[essay] One Year Anniversary
So, it's finally come around to Robin's one year anniversary. And sadly enough, Tim is reaching a kind of breaking point here. I totally predicted about five months ago that Tim would eventually either come to terms with camp and give up the Robin mantle, or else lock himself away somewhere with Lady doing research of some kind. Uhm... both of those are sort of coming true at this point, for various reasons. I shall make a list! Keep in mind these are just things he wants.
1. He doesn't feel useful.
2. His life has been on pause since he arrived in camp.
One, Tim feels like Robin isn't useful in the camp anymore. The camp has many powerful people willing to defend each other, and fight off campwide threats when that's possible. While he knows he is capable of doing decently against general enemies, with all the heavy hitters in camp --including two thirds of YJ's heavy hitters being mostly at his disposal (Wonder Girl being the last third)-- everyone's better off with him out of the way and orchestrating if the need arises. He doesn't want repeat incidents of Friday the 13th and whatnot. He knows not all the fighters in camp have qualms about killing, but he's actually started taking the moogle thing into account here. Even if he doesn't want to include that resurrection as a factor because he doesn't want to mess up his perception of home and his real world, the resurrection thing means fighters that willingly get themselves killed won't stay that way and he doesn't worry over that because only the very powerful seem to beat each other near death and he can do little to stop it himself and that just means he should be focusing somewhere else. It just comes down to CFUD not being Robin's environment. Robin was made for Gotham, trained for Gotham, he doesn't have a place here where the metahuman density is so high that when things start getting physical, a person can only do so much before it just becomes ineffective.
Two, Tim is being left behind in a way. Bart is adaptable, and has taken to CFUD well, and easily integrated himself with the logic of the place. Kon, while not adaptable in the same way, has certainly carved out a place and a sort of life based on CFUD. Also he's doing insane things like getting MARRIED. Lady has moved on, as she should have, and Terry has moved on, also as he should have. Tim, is a little bit jealous. Of everyone, pretty much. He knows he can be capable of moving on, making friends, enjoying camp when possible, but he felt strongly like it was his duty not to move forward for fear of skewing his perceptions too much --not being able to reintegrate with reality when they leave camp-- but unable to fall back on Robin more and more because Robin isn't useful in Camp. Because he was in Robin mode for so long, and because he didn't want to lose touch with the reality he knew before camp, had been on pause this whole time. He had no where to go. So now, finally, after the experience with the multiverse of Robins, he's kind of determined Robins are replaceable in certain ways, and so he's moving forward.
The thing is the changes he wants to make are dramatic. He doesn't think giving up Robin is a good idea, concerning Gotham, but in camp it'd be best to put Robin on hold, keep him stored away as a reminder. He's not separating Tim and Robin as much anymore and Robin is the suit and symbol again, which he's stashing in a drawer. Meanwhile Tim is going to do all he can to obtain more useful skills that can actually be of use in camp, and that he can still utilize when he's back in Gotham and needs to retrain (because he has no doubt he's going to get out of practice for Robin). Thus, medicine. Also, the more Oracle-esque approach he wants to take to doing fights. Medicine because in camp people are endlessly getting hurt, including the doctors, and also CFUD Hospital seems like a good place to observe others. Oracle-ness because he wants to up the camp surveillance so disturbances are easier to locate and call attention to. He will still be out there in fights sometimes, but not really fighting as much as watching and directing. He wants to develop a good communication system so that not only YJ can be alerted, but maybe the other heroes or other powered fighters in camp. He also wants to maybe cook, stealth simply for the pleasure of stealthing, and raid Brainy's lab for info and learnings. He also kind of really wants to make friends, or just find people he can be open with.
So ALL this is well and good and such except that it fundamentally changes him, and for me I'm not sure I could play it well. And also, Tim putting Robin on backburner means I lose like... over half my icons, which is just ridiculous. I'm trying to convince him that Robin should just be adapted to camp, but he's annoyed enough already at all the adapting he's had to do to his perception, and how different it is from when he started in camp. It's all beyond frustrating for him. He wants to preserve Robin somehow, keep Robin part of Gotham pretty much. So yeah, major giving up Robin mantle and locking himself in a room doing research issues. WHAT DO I DO WITH HIM?? It's not like character development shouldn't happen, but seriously Why does he have to take this so far?
1. He doesn't feel useful.
2. His life has been on pause since he arrived in camp.
One, Tim feels like Robin isn't useful in the camp anymore. The camp has many powerful people willing to defend each other, and fight off campwide threats when that's possible. While he knows he is capable of doing decently against general enemies, with all the heavy hitters in camp --including two thirds of YJ's heavy hitters being mostly at his disposal (Wonder Girl being the last third)-- everyone's better off with him out of the way and orchestrating if the need arises. He doesn't want repeat incidents of Friday the 13th and whatnot. He knows not all the fighters in camp have qualms about killing, but he's actually started taking the moogle thing into account here. Even if he doesn't want to include that resurrection as a factor because he doesn't want to mess up his perception of home and his real world, the resurrection thing means fighters that willingly get themselves killed won't stay that way and he doesn't worry over that because only the very powerful seem to beat each other near death and he can do little to stop it himself and that just means he should be focusing somewhere else. It just comes down to CFUD not being Robin's environment. Robin was made for Gotham, trained for Gotham, he doesn't have a place here where the metahuman density is so high that when things start getting physical, a person can only do so much before it just becomes ineffective.
Two, Tim is being left behind in a way. Bart is adaptable, and has taken to CFUD well, and easily integrated himself with the logic of the place. Kon, while not adaptable in the same way, has certainly carved out a place and a sort of life based on CFUD. Also he's doing insane things like getting MARRIED. Lady has moved on, as she should have, and Terry has moved on, also as he should have. Tim, is a little bit jealous. Of everyone, pretty much. He knows he can be capable of moving on, making friends, enjoying camp when possible, but he felt strongly like it was his duty not to move forward for fear of skewing his perceptions too much --not being able to reintegrate with reality when they leave camp-- but unable to fall back on Robin more and more because Robin isn't useful in Camp. Because he was in Robin mode for so long, and because he didn't want to lose touch with the reality he knew before camp, had been on pause this whole time. He had no where to go. So now, finally, after the experience with the multiverse of Robins, he's kind of determined Robins are replaceable in certain ways, and so he's moving forward.
The thing is the changes he wants to make are dramatic. He doesn't think giving up Robin is a good idea, concerning Gotham, but in camp it'd be best to put Robin on hold, keep him stored away as a reminder. He's not separating Tim and Robin as much anymore and Robin is the suit and symbol again, which he's stashing in a drawer. Meanwhile Tim is going to do all he can to obtain more useful skills that can actually be of use in camp, and that he can still utilize when he's back in Gotham and needs to retrain (because he has no doubt he's going to get out of practice for Robin). Thus, medicine. Also, the more Oracle-esque approach he wants to take to doing fights. Medicine because in camp people are endlessly getting hurt, including the doctors, and also CFUD Hospital seems like a good place to observe others. Oracle-ness because he wants to up the camp surveillance so disturbances are easier to locate and call attention to. He will still be out there in fights sometimes, but not really fighting as much as watching and directing. He wants to develop a good communication system so that not only YJ can be alerted, but maybe the other heroes or other powered fighters in camp. He also wants to maybe cook, stealth simply for the pleasure of stealthing, and raid Brainy's lab for info and learnings. He also kind of really wants to make friends, or just find people he can be open with.
So ALL this is well and good and such except that it fundamentally changes him, and for me I'm not sure I could play it well. And also, Tim putting Robin on backburner means I lose like... over half my icons, which is just ridiculous. I'm trying to convince him that Robin should just be adapted to camp, but he's annoyed enough already at all the adapting he's had to do to his perception, and how different it is from when he started in camp. It's all beyond frustrating for him. He wants to preserve Robin somehow, keep Robin part of Gotham pretty much. So yeah, major giving up Robin mantle and locking himself in a room doing research issues. WHAT DO I DO WITH HIM?? It's not like character development shouldn't happen, but seriously Why does he have to take this so far?