DC’s Justice League Has A Surprising New Leader
The Justice League of DC Comics has a new leader, Dick Grayson, Nightwing, accepted the mantle of leadership in his landmark solo series.
The pages of DC Comics are stacked with characters that have deep histories, both on the hero side and the villains, and Batman is arguably the most popular of them all. Of course, Batman and his civilian alter ego Bruce Wayne can’t defend all of Gotham or the world by himself, and that is where Nightwing and the Justice League come in. After years of running the team of global and galactic heroes, the landmark Nightwing #100 sees the Dark Knight hand leadership of the team over to his former protege.
In the current issue, Heartless, AKA Shelton Lyle, had become the leader of the syndicate in Bludhaven following the fall of Blockbuster, AKA Roland Desmond and Sal Maroni. The issue was one that displayed Dick Grayson’s heart and purity as he came face to face with Tony Zucco, the man who murdered his parents and put him on the path to becoming Robin to Bruce Wayne’s Batman. His actions in the current line are what led his former mentor to offer Nightwing his leadership role in the Justice League.
The Justice League has been the Earth’s greatest defense for decades since the numerous crisis the world faced brought together the planet’s greatest heroes in Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman, and Martian Manhunter. Later incarnations added other heroes to the roster, like Hawkman, Hawkgirl, Red Tornado, and more, letting the combination of powers and abilities create the perfect team. They aren’t the only team that the Earth has at their disposal, and Nightwing’s appointment to the leader isn’t the first he has held, as he led the team of sidekicks known as the Titans.
The Teen Titans are comprised of a collection of sidekicks that the Justice League members have trained, with Dick Grayson’s Robin as their leader. Other members of the team have included Aqualad, Wonder Girl, Wally West’s Flash, and other young heroes like Cyborg, Beast Boy, Connor Kent, Raven, and Starfire. When Dick Grayson led the team as Nightwing, he gained all he needed to become the kind of leader the Justice League needed.
On top of abilities and experience, there is something else that makes Dick Grayson the perfect team leader; his demeanor and personality is the ideal mix. For years, the World’s Finest, Superman and Batman, have led the team as a yin and yang dynamic; with Superman, a beacon of hope and always looking on the brighter side of humanity and Batman being a dark and paranoid man, they balanced each other perfectly. Grayson spent his time as Robin being that same balance for Batman while learning his way of expecting the worse of humanity and always keeping hope in his heart.
In keeping with the same talents and balance at the head of the team, Nightwing seems to be the perfect candidate to step up and take over the Justice League. With the experience of being trained by Batman and the positive outlook of Superman, the other team members will likely follow his lead. With James Gunn needing a new version of the Justice League for the screen, Brandon Thwaites from HBO Max’s Titans seems the perfect person to step up for the future.
