the very long character survey
Body and Appearance
1. Describe the character's height and build. Is he heavyset, thin, short, rangy?
Dick is 5'10, muscular but flexible, large enough to pass for Batman under the cowl and cape, but not nearly as big. He is an acrobatic fighter, not a bruiser.
2. How old is he?
Canon differs, but he is most likely between 24-26. 25 is the obvious compromise.
3. Describe his posture. Does he carry himself well or does he slouch?
He is straight-backed and even-shouldered, well-balanced, and all sorts of positive hyphenated adjectives.
4. How is his health? Is he fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities?
EXPLODING WITH HEALTH no, but really, Dick is very healthy and very in shape, on par with an Olympic athlete.
5. How does he move? Is he clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid?
Graceful. Balanced. Walking on his hands is as natural as walking around on his feet.
6. How attractive is this character physically? How does he perceive himself in the mirror?
APPARENTLY Dick is attractive, though the PB I chose is perhaps not conventionally so (?). I chose Matthew Goode because of his smile and the fact he has blue eyes and dark hair. Dick knows objectively that people find him good-looking, but it's not important to him and he doesn't factor it in to most things he does. Which is how he ends up modeling... a Nightwing costume on a runway (ftlog, Dick, why).
7. Describe his complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred?
Light. He doesn't have any significant scarring on his face, it's mostly on the rest of his body.
8. Describe his hair: color, texture, style.
Black, straight. Traditionally, Dick has longish bangs that fall all dramatically against his mask, but Matthew Goode's hair is very short, oops.
9. What color are his eyes?
Blue. CRYSTAL COBALT OCULARS WITH THE LUCID INTENSITY OF
10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features?
APPARENTLY he has a nice butt. I have no comment. (Go away, Booster.)
11. What are his chief tension centers?
Shoulders, stomach, thighs.
12. What is the character's wardrobe like? Casual, dressy, utilitarian? Bright colors, pastels, neutrals? Is it varied, or does he have six of the same suit?
Canonically Dick has the fashion sense of a dummy that's been rolled around in a bargain bin, but for the purposes of my sanity, I will say that while he does like bright colors (see: ROBIN) at the age of 25 and as Bruce Wayne's heir he tends toward casual dressy in dark neutrals with blue as an accent.
13. Do his clothes fit well? Does he seem comfortable in them?
They do not always fit well, because even though Dick Grayson is an acrobat and has taught acrobatics before, he doesn't need to draw attention to the fact he's built like an Olympic athlete. But he's usually comfortable in whatever he's wearing, UNLESS HE'S MODELING A NIGHTWING COSTUME ON THE RUNWAY GOD WHY.
14. Does he dress the same on the job as he does in his free time? If not, what are the differences?
Well! You know.
15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando?
Boxer briefs.
Speech
1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse?
I know this is a shitty description, but "like someone's older brother". By which I don't even mean my older brother, who is sometimes borderline monosyllabic. Just, it has a lot to do with how people see him, I think, there's this quote some writer had about him that is like "[he's] the soul, the linchpin of the DCU", because "he's well respected by everyone, known to the JLA, the Titans, the Outsiders, Birds of Prey - everyone looks to him for advice, for friendship, for his skills. He's the natural leader of the DCU." And I think his voice reflects that.
2. How does he normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does he talk easily, or does he hesitate?
Dick is a Talker. He talks easily and often and has a playful sense of wit that I usually can't portray, sadly.
3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics?
To those who know what to listen for, he's definitely from Gotham, though he can drop that if he needs to.
4. What language/s does he speak, and with how much fluency?
I belive Devin Grayson (hssss!) established he knows some Rom (what dialect I'm unsure, I'd have to go back and check, hurr I am a bad mun but this is not an aspect that often comes up). As a Batman protege he speaks English, French, Spanish, Russian, Mandarin, Cantonese, and Japanese fluently, though he apparently can't read the last three. He also speaks a bit of Tamaran.
5. Does he switch languages or dialects in certain situations?
Er. Yes? If it's called for.
6. Is he a good impromptu speaker, or does he have to think about his words?
In the context of being a team leader, he's just fine. He has good interpersonal skills.
7. Is he eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change?
He's not especially eloquent but he's not inarticulate either.
Mental and Emotional
1. How intelligent is this character? Is he book-smart or street-smart?
He is both, though he dropped out of college.
2. Does he think on his feet, or does he need time to deliberate?
He thinks very well on his feet. Deliberation generally doesn't suit him, which may be why he's not quite the detective Batman and Tim are.
3. Describe the character's thought process. Is he more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical?
Intuitive-practical; though idealism is still a factor, he's no longer wearing the shortpants of justice.
4. What kind of education has the character had?
BATMAN
5. What are his areas of expertise? What, if anything, is he interested in learning more about?
Criminology, escapology, martial arts, ... art history, apparently, since he became a museum curator.
6. Is he an introvert or an extrovert?
Extrovert.
7. Describe the character's temperament. Is he even-tempered or does he have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven?
Though he can become broody and emotional due to various things fucking up his life, Dick is generally the most cheerful and easy-going Batfamily member. Easy-going in regards to people, anyway, he's very driven and a hard worker with everything else.
8. How does he respond to new people or situations? Is he suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic?
As I mentioned earlier, his interpersonal skills are good, again probably the best of the Batfamily at interacting with and talking to people.
9. Is he more likely to act, or to react?
Act.
10. Which is his default: fight or flight?
Fight.
11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does he appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks?
Corny, deliberately so.
12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does he deal with them?
Heh heh. No... not as such.
13. What moments in this character's life have defined him as a person?
Wh...at, do you want all of them? Can I just link you to the wiki? There's his parents' death, finding out Bruce was Batman, becoming Robin, getting the shit kicked out of him by Two-Face, creating the Titans, getting kicked out by Bruce, finding out Jason had replaced him, OH MY GOD DON'T MAKE ME DO THIS
14. What does he fear?
In no particular order: rejection. Being alone. Losing the ones he loves. Killing.
15. What are his hopes or aspirations?
NOT BEING BATMokay sorry. He'd like to start a family some day in the distant future, he just has no idea when that would even be feasible (and his daughter with Starfire did show up in the first Titans Tomorrow thing-- don't ask me how Tamaran and human DNA manage to combine, maybe Tim made-cloned her, HE SEEMS TO DO A LOT OF THAT).
16. What is something he doesn't want anyone to find out about him?
Um.
Relationships
1. Describe this character's relationship with his parents.
:(
2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like?
No siblings.
3. Are there other blood relatives to whom he is close? Are there ones he can't stand?
None.
4. Are there other, unrelated people whom he considers part of his family? What are his relationships with them?
Batfamily. :)
5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet?
Either Roy or Wally. They met because they were ~*sidekicks*~ and formed the Titans.
6. Does he have other close friends?
Donna, Garth, Babs...
7. Does he make friends easily, or does he have trouble getting along with people?
Easily! People like Dick, hurr hurr.
8. Which does he consider more important: family or friends?
They're the same thing, for him.
9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has he been married more than once?
Single. He got married to Kory once! And got married undercover once (that was annulled, though). And he proposed to Babs, but that never went anywhere.
10. Is he currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse?
Um. N...o. I take Dick from a very vague period before RIP, so he's not dating or seeing anyone d...espite having proposed to Babs and having promised to return for her, I guess that just. Er. Never happened.
11. Who was his first crush? Who is his latest?
Babs was his first crush (shut up, canon that may say otherwise). The last girl he slept with was Cheyenne Freemont, but they were sort of more a friends-with-benefits thing.
12. What does he look for in a romantic partner?
He doesn't. I think the only real requirement is "is into him", and then he just... responds, like a derp. Or doesn't, as the case may be.
13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does he relate to them? If no, does he want any?
None that we know of! But we all saw how that worked out for Bruce.
14. Does he have any rivals or enemies?
Plenty. Goddamnit I'm not listing them all.
15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does he fall on the Kinsey scale?
I think Dick is nominally, and identifies as, straight, but he's, um, a very open and affectionate person. Shit, have I said too much??
He's like a 2 on the Kinsey scale. FOR THE RECORD: I don't ship, though I do read and enjoy slash and different dynamics between Dick and various characters. Regardless of whether he's romantically interested in someone, Dick likes to be close to people, and... I have gone way off topic here. ANYWAY. Let me just... lay out how he feels about certain people in his life.
Tim: little brother. Their age difference, how they got to know each other, is always going to make it that way, and it's a huge barrier to developing into anything else. Also he keeps messing up Tim's hair and one day Tim is going to snap and kill him.
Bruce: mentor. Not father, but "the man who raised me". Their dynamic really is not conducive to romance, even though it might seem at times like Dick is practically infatuated (he isn't, Bruce is just super important to him). He used to live basically in awe of Bruce, and some of that still remains.
Babs: he loves her and will love her forever even if they end up with other people. (Which seems increasingly likely, EVEN IF my NW has not yet engaged in inappropriate Starfire sexings during a mission.)
Donna: sister.
Roy and Wally: BFFs :3
16. How does he feel about sex? How important is it to him?
Sex is great. Dick is generally looking for a deeper connection but finds it hard to turn down even just physical affection (GDI TARANTULA). It's not super important to him, though.
17. What are his turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits?
e_e
Turn ons: redheads (women, sorry Roy and Wally), not being Batman, dangerous ladies, when people like him :3, mild submission (not like, BDSM, but he tends to choose strong, assertive-aggressive women)
Turn offs: being Batman, pushy people, the morally lacking, guns, bondage (come on, after being kidnapped and tied up so many damn times...)
Beliefs
1. Do you know your character's astrological (zodiac of choice) sign? How well does he fit type?
His birthday is "a week before Halloween", which I will take to mean October 24. This makes him a Scorpio. From PsychicGuild.com: "Scorpios lead fate filled lives and have intense and dramatic personal relationships. [...] They often wear a mask." Hurr hurr. Um, but most of that shit didn't sound much like Dick, who does not, as far as I'm concerned, love power, nor is he wise beyond his years.
2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in his life?
In the DCU it's difficult not to be at least a little spiritual, considering, uh, magic exists and people come back from the dead and yeah. But it's more a pragmatic thing than a big part of his life.
3. Does this character have a personal code of morals or ethics? If so, how did that begin? What would it take to compromise it?
The big Bat thing is not killing, but he did, in fact, almost kill the Joker when he thought Tim had been killed. He also allowed Tarantula to kill Blockbuster after a long period of being emotionally beaten down. Some time after this he was very dejected and basically went off to live amongst the mafia (look, I... like Devin Grayson, I just...) and hang out with Deathstroke. Okay, he was UNDERCOVER, but he was really very unhappy for a lot of it, I think, and generally you don't go undercover with your REAL NAME, Dick.
4. How does he regard beliefs that differ from his? Is he tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent?
Tolerant, unless those beliefs fall into the category of "mad cultists". Then he's not so respectful. NO STABBING BATWOMAN IN THE HEART, GUYS.
5. What prejudices does he hold? Are they irrational or does he have a good reason for them?
Stupid clowns. B|
Daily Life
1. What is the character's financial situation? Is he rich, poor, comfortable, in debt?
As Bruce Wayne's heir, he is very well off.
2. What is his social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected him?
He, uh. Bruce Wayne's heir? He was, for a very long time, only a ward and not formally adopted, but I don't know that the change did anything to his social status even if it was obviously very important to him.
3. Where does he live? House, apartment, trailer? Is his home his castle or just a place to crash? What condition is it in? Does he share it with others?
He lives in an old church. I don't even know. In canon he doesn't live there very long, but because I'm hiding from BftC and RIP, he's here, um, a little longer.
4. Besides the basic necessities, what does he spend his money on?
Bat-supplies. Netflix. Books.
5. What does he do for a living? Is he good at it? Does he enjoy it, or would he rather be doing something else?
He is apparently a museum curator. I have no idea if he's good at it, but I'm going to assume yes. He would probably rather be teaching acrobatics like he was earlier.
6. What are his interests or hobbies? How does he spend his free time?
His free time is mostly eaten up by BEING A GODDAMN VIGILANTE. However, he does like skydiving.
7. What are his eating habits? Does he skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods?
Dick still eats like a teenager in that he eats... a ton. He doesn't skip meals unless things are really bad, like Infinite Crisis bad, or that time he was randomly homeless (look, I don't know, okay). He also is not much of a drinker, though if he's eating at the Manor he might have wine with his meals.
Associations
Which of the following do you associate with the character, or which is his favorite:
1. Color? Blue
2. Smell? Night air
3. Time of day? n...ight
4. Season? spring
5. Book? ... look, I'm not literate.
6. Music? I hate associations.
7. Place? GOTHAM? BLÜDHAVEN?
8. Substance? Substance?! LIME JELLO no, fuck, I don't know.
9. Plant? ........
10. Animal? momonga um.
END
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