Summary
35 years after first hitting the big screen, the 1989Batmanfilm universe will get its ownNightwing, and his costume is heavily inspired byBatman Beyond. Tim Burton’s universe has received a comic book continuation in the form ofBatman ‘89, and its current ongoing sequel series,Batman ‘89: Echoes. With the Joel Schumacher movies not being canon, this series delivered Bruce Wayne his own Robinin the form of Drake Winston.
As artist Joe Quinones teases in anXpost previewingBatman ‘89: Echoes#4,Drake Winston is finally ready to graduate to Nightwing status, sporting a look similar to that of Batman Beyond. In addition, Quinones offers readers a full glimpse of his cover art forBatman ‘89: Echoes#4, seen directly below and currently scheduled for release on September 4th, 2024.
As revealed ina reply to the original post, the cover art pays homage to the work of Jose Luis García Lopez. Considering that Winston is still Robin, as of the series’ most recent issues, it’s time to speculate about how he makes the big transition.
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Cosplayer brings Terry McGinnis to life on the streets of Poland with a high-tech Batsuit and Batmobile that is sure to make Bruce Wayne jealous.
Nightwing Will Debut inBatman ‘89: Echoes#4
By Sam Hamm and Joe Quinones
As seen above,this Nightwing costume sports a color scheme that echoesNightwing’s short-lived red costume, mostly used during the New 52, with some noticeable modifications. Much like Drake Winston’s previous Robin costume,this Nightwing costume sports a beak-like hood attached to a cape. Under the hood is an upper-face mask with glowing lenses. The wings of the cape are simplified, closer to the wings that Batman Beyond’s Terry McGinnis uses. Besides the eyes, gone are the yellow colors. Now, he has a belt buckle closer to Terry’s — and, of course, the red Nightwing emblem.
For Terry McGinnis’ most recent adventures as Gotham’s future Batman, fans should check outBatman Beyond: Neo-Gothicby Collin Kelly, Jackson Lanzing, and Max Dunbar, which is available now digitally and in a collected edition from DC Comics.
Drake Winston first entered the Burtonverse inBatman ‘89#1by Hamm and Quinones, and his character is based on scrapped plans forMarlon Wayans to play Robin. When he meets Batman, Drake is already serving vigilante justice on the streets. In this world, his name comes from someone mistaking someone else’s words —"…he said the dude was robbin’ the store"—for the name Robin Hood. He’s a smart, young mechanic working in an auto shop owned by Harvey Dent’s childhood mentor. Drake gets closer to Batman through their Two-Face connection, and the two eventually become partners after Drake figures out Bruce’s secret.
How Will Drake Become Nightwing?
He’s Still Robin in the Most Recent Issues
InBatman ‘89: Echoes, Drake still has Batman’s back, but he’s still just Robin as of the most recent issue. Nothing seems to foreshadow a change as massive as him becoming Nightwing, and there have been no hints about him looking for a new mantle or name change. Then again, much ofBatman ‘89: Echoesfocuses on themes of identity, with more than a few characters having an identity crisis, so to speak (including Batman briefly adopting the Firefly namesake). BecomingNightwingcould be Drake’s means of adopting an identity that reflects the growth of his own hero identity — even if the costume does borrow fromBatman Beyond.
BATMAN ‘89: ECHOES #4 (2024)
September 4th, 2024
Variant Covers:
Sebastián Fiumara, Jahnoy Lindsay
SCARECROW AND HARLEY QUINN INFLICT FEAR ON GOTHAM! Things are heating up around Gotham as Drake struggles to cover the whole city while Dr. Crane and Dr. Quinzel’s methods begin to endanger it even more! Can Batman find his way back, or will he be lost to his fear for good?!
Source:Joe Quinones (1,2,3)
Nightwing
Nightwing is the superhero moniker taken up by Dick Grayson, upon his aging out of the Robin role and becoming a superhero of his own. Inspired by the original Kryptonian hero of the same name, Grayson has risen to comic book immortality with the identity, earning respect as one of the greatest leaders in the DC Universe.
