I think what always made me want to smack Terry was that he somehow didn't seem to get it (although that too started to change a little as the series progressed). His tragedy wasn't anywhere near as bad as Bruce's (he still has a living, loving brother and mother), and yet he somehow managed to be much more sulky and insolent about it.

Though this resulted in Bruce shifting back and forth between being amused by Terry's dense sullenness, and mildly irritated by it. In some ways, I think Terry was similiar to Jason Todd, though Terry is better adjusted.

I think that's really what I found smackworthy about Terry - he never quite got it that, despite dressing up liike a flying rat and trying to stop crime through fisticuffs, he was actually pretty well-adjusted for BatFam peeps. Hell, McGuinness is downright normal. That's why he never quite pinged me as being worthy to wear the cowl. Normally you have to be pretty messed up to join the Bat Squad.

Well, Bruce also went years after his parents' deaths before becoming Batman. Terry became Batman (or at least tried to) within days of his father's death. Bruce had a long time to first reach his decision and secondly put himself in a situation where he could act on it. Terry just kind of jumped headfirst into the whole thing and didn't really examine what it meant until he was in the middle of it.

Normally you have to be pretty messed up to join the Bat Squad.

Not familiar with the comic continuity, what made Barbara Gordon decide to become Batgirl? Or more specifically, in what way was she damaged?

Not familiar with the comic continuity, what made Barbara Gordon decide to become Batgirl? Or more specifically, in what way was she damaged?

Pre-Oracle Babs wasn't especially damaged so much as frustrated, smart, and stubborn. She became Batgirl by accident, for the most part.

Not familiar with the comic continuity, what made Barbara Gordon decide to become Batgirl? Or more specifically, in what way was she damaged?

BWAH! It's so funny you ask this, because Thomash just posed this same question to me when I relayed this conversation to him.

Babs is, admittedly considerably better adjusted than the rest of them, save for the whole she's doing it just because she wants to part. That's it's own particular brand of nuts - yes, Bruce is a driven and fractured personality (refering to "when he used to be Bruce Wayne...), but I can see where dressing up as a bat and beating the shit out of criminals is sort of a healthy response to his experiences (sort of). Doing all that because it seemed like a good idea at the time? That's just whack, yo.

Barbara is still sane in a way Tim Drake (Robin III, who, like Barbara, just wanted the job) is not, however. I'm not exactly sure how to express why at the moment. I'll have to think on it for a while.

Pre-Oracle Babs wasn't especially damaged so much as frustrated, smart, and stubborn.

Yeah, getting shot through the spine by the Joker earned her a whole new set of Issues.

Babs right now has issues that rival even those of Bruce. She's startin' to scare me. In a very Wesley kind of way, now that I think about it.

I really need to find a way to get more caught up on current Bat stuff. No Man's Land stuff is the last I really read, I think.

I'm currently reading Batman: Year One, having just read an old New Teen Titans TPB -- The Terror of Trigon.

The Bat doesn't seem quite so crazy at this point. I look forward to seeing him get progressively nuttier.