Timothy Drake (New Earth)

Tim Drake is a vigilante and member of the Batman Family. He became the third Robin at a young age, succeeding Jason Todd as Batman's sidekick. Eventually, he would be forced to give up the identity of Robin and begin wearing the costume of Red Robin when he was replaced by Damian Wayne.

History

Early Life

 Main article: Batman: A Lonely Place of Dying

Timothy Drake was the only son of Jack and Janet Drake and was raised in a wealthy household.

As a small boy, Tim was taken to Haly's Circus, where he met Dick Grayson and the Flying Graysons, the same day as their deaths, which he witnessed and would never forget.

Years later, Tim saw footage of Batman and Robin apprehending the Penguin and noticed Robin's unique acrobatics, which reminded him of Dick Grayson. Making use of impressive deductive abilities, Tim pieced together the truth behind Batman and Robin's identities and followed their careers very closely. Tim even noticed Grayson's change of identity to Nightwing and Jason Todd becoming the second Robin.

Becoming Robin

At the age of 13, after the death of Jason at the hands of the Joker, Tim, from his observations, noticed a change in Batman's personality, who was grieving over his failure, and went on a quest to reunite Batman and Nightwing, hoping to return the Dynamic Duo back to basics. When Dick refused to give up his new position to once again work as Robin, Tim volunteered to become the newest Robin, but Batman refused.

However, when Batman and Nightwing found themselves trapped in a situation with Two-Face, Tim donned the Robin costume and, with Alfred's help from the Batcave, managed to rescue them. Impressed, Batman accepted Tim as the new Robin on a trial basis.

Tim trained for the role over several months - first with Alfred, then Batman and finally Nightwing.

While training, the Obeah Man captured Tim's parents during a trip to the Caribbean. During the kidnapping, his mother was killed, and his father was left with paralysis, despite Batman's help. Tim's father now required the care of a personal nurse Dana Winters.

After assisting in the defeat of the Scarecrow,^[4] Batman finally deemed Tim was ready to fulfill his role as the new Robin and was gifted a costume unique from the previous two.^[5]

Starting on the Path

 Main article: Robin Vol 1

Though finally in costume, Tim had cold feet about his abilities as a crime fighter, but Bruce told him that he had every confidence in Tim being his new partner. Bruce also confided in Tim that he was looking for someone with smarts, not just guts, and Tim had that and more.

However, Tim's training wasn't over, and Bruce had Tim sent overseas on a tour to continue learning. His first stop was Paris, to learn from Rahul Lama, a Tibetan martial arts master. In Paris, Tim crossed paths with Lynx and the Ghost Dragons working for King Snake, who was himself being shadowed by Lady Shiva.

Tim, Shiva and a man named Clyde Rawlins all worked together to take down King Snake's heroin trafficking in the area. However, they learned that his operation was much larger, and that King Snake was working on weaponizing the Bubonic Plague in Hong Kong.

The group traveled to Hong Kong to stop the operation, and Shiva continued to train with Robin. It was during this time that Tim acquired his iconic collapsible fighting staff.

Once they breached King Snake's lair in Hong Kong, Clyde was killed by King Snake. Robin managed to defeat the villain, but refused to kill him when Shiva ordered him to. With the day saved, Tim returned to Gotham, ready to take his place alongside the Batman.

When he was finally ready for patrol in Gotham, Tim was given specific instructions by Batman that, whenever Tim came across a known killer such as Joker or Two-Face, he was supposed to withdraw and summon help.

Though King Snake was thought to have been killed by Shiva, he later came to Gotham in part to get revenge on Tim, who he had mistaken Shiva for and developed a fear of.^[6] Bruce tried to keep Tim away from King Snake, and successfully defeated him in combat. Tim returned Bruce the favor by fending off Lynx right before she could snipe Batman after his and King Snake's fight.^[7]

When Doctor Wyse was terrorizing Gotham on a quest for revenge, Tim's expert knowledge of video games proved vital to defeating the villain. ^[8]

Tim helped Batman during the events of War of the Gods, retrieving the Themisciran Goblet from Maxie Zeus.

Triumphant

 Main articles: Robin II Vol 1 and Robin III Vol 1

While Batman was abroad on another case, the Joker escaped Arkham Asylum leaving Tim alone to try and stop the him. During this time Tim started to struggle with balancing the two sides of his life. Tim investigated Joker's escape, making a connection to the computer scientist Dr. Osgood Pellinger. While staking out Dr. Pellinger, Tim had his first encounter with the Joker when the clown prince of crime kidnaped the doctor with a garbage truck. The villain was surprised, confused, and angered to see Robin alive after the events of Death in the Family.

Tim used a hologram of Batman when on nightly patrol to keep up appearances. The longer nights led to him falling behind in school, having to be saved by his best friend Ives when called on by the teacher. The Batman hologram brought Tim's attention to the Joker after the villain shot at it, leading to the two's first ever fight. The Joker recognized Tim wasn't the same Robin he had killed. An interruption from the cops caused Joker to flee before he could kill another Robin.

After causing havoc across the city with Dr. Pellinger's computer virus, Joker called Tim's holographic-Batman bluff and demanded a ransom be delivered by the caped crusader. Waiting for a lead, Alfred pressured Tim into enjoying his social life. Tim DMed a session of Warlocks and Warriors for his school friends. When they solved a puzzle he set for them, he skedaddled getting an idea for how to find the Joker: follow the power grid. Tim made an error while hacking into Joker's system, compromising the Bat computer and having to shut it off. Trying to be more proactive, Tim investigated Dr. Pellinger's house, in the process finding childhood photos.

Tim visited his comatose dad, venting about his problems and burdens both in and out of costume before gearing up to take down Joker. Tim's first step was to hook up a remote control to the ransom truck, complete with Batman hologram. Next he had Alfred run a program of his on a pay phone to try and locate Dr. Pellinger using a picture of his childhood pet as bait. When the Joker shows up to collect the ransom, Robin caught him off guard. They fought, Robin knocking him into a sewage treatment vat, to which the foul-odored Joker swore to kill him.

Knightfall

 Main article: Batman: Knightfall

Soon after Tim started patrols, Bruce took another apprentice and assigned Robin to train Jean-Paul Valley.^[9] Robin and Azrael stopped a couple crimes in progress together,^[10] including rescuing Lucius Fox from a supervillain known as Cypher.^[11]

When Killer Croc reappeared in Gotham, Bruce was temporarily indisposed, and Tim gave Jean-Paul the Batsuit so they could fight Croc together as Batman and Robin. However, Bane appeared and defeated Croc himself.^[12]

Tim was in Gotham City when Bane broke open Arkham Asylum, unleashing nearly every inmate into the city,^[13] and was the first to suggest to Batman that Bane was responsible. He set out with Batman to clean up the streets,^[13] together recapturing Bird, the Ventriloquist,^[14] Mr. Zsasz,^[15] Firefly^[16] and the Riddler.^[17]

Later, Robin was briefly captured by Bane but managed to escape thanks to Killer Croc, who wanted revenge on Bane defeating him earlier.^[18]

During one of their last missions, Robin tried to help Bruce against Two-Face, but Bruce denied Tim the chance, fearing for his safety.^[19] However, Robin and Alfred went looking for Two-Face anyway. Batman had been captured by Two-Face because of his increasing exhaustion, and together Robin and Alfred managed to capture the villain yet again. Batman was grateful for Robin's perseverance.^[20]

In Batman's climactic battle finally confronting Bane, Robin and Azrael summoned to aid in the fight but arrived too late. When they had gotten to Batman's location, Bane had broken his back and threw him from a rooftop in downtown Gotham. The sidekicks acquired an ambulance and took Bruce back to the Batcave.^[21] As soon as Bruce recovered his consciousness, Tim was asked to give Jean-Paul the mantle of the Bat, as Gotham was in dire need of Batman.^[22]

However, Tim quickly noticed Jean-Paul losing his humanity as the responsibility and power went to his head. While they were out on a mission, Robin was dragged along to witness Jean-Paul's newfound brutality and for this reason, was not present when his father Jack and Dr. Kinsolving were kidnapped from Drake Manor.^[23]

Tim tried to reason with Jean-Paul once again, but all he managed was to get pushed away from the crime-fighting team. Robin witnessed Bane's defeat at the hands of Jean-Paul and how the winner spared Bane's life. This event changed Robin's mentality about Jean-Paul, and he admitted that he earned the right to be called Batman.^[24]

Flying Solo

Tim soon learned that Jean-Paul didn't want him as his sidekick and blocked almost every entrance to the Batcave.^[25] However, he entered the Batcave as Robin using an entrance Jean-Paul didn't know about and he tried to take his own vehicle the Redbird with him. Unfortunately, he was confronted by Jean-Paul, who almost killed him, but Robin escaped with his motorcycle anyway.^[26]

Later, Tim met up with his girlfriend Ariana Dzerchenko for their first date in weeks, doing his best to put Jean-Paul, Bruce and even his Dad's disappearance aside for a few hours but, instead, he stopped a group of thugs called the Speedboyz that were causing trouble.^[27]

Tim went after the villain called the Cluemaster and met the vigilante Spoiler for the first time while on the case. Robin used his detective skills to deduce that Spoiler was the Cluemaster's daughter Stephanie Brown. With some help from Spoiler, Robin was saved from a life-threatening situation while fighting the villain, and Cluemaster was sent back to jail.^[28]

Robin bumped into Huntress and helped her stop a gang war with Mandy Paul. Tim reaffirmed that while he had deduced her real identity, he had never told Batman. The conflict was complicated by a criminal calling himself Deathangel, who claimed to be killing people to sent them to God. The heroes stopped Deathangel and Mandy Paul, and Robin kept Huntress from executing them.^[29][30]

Afterwards, Tim felt the need to assist Jean-Paul in locating the serial killer Abattoir, but by the time he managed to locate the killer's hideout, Jean-Paul was already confronting him on a nearby foundry. Robin tried to get there in time to help Batman, but he could only witness how Jean-Paul refused to help as Abattoir fell to his death in a vat of molten metal.^[31]

KnightsEnd

 Main article: Batman: KnightsEnd

Soon after this, Tim was glad to hear from Bruce and learn that he had rescued his father from his kidnapping.^[32] Once Bruce and Jack returned to Gotham, Tim informed Bruce about Jean-Paul's fatal actions as Batman and his bastardization of the mantle. Bruce, disappointed, vowed to fight Jean-Paul for the mantle of the Bat after an intensive training and a process to heal his broken back.^[33]

While Bruce trained with Lady Shiva, Robin and Nightwing were asked to keep a close eye on Jean-Paul.^[34][35] The two of them went to the Batcave and placed surveillance equipment to monitor all of Jean-Paul's activities. After this, they were shocked to see Jean-Paul acting as a madman, talking to himself alone in the cave.^[36]

When everything was ready, Robin and Nightwing joined Batman on his final confrontation with Jean-Paul, but they were sidetracked by the bodyguards of Penn Selkirk, who were trying to kill Catwoman.^[37] After dealing with them, they witnessed the fight between Bruce and Jean-Paul until Bruce was apparently killed inside an exploding Batmobile^[38] but had escaped just in time.^[39]

Bruce defeated Jean-Paul and took back the mantle of the Bat. Tim was ecstatic over the victory, and the Dynamic Duo were reunited, back in action.^[40]

Prodigal

 Main article: Batman: Prodigal

After all the stress he had been under to get his mantle back, Bruce decided he needed some time off, and this time he handed the mantle over to the right person Dick Grayson.^[41][42] Robin and the new Batman got along great, working against the likes of Two-Face.

In his home life, Tim kept trying to make it up to his girlfriend Ari, who he kept accidentally ignoring due to his crimefighting, while his dad kept insisting the two share some bonding time because of his absence. Jack also hired Dana Winters to be his personal physical therapist.^[43]

Dick returned the Batman mantle to Bruce when he was finally ready to use it again, and Bruce redesigned his costume to be darker than ever before.^[44]

Robberies were up recently, and Batman discovered that someone was sending very lame clues to the police department from inside Blackgate Prison. Figuring it was the Cluemaster, the villain refused to talk to anyone except for Robin. At Blackgate, Cluemaster told Tim that he was being blackmailed to plan crimes by some thugs on the outside and that they had kidnapped Stephanie to ensure his cooperation. Batman and Robin tracked down their lair, and Robin saved Stephanie's life. After changing into her Spoiler costume, Stephanie told the pair that Cluemaster had conned them and was in on the whole thing. Together, Robin and Spoiler rounded up the rest of Cluemaster's men, and Spoiler acted like the whole thing was a date, despite Tim's protestations that it was serious business (and that he had a girlfriend already).^[45]

After days of crimefighting, Tim learned that his girlfriend Ari had runaway from her uncle's house and was hiding in Tim's bedroom. Her uncle had decided they would move after his shop was attacked by gang members. Meanwhile, Tim's father's physical trainer had worked wonders on Jack, and he was up and walking about with a cane thanks to her.^[46]

Ariana's family was able to remain in the city thanks to a little help from Bruce Wayne. Bruce arranged for Wayne Enterprises to buy Ari's uncle's store at a very generous price, enough for the family to open another store in a better Gotham neighborhood. Ari would even be able to go to the same school as Tim, and Tim was very grateful.

That night on patrol, he heard that Killer Moth had broken out. Figuring Moth for a low-level threat, Robin went after him on his own but hadn't realized that Moth had sold his soul to Neron and turned himself into a moth monster.^[47] Though Robin was almost killed, he barely survived, and Moth escaped.

Robin met the new Green Arrow around that time. Green Arrow and Spoiler joined Robin to take down some gunrunners who were selling guns around Tim's high school. One of Tim's classmates Karl Ranck had been shot outside the school after getting in a fight with the gunrunners using one of his father's sidearms. Tim was so angry that the beat-down he gave the gunrunners might have been much worse had Stephanie and Connor not been there. Robin and Spoiler went after the man who shot Karl but they had to be saved by Batman, who was not happy that Robin decided to go after the gang without more backup. He also reminded Tim that Karl had made the choice to pick up the gun and become a target.^[48]

Contagion

 Main article: Batman: Contagion

When the Apocalypse Virus broke out in Gotham, Batman assigned Tim to find the plague survivor Kendall Stuart.^[49] He reluctantly teamed up with Catwoman^[50] and Azrael, but Robin failed his mission when Stuart was shot dead by the Order of St. Dumas.^[51]

Tim, Nightwing and Huntress tried to suppress the rioters as the virus continued to spread, but Tim himself became infected when one of the rioters spit in his face.^[52] Tim was clinging to life fighting the virus in the Batcave and was saved just in time when Azrael deciphered the cure. Despite still recovering, Tim dutifully helped the relief efforts even in his weakened state.^[53]

Around this time, Tim learned that his girlfriend Ariana had developed a jealousy over Stephanie, who, because of their secret crime-fighting partnership, Tim had been spending more time with than her.^[54]

The Apocalypse Virus resurfaced, having been discovered to have never been cured, and Tim still had it in a dormant state.^[55] The heroes learned that Ra's al Ghul was in control of the virus, hoping that it would wipe out Gotham.^[56] Batman destroyed the last of the plague in Gotham, and Robin pursued Ra's across the world with Huntress and Nightwing.^[57] The group of heroes tracked down his boat The Shrike and acquired enough data about the virus before the boat self-destructed.^[58] Bruce and Tim blamed themselves for the number of deaths to the plague, and Alfred reminded them they should also conversely count all the lives they saved.^[59]

The Final Night

 Main article: The Final Night

Robin met Impulse for the first time when their respective classes went on the same skiing field trip in Colorado. Once he saw Bart in uniform, Tim was able to instantly guess his secret identity, much to Bart's surprise. This would mark the beginning of a long and close friendship.^[60]

Tim hated that he kept having to mislead his girlfriend with his secret identity; trouble seemed to come up everywhere.^[61] Tim cared for Ari very much, even if Spoiler kept making passes at him.^[62]

During what was assumed to be the final night on Earth as a Sun-Eater threatened to devour Earth's sun, Robin and Spoiler protected Gotham even while it was covered in snow. At one point, Spoiler was knocked unconscious, and Robin gave her mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, and, when she awoke, Spoiler used the opportunity to have her first kiss with Tim. By the time they were done protecting Gotham, the Sun had been protected and the crisis had been averted.

Robin's enemy "General" Ulysses Armstrong was released from prison on parole and immediately returned to crime. The kid joined up with the Toyman to try and steal an expensive toy collection. The Toyman betrayed Armstrong during the heist, and Robin caught them both.^[63]

Tim was put in a difficult situation when, while hanging out at Ari's house, she walked up to him in her underwear, wanting to sleep with him. At this time, Tim finally learned what had been bothering her for weeks; not long ago, while hanging out with one of her guy friends, her friend tried to rape her. It was an unsuccessful attempt, but it left her feeling very scared and vulnerable. Tim told her that he loved her and said it would be best if they waited to have sex.

While Tim and Ari were sharing a tender moment, Ari's uncle and aunt walked in on them and, misunderstanding the situation and seeing Ari in her underwear, forced Tim to flee as her uncle tried to strangle him.^[64] Ari was then transferred to an all girl's school in response and, when Tim's father was told the information from Ari's uncle, Tim was grounded. However, even trapped in his room, Tim solved a mystery just by watching the news on tv.^[65]

Second Sabbatical

When Tim failed to save a criminal from drowning, he began feeling depressed. After stopping a war in Qurac that Robin's nemesis Ulysses Armstrong was abetting, Robin stopped in Paris where a lot of his early training took place and committed to staying longer, feeling he still had a lot to learn.^[66]

Tim decided to train with the Iron Master, although he remained in his identity as Robin. He met a girl named Dava Sborsc who was there to learn a single move to add to her arsenal of lethal fighting moves. She wanted to be able to fight in the war that was destroying her native country of Transbelvia.

After Dava left, Lady Shiva arrived looking for her and killed the Iron Master in a one-on-one fight. Robin went after Dava to warn her about Shiva. Once he had caught up with her in her country, the pair fought Lady Shiva and King Snake, who was supplying the ongoing war with weapons. Though Tim accidentally almost killed Shiva, Robin was victorious and returned to his life in the United States.^[67]

Cataclysm

 Main article: Batman: Cataclysm

On Tim's flight home, Gotham City was struck by the Cataclysm, a massive earthquake that leveled most of the city. Robin joined with Batman and the rest of the Bat family, overwhelmed at the near total destruction of the entire city. There was little that Robin could do in such chaos, and Batman asked him not to get involved. Luckily, the Drake home, in one of the outer neighboring communities, suffered only minor damages from the quake.

The destruction wasn't over though, and during the aftershock, Tim battled Cluemaster again, who ambushed the young hero while he was retrieving Steph's Spoiler costume. Tim defeated him though and turned him into the national guard.^[68]

After spending more time with Stephanie during the disaster, Tim realized he really did have feelings for Stephanie and that he had to break things off with Ari. Fortunately, Ari was alright with the breakup and agreed it was the right thing for them, believing they were too young for a serious relationship.^[69]

Tim and Spoiler got along wonderfully. However, after their first real date, Stephanie told Tim that she was pregnant with her ex-boyfriend's child. Tim, understanding the nuance of the situation, remained with Steph anyway and offered her moral support. He told her that she had to give up being Spoiler until after the baby was born.

At school, a friend of Tim's was found dead in the woods, and two bullies were suspected of killing him. While Tim initially believed they were innocent, he soon found evidence of their guilt, which led to their arrest.^[70]

With Gotham in ruins, Jack Drake decided the family should relocate for a while and decided to move to Keystone City. When they arrived, Robin teamed with the Flash to take on the Riddler and Captain Boomerang. They also got some help from Superman to stop a bomb threat.

While Tim was in Keystone, Stephanie went into labor (earlier than expected) and needed a C-section. Flash got Robin back to Gotham in time to see the baby, which Stephanie then gave up for adoption. Tim's father was furious with his son for running home to Gotham, but Tim admitted that he had hated Keystone and wanted to come back.^[71]

No Man's Land

 Main article: Batman: No Man's Land

With Gotham still in ruins and only getting worse, the government quarantined the city and declared it a No Man's Land, cutting it off from the world and only increasing the pandemonium.

Recalled to Gotham by Batman, Robin and Nightwing had to crawl through an extensive system of tunnels and underground chambers, as the bridges were all down and patrols kept them from crossing the river.

Robin was depressed by the despair and desperation he witnessed in people fighting to survive. Batman put Robin to work immediately, ordering him to track down a cache of food from an old shelter, which Robin was surprised to discover had already been claimed by the Ratcatcher. Robin was forced to flee, though a combination of rat bites and sewage exposure gave him a fever. Robin managed to defeat both the Ratcatcher and Mister Freeze while fighting his fever with antibiotics, which impressed Batman.

Robin was caught in a gang war between Killer Croc and the Penguin, with the former holding Tim hostage. Alfred helped free Robin, and, teaming up with Penguin and the GCPD, fought to bring Croc down.

Tim admitted in a phone call to his father that he had once again gone to Gotham without his permission, though this time he was stuck. Jack made a lot of noise at the government about their handling of the situation, and Washington took notice, agreeing to rescue Tim. Though the extraction turned violent, Tim was successfully airlifted out of the city thanks in part to the efforts of the new Batgirl.^[72]

As the restoration effort was finally made to save Gotham, the Drakes moved back to Gotham, and Jack enrolled his son in an all boys boarding school called Brentwood Academy because of Tim's many absences while attending Gotham Heights High School (due to his extra-curricular heroics).^[73]

Young Justice

Around the same time as the earthquake that destroyed Gotham, Robin and his best friends Superboy and Impulse joined forces to create their own teenage super-team called Young Justice, soon recruiting Wonder Girl and Arrowette. Robin acted as the leader of the team until he temporarily quit following the Imperiex War. During that mission, the group was tortured on Apokolips.

Tim soon returned to the team but he learned that his friends no longer trusted him because, around the same time, the Justice League had discovered that Batman kept contingency plans on how to defeat them all in case of emergency. The younger heroes were suspicious that Robin had also made contingency plans for them as well. New members Secret, who had a crush on Robin, as well as Empress and Slobo trusted him and supported his inclusion. With his feelings hurt and the stress of his personal life weighing on him, Robin quit again.^[74]

When Tim returned for the third time, the team agreed to elect their next leader, but Tim lost his former position to Wonder Girl. The team still looked at Tim as its tactical expert, aiding Wonder Girl in decision making.

When Young Justice temporarily became reality stars for a TV show, Tim took on the identity of "Mister Sarcastic".^[75] Soon after, Secret was turned evil by Darkseid, but Tim managed to save the world by reminding Greta of her humanity.^[76]

Young Justice temporarily teamed up with the Titans on a series of missions, but due to Young Justice's lack of experience and poor coordination, Titans Omen and Donna Troy were killed action. Furious at themselves, Young Justice almost disbanded, but Cyborg volunteered to mentor them instead under a new team name.^[77]

Teen Titans

Tim and Young Justice were rebranded as the newest incarnation of the Teen Titans, under the guidance of former Teen Titans members Beast Boy, Cyborg and Starfire. They established a new Titans Tower in San Francisco, and the mentees were invited to meet and team up on a weekend-basis. One of the first super villains the new team fought was Deathstroke, mind controlled by his own son Jericho.

The new Teen Titans clashed with the Justice League shortly after formation over a misunderstanding, with Tim having to go toe-to-toe with Batman, but the conflict was settled by Nightwing, who encouraged the new generation of justice.^[78]

On his 16th birthday, Tim was so busy that he forgot, and his friends planned him a surprise party. Tim received a present that appeared to be a hologram of Alfred from the future. This message told him that one member of the Batman Family would betray the rest.^[79] Robin worked hard to determine which of his friends could be the traitor, only to discover that the mystery was a hoax engineered by Batman to test Tim's detective skills.^[80]

Unmasked!

 Main article: Robin: Unmasked!

Beginning his junior year at the new, unfamiliar Louis E. Grieve Memorial High School, Tim quickly made friends with Bernard Dowd and Darla Aquista.^[81]

Around this time, Tim's father caught him with a black eye after fighting crime^[82] and soon discovered all of Tim's secret Robin gear.^[83] Tim's father demanded that he quit being a superhero, confronting Bruce Wayne for endangering his son, and threatened to expose their secrets if Tim wasn't released from duty. Tim reluctantly retired from the role due to his father's wishes.^[3]

This put on a strain on Tim's relationship with Stephanie Brown, who, in Tim's absence, volunteered to become the next Robin in his place. Bruce accepted, and Steph was given her own costume.^[84] When Tim learned of this, he tried to talk to Steph, but she began to avoid him. Superboy visited Tim in his civilian identity and tried to persuade him to come back to the Titans, but Tim insists he was happier giving up the responsibilities of being a superhero.^[85]

Bruce eventually fired Stephanie for disobeying orders, but Tim did not immediately return to his role.^[86]

War Games

 Main article: Batman: War Games

When the city was plunged into gang war, Tim's dad urged him to stay at home even though the boy was uncomfortable seeing Gotham go to war.^[87] Darla was targeted by the Odessa Mob and the Ventriloquist, who sent hitmen to kill her at their school. Because he wasn't allowed to operate as Robin anymore, his friend Darla was shot and killed, forcing Tim to break his promise and become Robin once again to stop the violence.^[88] Batman welcomed Tim back, and they became partners once again.^[89]

Tim confessed to his dad that he had once again become Robin, and his dad begrudgingly realized that the city truly needed him. Trying to containment the war in Gotham, Robin took down Mr. Fun, the Ravens and Trickster.^[90]

After the climactic final battle at Gotham Clock Tower, ending the crisis, Stephanie succumbed to wounds she had sustained fighting Black Mask and she died in Leslie Thompkins' clinic.^[91] Bruce told Tim about his girlfriend's death afterwards, and noticed that he did not cry or make a sound.^[92] Tim returned to active duty with the Titans shortly afterward.^[85]

Tim encountered his future self, who had taken on the mantle of Batman after his mentor died. In this possible future, Tim was the leader of the Titans, brutally paroling the West Coast and murdering all of Bruce's former rogues gallery them with the handgun that killed Thomas and Martha Wayne.^[93]

Identity Crisis

 Main article: Identity Crisis

Tim, along with the rest of the superhero community, tried to keep all of his loved ones safe after family members of the Justice League were tragically being targeted by an unknown conspirator. One night, while Batman and Robin were investigating these crimes, Tim received a call from his father that there was an intruder in the Drake home and a mysterious note with a gun suggesting that he protect himself. Jack, fearing for his life, told Tim that he was proud of him and that he was not responsible if something bad happens. The intruder was revealed to be Captain Boomerang, hired to kill Jack. Tim's father fired the gun as Captain Boomerang unleashed a razor boomerang, and the two killed one another before Batman and Robin could make it to the scene. Like Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson before him, Tim Drake had now lost both of his parents to crime.^[94]

Bruce Wayne offered to adopt Tim, who was not initially fond of the idea. Tim falsified records to create an uncle who would become his legal guardian. He then moved in with his 'Uncle Eddie' in Blüdhaven while his stepmother received treatment at a psychiatric hospital. Although Tim covered his tracks well, Batman was still able to figure out the truth and even offered to teach Tim to cover his tracks completely.^[95]

Return of Jason Todd

 Main article: Robin: To Kill a Bird

Some time after this, Jason Todd, the Robin before Tim that was long thought dead, was resurrected and returned to Gotham as the new Red Hood. Angered that someone has replaced him as Robin, Jason broke into Titans Tower wearing a version of his own Robin costume. Quickly immobilizing the other Titans, Jason confronted Tim to see if the new Boy Wonder was really as good as everyone claimed.

The two Robins fought, until at last Jason struck Tim down in the Hall of Fallen Titans. Although Tim was defeated, Jason demanded to know if he still believed himself to be as good as people say, to which Tim replied with a defiant 'Yes' before Todd knocked him unconscious. Jason spared Tim's life, simply tearing off the 'R' shaped emblem from his chest. Jason has developed a grudging sort of respect for Tim, wondering if he himself would have been a better Robin and a better person had he had friends like the Titans.^[96]

Infinite Crisis

 Main article: Infinite Crisis

Robin, working with a team of military superheroes who wanted to recruit him, commanded by a vigilante called the Veteran, defended the city of Blüdhaven against an army of OMACs who had captured dozens of metahumans for immediate extermination. With Blüdhaven safe, Tim worked with the Teen Titans, the Doom Patrol and the Justice Society of America to battle Superboy-Prime, who had violently assaulted their world's Superboy and put him in a critical condition.

After Robin left Blüdhaven, the city was nuked by the Society using the villain Chemo as a living atom bomb. Although Tim was obviously concerned, he continued his mission and led a successful assault on one of Lex Luthor's genetic research bases to find a cure for Superboy.

With Blüdhaven still in chaos, Superman left Robin in command of all the superhero rescue efforts in the ruins, but, when the government put the city on complete lock down, the Titans were kicked out. Despite Tim's effort to save his friend, Superboy died at the North Pole, and Robin joined the rest of the world's heroes in a final battle against the Society in Metropolis. Although the heroes won the battle, many on both sides were injured and killed.

After the crisis had ended, Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson and Tim Drake went on a yearlong sabbatical to retrace Bruce's original journey around the world in his quest to become Batman. The journey took them to Europe, where Robin and Nightwing stopped Intergang's associates in different countries.^[97] At this time, Robin upgraded his costume in order to better strike fear into the eyes of criminals and as a way to honor his fallen friend Superboy - who also wore red and black.^[98][99]

One Year Later

 Main article: One Year Later

When Batman and Robin returned to Gotham, they worked better together and started a crime-purge and managed to wipe out major super-crime in a month. Over a year since Tim's father's death, Bruce once again offered to adopt Tim, which the boy gladly accepted.^[100]

Robin was framed for murder when Lynx turned up dead in a Batgirl suit and the real Batgirl went missing. Tim discovered that Cassandra was herself the culprit and had turned evil, having taken over the League of Assassins and wanting Tim to join her. He refused and barely escaped alive.^[101]

Tim led the newest iteration of the Teen Titans, and, when Wonder Girl learned that Tim was trying to clone their dead friend Superboy, they shared a grief-stricken kiss.^[102]

After many side adventures cleaning up crime, Tim had a relapse into violence on the anniversary of his father's death but swore to honor his memory by improving.^[103]

Damian and the Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul

 Main article: Batman: The Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul

Damian al Ghul surfaced in Gotham - the secret son of Batman and Talia al Ghul - and demanded he become Batman's sidekick. However, Bruce was not quick to accept the boy, and Damian ambushed Tim in a one-on-one fight for the right to be Robin. Damian, who had decapitated the criminal The Spook, threw the villain's severed head with an explosive in its mouth at Tim to kill him. However, Tim survived and even saved Damian from falling to his death. Damian, unappreciative, used the opportunity to sucker punch Tim and left him defeated and bloody on the Batcave floor for Batman to find. However, before Damian was officially integrated into the team, he was seemingly killed in a submarine explosion during a mission - though his body was never found.^[104]

Damian returned sometime later - having healed from his wounds during his disappearance, and warned the Bat family that Ra's al Ghul had returned. Tim and Damian had a rematch fight, but, before there could be a winner, Alfred scolded them to stop^[105]

Ra's targeted Tim and asked the boy to serve at his side and realize his true potential. Ra's promised that, in return, he would resurrect Tim's parents with his Lazarus Pit.^[106] Tim refused, but Ra's had other plans for him anyway. Ra's forced Batman to pick between which boy he would have to sacrifice as Ra's new host body - Tim or Damian.^[107] Batman bought enough time that he didn't need to decide, and Robin and Damian escaped, fighting their way through the White Ghost's ninjas.

Afterwards, Tim reconsidered the offer Ra's made and decided to sacrifice himself for his lost friends and family.^[108] At the last second though, Nightwing tried to convince Tim to back out of the deal, and, forced to make the decision for himself, once again refused Ra's offer, breaking down in tears as he did so.^[109]

Batman R.I.P.

 Main article: Batman R.I.P.

While on his usual patrol, Tim encountered a woman wearing a Spoiler costume operating in Gotham. Wondering who was impersonating his deceased girlfriend Stephanie, Tim caught the woman and discovered the impostor was actually Stephanie Brown herself, who only faked her death. Tim immediately kissed her, and they talked through all the details. Robin and Spoiler were reunited and once again operated as a crime-fighting duo.^[110][111]

After this, Robin began having suspicions about Batman's mental state as Bruce started to operate more erratically and secretly. Robin tried to investigate, but his search was stymied by Spoiler, who was specifically asked by Batman to throw Tim off the trail. Despite this, Tim learned that Batman's insane behavior was being orchestrated due to a conspiracy against him by Doctor Hurt and the Black Glove.

Robin and Batgirl tried to help how they could and deciphered a code from the Black Glove that revealed their master plan to eliminate Batman and the Outsiders.^[112]

Despite Tim's efforts to save Bruce from self-destruction, Batman was seemingly killed in one final crisis against Darkseid, being struck by the conqueror's Omega Beams and being reduced to a corpse.^[113] Gotham had lost their hero, and the Bat family was forced to make some dire changes without their leader.

Search for a Hero and Battle for the Cowl

 Main article: Robin: Search for a Hero

Robin tried to protect Gotham in Batman's absence but couldn't contain the gangs and police from rioting. Jason Todd returned and tried to take control of the gangs, but Robin captured him and sent him to Blackgate.

Spoiler continued to test Robin's skills in order to make him the best hero for Gotham he could be, including going so far as to hire assassins to ambush him. Concurrently, Tim's nemesis Ulysses Hadrian Armstrong returned, taking the name Red Robin until he quickly ditched the alias to become the second Anarky after the first was paralyzed. When the riots reached a climax at Anarky's manipulation, Tim adopted a darker persona to fight the violence, leaving his Robin costume behind and wearing Armstrong's Red Robin costume instead. Spoiler worried that her attempt to make Tim a better hero had actually made him a worse person as Tim swore to do whatever it took to keep Gotham safe.^[114]

During the riots, Lady Shiva challenged Robin to a fight to the death. During the fight, Shiva broke three of Tim's ribs, but he defeated her anyway as he had poisoned her food earlier in the day. Later, Tim also defeated the man who killed his mother years earlier - the Obeah Man - when he got out of prison in Haiti and had him extradited to a US prison.^[115]

 Main article: Batman: Battle for the Cowl

With the gang war still escalating and Gotham in chaos without Batman, Tim tried to convince Dick to become the new Batman, but Dick refused. Jason Todd, once again out of Blackgate, began wearing a Batsuit of his own to gun down criminals, declaring himself the new Bat.^[116] Tim responded to this by putting on a Batsuit as well and took to the streets, but Todd impaled him with a Batarang through the chest.^[117] Tim was barely rescued from dying by Damian and Squire.

Shortly after, Dick defeated Jason and decided he needed to become the new Batman.^[118]

Red Robin

 Main articles: Batman: Reborn and Red Robin: The Grail

Tim believed Bruce was still alive after seeing a painting of his "ancestor" Mordecai Wayne in Wayne Manor, believing that Bruce was somehow lost in time, though no one believed him.^[119]

Angered that Dick had chosen Damian Wayne to become his new Robin instead of him, Tim left Gotham for Europe to investigate Bruce's disappearance - officially committing to the alias change he had tried during the riots. Tim gave up his Robin costume for a new one and graduated to the role as Red Robin - believing he could now work more maturely without tarnishing an existing symbol.^[120]

In Paris, Tim was contacted by Ra's al Ghul, who wanted to help Red Robin on his mission to find Bruce.^[121] With the League of Assassins help, Tim found an ancient cave painting that proved that Bruce was lost in time and survived an ambush by the mysterious Council of Spiders.^[122]

Blackest Night

 Main article: Blackest Night: Batman

Red Robin was called back to Gotham by Batman and Robin when their old enemies started rising from their graves as members of the Black Lantern Corps.^[123] He arrived in the Batplane to save them from a siege at GCPD Headquarters by sweeping the building with flame-throwers and airlifting them out.^[124]

In the hysteria, Tim's father Jack was revived as a Black Lantern zombie and reenacted his own death with Captain Boomerang to get an emotional response from Tim and feed off his life-energy. Dick and Tim used Mister Freeze's Freeze Gun to avoid the zombies' detection, then had Deadman unfreeze them and pass on their information to others.^[125]

The Green Lantern Corps, New Guardians and the White Lantern Corps contained the event, and all the corpses returned to their resting places.

Council of Spiders

 Main article: Red Robin: Council of Spiders

Ra's al Ghul had Red Robin and Tam Fox kidnapped by the White Ghost, with the hero being assigned to take charge of the League of Assassins while they were under attack from the Council of Spiders. According to Ra's, Red Robin was the only person known to have survived the Spiders and was most qualified to lead the organization.^[126]

As their leader, Tim set up fake assassinations across the world to bait the Spiders, but the plan backfired and the Spiders slaughtered his men and infiltrated the League's headquarters.^[127] Drake was barely able to save Tam, and Ra's was seemingly killed by the Council's leader the Wanderer.^[128] Despite the entire League of Assassins having been wiped out by the Council, Drake took on all of the Spiders simultaneously and won.

Before leaving with Tam, Tim used the League's computers to blow up all of their facilities across the planet - attempting to end the League's villainy once and for all. Ra's, having survived, announced he would retaliate by destroying Wayne Enterprises.^[129]

Collision

 Main article: Red Robin: Collision

Tim reunited with Superboy in Paris, who had returned from the dead after being revived in the 30th Century by the Legion of Super-Heroes and went back in time to the present. Tim and Connor attempted to look for a Mother Box in order to get to New Genesis and continue the search for Bruce. In the catacombs under Paris, Tim broke down and told Conner of the hardships he'd faced. Conner emotionally supported him, also believing that Bruce was alive.^[130]

Returning to Gotham, Tim took down Killer Moth and tried to reconcile his new grim persona with his old life.^[131]

Ra's announced that, to make good on his revenge, he would kill those dearest to Bruce Wayne, and Tim teamed up with Batgirl to save Leslie Thompkins from assassins.^[132] Tim enlisted Batman and Robin to help as he believes Ra's was planning something larger.^[133]

Ra's ultimate plan became clearer, as the villain tried to use Hush to transfer control of the Wayne Enterprises to Ra's in Bruce's absence. Lucius Fox, thinking quickly, subverted the operation and had Tim appointed CEO of Wayne Enterprises to block the power play. Ra's was outraged, though he developed a massive amount of respect for the Tim - even calling him "detective" like he had once called Bruce and suggesting he wanted Tim to sire his heir.

In the aftermath, Tim apologized to his friends for the dark direction he'd taken and revealed his evidence that Bruce was still alive. Vicki Vale published an article announcing Tim's engagement to Tam Fox, and Alfred designed a modified costume for Tim, allowing him to truly become his own person.^[119]

Tim Drake began a new quest of his own to take down several of the Bat-family's currently active foes and enlisted the help of Lonnie Machin (formerly the villain Anarky) to be his "Oracle". The pair worked together to recapture Ulysses Armstrong, who was still on the loose operating as the new Anarky.^[134]

The Return of Bruce Wayne

 Main article: Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne

Red Robin was summoned to the Justice League Headquarters to help them rescue Bruce Wayne from being stranded in time.^[135] After his return to the present, Bruce teamed up with Red Robin to defeat the Council of Spiders in Amsterdam, with a little help from Prudence, Tim's ally, formerly of the League of Assassins.^[136]

Afterwards, one of Bruce's big initiatives upon his return was establishing Batman Incorporated - a global association of the Batmen around the world. Red Robin, after being indoctrinated, traveled to Hong Kong, where he contacted Cassandra Cain, the former Batgirl, to return to her position as the representative of the area.

Once Red Robin returned to Gotham, Bruce gave Tim advice on the catty relationship the boy had with the criminal Lynx, who Bruce could tell Tim had a similar relationship with as he had with Catwoman.^[137]

The Rabbithole

 Main article: Red Robin: The Rabbithole

Tim's next mission was to investigate the supervillain communications network known as the Unternet and discern how to either control it or destroy it. He traveled to Russia to investigate a lead - a man named Viktor Mikalek, whose specific connection was unknown. However, while tracking a Russian vigilante known as Promise, Tim and his circle of allies were attacked by the Unternet's creator the Calculator.^[138]

Tim and his team's consciousnesses were absorbed into the Unternet, where they discovered a very surreal world in which all of the persons inside manifested as they saw themselves. Tim discovered Viktor Mikalek's true connection to the Unternet was that he wished to regulate it and make the world's supervillains pay him to use it. Tim and his allies escaped the Unternet but left their team member Lonnie behind to work as a spy.^[139]

Shortly thereafter, Tim discovered that the Calculator had constructed hundreds of androids that looked like him and had sent one such android to kill Tam Fox. Though the attack failed, Tim realized that he would need some help tracking down the real Calculator. Thus, he contacted the Teen Titans, who helped him narrow down that the Calculator's base of operations seemed to be in Istanbul.^[140] Narrowing the location down further to a specific nightclub, Red Robin and the team discovered the real Calculator, who had apparently tortured and killed Kid Eternity. The Titans worked together to defeat the Calculator and his robot army but, upon the villain's defeat, realized that he too was another android and the real man was still on the loose. In the aftermath of this mission, Red Robin rejoined the Teen Titans, with the current Robin resigning, saying that the team "already had a Robin".^[141]

Tim eventually discovered that the source of the Unternet was the Madmen, who had been turned by Darkseid into living servers for it. Red Robin lured them to Gotham City where he was forced to fight with them. He finally managed to render them catatonic, thus disabling the Unternet.^[142]

This history is continued in The New 52 at Timothy Drake (Prime Earth).
The DC Universe was rebooted in 2011 as part of the Flashpoint event. This was an attempt to simplify continuity, and make DC Comics more accessible to new readers. Prior to this, mainstream comics took place in New Earth continuity since the Crisis on Infinite Earths in 1985. The continuity established following Flashpoint is Prime Earth.

Powers and Abilities

Abilities

• Peak Human Condition
  • Peak Human Strength: It took a combination of Lashina, Mad Harriet and Stompa to pry Tim off of Granny Goodness.^[143]
  • Peak Human Speed: Similar to Batman and Nightwing, Tim is fast enough to react speedsters himself. Such as when Kid Flash attempted to tag him at super speed, only for Tim to counter him instead.^[144]
  • Peak Human Senses: His senses and skills are so acute, that he was capable traversing and fighting multiple foes on a moving train, even while blindfolded.^[145]
• Martial Arts: Tim Drake has trained under Batman for years before training with Young Justice and Teen Titans further. He can even keep up a conversation while taking down multiple well armed enemies.^[146] He's fought trained ninjas and assassins as well as mercenaries. He can even recognize and deduce another person's fighting style and counter almost anyone.^[147] His teachers also include the Armless Master,^[148] Legless Master,^[149][150] the Teen Titans,^[151] Batgirl,^[152] Nightwing,^[145][153] Wildcat,^[154] Henri Ducard and Lady Shiva.^[155] He has defeated Jason Todd and said he has more training than him.^[156] He has also stalemated and gotten the upper hand on Dick Grayson in combat.^[109][121] He even managed to get the upper hand on his future self known as Savior, who was holding back.^[157]
  • Stick Fighting
  • Karate^[158]
  • Boxing^[159]
  • T'ai Chi^[160]
  • Aikido
  • Kung Fu^[160]
  • Judo^[158]
  • Mushin^[161][162]
• Acrobatics He is more agile than Jason Todd.^[156]
• Throwing^[121]
• Firearms^[121]
• Stealth
• Genius Level Intellect
  • Investigation: Tim Drake is often recalled as the most investigative and analytical of all the Robins. He is always listening, exploring and scrutinizing.^[163] Bruce Wayne suggested that with time, Tim could conceivably surpass him as the World's Greatest Detective.^[164] Dick Grayson has also said he is not as good a detective as Tim.^[109]
  • Gadgetry: In addition to making modifications to the tech supplied to him by Batman Tim has invented a number of his own innovations such as his "bang-a-rang" flash grenades and his "redboard", a powered skateboard.^[165]
  • Photography: Tim took and personally developed photographs of Batman while the caped crusader was becoming more reckless in the wake of Jason Todd's death.^[166] He also used his camera to help blend in with the crowd and look for causes to the accidents forcing the closing of Haly's Circus while tracking down Dick Grayson to ask him to aid Batman once more.^[167]
  • Aviation: Tim Drake is able to fly a variety of small jets, including the one the Teen Titans use to get to missions.^[168]
  • Business Management
  • Computer Hacking
  • Computer Operation: Tim has skill with computers which Barbara Gordon encourages and he has assisted her in modifications to the systems she uses as Oracle.^[165]
  • Criminology
  • Disguise: Tim has been taught in disguise by Alfred and has successfully disguised himself on numerous occasions.
  • Driving
  • Escapology
  • Lock Picking: The picking of locks was among the skills Tim learned while training to become Robin.
  • Mechanical Engineering:
  • Tactical Analysis
  • Vehicle Combat: Tim has adapted his martial arts and skateboarding knowledge in order to design a way to fight efficiently while skateboarding.^[165]
  • Multilingualism: Tim has demonstrated at least some proficiency in Spanish, Hong Kong Cantonese, Russian and German in addition to his native English.^{[169][170][171][138]} He also picked up at least a small amount of French while studying in Paris.
• Meditation: Tim's first bit of training to become Robin involved a lesson on meditation from Dick Grayson.^[153] Since then Tim has learned a meditation technique that allows him to continue listening to his surroundings even when drugged to unconsciousness, though his grip on his hearing slowly slips.^[172] He has also learned a technique that allows him to slow his heart rate which allows him to survive grievous injuries he would otherwise bleed out from and be mistaken for dead.^[118]
• Indomitable Will: Tim's resistance to virtual torture has impressed the likes of Granny Goodness.^[143]
  

Paraphernalia

Equipment

• Utility Belt

Transportation

• Redbird
• Redboard
• Robin's Motorcycle

Weapons

• Batarang
• Robin's Battle Staff

Trivia

• Tim Drake is not religious, believing that if God existed he would not let so many bad things happen. He has mentioned that his mother was religious, but his father was not at all. This becomes relevant during Judgment on Gotham when the Crusader questions his faith and Tim is forced to admit he does not believe in God, although he knows this will put the city in further danger. This makes him a confirmed atheist.^[173]
• Tim's birthday is on July 19th.^[79]
• Tim was 13 years old during Batman: A Lonely Place of Dying,^[174] 15 in Bruce Wayne: Fugitive,^[175] and 17 in Red Robin: 7 Days of Death.^[176]
• Timothy Drake (New Earth) appears as Robin (Prime) a playable character in the Infinite Crisis video game.
• Tim considers that Conner Kent and Bart Allen are his best friends.^[177]
• Tim lost his spleen in a confrontation between the Council of Spiders and the League of Assassins.^[178]
  

Recommended Reading

• Batman: A Lonely Place of Dying
• Red Robin (Volume 1)
• Robin (Volume 1)
• Robin II (Volume 1)
• Robin III (Volume 1)
• Robin (Volume 2)
• Teen Titans (Volume 3)
• Young Justice (Volume 1)

Related

• 1,275 Appearances of Timothy Drake (New Earth)
• 506 Images featuring Timothy Drake (New Earth)
• 115 Quotations by or about Timothy Drake (New Earth)
• Character Gallery: Timothy Drake (New Earth)

Footnotes

Batman Family member This character is or was an incarnation of or an ally of Batman, and a member of the Batman Family. This template will automatically categorize articles that include it into the "Batman Family members" category.

Teen Titans member This character is or was primarily a member of the younger superhero team known as the Teen Titans, in any of its various incarnations. This template will categorize articles that include it into the "Teen Titans members" category.

Justice League member This character has been a member of the Justice League of America, or the Justice League in any of its various incarnations, sworn by a duty to act as guardians of America and the world by using their skills and/or superpowers to protect Earth from the clutches of both interstellar and domestic threats. This template will categorize articles that include it into the "Justice League of America members" category.

Young Justice member This character is or was a member of Young Justice, a team of younger super-heroes and side-kicks who fight crime together separately from their adult counterparts, in any of its various incarnations. This template will categorize articles that include it into the "Young Justice members" category.