SPOILER WARNING for Nightwing #80!
Adam West is a superstar in the Batman fan community for his campy portrayal of the Caped Crusader in the '60s movie and TV series, and his popularity is so widespread that even Nightwing is a fan in DC comics.
A far cry from today’s dark and gritty Batman stories, Adam West’s adventures as Gotham’s defender featured a plethora of goofy plotlines and corny dialogue. Though the show and the movie were absolutely absurd, they’ve remained fairly popular, even pushing DC Comics to bring back Adam West and Burt Ward’s Dynamic Duo in 2013’s Batman ‘66 comic series. In modern comics, it seems Dick Grayson loves West's Batman, too, as the scene makes a brief appearance in Nightwing’s latest series.
Dick Grayson recently inherited a large sum of money from Alfred Pennyworth and he’s decided to use it to help the disenfranchised people of Blüdhaven. Unfortunately, his kindness gets him into trouble in Tom Taylor, Bruno Redondo, Adriano Lucas, and Wes Abbott’s Nightwing #80, when he discovers that he’s the main suspect in the murder of a homeless man named Martin Holt. Upon learning this shocking news, Dick invites the two police officers at his door inside and gives Barbara Gordon a call, as she’s his only alibi. While waiting for Barbara to arrive, Dick prepares some coffee for his guests and readers are able to catch a glimpse of a coffee mug that shows Adam West’s Batman holding a bomb.
Including a shout out to Adam West’s infamous "some days you can't get rid of a bomb" scene, in which the Caped Crusader is frantically trying to dispose of an explosive device, is a fun easter egg for fans, but it also suggests that Batman: The Movie exists in DC’s main continuity in some way. What that means though, is anyone’s guess. On the one hand, this could mean that characters within the DC Universe can watch the movie for themselves. Unfortunately, this theory doesn’t stand very well on its own, considering how the film would reveal Batman and Robin’s secret identities to the world. On the other hand, the mug could be proof that the events of the movie are actually canon in the Dark Knight’s history, but considering how different Adam West’s version of Batman is from his mainstream comic counterpart, that’s also a bit far fetched.
Whatever the case may be, it’s nice to see that Nightwing is repping some Batman merch in his civilian life. The comic also shows that he owns a Black Canary shirt, so it’s clear that Dick shows some support for his fellow heroes. It may not be entirely obvious how the young hero got his hands on an Adam West coffee mug, but at least it shows that he has some appreciation for the man who raised him. Nightwing #80 from DC Comics is available now.