My Timeline for Batman's Age (and why it's probably wrong!)

[Lorendiac]

Tim became Batman's latest apprentice in "A Lonely Place of Dying." He was 13 at the time. Jason had recently died. I have the impression that Jason was not much older -- maybe a year or two older than Tim when he showed up. It seemed to me that they looked about the same size when Jim Aparo was drawing first one and then the other in the late 80s, and I have the impression that the typical Gothamite never actually figured out that "Robin Number Two" had died at all! Many people probably assumed, when Tim started being seen in public, that he was "the second Robin back in action after a dry spell." If Jason had been, say, four years older and six inches taller right before he died, that probably wouldn't have worked!

As far as I know, Tim never bothered to issue any press releases saying: "Guys, I'm actually the third Robin. The second one is dead and buried." (Jim Gordon probably could tell the difference, even if we assume he hadn't already become reasonably certain of the secret identities of Batman, the first Robin, and the second Robin -- but Jim Gordon spends a heck of a lot more time in conversations with Batman and his various sidekicks than the typical resident of Gotham City!)

So if Tim is now, say, 17, then I could see Jason being a full-grown 18 or 19. Although, given the way his history got rewritten on the fly by Superboy-Prime punching a wall, who knows?

[Lorendiac]

Ducard was a major teacher in that area. Also, if it hasn't been retconned, he studied relevant fields at Princeton, with an eye toward joining the F.B.I.

Looking back through this thread, I see I never got around to replying to this comment. I think I meant to. Better late than never!

I don't specfically remember "Princeton," but I do remember (vaguely) that Post-COIE, the continuity seems to be that Bruce never completed a bachelor's degree, although he did indeed take some college courses while he was thinking of pursuing a "conventional" law enforcement career. If you remember reading he took some courses at Princeton, I have no reason to disagree!

In fact, your FBI comment reminded me of something! I bought "Zero Hour" as it came out in 1994, and then I bought the "zero issues" of the regular Batman titles of that era. They served as a quick recap of Batman's origin story. One of them -- don't ask me which -- greatly surprised me by having one panel casually mention that young Bruce Wayne had actually joined the FBI and then gave it up after six weeks. Presumably because it was too much paperwork at a desk and too little action on the streets?

As far as I know, his very brief time with the FBI has never been mentioned again in any other issue of any title since 1994, but I don't think it's ever explicitly been erased from history, either! It was basically just a "throwaway comment" which everybody at DC seems to have promptly forgotten! (Don't you love it when that happens?)

[kevink31593]

Based on Tim Drake's states ages within the comics, it's actually quite easy to place Batman's adventures from 1989-2005 onto a timeline. Of course, you have to disregard certain references to the passage of time, such as during NML and later during Rucka's run on Detective.

Tim Drake was 13 when he was introduced in "A Lonely Place of Dying" in 1989.

In 1993, at the beginning of "Knighquest" in Detective Comis #668 (this issue leads into Robin #1), Tim receives a special driver's license that allows him to drive because of his disabled father. We can assume this is because Tim has just turned 14 years old.

In Dec. 1998, in Secret Origins 80-Page Giant #1, it is revealed that Tim has recently turned 15 years old.

In 2003's Robin #116, Tim celebrates is 16th birthday on panel.

I'm sure there is disagreement about how long Bruce had been Batman at the time ALPOD occured, so here is a timeline starting with ALPOD, in which I will use "Tim Drake Year 1, Year 2, etc."

Tim Drake Year One (13): A Lonely Place of Dying, Robin minis 1 thru 3, Sword of Azrael, Vengeance of Bane, Knightfall

Tim Drake Year Two (14): Knightquest, KnightsEnd, Prodigal, Contagion, Legacy, Cataclysm

Tim Drake Year Three (15): Road to NML, NML, New Gotham, Officer Down, Murder/Fugitive, Hush

Tim Drake Year Four (16): War Drums, War Games, Identity Crisis, Under the Hood, Infinite Crisis

All of those events could reasonably fit within the span of four years, for the most part. The only year that seems a little cramped to me is Year Three. Even ignoring the fact that NML supposedly took an entire calandar, it seems unlikely that NML and Hush took place within the same year.

[Jared]

I don't specfically remember "Princeton," but I do remember (vaguely) that Post-COIE, the continuity seems to be that Bruce never completed a bachelor's degree, although he did indeed take some college courses while he was thinking of pursuing a "conventional" law enforcement career. If you remember reading he took some courses at Princeton, I have no reason to disagree!

In fact, your FBI comment reminded me of something! I bought "Zero Hour" as it came out in 1994, and then I bought the "zero issues" of the regular Batman titles of that era. They served as a quick recap of Batman's origin story. One of them -- don't ask me which -- greatly surprised me by having one panel casually mention that young Bruce Wayne had actually joined the FBI and then gave it up after six weeks. Presumably because it was too much paperwork at a desk and too little action on the streets?

As far as I know, his very brief time with the FBI has never been mentioned again in any other issue of any title since 1994, but I don't think it's ever explicitly been erased from history, either! It was basically just a "throwaway comment" which everybody at DC seems to have promptly forgotten! (Don't you love it when that happens?)

Is "The Man Who Falls" the story you read? That does mention Bruce going to the F.B.I. academy for six weeks. It also refers to Bruce attending "many campuses", with no specific mention of Princeton. I may just be conflating the comics with Batman Begins.

In BTAS, Bruce and Harvey Dent are old college buddies, but I don't recall if a specific school was mentioned there.

If someone has Batman in Barcelona on hand, isn't Bruce's tour guide/hostess someone he went to school with? Do they say where they attended?

[DKR]

Is "The Man Who Falls" the story you read? That does mention Bruce going to the F.B.I. academy for six weeks. It also says refers to Bruce attending "many campuses", with no specific mention of Princeton. I may just be conflating the comics with Batman Begins.

In BTAS, Bruce and Harvey Dent are old college buddies, but I don't recall if a specific school was mentioned there.

If someone has Batman in Barcelona on hand, isn't Bruce's tour guide/hostess someone he went to school with? Do they say where they attended?

I think it was Hudson University.

[Lorendiac]

Is "The Man Who Falls" the story you read? That does mention Bruce going to the F.B.I. academy for six weeks. It also says refers to Bruce attending "many campuses", with no specific mention of Princeton. I may just be conflating the comics with Batman Begins.

I read "The Man Who Falls" a long time ago -- I think it's collected in a TPB in my collection -- but it is not what I was remembering. I haven't looked at in a long time. When I mentioned Bruce trying the FBI before quitting, I was definitely thinking of one of the "Zero Issues" of one of the regular Batman titles of the 1990s. Either "Batman #0" or "Detective Comics #0" or "Shadow of the Bat #0" or "Legends of the Dark Knight #0" -- at any rate, it was published in late 1994, right after "Zero Hour" ended.

But it's also been a long, long time since I bothered to reread any of those "Zero Issues," so I don't know which it was that mentioned the FBI. They were working together to bring readers up to date, I believe in a 4-part arc that was mostly flashbacks, on the details of Batman's "modern continuity" of the mid-1990s.

[tua34183]

this batman timeline has information regarding Bruce's age...

http://therealbatmanchronoproject.blogspot.com



check it out!

[Enjoypolydor]

I like my characters to age. It makes them more realistic. I would hate to pick up a batman comic in 40 years just to see batman the same age as he is now. As long as every 5 years his age increases by 1 year we're making progress.

[dupersuper]

I like my characters to age. It makes them more realistic. I would hate to pick up a batman comic in 40 years just to see batman the same age as he is now. As long as every 5 years his age increases by 1 year we're making progress.

Progress towards his death or another reboot...