Tim Drake (June 13, 1989) This Day In Comics
Tim Drake was named after Tim Burton, director of the then-upcoming 1989 film, and introduced in Batman #436 (June 13, 1989).
Tim Drake is the son of Jack Drake and Janet Drake, coming from the same social class as Bruce Wayne. When he was a young child, he visited the circus for the first time with his parents. The Drakes asked the Flying Graysons for a photo together, resulting in a momentary bond between Tim and Dick Grayson as they met for the first time. Batman editor Dennis O’Neil hoped that Grayson’s approval of Drake would ease reader acceptance of him. At the age of about nine years old, Tim Drake was able to deduce Robin’s secret identity as Dick Grayson when Robin performed a quadruple somersault. Tim knew Grayson was only one of the three people who could perform such a flip. This deduction also allowed Drake to deduce that Grayson’s guardian Bruce Wayne was Batman. Noting that Batman has grown reckless and violent following the second Robin being murdered by the Joker, Drake decided to intervene and Batman eventually enlisted him as the third Robin after the death of his mother and the crippling of his father.
Before joining Batman as the third Robin, Tim Drake was given a modern redesign of the Robin costume and sent to train abroad with numerous masters. When Bruce Wayne retires after Knightfall, Robin goes solo to defend Gotham. He relocates to Blüdhaven after the death of his father, his best friend, and the presumed death of his girlfriend. This was to escape the “ghosts” of Gotham City and to stay close to his stepmother Dana Winters who was admitted into a Blüdhaven clinic after going into psychological shock over Jack Drake’s murder. Drake was then given another redesign of the Robin costume in the colors of Superboy’s costume and was formally adopted by Bruce as his son.
Tim Drake has been trained by Batman and other instructors across the world. His favorite combat defense is bojutsu, and he has beaten Lady Shiva in sparring and is classed the best staff fighter who ever lived. His intellect has enabled him to excel in computer science and a grasp of assorted scientific techniques, including biology, engineering, and genetics.
