DC Comics

Even if you don't THINK you know Dick Grayson, you definitely do -- he's charmed comic readers for decades, first as Batman's original sidekick Robin and later as the older, more confident (and way hotter) Nightwing.

Also, if you've ever been to the comics side of Twitter and saw a bunch of ladies ironically cooing over a superhero's butt, it was definitely Dick Grayson's. As comic writer Gail Simone put it recently:

But (pun intended) in the "Grayson" comic series, which debuted last year, Dick's doing a little something different -- he's taken on a brand new identity as a secret agent in Spyral, an international spy organization that may or may not be spying on superheroes. Basically, imagine a younger, more hip James Bond who fights supervillains and also sometimes reports to Batman. Sounds awesome, right?

The comic's first hardcover volume, "Grayson: Agents of Spyral" comes out in comic book stores today (June 3) and in regular bookstores next week. To mark the occasion we spoke to writers Tim Seely and Tom King (who actually worked for the CIA once, for realsies) about this fantastic series, which you should totally be reading. Plus, we've also got some MTV News exclusive early art from the book as well that takes you deep inside the comic-making process.

"I come from an odd background where I served in the CIA for a bunch of years, doing counter terrorism work overseas," Tom King told MTV News over the phone. "Writing Spyral, I get to write my dream of what a spy would be like. Sort of the ultimate fantasy of what it would be like, and also the ultimate nightmare on the other side. I think pushing those two limits makes it."

But despite that, King says, you're not going to open "Grayson" and find a tell-all exposé about the CIA. "I loved that job, and I very much respect the people who are still serving and are depending on me to keep their secrets," he said. "So I don’t put any actual realism in it, in terms of what factually happened. But in terms of the emotional concept, in terms of having to lie to everyone you love in order to serve a greater cause -- I’ve actually had to do that, so I can talk to that and talk to how that feels and put that kind of realism into the book."

One thing the writers don't shy away from? Dick Grayson's recent reputation as the DC Universe's male eye-candy.

"I mean, to write a Grayson comic where he’s not sexy is like writing a Batman comic where he’s not depressed," King said. "That’s part of who he is. It comes from his confidence, it comes from him knowing who he is, [being] proud of who he really is. And it comes from his abs and his ass. So it’s three sources."

"We live in a world where twenty years ago, thirty years ago, seeing a girl at a comic convention was surprising. Now, women are 50% of the readership at this point," Seely added. "So why not give them the thing men have, which is sort of an eye candy lead character? It’s fun and it should be fun, and I think I’m a mutual exploiter. I will exploit anyone for something to look at in a comic and I don’t have any problem doing it for Dick Grayson."

Even the characters within the comic notice Grayson's sexiness, too -- like the college-aged students of "St. Hadrian's School For Girls," Spyral's boarding school for assassins-in-trainings that hosts "insanely strong and confident women who just happen to be college students with the sexiest man alive as their teacher," according to King.

And there's also Midnighter, Dick Grayson's current rival who originally started out as a Batman parody and just recently got a comic series of his own. "We both liked the idea that Midnighter reflects a lot of what Dick had problems with with Batman, but also the things that he respects about Batman too," Seely added. "When he has to face off against the guy, there’s sort of this instant kinship and also dislike." You know, among... other things.

DC Comics

Midnighter's also gay, did we mention that?

Since "Grayson #1" hit comic book stores last year, the response has been great, say Seely and King -- particularly from the types of comic book readers who don't get pandered to very often.

"I think it’s even more fun to see how many women and gay men come up to me, who have an appreciation for Grayson," Seely told us. "Because there’s not a lot of book characters, I think, that have sort of a different fan base than what is typical. It’s so great to see new people coming into comics, or who have been into comics and haven’t been very vocal about it, and that’s probably one of the coolest things about Grayson, all the women."

"I’ve been at a convention before where women will just come up and say ‘thank you,’ and that’s it, and that’s really cool," he added.

"Grayson: Agents Of Spyral" collects the first five issues of the series (along with some relevant stories from different comics), but the comic's still going strong -- this month, it'll hit issue #9, and things are going to change in a big way.

"The first year was about sort of establishing this new status quo, sort of showing our audiences that we would do right by this character," King said. "The second year is slowly bringing Dick Grayson back into the full DC U. I’m not saying how that’s going to happen or what form that’s going to take, but Dick Grayson is a social character. I think he’s a leader, he’s a brother, he’s a son and that aspect of his character will be the focus of the next year ahead."

Also, fans of Grayson's sex appeal won't want to miss the next issue. "You get to play 'boxers or briefs?'" King added.

Check out more exclusive artwork from the interior of the book below:

"Grayson Volume 1: Agents of Spyral" is in comic book stores today and will be available everywhere books are sold on June 9.