YES YES YES THIS EXACTLY THIS!!!

Dick is always 1 second away from a breakdown

And everyone around him falls into 2 groups

Group 1: you precious stupid man please let me help you I could help you so well. I’ll fight everything for you and get you so so much therapy please let me help you please

Group 2: bro that’s nightwing he’s fine literally perfect knows exactly what to do and when to do it. He doesn’t need our help we need his help

I love how in fanon Dick is all uwu jaybird has done nothing wrong I will do anything to bring him home and Jason is all fuck off you don’t love me, whereas in the comics it’s Jason who keeps trying to get DIck to join him and Dick keeps being like no, fuck off? You’re a murderous criminal why would I do that?

I think the only time I have ever called my brother akhi is as a joke.

However I will say I am a stereotype and habibi, hubi, albi, hayati all leave my mouth when I am talking to loved ones (familial, platonic and romantic) but

Damian can’t really use these because not only are they sugar sweet

My love, my heart, my life (translations)

But also because they’re usually used from older to younger in a family context it’s not an explicit thing but with sibling relationships it’s very rare for the younger sibling to use these terms even in formal situations.

However do I believe that Dick would absolutely call Damian random pet names bc he thinks it’s funny how Damian flushes- yeah absolutely

DAMIAN HOWEVER would use Arabic to say shit that you cannot get away with in English

And he’d be fucking visceral

“عقل يخرا، و طيز تفكِّر" your brain shits and your ass thinks

‘I wanna hang your mothers pussy on a laundry rack and let it rain dicks’ is one we as a society do not use enough ‘بدي إنشر كس إمك عحبل الغسيل و خلي الدنيا تشتّي إيورة’

Tell me he wouldn’t???

Also Talia would absolutely call Damian Ya Rouhi instead of like habibi

And yeah mama, would absolutely come before ibny

This is just a mini info dump from an Arab batfamily fan because I find Damian calling his siblings Akhi... adorable (for me as a native speaker watching a writer use Arab words) and, not painful, just... itchy, it URGES me to make a pptx with 300 slides and just? Talk about Arabic?

So... أخي, Akhi, Brother.

It's not incorrect. The word is used in the right place and delivers its intended meaning. Other Arab speakers might not find a problem with it. They'd feel odd like I did but will likely go "eh" and carry on. But I'm an Arabic enthusiast, so...

Like with every language with geographically widespread users, the Arabic tongue kind of- deviated from its roots. The language has naturally branched out into so many dialects I myself can't keep track of.

Arabs from different regions can understand each other. They use the same words but for different purposes and with different pronunciations.

The original root language that holds them all (Quranic Arabic) was simplified into an easier, standard version that is used for formal speeches and as a communication bridge (seeing that you can't, say, translate something to Arabic and say it's for all Arabs if you use a certain dialect. Because an Arabic dialect is an identity at this point, tell me somebody is Syrian, and I know them already)

Now, with the fun part.

See, no Arab calls any sibling of theirs Akhi, I myself would burst laughing if mine did.

Yakhoi يَخوي (nonstandard, everyday Arabic for o, brother) , maybe, if I'm calling a stranger from the streets or an offender I'm going to give a piece of my mind.

Or, hold your breaths, my brother is crying, and the lights are out and I NEED to use the tenderest, most loving, most adoring, most revering tone I could muster so he just knows he is loved and family. Y'know? This specific situation.

And other Arabs might just say, no, I use it when, I use it when, I don't use it, etc.

The point is, nobody will mention Akhi. Because it's a Standard Arabic word, a formal word, and a word used in translated texts and stories when a foreign character we don't consider part of us call their brother. It's weird, it's devoid of emotions, and it's like watching a robot trying to be emotional, but it's a translated text. That's what translated texts use, and it's fine.

It is fine, Standard Arabic has been used for stories so much that nobody questions its influence on a character's characterisation.

I'm not saying Standard Arabic shouldn't be used for story writing, quite the opposite, in fact. I'm just saying that if Arabic is used to represent an Arab, its usage should also consider an everyday Arab experience and manners.

Now to Damian.

Akhi is robotic. Damian's personality does allow him to fall under that category. If for his well refined manners and polite, formal speech.

But even the King wouldn't call his brother Akhi.

He'd call him by his name. For my community (and most, I'm sure) siblings are called by their names, and if we look up historic Quranic (Root) Arabic speakers, they, too, call their siblings by their name. Yes, even the Sultan.

If not by actual name, then either endearing or demeaning names.

Arabs LOVE endearing names, but they're dipped in a pool of honey I don't think Damian would like to dive in.

Talia, on the other hand, would most certainly call Damian Mama. Arab parents call their kids by their own titles. It's the ultimate expression of parental love of all times, in my opinion.

(Don't make Batman call him Papa, though. Pretty sure Damian would malfunction)

-

Well, I said all that, but watching writers include Arabic words in his vocabulary is still sweet. Tt is not even a word, but it's such an Arab thing it's my favourite.

If only I could make subtitles of everyday Arab talk and show you, their speech is heavy with, excuse my English, word softeners, it's like they're talking in a TV drama and not the real world.

Watching Damian adopting it would be interesting :D

Arabic in the batfam

@leefail has gotten me obsessed with how arabic would work in the batfamily

because arabic is natively spoken by 230 million people and is taught in any muslim majority to country because its considered poor faith to recite the Quran in any other language.

its also the most inconvenient and stupidly difficult language to learn in human history.

why?

because it is a colonial language

meaning the Arab empire happened and we all switched to arabic but unlike English... there wasn't the internet for people to learn how the 'og Arabs' spoke it and Arabs didn't slaughter and replace like the puritans they just taxed and converted (slaughter optional im not ignoring north Africa but it was region specific)

so that means that arabic which has a collective vocab of about 12.1 million words as well as a nasty habit of giving 100 words the same meaning as well as assigning 1 word like 8 meanings got practiced by these arabic speaking countries differently

so certain words fell out of use or changed meaning in one country while being startlingly popular in another

it also means that a lot of arabic regions maintained their older speech patters

latinised softer letters in levant countries closer to Cyprus due to the presence of Aramaic, syrianic and latin.

harsher more guttural sounds in regions that were closer to Iran.

so what does this mean? and Why does this mean arabic is a bitch to learn

well for one you don't write in your regional dialect, you write in modern standard or fus7a which is a whole other beast. Meaning that you don't really learn to speak in school.

two the dialects are significantly different enough across the region that people who learned arabic in Lebanon won't understand people from morocco.

now we are all SUPPOSed to speak Modern Standard Arabic but you have to understand how little it is used outside of like legal jargon. so you kinda lose it once you leave Arab formal education.

Which means if you immediately default to MSA 99% of Arabs will assume you are a cop like if you know the word for government but not skirt... come on man be less obvious.

Now most us speak 1 -3 dialects and understand 9-10

me personally I speak a levantine dialect and can understand most Egyptian, Jordanian and Gulf dialects. Iraqi and the rest of North Africa (with the exception of Tunisia) not so much.

Now what does that mean for arabic in the batfamily

its too useful for the Bats to not use

so do all of the bats speak arabic 1000%

Do all of them speak different dialects 1000%

Here they are imo

Bruce: Bruce is a cop (MSA) He can code switch and speak all the dialects but he just genuinely likes MSA, its the most complex and intricate form of the language and what's most commonly used for things like poetry and literature. But it does mean that his speech comes off very stilted and cringeworthy to most Arab speakers. The first dialect he learned was definitely Egyptian because its the one that's the most common in music and television as well as having the largest group of people speaking it (110 of the 230 million are from Egypt)

Dick: now I have no evidence for this but Dick Grayson would speak Lebanese arabic. It's notoriously the softest of the dialects and has the most higher pitched and flippy tones. His mother also grew up in France which would Fit for Dick since Lebanese Arabic tends to substitute harsher arabic words with French. the most common greeting in Lebanon is 'Hi, kefak ca va' which is English, arabic and French. And for a cameleon character with such an interesting and convoluted ethnic background I think picking the softest dynamic tongue with the most intersectionality fits.

Jason: Jason todd speaks Jordanian arabic, Jordanians are the most hilariously creative people in the mid east imo. there are turns of phrase from Jordan that kinda make you pause and blink for a second because damn... okay then. I have never met a Jordanian without a degree in the most creative insults you've ever heard. Jordanian arabic is also very close to stereotypical Levant arabic which still maintaining a lot more of the harsher more guttural sounds that countries like Lebanon and Syria tend to exclude. Jordan also has a huge Bedouin population and I just think he'd match that vibe

Tim: Tims parents were archeologist.. Egyptian. Tim has the heaviest Egyptian accent when he speaks arabic. His parents definitely had him learn it in hopes he'd follow their footsteps. Ja become Ga and he works so damn hard to keep the accent out of his words to try and hide any identifiers and he fails miserably. He also uses it the most out of the kids and he can read and understand MSA fluently unlike Dick and Jason who are fine readers but cannot speak it for the life for them. Tim also does the international students Mix and Match where you sometimes just use a word that's country specific to other countries. Tim doesn't tell Damian he understands it and so Damian has the most intense shock of his life when Tim replies back to his angry arabic muttering.

Damian: So I know that talia studied at the university of Cairo but I feel like Ra's speaks a very old form of arabic so I think Damian code switches quite often. I picture him speaking like a Saudi upper court dialect when he's talking with Ra's and I think talia does the same. But I think Damian is most comfortable somewhere in-between Jordan and UAE arabic with more levant terms of endearment (because of the aforementioned softness and ik talia isn't a soft parent in canon but she is one in my heart so there) and more casual speech following GCC speaking patterns. Tho I think Damian can understand and speak all of the dialects including the less popular ones like Moroccan daraji.

Steph: I have zero evidence and not even an elaboration but if steph was Middle Eastern she'd be Iraqi bc vibes so that's what she speaks fuck you im right. It's definitely on the harsher side tonally but idk she gives the energy of using it and teasing Jason and Dick for using frou-frou arabic. Tho I will absolutely make the argument that she learned Syrian arabic for a friend pre her involvement with the bats.

Also Steph, Dick and Jason do sip and bitch sessions and they disagree on the correct way to make coffee. Jason is absolutely a traditionalist, Dick is a Turkish coffee believer and steph adds way too much cardamom.

also also Jasons favorite poet is Darwish, Tims fave is Al-muttanabbi, Dicks is Gibran (ik he spoke mostly in English but tell me Dick Grayson isn't gonna freak over 'your children are not yours they are children of the world') , Bruces is Qabbani. Steph doesn't like poetry but she has absolutely read memoirs of a woman doctor by nasal el saadawi and loved it

Headcanon that when extremely sleep deprived Dick tells Jason wayyy too much traumatizing lore about his life.

Bc he kinda forgets that Jay wasn’t there for it

Since he was hallucinating the bastard (yeah I know in canon it was obviously a hallucination idk)

So Dick will accidentally just lore dump about the most insane shit bc well Jason was there (no he wasn’t)

And when he’s offensively sleep deprived it goes the other direction and he forgets that Jason ever came back.

So he’s just in the corner watching what he believes to be a hallucination of his baby brother except for some reason his mind decided he needed to see what Jay would look like grown up.

Dick on day 7 without sleep watching Jason beat up a gang member: maybe my therapist was right

Jason: the fuck are you-?

Dick: Maybe I DO need to go back on anti-psychotics

————————————————————

Dick alone in his apartment with a bag of shredded cheese and a plain cereal box in one hand ready to have what is probably the Most depressing depression meal: hmmm hmmmm hmmm

Jason who climbed through a window while dick was distracted: Sup

Dick: ah look a wild hallucinajason appears

Jason: what the fuck did you the call me

Dick patting Jason’s cheek: oh they’re somatosensory now too! That’s new! Anyway bye bye baby bird

Jason watching his brother leave the kitchen: ….okay what the fuck?

——————————————

Dick only on 3 days without sleep: this reminds of the time I was about the sign my marriage license!

Jason: two things 1) why does a shootout remind you of being at the courthouse 2) WHEN THE FUCK DID YOU GET MARRIED

Dick: I didn’t get married?

Jason: then what the hell are you talking about

Dick: idk the last time I tried too get married way more guns than necessary were involved and you know when I tired to get married Jay you were there!

Jason “was dead at the time” Todd: what the fuck are you talking about?

Dick: yeah! I mean you really hated her so you told me I’d be a disappointment if I married her and then disappeared. Which like granted I also didn’t wanna marry her but that was harsh

Jason: ….. I? I don’t even know what the appropriate response is? Here

Dick: an apology would be nice?

Jason who is now 50% sure his ghost haunted his brother 25% sure his brother was hallucinating and like 25% sure Bruce used his image as a tool to get dick to do what he wanted: ……. You know what… nah she was a bitch and I’m glad you didn’t marry her

Dick: I mean.. same

—————————————

Dick has a caffeine IV Grayson : this brings me back to the good old days

Jason dodging an alien: ??? When you were Robin ? How?

Dick: no! When Donna died and I didn’t have to worry about saying alive so I could do insane shit like infiltrating an alien spaceship with no protective gear

Jason:??????????????? Dick what the fuck

Dick: OH come on??? You were there! Very quippy 10/10 would be haunted by again

Jason:…. I- yeah you know what I’m not touching this one



The best things in the new Nightwing run!!!! (In a random order)

Part 1!!!

Skip if you don’t want spoilers??

Is he gonna crash out????

CRASHOUT CRASHOUT CRASHOUT CRASHOUT MY BOY!???? FINALLY I CAN BREATHE!!! LOOK AT THE RAGE???

LOOK HOW HE LOOKS WHEN SHES INSULTING HIS TEAM??? HOW HE LOOKS AT THE DIGS AT HIS GIRLS?? LOOK AT MATURE HES BEING??? Not crashing out?? But absolutely making us all know he 100% wants to crash out.

Damian Damian Damian… I hope we see Damian this run! Please I love them together? Why doesn’t Damian crash at dicks until Bruce gets his shit together???? Mayhaps

Crashoutcrashoutcrashoutcrashoutcrashoutcrashoutcrashoutcrashoutmybaby boyyyyyy ughhhhhh

C R A S H O U T

C R A S H O U T

(Can you tell I like him angry)

Yes 100% agree random mysterious circus themed villain (lowkey the villain is actually getting me invested like?? What is going on there???)

Also the nightcycle looks so so cool

See how u can be funny and not insufferable???

HES SO COOL LOOK AT HIMMM?

NAH?

GRAYSON MY BELOVED LOOK AT HIM??

U don’t gaf do you? (That’s a lie lmao)

Gotta love anti cop sentiment in nightwing comics thank you for reminding us that the institution is in of itself corrupt as shit I miss you here! No more of that cringe shit we Saw him do since 2016

We love a Grayson who is actually badass as fuck

-babs was also not grating at all here! I lowkey really really liked their dynamic! Which is rare for me I am the biggest dickbabs hater ik! But she was also SO COOL HERE!!

Fanon Tim Drake: everyone hates me, my entire family has abandoned me and they will all rue the day that they abandoned me. The only one who truly understands me is the red hood because he too was abandoned I haven’t slept in 3 months 2 weeks 11 days and 21 hours

Canon Tim Drake: wow this dude is hardcore goth

Also canon Tim: *fell asleep on a rollercoster*

Also canon Tim: *actually reaches out for help when he needs it*

Also canon Tim: *doesnt resent Dick Grayson for taking away Robin*

Also canon Tim:*mocks Jason Todd violently bc wtf was that Robin costume*

Listen any normal human should and would act like fanon Tim but I fear this is the bat family they try to murder each other and then go get burgers together.

It’s their deal

Canon Tim is a funny lil guy

I love canon Tim sm

Let him be happy

If yall RUIN CANON TIM FOR ME like Tom Taylor did canon Grayson I will never forgive you

Well it’s less direct comic panel and more a lot of implicit stuff but I have a few saved and a few that I remember things vaguely happening

But Jason Todd canonically resents Nightwing for being the perfect son

And for following Bruce’s teachings which he deems frankly ineffective and useless.

As well as feeling that he will never be able to live up to Nightwings legacy

(Feat Jason’s hallucinations)

But Dick Grayson is another story

Because Nightwing is Batman’s pride and Joy. Proof the the concept of the child hero and one of the first second gen hero’s who got justice league level respect without taking over a mentors titles

Meanwhile

Dick Grayson is his brother

And sometimes these two come into conflict like in under the redhood

You can see in the image here that when bludhaven got destroyed

Initially Jason wasn’t happy, his face was shadowed and he was genuinely upset and then Bruce screamed Dicks name and Jason immediately remembers himself and returns to taunting Bruce

Jason’s relationship is bad with nightwing bc he sees nightwing as another hand in Batman’s crusade

Dick has been Jason’s hero since long before he put on the uniform

And here is where I struggled to find more images

But Jason Todd and Dick Grayson have a completely separate relationship

Despite dick and nightwing being the same guy it’s very obvious when Jason is talking to Dick his Big Brother and Nightwing Batman’s lil perfect solider

They can insult each other and joke around and be supportive with one another

And Dick Grayson will always have Jason Todd’s back if not the red hood

There was a panel in I think the Nightwing 2021 annual where Jason was accused of murder and Dick goes to talk to him and Jason immediately goes “I didn’t do it” and Dick replies I believe you “just like that?” “Just like that”

And of course there was the iconic Nightwing and Batman fight during Gotham war with my boy did so well in he should’ve won

Anyway Dick and Jason are friends and brothers

Nightwing and red hood despise each other

Thank u for coming to my ted talk

I love how severely Jason refuses to differentiate between Bruce and Batman while also refusing to acknowledge that Nightwing and Dick Grayson are the same dude

in case anyone’s interested, I made a collage of every time Dick and Kory are cuddling during a Titans meeting. seriously

I’m about to dox myself but I started reading comics in 2018 bc I had realized teen titans robin my first crush was the same robin as young justice robin my second crush (i then found out that this robin was part of the Batman animated series that i watched in poorly dubbed Arabic at my grandmas thank you spacetoon) so I started looking for fanon content by reading fanfiction and then I found out they had comic books much later and started going “what’s the comic where character did this” and then proceeded to read as much of that until I got bored or find out it was fanon and and then went back to fanfiction until I found something new to hyper fixate on.

Here are some examples

“What was the comic where Jason came back to life”

“What comic did Dick Grayson become nightwing”

“Does dick canonically hate Jason Todd Reddit”

“Comic where Tim plays baseball to save a planet”

“Comic with mirage introduction”

“Comic with tarantula”

“Best comic to start nightwing”

“Is redhood better than nightwing in a fight Reddit”

“Does Artemis crock exist in comics”

“Why is nightwing on every pride cover but he won’t kiss Wally west” (this I didn’t search im just mad about it)

Also thank you Reddit assholes with a need to be hyper specific when arguing these dudes weren’t just naming issues they were like “obviously you didn’t read page 12 of Batman #571 where is states”

Anyway all of this to say there is no correct way to start reading if you only wanna read redhood or new 52 or pre-crisis

If you wanna stick to one character or hop from person to person

Or avoid the bats entirely (good luck it’s impossible they r everywhere unless it’s a female bat)

(Instead of fixing this we should just add Steph into every comic book forever she deserves it)

It’s fine

It’s really not the stressful as long as we all agree that DCs animated content is way better than the live action stuff