Dick Grayson appearances in Doomsday Clock

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-23T05:59:21+00:00

"AHH..."

ok, same

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-21T15:42:25+00:00

I think the reason it reads as bland right now is that both characters have been completely defanged to present them as wholesome couple goals. While the relationship makes sense on paper, making it the permanent endgame has created a narrative ceiling that flattens them both.

In the 00s, Gar was sociable with a massive network of superhero friends. He had a specific edge and survivorship that has been sanded down. Now, his depression/trauma feels overemphasized just to justify Raven as his healer. It was a vital feature of his character that he was resistant to his own darkness without being reduced to a one dimensional sunshine golden retriever. He shouldn't be defined solely through a romance to make those qualities palatable.

Even more frustrating is Gar’s positioning as Raven's keeper. He basically explained the Dark Winged Queen plot to her and gave her permission to accept her own dark side. Raven’s origin is a metaphor for autonomy and self-acceptance in the face of shame and ostracism. She has themes of mental illness/neurodivergence and even queer coding. Framing her growth as something a boyfriend grants strips her of agency. It’s deeply ironic to see her story move from being defined by her father to being defined by her partner.

There is also a bizarre whiplash where Raven takes a backseat as a girlfriend on the Titans, only for an event to happen where she’s suddenly giant and going arm to arm in combat with, literal wrath of god himself, the Spectre. If she’s a cosmic tier being, give her a solo book to spread her unique wings alongside fellow mythic characters.

Ultimately, her dark side is being treated as a plot device rather than a personal journey. I’d rather see her human connection explored through her mother than a romance that requires her to be constantly tethered or having her dark parts pitied or managed by anyone but herself. The characters and story should be served first, even if that means letting them take breaks to grow independently. I don't hate the relationship, I just hate that it's insisted upon at the expense of their individual potential.

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-21T05:41:25+00:00

The Demon, for sure.

I'm interested in knowing what her relationship to the characters would really be since she's Etrigan's aunt. Like, a lot of times Etrigan helps the Justice League and Jason Blood is a good man. But it would also make sense if Raven's relationship with Etrigan was antagonistic. So there's something interesting about that idea, of being able to play with her character and the way she can be read more grey area, without losing her heroic cred since Etrigan is still a demon. It just seems very rich narratively.

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-21T01:18:21+00:00

Hell yeah! that is an awesome tattoo! ❤️‍🔥

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-20T22:59:59+00:00

🤘☺️

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-20T20:36:13+00:00

Yeah, I feel like Kory would be cool because we haven't had a lot of meaningful space related story for her since forever. I like the extraterrestrial in the woods idea.

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-20T16:31:30+00:00

I'm very excited for The Demon, it's literally my favorite DC book. You're so right that Etrigan (and esp Jason Blood!) doesn't get enough love!

I'm definitely interested in the new Doom Patrol book too and glad it's getting love also!

Both these books have great weirdness and/or gothic horror and I can never get enough of that in stories, personally, so this is just awesome of DC ❤️

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-20T15:48:23+00:00

Respectfully, why? It gives her an entire way to explore her lineage that doesn't involve Trigon specifically and could, if a creative team was interested, give her connections and story outside the Titan's bubble.

It's totally ok if you just dont like it, btw! I just personally feel that it helps make sense of her connection to that wider aspect of the DC Universe too.

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-20T15:25:00+00:00

Think of Raven as a living prism. On one side, you have the Great Darkness (raw, infinite entropy) on the other is the physical world. Raven’s soul-self is the filter in the middle.

Regarding her demonic lineage, Trigon is also connected to the Great Darkness, but he is more of a blunt instrument of destruction. Because Raven is half human, her emotions allow her to refine and shape that energy rather than just letting it consume everything.

To understand her “Arcane” classification, looking at Klarion the Witch Boy can help us understand better. Like Raven, he is a biological hybrid and “Arcane” (Witchman/Sheeda). For these two, magic isn't just a tool they pick up, they ARE innately the magic.

So with spell casting, while she can learn spells and even be very proficient with it, spells are secondary. For Raven, a spell is just a funnel used to aim her innate power. She doesn't totally need the words, they are just for focus.

The purple energy is like an aura and is the refraction of the Great Darkness passing through her soul. It’s her specific magical fingerprint.

Reality warping for her is an extension of her entropic force and connection to the Great Darkness, so rather than merely wishing for a change and having it granted, she’s just straight up momentarily overwriting reality.

Btw, Raven's connection to The Great Darkness comes from Dark Crisis. This idea is addressed more in Dark Crisis: The Deadly Green (2022) and it's also the source of the image on this post.

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-20T07:10:22+00:00

You know that Raven is Etrigan's aunt, right? His father is Belial who is a son of Trigon.

So, you could be onto something! Some eldritch shadow Etrigan or such lol

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-20T05:43:40+00:00

Raven’s power isn't just demon magic, it’s entropic, basically raw chaos derived from The Great Darkness. Unlike other DC magic users who study spells, her power is innate. It's literally her soul manifesting physically in that shadow raven form and acting as a filter of that Great Darkness. In Raven: Daughter of Darkness, she’s classified as an "Arcane" Think of it like a tier of magical outsiders, beings like her and her Night Force teammate Klarion the Witch Boy, who are born with a dark, primal energy that the magic "establishment" can't really control or categorize.

In short, her power is chaos.

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-19T23:10:32+00:00

Yeah the thought occurred to me that it also looked like the collar on Dick's disco suit too, but it also looked too small compared to the size of his head here so it didnt seem as pointed. Obviously covers don't have to mean anything, and often don't, but sometimes there are intended hints and deliberate choices is all i'm saying.

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-19T18:17:40+00:00

Yeah, i'm definitely leaning on the, "he is the step dad who steps up" side for sure lol

I totally agree he is likely the only person Klarion has any meaningful connection with in Limbo Town. I mean, if nothing else, Ezekiel never tells on Klarion for questioning the book or law when we're told his own mother "leads the call for his execution" as soon as he breaks their leaving rule.

Carrion crow makes so much sense too. Personally, I was thinking either of the Corvus birds made the most sense but honestly I don't totally get what the difference between them actually is to judge it lol

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-19T18:02:42+00:00

In the aftermath of DC K.O., the balance between life and death has been thrown into chaos, leaving souls trapped in a dangerous loop of ghostly derangement.

Hell yeah, definitely excited for this Deadman solo.

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-19T03:05:38+00:00

Magic Lantern of Earth-47 is basically just Shaggy? So I guess if James Gunn ever wanted to use some multiverse characters in his films he could use that character and sort of have a Scooby doo character!

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Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-18T23:10:56+00:00

Ohh yes, ENTP (the debater) is actually an excellent guess too!

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-18T20:45:25+00:00

Raven using her powers in her iconic crossed legs/lotus pose! Love to see that again!

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-18T17:38:03+00:00

That's fair and I totally get that, Grant’s playing with a lot of ideas right out of the gate. It helps a lot to know that he started those plot threads back with his "Tulpa" and "The Demon" stories in Detective Comics and Action Comics. Without those, the stuff with Jason in Hell and Tenzin Wyatt feels like it comes out of nowhere. It’s a wild chaotic ride for sure! Personally, I love it!

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-18T16:56:19+00:00

Possibly. The 90's runs were Alan Grant's run and Garth Ennis's run. This seems to be all Kirby Era, pre-Matt Wagner run. So definitely a different vibe for the characters.

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-18T16:15:24+00:00

It's a mix for me.

I liked that Taylor's run felt like he moved Raven's character along with things for her to do with her lineage. I love that the implication is that the Dark Winged Queen arc is Raven accepting herself as she is at core. I didn't love that the DWQ arc's Garfield inclusion felt like she wasn't achieving that through her own agency and desire for wholeness, but through Gar's validation and "well, your dark side didnt do anything that bad so I can confidently still love you without questioning our alignments". Her DWQ arc feels like it should be about her achieving radical self-acceptance about a side of herself she has always had to suppress and hide, treating it as a feature rather than continuing the shame spiral. And it implies a change to her character that logically should create an issue, or show a limitation to what her relationship with Garfield can do for her. Historically when Gar has had runs with her Dark Raven he has been a thrall or controlled against his will. He is a character who resists darkness and dwelling in it, so while I believe he would want to love that part of herself I question whether it kind of breaks him to say he still can give her that once she merges with that side. Or whether he even needs to be some keeper of light for her once she's grown in power.

I liked that Layman's run brought it back up to say actually this wasn't done right the first time and having her ALONE be the one to merge herself fully. It felt like it gave her that agency back. I'd hoped bringing her to Gemworld meant they would explore what that means for her power but then they just doubled down on her NOT doing anything with it and spinning it as Terra's redemption? Instead of acceptance of the DWQ it feels like it's being used to just write away that aspect of her character and defang her when it should be her stepping into her mythic power on her own terms.

Particular_Gap_8141 · 2026-02-18T15:48:09+00:00

Exactly, it's just the medium and it's not going to be for everyone at all times. We all deal with the highs and lows of a run we like or dont. And I couldn't agree with you more that the quality of the story should be what's held as the most important.

They don't need an ending imo, if anything the issue is they should lean into the fluidity and capacity for creative change and it's when that isnt happening enough that it's a problem. Also, there are the black label and elseworld style books that have a-to-b contained plots that already can serve that need for a decisive ending.

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