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deconstructingdamian: So the first arc was all about Dick and Damian coming together as Batman and Robin and figuring out how to work together and respect each other. The time you see Batman and Robin in this issue cement this: Dick went with Damian’s judgement, even if he didn’t think it was a good idea. He would never have done that before everything that went down with Pyg. This is just one of the many signs their relationship is evolving.
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deconstructingdamian:

So the first arc was all about Dick and Damian coming together as Batman and Robin and figuring out how to work together and respect each other. The time you see Batman and Robin in this issue cement this: Dick went with Damian’s judgement, even if he didn’t think it was a good idea. He would never have done that before everything that went down with Pyg. This is just one of the many signs their relationship is evolving.

deconstructingdamian: This page gets me every time I read this issue. I don’t care if Damian was raised to be the toughest guy on the face of the planet, I don’t care if Damian knows that this isn’t really his father. This is a guy, with his father’s face, wearing his father’s costume… basically representing that Bruce-as-Batman-symbol that I’ve been saying all along that he admired… saying his worst nightmares out loud: That he’s the family failure, that his father will never love him. To make matters worse, we’ll find out next issue (in flashback) that someone’s already said something to make this all the more difficult for Damian to hear. Now Damian doesn’t seem too bothered by the “deranged ramblings” of a man that looks like his father—he’s standing there patiently, holding the live wire and listening to him without comment waiting for the zombie to reach the gasoline puddle he’s already set up. Even his comment of “stepping in gasoline was your biggest mistake” screams nonchalance. But this isn’t the first time Damian hasn’t shown a visible reaction to something that rattles him, and it certainly won’t be the last. Damian’s always had a tendency to  focus solely on the misson, regardless of what’s going on around him. He has a plan and he’s going to stick to it. It’s easier to stick to the plan in his head than focus on what’s being said. It’s how he copes. RIP Bat-bike. (Source: Batman and Robin 09)
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deconstructingdamian:

This page gets me every time I read this issue. I don’t care if Damian was raised to be the toughest guy on the face of the planet, I don’t care if Damian knows that this isn’t really his father. This is a guy, with his father’s face, wearing his father’s costume… basically representing that Bruce-as-Batman-symbol that I’ve been saying all along that he admired… saying his worst nightmares out loud: That he’s the family failure, that his father will never love him. To make matters worse, we’ll find out next issue (in flashback) that someone’s already said something to make this all the more difficult for Damian to hear.

Now Damian doesn’t seem too bothered by the “deranged ramblings” of a man that looks like his father—he’s standing there patiently, holding the live wire and listening to him without comment waiting for the zombie to reach the gasoline puddle he’s already set up. Even his comment of “stepping in gasoline was your biggest mistake” screams nonchalance. But this isn’t the first time Damian hasn’t shown a visible reaction to something that rattles him, and it certainly won’t be the last.

Damian’s always had a tendency to  focus solely on the misson, regardless of what’s going on around him. He has a plan and he’s going to stick to it. It’s easier to stick to the plan in his head than focus on what’s being said. It’s how he copes.

RIP Bat-bike.

(Source: Batman and Robin 09)

deconstructingdamian: And this is why Damian’s in a no-win situation. Being Robin puts him at odds with his mother, and with Bruce returning he potentially has no future on that side either. So his choice’s are a. return to his mother and basically be her puppet b. stay with his father’s side and potentially prove his mother right AND be forced to give up the best thing he’s ever done. This is also why Zombie Batman’s words had to have stung, even if Damian knew it wasn’t really his father—he doesn’t want his mother to be right. Talia’s basically telling him that they only want to keep him in line as to not taint the bloodline, and what does Zombie Batman go and tell him not only a few hours later? That he’s tainting the bloodline. He doesn’t want his mother to be right. But getting back to the panels at hand… This is a big difference from the Damian we met back in Batman and Son and the Resurrection of Ra’s Al Ghul who would defy “mama” for daddy, but only because he was this cool, new, exciting thing. At the end of the day, mother would step in and Damian would listen. Not anymore. Damian’s finally gotten a good idea how a real family is supposed to work, and doesn’t want any part of this one anymore. Can you blame him? His grandfather tried to steal his body and his mother made him jump in front of a goddamn missile because she was too selfish to share her son with Bruce. And now we learn the family is even more messed up than originally thought, as if that could be possible—Damian barely saw his mother before his eighth birthday. As a child, she was probably just like Bruce, a fairy-tale someone told him at night filled with misinformation and outright lies. Considering Damian’s first words to Bruce were “I’d imagined you taller,” he thought of Bruce like meeting a movie star too. This could also tie into why Damian doesn’t actually want to meet Bruce: look at how well getting to know Talia turned out. This also partially explains why Damian is so cold to everyone. If you were being tossed around from mentor to mentor, tutor to tutor with no one really giving a damn about you as a human being? Yeah you probably wouldn’t try to get too attached to anyone, either. He’s not used to anyone staying in his life for any extended period of time, so he doesn’t try to get to know or care about anyone so that when they do eventually leave, it won’t hurt as bad. He’s a little boy who has been burned too many times before and doesn’t want to get burned again. With a personality like his it naturally repels people and is sort of a defense mechanism to keep him safe from rejection (again, this is just one of the many reasons Damian is who he is. He’s also an ass because he’s been raised and trained to think he’s the next Alexander). This is another reason Damian is taking Dick ignoring him so hard; he let Dick in thinking he was finally different, and here he is dumping him for Bruce in a New York minute. And let’s look at Talia, shall we? She keeps talking about how she’s the only one with Damian’s best interests at heart, but Damian has her pegged. She’s Mother Gothel from Tangled: she only wants his hair, or in this case his legacy. Damian is leverage against the Batfamily. Look at all the delightful chaos he caused the first time in Batman and Son. He’s also her legacy as an Al Ghul. She seems him as something people can point to and go “look at this. Talia made this.” I almost find it amusing that nearly everything she’s accusing “the circus oaf and his butler” of doing are things she herself wants to do to Damian. She’s been feeding him lies and distortions since day one. She doesn’t trust or accept him. She wants to tame and brainwash him into falling in step with her and turn him into a puppet (apparently literally). And look at Damian. He calmly listens to his mother rambling, not saying a word—until she calls Dick incapable. That’s when Damian finally puts his foot down and tries to actually defend him, only to be cut off. This is the first time Damian’s used Dick’s first name this entire comic series. Damian really cares for Dick now, and it bothers him that his mother is badmouthing him. But not because she dislikes him, but because she called him “barely fit to wear his mentor’s mantle.” Remember what I said about Damian changing his mind on what it means to be Batman? As far as Damian’s concerned, Dick is absolutely worthy to be Batman, he is Damian’s idea of Batman, and he’s not going to let anyone insinuate otherwise. (Source: Batman and Robin 10)
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deconstructingdamian: And this is why Damian’s in a no-win situation. Being Robin puts him at odds with his mother, and with Bruce returning he potentially has no future on that side either. So his choice’s are a. return to his mother and basically be her puppet b. stay with his father’s side and potentially prove his mother right AND be forced to give up the best thing he’s ever done. This is also why Zombie Batman’s words had to have stung, even if Damian knew it wasn’t really his father—he doesn’t want his mother to be right. Talia’s basically telling him that they only want to keep him in line as to not taint the bloodline, and what does Zombie Batman go and tell him not only a few hours later? That he’s tainting the bloodline. He doesn’t want his mother to be right. But getting back to the panels at hand… This is a big difference from the Damian we met back in Batman and Son and the Resurrection of Ra’s Al Ghul who would defy “mama” for daddy, but only because he was this cool, new, exciting thing. At the end of the day, mother would step in and Damian would listen. Not anymore. Damian’s finally gotten a good idea how a real family is supposed to work, and doesn’t want any part of this one anymore. Can you blame him? His grandfather tried to steal his body and his mother made him jump in front of a goddamn missile because she was too selfish to share her son with Bruce. And now we learn the family is even more messed up than originally thought, as if that could be possible—Damian barely saw his mother before his eighth birthday. As a child, she was probably just like Bruce, a fairy-tale someone told him at night filled with misinformation and outright lies. Considering Damian’s first words to Bruce were “I’d imagined you taller,” he thought of Bruce like meeting a movie star too. This could also tie into why Damian doesn’t actually want to meet Bruce: look at how well getting to know Talia turned out. This also partially explains why Damian is so cold to everyone. If you were being tossed around from mentor to mentor, tutor to tutor with no one really giving a damn about you as a human being? Yeah you probably wouldn’t try to get too attached to anyone, either. He’s not used to anyone staying in his life for any extended period of time, so he doesn’t try to get to know or care about anyone so that when they do eventually leave, it won’t hurt as bad. He’s a little boy who has been burned too many times before and doesn’t want to get burned again. With a personality like his it naturally repels people and is sort of a defense mechanism to keep him safe from rejection (again, this is just one of the many reasons Damian is who he is. He’s also an ass because he’s been raised and trained to think he’s the next Alexander). This is another reason Damian is taking Dick ignoring him so hard; he let Dick in thinking he was finally different, and here he is dumping him for Bruce in a New York minute. And let’s look at Talia, shall we? She keeps talking about how she’s the only one with Damian’s best interests at heart, but Damian has her pegged. She’s Mother Gothel from Tangled: she only wants his hair, or in this case his legacy. Damian is leverage against the Batfamily. Look at all the delightful chaos he caused the first time in Batman and Son. He’s also her legacy as an Al Ghul. She seems him as something people can point to and go “look at this. Talia made this.” I almost find it amusing that nearly everything she’s accusing “the circus oaf and his butler” of doing are things she herself wants to do to Damian. She’s been feeding him lies and distortions since day one. She doesn’t trust or accept him. She wants to tame and brainwash him into falling in step with her and turn him into a puppet (apparently literally). And look at Damian. He calmly listens to his mother rambling, not saying a word—until she calls Dick incapable. That’s when Damian finally puts his foot down and tries to actually defend him, only to be cut off. This is the first time Damian’s used Dick’s first name this entire comic series. Damian really cares for Dick now, and it bothers him that his mother is badmouthing him. But not because she dislikes him, but because she called him “barely fit to wear his mentor’s mantle.” Remember what I said about Damian changing his mind on what it means to be Batman? As far as Damian’s concerned, Dick is absolutely worthy to be Batman, he is Damian’s idea of Batman, and he’s not going to let anyone insinuate otherwise. (Source: Batman and Robin 10)
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deconstructingdamian:

And this is why Damian’s in a no-win situation. Being Robin puts him at odds with his mother, and with Bruce returning he potentially has no future on that side either. So his choice’s are a. return to his mother and basically be her puppet b. stay with his father’s side and potentially prove his mother right AND be forced to give up the best thing he’s ever done.

This is also why Zombie Batman’s words had to have stung, even if Damian knew it wasn’t really his father—he doesn’t want his mother to be right. Talia’s basically telling him that they only want to keep him in line as to not taint the bloodline, and what does Zombie Batman go and tell him not only a few hours later? That he’s tainting the bloodline. He doesn’t want his mother to be right.

But getting back to the panels at hand… This is a big difference from the Damian we met back in Batman and Son and the Resurrection of Ra’s Al Ghul who would defy “mama” for daddy, but only because he was this cool, new, exciting thing. At the end of the day, mother would step in and Damian would listen. Not anymore. Damian’s finally gotten a good idea how a real family is supposed to work, and doesn’t want any part of this one anymore. Can you blame him? His grandfather tried to steal his body and his mother made him jump in front of a goddamn missile because she was too selfish to share her son with Bruce.

And now we learn the family is even more messed up than originally thought, as if that could be possible—Damian barely saw his mother before his eighth birthday. As a child, she was probably just like Bruce, a fairy-tale someone told him at night filled with misinformation and outright lies. Considering Damian’s first words to Bruce were “I’d imagined you taller,” he thought of Bruce like meeting a movie star too. This could also tie into why Damian doesn’t actually want to meet Bruce: look at how well getting to know Talia turned out.

This also partially explains why Damian is so cold to everyone. If you were being tossed around from mentor to mentor, tutor to tutor with no one really giving a damn about you as a human being? Yeah you probably wouldn’t try to get too attached to anyone, either. He’s not used to anyone staying in his life for any extended period of time, so he doesn’t try to get to know or care about anyone so that when they do eventually leave, it won’t hurt as bad. He’s a little boy who has been burned too many times before and doesn’t want to get burned again. With a personality like his it naturally repels people and is sort of a defense mechanism to keep him safe from rejection (again, this is just one of the many reasons Damian is who he is. He’s also an ass because he’s been raised and trained to think he’s the next Alexander). This is another reason Damian is taking Dick ignoring him so hard; he let Dick in thinking he was finally different, and here he is dumping him for Bruce in a New York minute.

And let’s look at Talia, shall we? She keeps talking about how she’s the only one with Damian’s best interests at heart, but Damian has her pegged. She’s Mother Gothel from Tangled: she only wants his hair, or in this case his legacy. Damian is leverage against the Batfamily. Look at all the delightful chaos he caused the first time in Batman and Son. He’s also her legacy as an Al Ghul. She seems him as something people can point to and go “look at this. Talia made this.”

I almost find it amusing that nearly everything she’s accusing “the circus oaf and his butler” of doing are things she herself wants to do to Damian. She’s been feeding him lies and distortions since day one. She doesn’t trust or accept him. She wants to tame and brainwash him into falling in step with her and turn him into a puppet (apparently literally).

And look at Damian. He calmly listens to his mother rambling, not saying a word—until she calls Dick incapable. That’s when Damian finally puts his foot down and tries to actually defend him, only to be cut off. This is the first time Damian’s used Dick’s first name this entire comic series. Damian really cares for Dick now, and it bothers him that his mother is badmouthing him. But not because she dislikes him, but because she called him “barely fit to wear his mentor’s mantle.” Remember what I said about Damian changing his mind on what it means to be Batman? As far as Damian’s concerned, Dick is absolutely worthy to be Batman, he is Damian’s idea of Batman, and he’s not going to let anyone insinuate otherwise.

(Source: Batman and Robin 10)

deconstructingdamian: Here’s where all this disrespect and inability to effectively communicate with one another comes to a head. The way Dick’s talking to Damian, he’s expecting another Robin. He expects Damian to be able to figure out what’s right and wrong, and what matters to the Batman operation. But he’s not talking to Tim Drake. He’s talking to a child that’s been taught over and over again for the past ten years that in order to be successful in an operation, you have to do whatever it takes to get the job done. Damian’s never been taught limits, he’s never been taught that you catch more flies with honey or that playing nice sometimes gets you what you want better than just demanding it. He’s been taught that you punch through every goddamn door until you get what you want, everyone else be damned. He’s never been taught about learning to obey a direct order, because no one’s ever ordered him around before. He’s Damian goddamn Al-Ghul-Wayne, and everyone better fucking listen to him, or else. On the other hand you have Damian once more comparing Dick to his father, this glorious Batman ideal where he’s perfect and has no flaws. He sees Batman as the pinnacle of his training, as this protector of Gotham where he can punch the crap out of things and still be the good guy, still be the hero. It proves Dick exactly right: he has a lot to learn. However, he’s not going to learn it until the two figure out each other and learn to listen and understand each other. Him ripping off the R logo just proves he doesn’t acknowledge Dick as Batman, and he has no idea how badly Dick is already struggling with being Batman himself. Let’s just say it doesn’t help either one of them. Also, through all this angst let’s acknowledge that neither Dick nor Alfred saw anything wrong with bringing the Robin cycle to the Bat Bunker for Damian to use. You know, I know he can drive it but the fact that neither one find it odd to give a 10 year old a bike, even one as capable as Damian, is bad judgement. But I suppose there’s a long history of bad judgement in the Bat family, so this can just be one in a long line. Finally, there are those skewed panels again.
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deconstructingdamian: Here’s where all this disrespect and inability to effectively communicate with one another comes to a head. The way Dick’s talking to Damian, he’s expecting another Robin. He expects Damian to be able to figure out what’s right and wrong, and what matters to the Batman operation. But he’s not talking to Tim Drake. He’s talking to a child that’s been taught over and over again for the past ten years that in order to be successful in an operation, you have to do whatever it takes to get the job done. Damian’s never been taught limits, he’s never been taught that you catch more flies with honey or that playing nice sometimes gets you what you want better than just demanding it. He’s been taught that you punch through every goddamn door until you get what you want, everyone else be damned. He’s never been taught about learning to obey a direct order, because no one’s ever ordered him around before. He’s Damian goddamn Al-Ghul-Wayne, and everyone better fucking listen to him, or else. On the other hand you have Damian once more comparing Dick to his father, this glorious Batman ideal where he’s perfect and has no flaws. He sees Batman as the pinnacle of his training, as this protector of Gotham where he can punch the crap out of things and still be the good guy, still be the hero. It proves Dick exactly right: he has a lot to learn. However, he’s not going to learn it until the two figure out each other and learn to listen and understand each other. Him ripping off the R logo just proves he doesn’t acknowledge Dick as Batman, and he has no idea how badly Dick is already struggling with being Batman himself. Let’s just say it doesn’t help either one of them. Also, through all this angst let’s acknowledge that neither Dick nor Alfred saw anything wrong with bringing the Robin cycle to the Bat Bunker for Damian to use. You know, I know he can drive it but the fact that neither one find it odd to give a 10 year old a bike, even one as capable as Damian, is bad judgement. But I suppose there’s a long history of bad judgement in the Bat family, so this can just be one in a long line. Finally, there are those skewed panels again.
Zoom

deconstructingdamian:

Here’s where all this disrespect and inability to effectively communicate with one another comes to a head. The way Dick’s talking to Damian, he’s expecting another Robin. He expects Damian to be able to figure out what’s right and wrong, and what matters to the Batman operation. But he’s not talking to Tim Drake. He’s talking to a child that’s been taught over and over again for the past ten years that in order to be successful in an operation, you have to do whatever it takes to get the job done. Damian’s never been taught limits, he’s never been taught that you catch more flies with honey or that playing nice sometimes gets you what you want better than just demanding it. He’s been taught that you punch through every goddamn door until you get what you want, everyone else be damned. He’s never been taught about learning to obey a direct order, because no one’s ever ordered him around before. He’s Damian goddamn Al-Ghul-Wayne, and everyone better fucking listen to him, or else.

On the other hand you have Damian once more comparing Dick to his father, this glorious Batman ideal where he’s perfect and has no flaws. He sees Batman as the pinnacle of his training, as this protector of Gotham where he can punch the crap out of things and still be the good guy, still be the hero. It proves Dick exactly right: he has a lot to learn. However, he’s not going to learn it until the two figure out each other and learn to listen and understand each other. Him ripping off the R logo just proves he doesn’t acknowledge Dick as Batman, and he has no idea how badly Dick is already struggling with being Batman himself.

Let’s just say it doesn’t help either one of them.

Also, through all this angst let’s acknowledge that neither Dick nor Alfred saw anything wrong with bringing the Robin cycle to the Bat Bunker for Damian to use. You know, I know he can drive it but the fact that neither one find it odd to give a 10 year old a bike, even one as capable as Damian, is bad judgement. But I suppose there’s a long history of bad judgement in the Bat family, so this can just be one in a long line.

Finally, there are those skewed panels again.

cornflakepizza: deconstructingdamian: I said it a few months ago, but this scene is one of my favorite Damian moments. Not only because it’s rare to see Damian outside of work, but because Dini manages to convey a lot in such a short scene. Though Damian may have tried to side-step it, Elliot hits it right on the head when he says Damian’s using him as a means of hanging out with his father, even if Damian does fully understand that that man is a. crazy and b. most definitely not his father. However, Damian’s at a point in his life where everything is starting to change. He’s coming to understand that pretty much everything his mother taught him was wrong, and he hasn’t quite figured out how to fit in with his new family. He’s met his father a grand total of twice now (once in Batman and Son, and again in the Resurrection of Ra’s Al Ghul), but Bruce was pretty much the only one who had given Damian any sort of direction. Yes, you could argue his mother gave him direction through his teachings in the league, but it wasn’t the same thing. Bruce, as well as the other members of the bat family, taught Damian in such a way that Damian learns the morals on his own. Talia and the League, on the other hand, just pounded information and lessons into him and made him get only what they wanted out of it. Add that to the fact he’s also at a point where he has begun to trust Dick, but he isn’t yet at the point where the bond has really formed between the two, and all that leads to Damian feeling very isolated in Gotham City. This is what leads him to seek out company in one of the few people he feels comfortable with: Bruce (even if does he view Bruce as a mythical hero). The only problem is, Bruce is dead (well wandering through time thanks to a magical time bullet, but for all intents and purposes, everyone but Tim thinks he’s dead). However, conveniently enough for Damian, there’s a guy being held captive in a private penthouse at the top of Wayne Tower (aka where he just so happens to live), with the face of Bruce Wayne. Though Tommy Elliot, aka Hush, may not be Bruce Wayne, they grew up together so the man clearly would have Bruce-related stories to tell, and as Damian is only ten, I’m sure he thinks he’s clever enough to “subtly” bring up the topic and get Tommy to speak openly about his father. But I think it also goes deeper than that. I think Damian’s not only attracted to Elliot because he looks like Bruce, but also because he’s crazy. Tommy’s morals are more closely aligned to his. His intellect is more closely aligned to his. In a city where he doesn’t feel comfortable, this man is someone he can understand and on some level hopes that he will understand him in return. The sad thing is, it looks like he was actually getting what he wanted. (Source: Batman: Streets of Gotham 1) Bolded for emphasis.
Zoom
cornflakepizza: deconstructingdamian: I said it a few months ago, but this scene is one of my favorite Damian moments. Not only because it’s rare to see Damian outside of work, but because Dini manages to convey a lot in such a short scene. Though Damian may have tried to side-step it, Elliot hits it right on the head when he says Damian’s using him as a means of hanging out with his father, even if Damian does fully understand that that man is a. crazy and b. most definitely not his father. However, Damian’s at a point in his life where everything is starting to change. He’s coming to understand that pretty much everything his mother taught him was wrong, and he hasn’t quite figured out how to fit in with his new family. He’s met his father a grand total of twice now (once in Batman and Son, and again in the Resurrection of Ra’s Al Ghul), but Bruce was pretty much the only one who had given Damian any sort of direction. Yes, you could argue his mother gave him direction through his teachings in the league, but it wasn’t the same thing. Bruce, as well as the other members of the bat family, taught Damian in such a way that Damian learns the morals on his own. Talia and the League, on the other hand, just pounded information and lessons into him and made him get only what they wanted out of it. Add that to the fact he’s also at a point where he has begun to trust Dick, but he isn’t yet at the point where the bond has really formed between the two, and all that leads to Damian feeling very isolated in Gotham City. This is what leads him to seek out company in one of the few people he feels comfortable with: Bruce (even if does he view Bruce as a mythical hero). The only problem is, Bruce is dead (well wandering through time thanks to a magical time bullet, but for all intents and purposes, everyone but Tim thinks he’s dead). However, conveniently enough for Damian, there’s a guy being held captive in a private penthouse at the top of Wayne Tower (aka where he just so happens to live), with the face of Bruce Wayne. Though Tommy Elliot, aka Hush, may not be Bruce Wayne, they grew up together so the man clearly would have Bruce-related stories to tell, and as Damian is only ten, I’m sure he thinks he’s clever enough to “subtly” bring up the topic and get Tommy to speak openly about his father. But I think it also goes deeper than that. I think Damian’s not only attracted to Elliot because he looks like Bruce, but also because he’s crazy. Tommy’s morals are more closely aligned to his. His intellect is more closely aligned to his. In a city where he doesn’t feel comfortable, this man is someone he can understand and on some level hopes that he will understand him in return. The sad thing is, it looks like he was actually getting what he wanted. (Source: Batman: Streets of Gotham 1) Bolded for emphasis.
Zoom

cornflakepizza:

deconstructingdamian:

I said it a few months ago, but this scene is one of my favorite Damian moments. Not only because it’s rare to see Damian outside of work, but because Dini manages to convey a lot in such a short scene. Though Damian may have tried to side-step it, Elliot hits it right on the head when he says Damian’s using him as a means of hanging out with his father, even if Damian does fully understand that that man is a. crazy and b. most definitely not his father.

However, Damian’s at a point in his life where everything is starting to change. He’s coming to understand that pretty much everything his mother taught him was wrong, and he hasn’t quite figured out how to fit in with his new family. He’s met his father a grand total of twice now (once in Batman and Son, and again in the Resurrection of Ra’s Al Ghul), but Bruce was pretty much the only one who had given Damian any sort of direction. Yes, you could argue his mother gave him direction through his teachings in the league, but it wasn’t the same thing. Bruce, as well as the other members of the bat family, taught Damian in such a way that Damian learns the morals on his own. Talia and the League, on the other hand, just pounded information and lessons into him and made him get only what they wanted out of it. Add that to the fact he’s also at a point where he has begun to trust Dick, but he isn’t yet at the point where the bond has really formed between the two, and all that leads to Damian feeling very isolated in Gotham City.

This is what leads him to seek out company in one of the few people he feels comfortable with: Bruce (even if does he view Bruce as a mythical hero). The only problem is, Bruce is dead (well wandering through time thanks to a magical time bullet, but for all intents and purposes, everyone but Tim thinks he’s dead). However, conveniently enough for Damian, there’s a guy being held captive in a private penthouse at the top of Wayne Tower (aka where he just so happens to live), with the face of Bruce Wayne. Though Tommy Elliot, aka Hush, may not be Bruce Wayne, they grew up together so the man clearly would have Bruce-related stories to tell, and as Damian is only ten, I’m sure he thinks he’s clever enough to “subtly” bring up the topic and get Tommy to speak openly about his father.

But I think it also goes deeper than that. I think Damian’s not only attracted to Elliot because he looks like Bruce, but also because he’s crazy. Tommy’s morals are more closely aligned to his. His intellect is more closely aligned to his. In a city where he doesn’t feel comfortable, this man is someone he can understand and on some level hopes that he will understand him in return.

The sad thing is, it looks like he was actually getting what he wanted.

(Source: Batman: Streets of Gotham 1)

Bolded for emphasis.

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