10 Best Comic Book Detectives (That Aren't Batman)

1. Tim Drake

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Of all the people that have held the moniker of Robin, the best detective is Tim Drake. As a small boy, Tim attended the Haley Circus and met the Flying Graysons on the day of their deaths. Years later, he saw Batman and Robin and noticed the same acrobatics as Dick Grayson had done in the circus and deduced the Dynamic Duo’s identities. At age 13, he noticed the mood change in Batman after the death of Jason Todd and deduced that Batman needed a Robin. After saving Batman and Nightwing from Two-Face, Drake began training to become the third Robin.

In Batman #617, Batman stated that, with time, Tim could surpass him as the “World’s Greatest Detective.” Nightwing has admitted that he is not as good a detective as Red Robin is, despite the fact that many would put the first Robin right behind the Dark Knight on any list.

Proof of Tim Drake’s status came in Red Robin #12. Tim didn’t believe that Bruce Wayne had actually died at the end of the Final Crisis series. He discovered Ra’s al Ghul was trying to steal Bruce Wayne's fortune and kill a number of Wayne’s loved ones. Red Robin thwarted him at every avenue. Ra’s angrily but respectfully referred to Red Robin as “Detective.”

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John Wilson has been a comic book and pop culture fan his entire life. He has written for a number of websites on the subject over the years and is especially pleased to be at WhatCulture. John has written two comic books for Last Ember Press Studio and has recently self-published a children's book called "Blue." When not spending far too much time on the internet, John spends time with his lovely wife, Kim, their goofy dog, Tesla, and two very spoiled cats.