Story: Retribution Part 1: Sons and Lovers (21 pages)
(next part is in Gotham Knights #21)
Writer(s): Devin Grayson
Pencils: Roger Robinson
Inks: John Floyd
Characters:
Bruce Wayne / Batman, Dick Grayson / Nightwing, Barbara Gordon / Oracle, Yoska Graesinka
Minor Characters / Guest Appearances:
Clark Kent / Superman, Enrico Inzerillos, Jack Inzerillos (Enrico's son, aka 'Archipelago'), Rachel Green, Nicclai, Mitchell
Synopsis:
Batman intercepts a drug shipment that Jack Inzerillos organized without the approval of his father Enrico. Enrico thinks that the younger generation are criminals without respect, that they cannot be controlled, and he is both frightened by the scope of his son's ambition as well as scared for him. Enrico takes the fall for Jack and agrees to wait for the police, if Batman stops his son before he gets killed. The next day Bruce Wayne visits LexCorp in Metropolis. He had hoped to speak with Talia, but she sent a representative. He briefly talks with Clark, but gets a phone call from his lawyer Rachel Green, who tells him that Yoska Graesinska is contesting Dick's adoption, and claims to be Dick's paternal grandfather. Batman convinces Dick to meet with Yoska. Jack and Nicclai threaten the judge to make him rule in favor of bail (to set a sum of 16 million dollars), intending to use the bail for money laundering. Mitchell, the judge's son, barges in with a gun, threatening Jack and Nicclai. In true villain fashion Jack describes his crimes in detail in front of the judge during the stand-off, explaining that he smuggles immigrants and guns. Batman appears and stops both Mitchell and Jack, then lectures them that having fathers who worry about them is a luxury they shouldn't squander. A little late Bruce then comes back to the manor, where Dick and Yoska are already waiting for him. Yoska says he knows all about "the secret."
Continuity References:
- Bruce mentions that Lex Luthor became President, that happened in ?? [p. 7]
- Talia Head (Ra's al Ghul's daughter) took over as LexCorp's CEO in ?? [p. 7]
- Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson signed the paperwork for the -- now contested -- adoption in Gotham Knights #17. [p. 9]
- Yoska mentions Zitka, an elephant (?) in Haly's circus, it first appears in ??. However there must be at least two elephants that have a sort of connection to Dick, because in A Lonely Place For Dying, specifically in The New Titans #60, the name of the elephant who recognizes Dick is given as Elinore, though in The New Titans #60 we do see two elephants, so maybe Zitka is the other one. [p. 14]
- Jack refers to the quake, that happened in the Cataclysm storyline (most Batman titles from March to May 1998), to the forced cessation leading to Gotham's No Man's Land status that happened in the Road To No Man's Land storyline (Batman, Detective Comics and Shadow of the Bat in December 1998 and January/February 1999), and to a plague, probably meaning the Contagion storyline (March/April 1996 in most Batman titles). He says those disasters and the mess they caused in the official records made Gotham the best place to dump people unnoticed. [p. 18]
- Both Alfred and Robin are still absent, Alfred left in Nightwing #53, Robin has left in ?? [p. 20]
Dick Grayson Character Details:
- Barbara calls Dick "Hunk Wonder" through their comm link when she announces Batman's presence to him; Dick hopes she isn't using an open channel. [p. 10] But it turns out Batman has heard it, and teases Dick with this, by calling him "Hunk Wonder" as well. [p. 13]
- Dick recognizes "Yoska Graesinka" as a Rom name and says it is probably Kalderasha, associating the name with one of the larger subgroups/dialects of Romany, Kalderash (literally "Kalderash" comes from the Romany word for copper-smith). [p. 11]
- Dick is very sceptical about the possibility that Yoska Graesinka could really be his paternal grandfather, because aerialist traditions like the one in his family are almost always passed down through the generations and had his paternal grandfather been alive he would have traveled with the circus show. [p. 11]
- His mother's father died when he was six. [p. 11]
- Dick gets angry when Batman says "But your people are notoriously difficult to keep track of." Dick perceives the "your people" phrasing to imply a derogative "Vagrants. Itinerants. Gypsies.", though when Oracle breaks up their argument he apologizes and says he overreacted. [p. 12]
- When asked for change by a panhandler he gives him detailed information about shelters, i.e. addresses, services, and opening times. [p. 13]
- Dick doesn't understand Yoska when he's talking in Romany. [p. 13]
- He dislikes that Yoska calls him Ryeka, instead of the English variant Richard or Dick. [p. 14]
- Dick knows where to find Bruce's scotch, however we don't see him drink any himself, that is consistent with his attitude towards drinking established previously, for example in Nightwing #4. [p. 20]
Bruce Wayne Character Details:
- Bruce looked for any living relatives of Dick after the death of Dick's parents, and found none. [p. 10]
- Bruce is not happy when Clark tries to chat with him, and to find out what's bothering him. [p . 7]
- Bruce blocks Yoska's questions if he is all alone at the manor, diverting the conversation. [p. 20]
- When Yoska asks Bruce "How you train wild gypsy?" he answers "Loyalty." [p. 21]
Barbara Gordon Character Details:
- Barbara is visibly frustrated when both Dick and Batman want her to play referee in their argument about meeting Yoska Graesinka. [p. 12]
Romances:
- Dick and Barbara are a couple, though their relationship is not central to the story, it's visible .
Trivia:
- translation of the Romany words and dialogs (I don't speak Romany myself, but I hope that these translations I found for the phrases and words are correct, the sources I used for the phrases not translated in the comic itself are here, here, and here):
"Devlesa avilan!" -- "It is God who brought you!" [p. 13]
"Droboy tume Romale!" -- "It is good to see you, Rom!" (a traditional greeting) (the comic has a typo, there the dialog reads "Droby tume Romale!") [p. 13]
"Tshatshimo Romano" -- "The truth is told in Romany." (the comic has a typo, so there the dialog reads "Ishatshimo Romano") [p.13]
"raya" -- "landowners" (it seems to be the plural, though in the comic it's used as singular) [p. 14]
"Yekka buliasa nashti beshes pe done grastende..." -- "With one behind you can't sit on two horses..." [p. 14]
"Mandar tsera tai kater o Del mai but te aven tumenge..." -- "From me a little money, but may God give you plenty..." [p. 20]
- The scotch Bruce offers is called Laphroaig. [p. 20]