Warning: spoilers for DC Pride 2022 #1 are ahead!
In DC Comics, Batman and Green Arrow have never really gotten along, but after recent events in both Robin and DC Pride 2022 #1, it's clear their sons are doing what Bruce Wayne and Oliver Queen could never do: strike up a true friendship. Though Damian Wayne and Connor Hawke began as true rivals on Lazarus Island, they have bonded over their unusual upbringings and their strained relationships with their famous fathers. After banding together for multiple team-ups, their bond is stronger than ever, and that bond has become integral to their current storylines.
Damian and Connor are legacy characters with long histories both on and off the page. Despite being similar ages in the current DC Universe, Connor Hawke was introduced long before Damian Wayne. A 90s-era legacy character, Connor took over the role of Green Arrow from his father Oliver Queen after he died. At the time, Connor was often paired with other legacy characters around his age, such as Tim Drake as Robin and Kyle Rayner as Green Lantern. With the introduction of DC's New 52, many of these legacy characters—including Connor and his time as Green Arrow—were erased from the universe. Now, in the Infinite Frontier era, Connor has been re-introduced in the pages of the Robin ongoing series as a fighter for League of Shadows and Damian Wayne's peer.
Most recently, Connor Hawke was featured in DC Pride 2022 #1 in a story by Ro Stein and Ted Brandt, where Connor comes out as asexual in a touching note to his mother. Damian pops up at the end of Connor's story, where Damian encourages Connor to speak to his mother instead of writing, and Damian then relates Connor's anxieties to his own relationship to his mother, Talia al Ghul. Earlier in these pages, in the letter to his mother, Connor refers to Damian as his "friend." Similarly, when Damian finally reconnects with Batman, Damian also includes Connor when telling his father he made new friends on Lazarus Island. Despite Connor's previous connections with older legacy characters, these small moments firmly unite Connor and Damian as both peers and friends.
Because of these repeated connections, fans can continue to expect team-ups between Robin and Hawke. In fact, at the end of Connor's coming out story, readers are told that "Connor and Damian's adventures continue in Robin #15!" Not only does this confirm their continued connection, it also firmly connects the events of Connor's coming out story—which includes a mention of the mysterious Nezha, a figure whose name continues to crop up in multiple Bat-books—to ongoing canon and the larger DC Universe. Connor's asexuality is not something to be ignored, nor is his friendship with Damian Wayne. Both are essential to his presence in the Infinite Frontier era, and they will continue to affect his character moving forward.
Unique legacy characters in their own right, Connor Hawke and Damian Wayne are made stronger by their new bond of friendship—something Batman and Green Arrow could never claim. Bruce Wayne and Oliver Queen are often at odds with each other, and they rarely see eye-to-eye. But recent events on Lazarus Island and Connor's trusting of Damian during his coming out prove that their bond is new, but unbreakable. The sons of Batman and Green Arrow have outpaced their fathers, and future team-ups will prove their mettle.
DC Pride 2022 #1 is available now from DC Comics!