Aqualad was originally found by Aquaman in a capsule (Aqualad had been "exiled" for his fear of fish; yes, exiling a child between the ages of 8 and 10 is still morally reprehensible), but in this case, the exile wasn't meant to kill him, but rather to protect him and allow him to live. He was placed there with the intention that someone would find and rescue him (similar to Aquaman's first partner, "Lisa Morel, the first Aquagirl in 1959"). However, that exile origin was removed from canon when they decided to give Garth parents (i.e., the 1960 Aqualad only lasted until 1964, and from 1965 onward, Aqualad had, so to speak, a reboot, and from 1965 onward, Aqualad had black, wavy hair). From 1960 to 1964, Aqualad had straight, brown hair. Aqualad's parents were introduced between 1977 and 1978 (King Thar was the first to appear; specifically, Thar appeared in an image in "Adventure Comics #454 (1977)," and a year later Queen Berra and King Thar appeared together in a flashback in "Adventure Comics #455 (1978)"; however, the first appearance of King Thar and Queen Berra was in "Teen Titans Spotlight #10 (1987)"), while Slizzath (Zath) appeared in the Garth miniseries in "Tempest" (1996-1997). The 1960-1964 version never had a name, only "Aqualad." Although he was called "Mark Queentin" in 1964, it was only that one time (it's worth noting that he wasn't called "Garth" until approximately 1983). (That is, 23 years after his creation).
In In Tempest (1996-1997), Garth was abandoned at birth because of his eyes, while in 1960 Aquaman found him in a capsule (in one case, the exile was to protect him, not to kill him; in the second, he was abandoned as a baby with the clear intention of killing him).
There is a huge difference: one was protection, the other, cruelty and attempted infanticide. Luckily, Garth survived, but at a high price: he seemed to suffer from abandonment trauma, which is why he never left Aquaman's side.
And as Garth tells the Idyllist (and his mother) in "Tempest #3 1997":
1) "Do you have any idea how twisted you people are? Couldn't you just have buried the scroll?! I could've killed myself whit that knife! You lied to me. You lied to me, all these years you lied to me!"
2) "You left me to die because of some cryptic vagaries about a magical catastrophe i might have been able to prevent!"
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Summary: Dick tries his luck and asks Barbara out over text…only to not receive a reply.
It’s up to his good buddy Garth to cheer him up!
Takes place…after World’s Finest: Teen Titans? Something like that. Pre-the Titans leaving their original headquarters. Those prequel stories are always hard to place.
Robin & Aqualad’s Lowkey Adventure: The Risky Text
He couldn’t enjoy the festivities.
I blew it. This time I really, really blew it.
It was the Teen Titans’ third anniversary, and the gang went all out. Most of the Titans were planning on going to college in the fall, so they had to make this one count. The Titans Lair was packed with decorations, snacks, and drinks while they set up an all-night marathon of every gross and gory horror movie they could come up with.
And yet, Dick Grayson managed to blow it.
Just before he left for the Lair, he decided to try his luck.
He was going to ask out Barbara Gordon.
No more putting it off. “Do, or do not.” Preferably do.
And so he did. He sent her a message at 8:37 P.M., which read:
DG: Hey Babs. I’ve been thinking about this for a while, and I’d really like to take you out soon. We’ve been friends for a while now, but I think we could be more.
DG: Take you out to dinner I mean
DG: Not kill you lol
He sent these messages just as he was driving over to the Lair, hoping to get a response by the time he arrived. He arrived at precisely 8:54, but there was still no response. Being the first one at the party, Dick started to set up while he waited for the others to trickle in, intermittently checking his phone.
Donna came in right at 9:00, no response.
Wally was the second to arrive at 9:02, no response.
Garth brought the pizza, so he was a few minutes behind at 9:12. Still no response.
Then finally Roy deigned to make his entrance over half an hour late, 9:38. Barbara hadn’t even seen the message.
This might have been a mistake.
They started the first movie—Blood Tides, a Jaws rip-off starring Paul Sloane—at 9:47. Nothing. Everyone else was having a fun time. Wally ate half a pizza before Garth noticed and yelled at him, then he ate the other half. Donna and Roy were flirting all night.
Rub it in, why don’t ya?
But all Dick could think about was that message. He really, really blew it. He should have had Donna look over it.
Why is it that every time I’m around Barb I turn into a total doofus? How come I’ve never figured out how to ask her out, and now that I have she’s got me unread? What was I thinking?
Wally ran to Japan and back to get more snacks at 10:17. Garth did a full PowerPoint critique of the shark and its behavior at 10:29. Roy bet that he could throw a grape into Donna’s mouth at 10:51. He missed at 10:52. Donna did impromptu karaoke to the closing song of the movie at 11:08. Wally ran to get even more snacks while Garth introduced the next movie, Space Quest II: Uthar’s Revenge, at 11:11.
Still nothing.
I might have really screwed up this time.
Midnight passed. As did Roy out on the couch. Donna soon joined him, though closer to 1 A.M. Wally snuck out at 1:45 to run back to Blue Valley and sleep in his own bed, leaving Dick and Garth to finish the evening.
They were watching—well, Garth was watching, Dick was still checking his phone every two minutes—Vampire Demon Lords Part IV when Garth looked at Dick and asked, “Hey dude, you’ve been really quiet tonight. Is everything okay?”
“Huh,” Dick mumbled as he looked up from his phone—nada, for the record. “Oh, yeah, I’m fine.”
“So you had fun?”
Dick shrugged. “Sure.”
“Doesn’t sound like it.”
“Listen, man, I’m just…I’m having a rough one.”
Garth nodded, then leaned back into the sofa. “You want to grab a soda with me? From the kitchen?”
Dick shrugged again, “Sure,” he repeated.
Check, 1:59 A.M. Message unread.
Torture.
Dick and Garth got up and walked down to the kitchen, the Aquatic Ace telling the Boy Wonder about this time he fought someone named “Cutlass Charlie.” As Garth pulled a Diet Zesti from the fridge and Dick pulled out his phone again, Garth asked him, “you waiting on some bad news?”
“Something like that.”
“Feel comfortable sharing?”
“Not really, Garth.”
Garth put down his drink and leaned back against the counter. “Dick, I don’t want to pry, but you really missed out tonight. We were having a lot of fun, but you just looked at your phone the whole time.”
Dick was starting to get irritated, “What does it matter to you if I have fun or not? No one’s life is in danger, if I want to look at my phone that’s my business.”
“I guess, but is that how you wanted to spend the evening?”
“Obviously not!”
“Then why did you?”
Dick threw up his hands, “Because I’m stupid! Because I took a chance, and so far it’s backfired completely.” He sat down at the kitchen table. “I just…I just screwed up tonight and…” Suddenly Dick felt very silly. “And I let it ruin something I was looking forward to. Among other things.”
“Still don’t want to talk about it?”
“Not on your life, Gillhead,” Dick said, affectionately.
“That’s fair, how about a compromise?”
“What do you have in mind?”
“I brought some fishing rods, how about we take the rest of the pizza and Zestis and do some late night fishing? Minus phones.”
Dick looked down at the infernal device. In his hand. 2:06. Unread. “You know, that sounds like a great idea, actually.” Dick chuckled a bit before Garth let out some uproarious laughter.
“I’ll race ya down there, Dickie-Boy!”
“You’re on, Fishstick!”
The two friends zipped through the Lair and to the harbor, then out on the river. Without the temptation to use it, Dick slowly forgot the urge to check his phone. It helped that Garth did everything in his power to keep the conversation light, and away from the subjects he suspected might be at fault (namely: Batman, school, or a girl he liked).
They talked and fished (and didn’t catch jack) right up until dawn, when both were so tired they could barely form a coherent thought. They returned to the Lair, and Dick passed out on the couch next to Roy while Garth made it to the recliner meant for Wally. Just before he fell asleep, Dick reached for his phone, but stopped himself.
Garth was right, I need to stop. At least for tonight.
He let himself relax…
Dick woke up around noon, while the gang was making lunch without him, and he instinctively checked his phone.
Read: 2:17 A.M.
He almost threw up right there. He had to sit down.
Should I call her? Should I never speak to her again? Can I ever speak to her again?
He stumbled down the steps, then took a deep breath, and let go.
I will talk to her about this later, right now I will be with my friends.
He walked into lunch with a chipper, “Good morning everyone.”
Roy checked his watch. “It ain’t morning.”
“Yeah, and you aren’t Shakespeare, but we don’t hold that against you, pal.”
The gang laughed and ate and drank a toast to three successful years, and eventually Garth took Dick aside to check on him. “Feeling better?”
“Not really, but thanks man. That was really cool of you.”
“No problem, buddy,” Garth said as he pulled Dick into a hug. “You know if you need to say something—”
“Trust me, I know. And I appreciate it. You guys are the best.”
They finished lunch, said their goodbyes, and went their separate ways. Dick was just about to start his motorcycle when he felt a ping from his phone.
BG: Dick we should talk in person.
His heart sank.
Somehow, I doubt that this is a ‘yes’ in disguise.
Another deep breath. Whatever her answer, he’d accept it. And regardless of the outcome, he decided he’d treat Aqualad to lunch. Either in celebration, or in mourning, but certainly in thanks for being a good friend.
DG: Okay, meet tomorrow night? WT?
BG: 👍
Dick finally put his phone away, and started his journey back to Wayne Manor.
Notes & Continuity
This was far and away my favorite prompt from this week. Something about it was so evocative. I originally was going to do something Ric related, but after seeing Obsession I felt like I wanted to do a Robin/Batgirl story. Luckily, Dick isn’t scum like Bear.
Also, as a few have pointed out, he doesn’t have enough stories hanging out with Garth! I felt this was a grave injustice, so I decided to set aside the time to have Garth come in clutch this time.
Superman: Son of Kal-El #8, Variant Cover by Travis Moore and Tamra Bonvillain
Today I'm highlighting JACKSON HYDE, a.k.a. Aquaman. If you've read through Jon's appearances, you may be familiar with him from the Super Sons of Tomorrow arc or Superman: Son of Kal-El #7-8. To get to know him, check out Teen Titans (2016) #6-7, #9-11, Aquaman (2016) #62-63 and Aquaman: The Becoming.
Teen Titans (2016) #11, Cover by Brad Walker, Andrew Hennessy and Jim Charalampidis & Aquaman: The Becoming #1, Cover by David Talaski
