Summary

• Dick Grayson, the first Robin and long-tentured DC hero Nightwing, deduced that Bruce Wayne is Batman simply by analyzing their facial expressions and mannerisms.
• Nightwing’s deductive abilities were evident even before his superhero career, and were showcased in 2012’s Nightwing #0.
• Nightwing’s natural detective skills may even surpass Batman’s, as he demonstrated these abilities as an untrained child.

Before he even put on a cape and cowl, the first Robin – now known as Nightwing – proved his exceptional detective skills by almost immediately putting together than Bruce Wayne and Batman are one and the same, a fact that evaded even Gotham’s most skilled investigators. As this proved, Dick Grayson’s deduction skills were always top-notch, even before his long, illustrious superhero career.

Nightwing #0 –by Tom DeFalco, Kyle Higgins, Eddy Barrows, and Eber Ferreira – fully displayed Dick’s deductive abilities. The issue serves as a hidden origin story of Dick Grayson and his entry into Wayne Manor. As the story unfolds, it became increasingly what kind of skills Dick walked into the mansion without, before beginning the training that would take him truly to the next level.

Just by analyzing the looks on their faces, Dick Grayson was able to figure out the deepest secret in Gotham City’s history: Bruce Wayne is Batman. This made it immediately apparent why the young orphan was fit to become a costumed crimefighter alongside the Caped Crusader.

One Look Unlocked Batman’s Secret Identity

On the night that Dick Grayson’s parents were killed, Bruce Wayne was among the first to go comfort him, and Dick took notice of how Bruce favored his face, namely the tension headache, eyes twitching, and teeth grinding. Later, Dick searched the city looking for his parents’ assailant, but instead found Batman roughing up some petty thugs. Dick decides to help him in the fight, and took note of Batman’s reaction to him, namely in how Batman shares the same facial characteristics as his new adoptive father. Dick quickly put two-and-two together, uncovering the secret of Batman’s identity in a way that put every other detective and villain alike in Gotham to shame.

Nightwing #0 was published in 2012 as part of DC’s New 52 initiative.

Dick would go on to confirm his suspicions by researching Bruce Wayne’s life, and discovering Bruce’s childhood traumas revolving around his own parents – but it all began with a sly observation. Dick took note of details and mannerisms that the average Gotham citizen would find easy to overlook. In fact, considering how much of a best kept secret Batman’s secret identity is, most Gotham citizens have overlooked this, but not Dick. This is the kind of fine attention to detail that has made Batman’s claim to being the World’s Greatest Detective ring so true for so long – making it evident that Dick Grayson has a claim to the title as well.

Dick Was Always A Great Detective – Arguably Better Than Batman

Throughout his years as Batman’s ward and sidekick, and his subsequent solo career, Nightwing has consistently showed the makings of a great detective – with Nightwing #0 making it clear he possessed these innate abilities long before picking up the Robin mantle, before becoming a superhero at all. Before he learned from the best, Dick just naturally happened to have the top-tier skills. Even Batman had to learn his skills from masters across the world over, but Nightwing displayed the same abilities as an untrained child. By proxy, one has to wonder if that makes a sound argument for how Nightwing might have surpassed Batman as the World’s Greatest Detective.