer systems of Titan's Tower. He has impressive understanding of various sciences, like physics and chemistry, and is a skilled mechanic and engineer, building all of his own gadgets and equipment. He is a trained detective, with a keen eye and experience in forensics. He is an expert interrogator, and has a very logical mind; he is able to create plans and strategies that effectively take down his opponent. Robin is a master escapologist, marksman, pilot, thief and impersonator, having masqueraded as various identities for infiltration.
* **Exceptional Leadership Skill** - He is the most driven of the team (sometimes to a fault) and is very good at focusing on his goal, having a one-track mind. He is well disciplined and exercises what he has learned from his mentor onto his teammates, occasionally to the point of their aggravation - as Cyborg said in The Quest, "[Robin] takes himself way too seriously."

### As Nightwing

Nightwing lacks a cape and any other gliding mechanism built into his suit. As such, unlike Batman and Robin, he cannot glide. Instead, replacing their "Glide Kick" maneuvers, he uses a "Pounce Attack," similar to Catwoman's. If the enemy is a rough distance away, instead of gliding, Nightwing will jump off the Vantage Point and pounce onto the enemy, leaving them groggy and ready for a Ground Takedown on the floor.

### Abilities

#### As Robin

* **Acrobatics**}: Robin is a trained acrobat even before he became Robin.
* **Criminology**: Robin was trained by a master criminologist, he has studied many criminals over the years and even became one to get closer to one.
* **Disguise**: Robin disguised himself as the criminal Red X.
* **Gadgetry**: One of Robin's main traits is his aptitude with gadgets, he's created them all himself and practices every single day.
* **Investigation**: Robin was trained by a master detective and has a promising career as one himself as shown when he met his future self, **Nightwing**.
* **Hand-to-Hand Combat** (**Advanced**): Part of his martial arts training, Robin trains every single day to continue to hone his skill in unarmed combat.
* **Leadership**: Robin was once a sidekick but has since become the leader of the Teen Titans as well as helping begin the Titan's East.
* **Martial Arts**: Robin has his own style of martial arts which he has adapted from learning various styles of unarmed martial arts from around the world.
* **Throwing**: Robin has almost pinpoint accuracy with his birdarangs.
* **Dancing**: Robin has shown impressive moves on the "Boogie Revolution" game in the arcade.
* **Stick Fighting**:
* **Bilingual**: Robin once taught himself how to speak fluent French. He did this so that Starfire would kiss him and learn the language through lip-contact.
* **Cooking**: According to Beast Boy and Cyborg, Robin makes the best sandwiches.
* **Archery**: Robin has shown to be proficient with using Speedy's bow.

### Equipment

#### As Robin

* **Utility Belt**
	+ **Birdrope**

### Weapons

#### As Robin

Robin wears a utility belt, giving him access to a wide array of tools and weapons inside the various compartments. These include:

* **Birdarangs**

* **Bo Staff** - A collapsible metal staff, this is Robin's main weapon. It can be used to strike and attack, and spun around as a makeshift shield. The composition of the staff is strong enough to block blasts of energy and support a large amount of weight. It can also be separated into 2 Eskrima sticks (which are Nightwing's icon weapons.) This indicates that he is quite skilled in the art of bojutsu.

* **Smoke Pellets** - Capsules that release a grey smoke over a wide area, effective for confusing a large number of opponents and for covering escape.

* **Flash Bombs** - Each marble sized bomb explodes in a burst of bright light, blinding his opponents.

* **Ammunition Discs** - Easily thrown discs that contain various substances, such as freezing gas, extinguishing foam, and explosives. Robin can also attach these onto a specific target, then set a timer on them for a delayed release.

* **Grapple** - Most often used to swing on buildings and catch himself from falling, it can also be used to tie up an opponent, or launched as a makeshift projectile.

* **Bola** - Used for typing up criminals, and also to constrict the limbs of foes in battle.

* **Mini Supercomputer** - Can scan the area, analyze evidence and hack into computer systems

* **Lock picks**

* **Tracking devices**

* **Flashlight**

#### As Nightwing

His gadgetry includes wrist darts, a stealthy way of taking down enemies. He only carries three darts at a time , and they do not appear to regenerate over time. This is used in a first-person view. He also uses advanced offensive weaponry; He uses two electric eskrima sticks, one for each hand. These are his trademark weapons. They can be thrown at opponents as a projectile weapon which ricochet up to hit the enemy, even around corners. He also has a Batclaw, the Line Launcher, the Disruptor, Wing-Dings (stylized shurikens, essentially personalized batarangs), and Electric Blasts. These are similar to Explosive Gel, only quicker.

* **Wing-Ding** - Similar to Batman's Batarang, close in size and shape.
* **Grapple Hook** - Used in the same way Batman uses it, only to grapple to Vantage Points and ledges.
* **Electrical Blast** - Two electrical escrima sticks Nightwing uses to pounce on or near enemies, making them groggy and open for a Takedown.
* **Wrist Darts** - When used, the player's view goes into first person mode, seeing Nightwing's right hand aiming from his wrist. When shot, Nightwing fires a small dart into the desired enemy location on the body, stunning the enemy and sometimes eventually fully knocking them out. The player can also zoom in their view when using this gadget.
* **Escrima Sticks** - Used for most of Nightwing's combat. Also can be used for most Takedowns and Special Combat moves. Nightwing can use these to ricochet off the walls and onto enemies, groggying them for Takedowns.
* **Batclaw** - The same as Batman's; used the same and appears the same.
* **Line Launcher** - The same as Batman's; used the same and appears the same.
* **Disruptor** - The same as Batman's; used the same and appears the same.
* **Night Vision** - The same purposes as Batman's Detective Mode, yet it appears in an orange corner-curved frame with a radar on the top-right corner. This radar only shows enemies who are in very close proximity to Nightwing

### Transportation

#### As Robin

Robin's main mode of transport is the motorcycle, which is designed based. He also uses a jetpack on occasion.

* **R-Cycle**: Robin's main mode of transportation, which he always rides with a specialized helmet that has lights built into it.
* **Glider**:

## See also

* Bat Family
* Teen Titans

## External links

* Nightwing *Wikipedia*
* Nightwing *DC Database*
* Robin: Teen Titans Wikia Project

## Notes & Trivia

* Nightwing first appeared in Detective Comics #38 (April 1940).
* Nightwing makes a brief appearance in the Blüdhaven Alert before being shunted away by Major Force.
* Nightwing and Starfire pursue an intense but complicated relationship that once led to the pair marrying, although the marriage was disrupted by Raven. In addition, he also harbours a relationship with Oracle, which stems from their days as Robin and Batgirl respectively.
* Nightwing visits the grave of his parents every year on their wedding anniversary.
* The blue of Nightwing's uniform is known as "Robin Egg Blue".
* While Richard considers Bruce Wayne as a father, he also looks up to and has been greatly influenced by Superman as a pseudo "uncle" of sorts and his personal hero as a child.
* Nightwing is a sanguine personality type meaning he's talkative, cocky, easily bored, very hot-tempered at times. Unlike his mentor, he doesn't brood on his parent's deaths but moved past them. Dick has a sense of humor which is ironic because of everything he's been through. A strong leader with a personable demeanor, he can keep a group together and is thought of the glue that ties the superhero community together. Truthfully Nightwing would rather not lead but when he's asked, he always delivers. When it comes to those he sees as family and friends, he will defend them without hesitation, especially his 'brother' Tim.