I’m Ready. I’m Ready For My ZoLu Jealousy Rant. Part 1 Of 2.

Can we all just take one second to admire this giant brute of a man hyping himself up after being the first person to get an exclusive interview with Dick Grayson? Clark Kent, you are so loveable.

Superman: American Alien #4

i find it so fitting that luffy met (and freed) zoro at his weakest- starved, restrained, with his execution impending. i find it equally fitting that the moment zoro was free of those restraints, he almost immediately blocked luffy from a fatal attack.

their relationship, from their very first meeting, has always been a reliance on each other without shame. luffy didn’t move when that axe was coming down on his head or a hoard of marines ran towards him, trusting zoro to stop them, and he didn’t turn the other way when he saw the infamous pirate hunter he sought out to be his first crew mate helplessly tied to a cross either.

they are unbeatable forces of nature but with each other they show weakness, in fact, they often allow themselves to be weak. their unconditional trust to cover each other’s backs gives them the rest they need in a battle to allow them to finish it.

it’s truly such an astounding thing to me to be so completely vulnerable in someone’s hands. to not block, or flinch, or move, because you know someone will save you no matter what. to fall asleep on the battlefield with two yonko because you need a minute, and you know harm will never come to you if the other person is there.

one of the foundations of zoro and luffy’s dynamic is vulnerability at the most important times. and hugely, their comfortability in that vulnerability because they are by each other’s side. from their very first interaction they showed what could’ve hypothetically been life-ending weakness but they saved each other. and from that moment they never stopped doing so

Sometimes I feel like us as the bat family fandom forget how starry eyed people get about Nightwing canonically.

Because with the exception of early era Tim most of the Batkids are like. lol that’s my loser older brother or some variation of yeah…he’s some guy I guess? He helps me with homework?

And Nightwing is the canonically a center of multiversal light.

When Heroes meet Nightwing they do the vigorous handshake and the “it’s an honor to meet you sir, I have heard so much about you oh my god”

There are so many character where they are literally shown giggling and kicking their feet whenever Nightwing talks to them.

Even the people who don’t have the celebrity level worship of him respect the hell out of him and call him as soon as they need help.

From raven to Starfire to Superman to Superboy to all or the flashes there is so much respect and awe given to this one dude.

And it is deserved

But imagine you are Damian Wayne and you’ve been working with what 90% of the people you’ve met (all bats) have been calling an embarrassment to your father’s legacy.

Your mother hates him and your Grandfather doesn’t feel that strongly about him.

The red hood calls him an embarrassment and a coward and he couldn’t even keep Red Robin from running away.

Your father tells him that he never should have been Batman

And you’ve worked with him and you know what you think everyone is full of shit about him and you and him the new Batman and Robin are the best no matter what anyone says.

And fuck it the fact he keeps going in a suit that everyone tells him he’s not good enough for is scratching something in your brain that you’re refusing to acknowledge because why would you feel that way? You are the circus freak have nothing in common (shut up)

And then you meet the justice league and all the extended teams.

And people are falling over themselves to listen to a word out of your brothers, your Batman’s mouth. They wait for a nod or headshake and dictate decades worth of planning on it.

Both Drake and Todd’s hero teams ask him for advice with or without their designated bats presence.

The man of steel asks for child rearing advice and wonder woman cracks a joke about a spar

Newer heroes whisper about him in the halls

He’s literally your favorite hero’s favorite hero

And it’s breaking Damian’s Brain

Because well… he kinda gets slapped around in Gotham. He’s the butt of half the jokes the other Batkids make and Dick just smiles and takes it.

The rogues have a bounty on nightwings ass and he gets leered at by goons, rogues, civilians and anti-hero’s alike and he doesn’t say anything.

He lets oracle crack jokes about a pretty face and having to do everything herself

Let’s Jason run the alley despite the fact that apparently he knows how to take it back

Apparently he’s had 12 people tailing Drake since Paris and despite being the man Ra’s Al Ghul calls detective has yet to notice. (Because you can’t tell me Dick was just magically at the right place to catch Tim falling to his death on coincidence)

And necessary to peace talks because he’s the best they have at deescalation

Like imagine you are a child who was raised to believe power is this obvious, all consuming thing. That the ones who control the board are visibly larger than life figures who fought their way to the top and cling to power by even the thinnest hangnail if they had to.

People who ignore simpler morals or an overall greater goal or good

And then you’re taken in by the man who whispers the correct answers into the larger than life figures ear.

Like I feel like that would have such an impact because Dick didn’t take power from anyone to reach his goals, it’s why his siblings don’t really defer to him unless in crisis.

Dick didn’t take power, no people just looked at him and decided he was the best option to give it to.

Everyone basically looked at this kid and went, yeah you’re the future of all heroism.

And if that dude can’t even get Bruce Wayne’s respect what chance does Damian Wayne have

The amount of people calling nightwing pretty boy is actually insane like

He will literally shove his escrima into someone’s ears, electrocute them, and then give em a round house kick for good measure and somebody in the distance will be like, “who’s the pretty boy?”

Analyzing the WIND BREAKER Trio

TW: BIG SPOILERS FOR THE MANGA, light mention of abuse.

It’s high time I talk about the main characters of Wind Breaker, who are surprisingly unconventional. They don’t seem to fit neatly into any of the old characters' trifectas we see across media. None of them are girls, for starters, and they don't even seem to fit the classic Freudian trifecta of Id, Ego, and Super Ego. No, in this analysis, I want to talk about their unusual dynamic and how they depend on each other for what they lack in themselves. These traits being:

Sakura’s lack of social skills

Nirei’s lack of strength.

Suo’s lack of self-belief

Sakura Lacks Social Skills

The only evidence I have to cite is the entire manga. He’s no mystery. Sakura has been abused and neglected from a young age both by his parents and his old town. And by the start of the manga, he’s never been shown kindness before. And what this has created is a form of independence from society. Sakura is someone who only deigns society. Something Yamato Endo later adores about him, something Endo has only seen in one other person. Sakura doesn’t need other people, and will never bend himself to other’s will. He said so as much in his fight with Togame.

However, this virtue comes at the price of having ANY sort of common sense. He doesn’t know how to make friends. He doesn’t know how to operate a phone. It’s almost like he’s been living on a deserted island his whole life. He has no interests, no furniture.

So he needs a guide. That’s Nirei. He lets Nirei hang around him like a little remora fish because he knows that Nirei will point him in the right direction. He’s not so much a “best friend” rather he’s better described as a “foremost friend” who’s made it his personal mission to guide Sakura to the top. 

He displays a greater comfort around Nirei than he does with Suo. To Sakura, Suo is a rival and begrudging mentor to who he derives wisdom from. Now, he’s not a complete rival and foil in the way that Sugishita is, but from the moment, he sees Suo fight, he’s already dreaming of ways to have a real fight with him, but he respects him enough to plan the bridge defense while preparing for the war.

In this sense, Sakura takes motherly doting support from Nirei and fatherly challenging support from Suo. Though he would never ever admit to that. Its interesting how clinically he views both of his friends. He treats them more like social workers who’ve been assigned to him than buddies to hang out with.

Nirei Lacks Strength

At the start of the series, Nirei lacks physical and mental strength. He literally doesn’t know how to fight at all and constantly hides behind his friends. And until his breaking point with KEEL, he basically uses them as bodyguards. After KEEL, Nirei realizes that simply advising and studying others is not enough and makes an effort to at least be able to defend himself and become strong.

And to his credit he does this. By the end of the war arc. He has attained complete mental strength. When Nirei throws that punch on the bridge he has everything. He becomes a complete hero. Lacking only muscle and training. Mitsuki knows this. Suo knows this. All of them know it and are more than willing to help him grow into what will probably one day be Hiragi’s replacement. 

Suo Lacks Self-Belief

(in his own moral judgment.)

By self-belief, I don’t mean that in a confidence sense, but rather a worthiness sense. Suo is the most perplexing of the three because we know so little about him at the moment. And that’s by design, he wears a mask of impenetrable mystique.

But we can make some observations of his values even if we don’t know the details yet of how he came to them. So lets start by examining what Suo admires about his friends: Sakura’s moral conviction and Nirei’s purity. 

Suo adores Nirei’s purity and innocence, which he finds infinitely more valuable than strength. Nirei doesn’t have a bad bone in this body. The concept of doing something evil has never once crossed his mind. Even after years of being tormented by bullies, one would expect him to go on a revenge arc. But NOPE. He doesn’t even consider it. He’s more concerned about his sick friend or helping an old man he barely knows find peace. As far as Suo is concerned, Nirei is the perfect one and has the most potential of the three because he's already mastered what Sakura and himself lack. Morality and social grace are harder to acquire than muscle. 

In Sakura, Suo sees a champion who can carry his moral convictions like a banner. He says as much before challenging Minoru to a “fight”. 

Time and time again, he reiterates that Sakura is bound to surpass him. But he never means it in reference to combat. In fact, by that point, he hasn’t even seen Sakura have a real fight. And later on, he says it again, when Sakura is able to get a handle on his rage, whereas Suo wants to beat an opponent while he is down. The guy who hurt someone they both deeply cared about.

What he sees in Sakura is a moral conviction that he lacks in himself. At the time I am writing this we know shockingly little about Suo. About his backstory, his master, his Chinese fashion taste, his eye. And neither do his allies. But have clues. We see him refuse to eat with the others, claiming to be on a diet. It was disrespectful of him to not eat anything at that leadership summit, so he had to have a bigger reason. Consider the other character who refused to eat in the story, it becomes more obvious he may have a guilt complex.

What this points to is that Suo has a history. He’s done bad things in the past and now feels guilty and undeserving. His solution is to not find moral clarity in himself but to surround himself with those who can. It's an issue he's going to have to deal with at some point.

What to do with these three?

Looking back, you begin to notice that the nature of their friendship starts out as very transnational. Sakura needs social guides and barely considers them friends at all. Nirei uses his friends as protection and role-models to get stronger. And Suo uses his friends as a way to outsource his moral compass.

But it didn’t stay that way. Sakura starts fighting with others in mind and even plays games with Nirei; who becomes a real fighter just like the others with the help of Suo, who trusts himself enough to become a teacher after being inspired by Sakura. They inspire each other and grow. That’s normal for Shonen. But this strange dynamic is something I find peculiar, breaking the mold of what i’d expect from a heroic trio. It's all very refreshing.

Controversial opinion, but I don't think I like good dad Bruce Wayne.

Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I don't like Bruce being a good dad, but it is hard for me to enjoy it when he's like that all the time. When he suddenly knows how to communicate, or what to do when there's an emotional issue, or that he's now smiling and reassuring his children so easily.

Is just too abrupt after what we've seen so far of him as a parent.

I can't buy this new version of Bruce without any deserved development or previous arc that triggered this drastic change in the way he acts, specially towards his kids. And I get it's usually like an alternative self, and he's always been like that in that kind of universes, but it just feels too easy.

Is like working so hard for something only to be given it without a chance of showing off all the work you've done to get there. Is not fulfilling or satisfying (to me).

And I get the hype, I do, but there's also so much history of the characters that wouldn't have happened had Bruce been truly that great and supportive dad that some portray. It erases too much for me to fully like it.

So, yeah, good dad Bruce I can only enjoy when he's had the proper growth as a character that doesn't erase everything he's done before and instead shows the long journey he had to go through as a person to get to that point.

I mean most wbk characters fight without the conversation and connection philosophy... Why is Sakura the only one who should win with that method not by feats. Doesn't they author love his mc to be the strongest and shine like the others? Sigh!

I would say a part of why there's more emphasis on it with Sakura than the other characters, is because Sakura's definitely positioned to be the person Umemiya thinks will take on his will and protect and care for the Furin he has created with the other upperclassmen.

This isn't to say that the other side character don't or are incapable of also understanding and applying Umemiya's philosophy in their fights, but Sakura mirrors so much of Umemiya. There are definitely a number of characters in Wind Breaker who came to Furin because they admire and want to also take on the mantle that Furin stands for. Others join Furin to rebel against what's trying to hold them down or oppressively change who they are; who won't accept certain aspects of who they are because of their own agendas or beliefs. But a number of these people aren't actually seeking to be The Top Dog. Not everyone who wants to fight to protect the town wants to be the person leading Furin. And there is a lot of potential dangers/issues with those who DO seek to be at the top, and have the power that comes with leadership. That's why so many Furin people, ESPECIALLY the upperclassmen, were wary of Sakura coming in and enrolling in Furin as someone from outside of town, even more so when he starts spouting that he wants to take the top spot.

Take Sugishita for example= The narrative even shines a light on the fact that shouldn't it be Sugishita who is shooting to become Furin's top spot when he's an upperclassman? Sugishita ABSOLUTELY hangs off of every word Umemiya says and admires what the guy stands for. But, Sugishita wants a low-key, peaceful life. He wants to be left alone and sleep most of the day. Sugishita struggles with connecting with his fellow classmates, let alone his opponents or those who stand against what Umemiya believes in. The upperclassmen adore and are rooting for Sugishita, but they know he wouldn't want to take Umemiya's spot.

Nirei too. Nirei is valued and supported by his classmtes. He deserves a place amidst their ranks because he has such drive and will to put everything he is into Furin's cause. But Nirei's not a leader. Not everyone is meant to be a leader. Nirei doesn't want to be a leader- he wants to be someone who lifts someone he finds worthy for that position (Sakura) TO the top spot. It's kind of hard to have a fight last long enough to be a conversation when when you don't know how to fight. He's learning how to fight (and doing an amazing job! I'm always so happy to see Nirei get a chance to show how far he's coming along in also holding his own in a fight!) but that's not going to be enough for Furin and Makochi when threats come knocking on their door.

To not just let emotions take over and instead make an effort to understand the other person- it's hard! It's not something that comes naturally to most people. But it surprisingly comes naturally to Sakura. Sakura is hungry for connections, he wants to understand people better because he assumed everyone was the same in the past and realized that that's not the case. And it definitely comes naturally to Umemiya. However, I wouldn't go so far as to say no one else fights with this philosophy in mind. The freshman characters are green newbies. They've got the spirit, they're putting their effort behind Umemiya and Sakura and all of what Furin stands for, but they're a little too inexperienced to actually internalize Umemiya's style. Who has had the experience and has been a part of Umemiya's fight to make his dream a reality? The four kings. Specifically, Tsubaki and Hiragi immediately come to mind so I'll talk about their fights/conversations!

Tsubaki rolls up to the fight against Gravel with a number of (anger-fueled) assumptions and very much acting out of his protectiveness of Shizuka.

Even still, Tsubaki wants their fight to be a dialogue. He's still applies Umemiya's philosophy in this fight, even after calling Suzuri his 'prey' and clearly being pissed off about Gravel trying to break down Suzuki and take her away from this life she's found with her sister Tsubaki and the guys of Roppo-Ichiza.

Tsubaki makes his stance known. That fighting to protect the things you love makes you stronger. It doesn't matter what it is- if it's important to you, if it makes you happy- then it is worth fighting for. Tsubaki doesn't get angry when Suzuri calls him insane when he says that loving makeup makes him stronger. He instead says 'okay let me prove it to you. Let me show you my strength' (my god I love the energy in the "Let me show you just what you're scoffing at" panel. Tsubaki you absolute ICON! Queen Shit!)

It's a push and pull; a back and forth between them as they fight. Tsubaki eventually says to Suzuri that 'Yes, of course I can't possibly understand the suffering and pain you've had to go through'. It's a hard thing to truly and fully understand another person. But that doesn't mean that a person isn't allowed to also feel in pain and having a hard time. Tsubaki doesn't know what it's like to have to struggle with starvation, and Suzuri doesn't know what it's like to have to choose between pretending to be someone you're not, to cover up your interest or risk being attacked and assaulted because other people want to decide for you how you should be and what you should like. You could say Suzuri has it worse than Tsubaki, but it doesn't mean Suzuri has the right to rip Suzuki from the happiness and family she has found.

Leading up where Tsubaki admits they made wrong assumptions about Suzuri and are sorry for doing so, but also calling out Suzuri on the irony that he says he has nothing- can't waste time or effort on anything that's not directly tied to food/survival- when clearly he also is fighting for his friends.

Now, as it was even said in the manga- Tsubaki and the Roppo-Ichiza can't fix all their problems. They can't make sure everyone has what they need. But, they can do everything that they can to help. It wasn't Tsubaki's physical strength that was important in this fight, but instead it was his kindness. That he wanted to know why Suzuri was doing all of this. He didn't attack Suzuri in a rage or tell Suzuri he had something he needed to learn from Tsubaki. Tsubaki ended this fight by saying "I see you're suffering and I want to know what I can do to help." THAT and fighting in order to stay true to himself and protect those he cares about, is what makes Tsubaki strong. That's why Tsubaki is one of Umemiya's four kings.

Next let's talk about Hiragi's fight with Banjo. Now, Hiragi was far more in a rage than Tsubaki. That much is clear. He is just as protective of Kaji and Tsubaki is of Suzuki, but lets his fury win more than Tsubaki does. This may also be because of the sadomasochistic person Banjo is versus Suzuri, who has a more compassionate core. Endo and Takiishi pissed the fuck out of Umemiya in this arc too. Anger takes over sometimes. That is also a part of being human. But, I would stand by that Hiragi STILL tries to see Banjo's perspective. The chapter where he starts fighting Banjo is still called a 'dance', just like when Tsubaki fought Suzuri. He doesn't treat Banjo in this fight the same way Suo does against Kanuma. He doesn't patronize, toy or make fun of Banjo. He gives Banjo an admission, what small understanding he has of Banjo's...insane perspective, that fighting can be thrilling. That you can be addicted to the adrenaline. He acknowledges that Banjo is right that when people are fighting, someone is going to get hurt. The FASCINATING thing is that Banjo also sees fighting as a way to connect with others. But Hiragi recognizes that Banjo doesn't.... realize that not everyone gets the same pleasure out of fighting and Banjo doesn't know when to STOP.

Hear me out- I think this is similar to Sakura telling Endo he'll visit him. I don't think Sakura likes Endo and I DEFINITELY know Hiragi doesn't like Banjo. But, Banjo feels connected to other through fighting. Hiragi is going a certain length to make sure Banjo doesn't feel isolated, while at the same time telling him to leave the other people at Furin THE FUCK ALONE (Especially not to go anywhere near Kaji again I'm sure). He tells Banjo directly to his face that Banjo disgusts him, but he doesn't tell Banjo not to seek making that connection with others. Not to seek that high. But because doesn't have self control, because Banjo can't even tell when he's going too far- Until Banjo can understand how other people feel he should find Hiragi to fight. Hiragi is saying he will do something that he dislikes for Banjo. Yes, it's for the sake of whoever else Banjo would pick a fight with instead, but it is still a promise of connection, it is still an exchange nonetheless.

I would say the author loves Sakura for the same reason why he has everyone else love Sakura. Because Sakura is an incredibly kind and compassionate person who wants to put his whole being into helping others. He wants to protect the people who extended kindness and acceptance to him. Sakura is a scared kid who comes from a past full of pain and rejection and isolation, and is taking those steps towards healing. He's getting close to becoming someone that Sakura himself can feel proud of. Someone who is not just strong physically, someone who doesn't even have to win every fight- he's fought so hard his whole life already. So long as he doesn't give up- neither on himself nor in protecting Furin- there is nothing more he needs to do. He can just be himself for the first time in his life and that will be enough. His strength comes from his heart, a heart that is already full of compassion and kindness. A heart that he already has. Physical strength is something he'll get with time and experience, but it is sticking to his heart that'll make him even stronger. A little sappy and cliché? Sure, but that doesn't necessarily make it a bad message or story to impart on the audience. I think Nii Satoru means for this to be a story about human connections, and personally values that more than the fights themselves.

But also. I think Sakura shines. You're welcome to your own opinion, but I personally think he looks pretty damn cool in his fights~

Consider: Post-canon Zuko wakes up in the body of his childhood self, the morning of That War Meeting. Would he still speak against the plans, knowing his fate? What do you think he would do differently the second time around?

"Turned away at the doors, Zuzu?"

"Shut up, Azula," her brother sulked. But sulked weirdly, after staring at her too long and too wide-eyed, not like she'd surprised him but--

But like he hadn't expected her to be there. At all.

He turned away. ...He turned back. "Hey, Lala? Do you think you could help me practice that one set?"

He didn't meet her eyes.

She narrowed hers. "Which set?"

"The one I'm bad at."

She scoffed. Pushed away from the wall she'd been leaning against. "That's all of them, Dum-Dum."

He didn't shout or stomp or yell about the nickname. His lips twitched.

"It's okay," he said. "If you're afraid you won't be a better teacher that my instructor..."

It was the most obvious manipulation ever.

Perhaps if he proved an adequate firebending student, she'd work on his courtly survival skills next. Honestly, it was good that not even Uncle Gets-Cousins-Killed had been fool enough to take Zuko into that war meeting. She could only imagine how terribly that could have gone.

"Keep up," she said, and turned her steps towards the training grounds.

He did. There, and during the katas she ran him through.

Azula kept her eyes narrowed.

"Hey," he asked, "do you know how to bend lightning yet?"

As if he could have missed it, if she'd been able to get more than sparks. "I will soon," she said.

"You will," he agreed, and flowed through his next set. The one she'd only just mastered.

Father didn't notice how weird Zuzu was being. Uncle never noticed anything. Zuko ate dinner and asked a servant for seconds and didn't stutter or flinch or lose his appetite when father asked, coolly, what he'd done with his day. Azula's shoulders tensed, because one mention of how she'd squandered her own training time teaching him--

"Azula hogged the training grounds. For hours," Zuzu scowled, exactly like a petulant thirteen year old.

Exactly like he hadn't been acting all day.

By the time Father was looking her way, Azula had her usual smirk in place. "I'm sure there would be room for both of us," she said, "you're not afraid of a little friendly fire, are you, brother?"

Zuko sulked. And ate his seconds, like he was enjoying each bite. There was something in his eyes, like a joke no one else was getting.

---

Father died that night. A heart attack. There were the faintest of burns to either side of the treacherous organ; the royal physician hypothesized that he'd grabbed at his chest, fingers burning hot in his final moments; so hot they'd only exacerbated the problem.

The royal physician would never have been brought any victims of lighting strikes. Those that occurred in the capital did not generally require a doctor in the aftermath.

Zuzu ate a hearty breakfast.

He didn't order seconds. Azula gave him points, at least, for not being tacky.

---

The sages named Iroh as regent.

They named Zuko as Fire Lord.

"No," the tiny Fire Lord in his perfectly miniaturized Fire Lord robes said, sitting at the head of his war council. "We're not doing that. And I'll be reviewing all recent battle plans, as well. What's this I hear about a division of new recruits being deployed to the front?"

He did not mention how he'd heard of the 41st Division. No one asked.

"Prince Iroh, surely--" one of the generals tried to appeal.

The young Fire Lord's regent was looking as startled as the rest of them, for a moment. Then he sipped his tea, and smiled.

"Your Fire Lord is correct, of course. A change in our leadership--a change the other nations may mistakenly view as weakness--will necessitate a change in our strategy."

"Now," said their lord, "what, exactly, is our overall objective in this war?"

War, the new Fire Lord decreed, was not an end unto itself.

---

The new Fire Lord continued to have time, to pretend to be trained by her. Azula watched him. Adjusted her footwork. Did not tolerate, and was not offered, any commentary on who was teaching who.

"What did you do with my brother?" she asked, as they flowed from one set to the next. As her hands, poised to throw fire, just so happened to be pointed his way.

He missed a step. It didn't look like an act.

"I'm, uh. Right here?"

She didn't bother to dignify that.

He didn't bother to look worried about her hands, one movement off from a true attack.

He looked around, then grabbed her sleeve, and tugged her further from any walls that may hide ears. The royal family's private training grounds were wonderfully large, and wonderfully open.

"It's me," he said. "It's still me. Just. More of me? Longer of me?"

She narrowed her eyes. A familiar expression, by this point. "Explain."

"...I found the Avatar," he said. "And this is definitely his fault, but--but I guess it started at a war meeting, when I was thirteen."

Azula listened. It was a very Dum-Dum story.

My favorite thing about reading Dicks thought process vs literally how everyone else views him.

This is the least exaggerated version of this I will willing produce.

-older gen JL: thinks wing is dependable, charming, intelligent and a great leader, impressed how much he’s grown and how well he’s done in the hero world

Heroes his age: the golden standard that everyone tries to match up to and fails at one point in their sidekick-hood before accepting yeah I’m not Dick Grayson and having him lead them in a hero team. The defacto person to look towards in a crisis situation, manages tasks efficiently and doesn’t let personal details affect him. He’s cool, calm and collected while still being the most empathetic man on the planet.

Heroes younger than him: straight up awe. if the heroes who saw his awkward teenage phase, discowing and are privy to his love life info. How do you think people who just saw ‘Mr perfect’ without any of the painful growth to get there and since about 9 billion things have happened since Dick was Robin people have too much to talk about to ever bring it up. I see their thought processes going something like this

-oh my god is that nightwing like THE nightwing like Robins big brother nightwing like the leader of the titans nightwing is he looking at me oh my god he smiled at me wtf wtf wtf until they hyperventilate

(Source how Kow talks about dick Grayson like 99% of the time- ignore all Dan Dido works )

Batkids: awe with a side of insecurity bc that’s the gold standard and how tf are you supposed to get there. Even if you’re an amazing fighter like Cass, the leadership skills, ability to talk people down, make more allies than enemies, infiltrate, lie, cheat, steal, put on a million different masks and come out whole.

How does he know what he’s doing? How does he look so calm and collected when the worlds ending

Batman and Superman (remember when they co-parented in the 60s yeah me neither): like uncomfortable amounts of pride like the type of pride that feels too big for your chest as well as implicit trust.

For B specifically Dick is his crowing achievement as Batman

VS

Dick Grayson at any given moment pre Tom Taylor run: everything is my fault, I suck at everything, I’m never good enough to stop bad things from happening to the people I love it’s all my fault and I will never be able to stop it. My life is an accidental trolly problem except I didn’t know it when I started, I didn’t mean to press any levers I didn’t know what I was doing I am a burden who must make himself useful as an apology.

Like Dick is in a constant spiral of how much he hates his limits and how he just isn’t ever going to be strong,fast,smart or good enough while everyone is staring at him with heart eyes like omg it’s nightwing <3

So i’ve been wondering abt how the next conflict will unfold after the current breather in the manga… and i can’t help but suspect (and hope) that maybe, just maybe it’ll have something to do w Suo.

I say this bc currently, it looks like we’re getting the backstories of the main group one-by-one (Sugishita, Kiryu, possibly Sakura).

And at the same time, chapter by chapter, we’ve been getting tiny little snippets of Suo’s suspicious actions/habits in the background: him wearing a swim shirt/staying out of water, Kiryu deliberately mentioning how he’s not eating again (there is a separate panel of this interaction, so it’s clearly important as it’s divided from other dialogues), him taking control of the conversations and manipulating them in his favor in both ch 171 and 172…

I really feel like something is brewing in the background when it comes to this boy, bc all of this happened in the last 4 chapters which he appeared in.

But most of all, what really concerns me is this line:

Throughout ch 173 he seemed to handle the tension of the Kiryu-family quarrel with such unnatural level-headedness, he’s the only one who is still staring straight ahead in the panel below, not being startled at all by the yelling.

He’s also the only one who’s observant enough to sit back in the same exact place after spying on Kiryu

All of these reactions, habits and behaviors just make me suspect that he might have a difficult familial situation, where he had to hide emotions, learn how to be observant and a smooth-talker, manipulate his way out of situations, grow up way too quickly…

And well, let’s not forget how he says that his best skills are at negotiating, making the enemy “cough up information” and do as he says…

I’m honestly kind of a believer of the “Suo has ties with the mafia” theory, or at least i think he has some seriously dark familial situation and knows some shady ppl… he’s the only person who Nirei had no notes on, nobody heard anything about his days before Furin (except that he’s a good fighter)… it’s all just too suspicious tbh.

And well. As the story and world-building progresses, each conflict in the manga has been more and more dangerous and intense: first we had the one-on-one’s with Shishitoren, then the more violent Keel-conflict, then we had straight up adults fighting in the Roppo-Ichiza vs Gravel arc, and ultimately the war with Endochika + Noroshi… i wonder what could be more intense than this last arc.

Still, Wind breaker hasn’t been truly dark up to this point, so i highly doubt that a story about a group of wholesome delinquent high schoolers would delve into some less PG stuff involving the mafia. The story is more about acceptance, community and personal growth, a violent and darker gang arc would be quite out of place imo.

However, i truly suspect it will be Suo’s backstory that’ll serve as a transition to the next conflict/heavier arc.

But as always, feel free to disagree, this is only just my personal opinion and theory<3