18 Years Later, It's Clear 1 Quote Began Nightwing's Journey to Becoming DC's Best Hero

Summary In 2006's Infinite Crisis, the Superman of Earth-2 declared Nightwing the only person who is a better hero in DC's main reality than in his own ideal world.

In the two decades since, Nightwing has gone from strength to strength, ultimately saving the entire multiverse.

Batman aimed to help Nightwing become a better man than the Dark Knight himself, and he succeeded.

DC is full of amazing and powerful heroes, but despite a huge range of accomplishments, the publisher already confirmed Nightwing is the best among them. While this is a fact that Batman has known ever since he took Dick Grayson under his wing, it was actually Superman who confirmed no-one holds a candle to Blüdhaven's protector... but not the Superman fans know.

Readers got to see DC's Golden Age Superman name Nightwing DC's greatest hero in Infinite Crisis #3 by Geoff Johns and Phil Jimenez. In this issue, the alt-reality Golden Age Superman approaches Batman and tries to convince him to sacrifice his own reality in order to recreate Earth-2. If this Superman succeeds then the people of Earth-1 will be folded into the history of Earth-2, meaning they'd be replaced by their Earth-2 equivalents. It's a hard sell, but Superman has an ace up his sleeve - the darkness of DC's main reality means that everyone Batman knows is a better, happier, more honorable version of themself on Earth-2... everyone but Dick Grayson.

Batman seems open to the idea at first. Recently, he had learned that a faction within the Justice League had been mindwiping villains to stop them leanring its members' identities, and that when he'd found out, they'd chosen to mindwipe Batman as well. But concerned about his friends and family, he asks if everyone on Earth-2 is a better version than Earth-1 - specifically, Dick Grayson. As Superman cannot tell a lie, he's forced to admit that DC's main Nightwing is the best version of Dick Grayson.

Batman's betrayal by the Justice League takes place in Brad Meltzer and Rags Morales' Identity Crisis.

Related Nightwing is Officially Superman’s Legacy, Not Batman’s Dick Grayson may have been raised and trained by Batman, but Lois Lane finally puts into words why Nightwing is part of Superman’s legacy.

The Golden Age Superman took a look over Batman, the Flash, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and dismissed them all, but he couldn't do the same to Nightwing.

Nightwing Was the Only Hero to Gain the Approval of Earth-1's Superman

In Infinite Crisis #3 by Geoff Johns, George Perez, Phil Jimenez, Andy Lanning, Norm Rapmund, Wayne Faucher, Jeremy Cox, Guy Major, and Nick J. Napolitano

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Earth-2 is an alternate reality from a simpler time, embodying the ideals that defined DC's characters in their earliest days. This world's version of Batman did have his own Robin in Dick Grayson, and this Batman would eventually go on to retire and marry Catwoman. Dick would then carry on the mantle by becoming an adult version of Robin, never really moving out of Batman's shadow. This version of Dick Grayson would continue being a major hero, and eventually gave his life during the final battle in Crisis on Infinite Earths (from Marv Wolfman and George Pérez.)

The Golden Age of comics was much lighter than modern stories. A typical Dick Grayson story form that era sees criminals kidnapping Robin in order to force Batman to sign a contract agreeing he'll leave the city for a week so they can carry out a crime spree.

What's notable is that the Superman of Earth-2 had essentially dismissed all DC's heroes as being more corrupt and ineffective than their Earth-2 counterparts - even the main-timeline Superman didn't make the grade. The Golden Age Superman took a look over Batman, the Flash, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and easily dismissed them all, but he couldn't do the same to Nightwing. While Dick Grayson may not have the earth-shaking powers of Superman, he's the only one to pass this punishing test and be declared worthy by the standards of this idealized alternate reality. And while Infinite Crisis took place 18 years ago, Superman's judgement on Nightwing has been justified again and again by Dick's accomplishments since.

Dick Grayson Became So Much More Than Just Batman's Legacy

Dick Grayson Has Become a Foundational DC Hero Over the Last Decade

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There's no doubt that Earth-2's version of Dick Grayson was a hero, but the heroics that DC's main-timeline Dick Grayson has gotten up to are almost too numerous to count. Earth-2 Dick Grayson became Batman to face off against the Joker. He participated in the battles of Crisis On Infinite Earths, but that cosmic cataclysm was far outside his league. He managed to prove himself as a true hero and even gained membership on the Justice Society of America. But despite all of these fantastic achievements, Earth-1 Dick Grayson has managed to do so much more.

Most recently - in Nightwing issues from Tom Taylor and Bruno Redondo - Nightwing inherited billions from his father figured Alfred Pennyworth, immediately investing his new fortune in becoming a 'safety net' for the people of Blüdhaven. Nightwing used his riches to turn Blüdhaven from one of the country's most corrupt cities to a place of immense hope, toppling the gangster Blockbuster and the corrupt police force. While Batman has never been able to truly save Gotham, Nightwing has saved Blüdhaven, using the same resources as Bruce Wayne but without the same cynicism and need for control. However, Nightwing isn't just a great street hero - he's also become a cosmic savior.

Dick learned a lot from Batman, but Bruce specifically raised his protege to be free of his own flaws.

During the events of Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths (from Joshua Williamson, Daniel Sampere, et al), it was Nightwing who was able to stand against Deathstroke and help save the multiverse. This is one of Nightwing's greatest moments as a hero. Thanks to Nightwing, Deathstroke was defeated, and the true, infinite multiverse was reborn. It was the greatest moment of Nightwing's career as a hero and made him the savior of not just Earth, but all realities in DC canon. But while Nightwing has done amazing things by himself, he's done even more working with others.

Related Nightwing Confirms DC's Greatest Hero of All Time with 3 Simple Words Nightwing not only declares the GREATEST DC hero of all time but he also confirms the most trusted hero in the DCU with only three simple words.

Nightwing Is the Leader and Ally That Batman Struggles to Be

From the Titans to the Next Generation of Justice Leaguers, Nightwing Is a Vital Leader

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Dick learned a lot from Batman, but Bruce specifically raised his protege to be free of his own flaws. Nightwing is savvy but trusting, embracing other heroes as his equals. A founding member of the Teen Titans, Nightwing leads the team to this day, and while he's smart enough to have contingency plans to take down his teammates if they're corrupted, he's been completely honest with them about that fact, avoiding the devastating way that Batman's own contingencies have blown up in his face. After a stint training the world's young heroes, the Titans have now replaced the Justice League as the world's foremost protectors, as seen in the recent Beast World event (from Tom Taylor and Ivan Reis.)

Nightwing has also trained a wide range of younger heroes, from Superman's son Jon to Bruce Wayne's distrustful son Damian, who now considers Dick a brother. When Nightwing is in trouble, he doesn't hesitate to send out the call for help, and everyone from the Flash to his 5th-Dimensional Imp superfan Nite-Mite answers. Of course, Batman deserves some of the credit for how Dick turned out - Bruce didn't just take Nightwing on as a sidekick, but as someone who had suffered the same tragedy. Batman raised Dick with the support and guidance he felt would have helped him overcome the rage and trauma that have defined his life, and he succeeded. Nightwing is now essentially Batman with all of the skill and very few of the flaws.

Related Batman Officially Considers Nightwing His Greatest Triumph Batman may not be prone to displays of affection, but he admitted to Catwoman that Nightwing is his greatest triumph and guiding light as a hero.

Nightwing Has Lived Up to Superman's Assessment

Dick Grayson Has Become an Unstoppable Force for Good

Nightwing has always been a beacon of hope to those around him. Dick Grayson was instrumental in pulling Damian Wayne out of the darkness of his upbringing, helped create the Titans and turn them into Earth's greatest heroes, and was responsible for keeping Batman from falling into his darkness as well. When the Superman of Earth-2 gave Nightwing his grudging approval, he didn't know the half of what Dick Grayson was capable of.

Nightwing Nightwing is the superhero moniker given to various vigilante heroes in the D.C. universe. Nightwing is depicted as a warrior who fights from the shadows, utilizes near-superhuman agility and expert combat skills, and tends to have several tools at their disposal. Though Nightwing began with Kal El/Clark Kent, Nightwing has since been primarily associated with Dick Grayson, a former Robin who grew into the new role.