 ROBIN III [Timothy 'Tim' Drake] |
Created by Marv Wolfman and Pat Broderick
Profile written by Jarvis Reddick
"I AM sick. What's my dad gonna do when I get home?
I'm probably grounded into retirement" - Tim Drake
Quote taken from Robin Vol. 2 #73 (February 2000)
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Tim Drake was present at the circus performance where Dick Grayson's parents were killed. Years later, he saw a young hero called Robin perform a difficult somersault, one attempted by Grayson that night, and was immediately sure that the two were one and the same. He then deduced that Bruce Wayne, Grayson's foster parent, was the Batman. He kept this quiet until the second Robin was killed, an event which sent Batman off the edge; Tim recruited Grayson, now Nightwing, to help bring Batman back to his senses, in so doing being selected to become the new Robin. Shortly after this, his mother was killed and his father crippled in the Caribbean, bringing him closer to Batman in his tragic loss. He became a very competent young hero, mastering various fighting disciplines, pushing his information skills to the limit, and leading Young Justice, a group of 'sidekicks' for a time.
Robin's life has recently been struck by a number of tragic blows – the end of Young Justice (though the newest group of Teen Titans has risen from the ashes) and the deaths of both his girlfriend Stephanie Brown and his father Jack Drake.
Tim Drake was born into a prominent family. His father was the owner of "Drake Industries," one of Gotham's most important industries. It used to be a typical family. One day he went to the Haly Circus with his parents. It was the first time Tim was at a circus. Jack Drake asked a family of trapeze artists (John, Mary and... Dick Grayson) to pose for a photograph. Dick put Tim on his legs while the photo was taken. During the show Tim didn't pay attention to all the other performances: he was excited, waiting for Dick's act. Finally, the Flying Graysons appeared. Tim was all the time seeing all the acrobatics Dick was doing.
Dick ended his performance with an incredible quadruple somersault in the air. Afterwards, while Dick was going down by one rope, his parents continued the show on the trapeze. Suddenly, the trapeze ropes broke, and Dick saw his parents falling to their deaths. Tim saw them, too. Then Tim saw a dark figure landing near Dick: it was Batman, who investigated all that had happened. Jack and Janet Drake sent the photo taken before the show to Dick (who became Bruce Wayne's ward) and never reminded Tim of it. But Tim had lots of nightmares at nights: in these nightmares Tim saw Dick doing his quadruple somersault, and then John and Mary Grayson falling down and down.
When Tim was nine he saw on TV how Robin saved Batman by means of a perfect quadruple somersault, so he realised Robin was Dick Grayson!!! "...Dick is Bruce Wayne's ward, so Bruce Wayne might be Batman!!!..." he thought too. After this, he collected all the news about Batman and Robin to prove his thesis. When Dick stopped using his Robin costume to become Nightwing, Tim realized there was no Robin. When Bruce Wayne adopted Jason Todd, there was a Robin again. Finally, when Jason Todd died, there was no Robin, so Tim was sure his thesis was true. Tim also realized that Batman had changed: Batman became more violent and cruel, and sent criminals to the hospital for no reason.
Tim thought Batman needed a new Robin to control his actions, so he went to New York looking for Nightwing. Dick refused to become Robin again, but he aided Tim to become the new Robin. Tim, Alfred Pennyworth (Bruce Wayne's butler) and Nightwing helped Batman to return to the right way. Then Tim convinced Bruce Wayne that Robin was necessary, and finally Bruce agreed to start training Tim. While Bruce was training Tim, Jack and Janet Drake were kidnapped in a charter flight over Haiti by a voodoo magician named the Obeah Man. 10 million dollars were asked for them to Drake Industries. Batman tried to rescue Jack and Janet Drake, but both drank poisoned water that killed Janet and paralysed Jack from the waist down. Batman sent the Obeah Man to prison. Now Tim wears a new Robin costume (Batman decided to design a brand new costume for Tim), that has plenty of weapons and micro-instruments. This costume is capable of protecting Tim from bullets.
Batman even designed a vehicle named Redbird, that has as much equipment as his own Batmobile has. Tim not only uses all this equipment but also uses all the detective methods Batman and Nightwing have taught him.
Recently, after a long period of happiness (his father haling from his injuries and marrying physiotherapist Dana Winters, plus Tim's own long-term relationship with Stephanie Brown), Tim's life was struck by great tragedy once more. First Stephanie was tortured and killed by the Black Mask, and then within weeks, Jack Drake was murdered by Captain Boomerang. Devastated by grief, Tim was nonetheless determined to carry on as a hero, moving his operations to Blüdhaven, where Dana is being treated at a psychiatric clinic.
Tim Drake was a cunning detective prior to his even meeting Batman. He was able to deduce that Batman, the previous Robin, and Nightwing were Bruce Wayne, Jason Todd, and Dick Grayson. Years smarter then any normal kid his age. Tim was inspired to study hard by the original Robin, Dick Grayson, in hopes that maybe just one day he could be like him. Tim intelligence can probably only be surpassed by one thing, his athletic ability.
An aspiring athlete, Tim has trained under many different martial arts forms, under the tutelage of Batman, Lady Shiva and many other martial arts masters. An excellent gymnast as well, Tim is certainly more athletic, then any other child his age.
Outgoing, independent, skilled, and smart are all qualities that describe Tim Drake. These are also qualities that make him surpass the previous two Robin's and perhaps make him the best Robin ever.
Real Name: Timothy 'Tim' Drake
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