This is Damian at his finest. This is the moment where all of his growth and things that he’s learned over his last few months as Robin are seen on six panels. The last time Damian made a plan, he really didn’t have one beyond “beat the other guy senseless to prove to Dick I’m better than him.” This ended badly. This time, he’s taken what he’s learned into account before making a plan.
I should also point out that Damian’s a tactician: he hears and sees, and then quickly formulates a plan. He never allows his age to factor into said plan ever, and this is no different. But unlike last time, where he was only thinking about himself, here he is thinking about everyone: himself, Hurt, Dick, Gordon, as well as the city of Gotham, which is currently plagued by some sort of drug-addled illness (don’t ask). He could easily have thought only of his own problems, but he didn’t. At the same time, he’s the only one who could save Dick, and he knows that Gordon is capable of handling the rest, so he sends him where he can be most useful. This is the sort of plan a member of the Bat Family would make, not a plan someone from the League of Assassins would make.
Also, Damian seems to be having the beginnings of respect if he’s asking Gordon if he’s all right and giving him the option of being beaten senseless instead of just beating him senseless. This is the guy who handed Dick over to the bad guy, and even though it wasn’t his fault, that hasn’t stopped Damian from blaming people before. There’s no blame here. All he did was answer Gordon’s question. And considering Gordon seems to have no respect for Damian (if he had he would never have asked Damian to go back with him); I give him a lot of credit for that.
(Source: Batman and Robin 15)
