Creator of Robin’s Boyfriend Didn’t Know He Was Gay

When Tim Drake AKA Robin was revealed to be bisexual last year in Batman: Urban Legends #6, many readers were unfamiliar with the comic book history of his romantic interest, Bernard Dowd. However, Bernard has had a long-spanning friendship with Tim, as originally written by Bill Willingham, who hadn’t envisioned the character’s sexuality.

First appearing in Robin #121 (February 2004) illustrated by Ricky Mays, Willingham wrote Bernard as one of Tim’s close friends from high school. The quirky conspirator believed theories about Batman allegedly working with the American government, and thought that Robin had once lived in an orphanage operated by the Dark Knight. As a supporting character, Bernard gave Tim a sense of a social life beyond fighting crime with Batman. He only appeared a handful of times, until he returned in comics with Batman: Urban Legends #5. The new iteration of Bernard had once been best friends with Tim but hadn’t seen him in a long time. Quickly after reconnecting with each other, they decided to start going out.

In a piece on Substack published on August 28, 2021, comic book writer and artist Bill Willingham expressed that his characterization of Bernard Dowd was intended to be straight. At one point in Willingham’s run of Robin, Bernard announced his interest in Tim Drake’s stepmother. He cites this scene as an example of the character’s sexuality. “As originally conceived, Bernard Dowd was many things, but he wasn’t gay. I can know this for a certainty because, unlike living historical figures, it’s possible to know the secret inner workings of a fiction character, because they are whatever the author wrote them to be. And in this case Bernard Dowd liked girls. He had a crush on Tim Drake’s hot stepmother, and that’s about it for the romantic/sexual front.” Similar to the creation of Tim, he wasn’t initially meant to be bisexual. Instead, his character evolved with time, as depicted by many writers and artists.

To be fair, much of Bernard’s past remains a mystery, and it could later be revealed that he is bisexual like Tim, meaning he isn’t gay as readers have assumed. Before the recent reveal, Tim Drake had famously been in a relationship with Stephanie Brown AKA Spoiler. Just as his character has been expanded over time, the same could be true of Bernard. While Willingham criticized the vastly different version from his own, there are still opportunities for connections to be drawn with his run on Robin.

Although there has been an outpouring of support for the creative decision regarding Tim’s bisexuality, some readers have voiced criticism coming from various perspectives. While LGBTQIA+ representation is largely wanted by fans, some consider it a cliche for characters who have a close friendship to be also have a romantic attraction to one another. Despite this point, the new take on Tim Drake and Bernard Dowd is making many readers finally feel seen in comics.

Source: Substack

About The Author