Book of Doom: Nightwing #153

It’s certainly been one hell of a run, eh, sports fans?

Before we start with the reviews, let me just say that Nightwing, aka Dick Grayson, is my favorite superhero. I’ve read every single issue of his solo title since it began in 1996, and, for the most part, it’s been enjoyable. The build-up to Infinite Crisis was amazingly well-done, but, at the same time, it was painfully obvious that the story that Nightwing had been involved in was tossed aside so that his monthly could be shoe-horned into the bigger goings-on in the DCU. And, really, that was the beginning of a very troubling period for Nightwing.

One Year Later, he was tossed into the stupidest storyline I’ve ever had the displeasure of reading, and it wasn’t until the last few months that it seemed as if Nightwing was finally getting some direction again. He started to establish himself for the first time since Bludhaven blew up, and it seemed like things were going to be entertaining again.

But then Batman had to go and ruin it all by dying.

So now we’re left with this. Thirteen years of trying to establish Dick Grayson as his own man, and the final issue is just solidifying his role as forever standing in the shadow of the bat.

He fixes up Bruce’s cave, returns to Bruce’s city, and pays his respects on Crime Alley to the spot where Bruce’s parents were murdered.

My hat’s off, DC. You really did a great job in the past decade and a third making Nightwing his own man. Really, truly. A great job.

Here’s what everybody else thought:

Doominator:
So I haven’t read Nightwing before, and this issue tries to keep people up to date … a lot.

But is this a disservice in the last issue? Possibly. It came across as overstatement of the current state of Batman affairs, which is funny, considering no one will be buying Nightwing anymore. So it’s a prelude into another series of recaps. Oh, and there are needless cameos and virtually no goodbyes to Butthaven.

There are some moments that are next supposed to have resonance but fail as we’re kept up to date with the next series of inexplicable events. Alfred and Dick talk, Tim sulks off, the Batcave is reconstituted by finding the big penny … something something …

Basically, on a lot of fronts, this failed to hold my interest. It’s nice to see a series so tidily resolved, but there’s actually really nothing more than surface resolution, a sort of feeling of WELL WE HAD TO GET THAT OUT OF THE WAY AND NOW WE DID SO LET’S SEE IF DICK IS BATMAN! And in the end, my money didn’t feel wasted so much as sad.

Jim Doom:
Nightwing #153 was such a disappointment. Rather than being some kind of poignant bookend for the 13 years that preceded it, it was essentially a metaphor for the entire series and character. Lots of potential to do something great, but completely lacking in the execution, to the point the whole exercise feels like an afterthought. The narration by internal monologue was just painfully melodramatic, desperate to tap into some kind of authentic superhero introspection but instead just reading like the night thoughts of a classical dork. And man, the art was just so subpar. I always feel bad trashing people who are most likely doing the best they can to make their living, but man — staples like faces and backgrounds shouldn’t expose an artist like that.

I guess I just hoped that DC would acknowledge that Nightwing has been a huge character in the DCU, and whether he’s going to be Batman or not, he’s going to be a big part of the Batman franchise future. So it’s just baffling that they would half-ass his final issue like this. It seems to be broadly beneficial to treat this like a huge deal and put some quality talent on this, so that the series ends by launching into something bigger and better, rather than just whimpering away and leaving people to think “Ah, so that’s why they’re canceling it.”

I felt I got a much better sense of who Dick is and why he’s cool from the six-page backup “Origins and Omens” story than I did from the lead. Too bad that, by the time I read it, I’d just trudged through an issue’s worth of book that pointed out how lame and boring Dick Grayson can be. I’m not sure I can think of any character that can reach such dramatic highs and lows purely based on who is writing the book. Thinking back a few years ago, Dick Grayson was my choice for best hero of the year and worst hero of the year. With characters like Wolverine or Batman, even bad writers will turn out stories that might stink, but they don’t make the characters seem lame. But with Nightwing, it’s like writers either totally get him and just knock it out of the park, or they set the character back another few notches. Given Tomasi wrote the backup — which I thought was great — he obviously is capable of writing a good Nightwing story. Maybe he just needed more plot than “Help people clean” and “Change a lightbulb.”

Robb @ Capes Comics
Dick, put down that Cowl!!!

When I saw this week’s Book of Doom’s preview and it said that Nightwing’s title has been out for almost 13 years, I thought, “That can’t be right.” Nightwing is a fairly new title, right? I mean, it was just a couple of years ago that it came out, right? Nope, sure enough, 13 years ago. It debuted the same month as Peter David’s Supergirl. It was that long ago. And to be honest, I’m surprised it lasted this long. Nightwing hasn’t been the homerun title that it started out as. I don’t think it makes the top 50 monthly Diamond sales, unless it has a Batman related cross-over tied in. About 13 years ago, DC finally answered the “Wingnuts” and gave Richard Grayson his own series, and for the most part, in these recent years, it’s been a dull ride.

I guess I’m not here to discuss the entire series as a whole, just this single issue, but I have always been a Nightwing fan since his goofy high-necked, pastel blue circus outfit days. I guess you could say that, yes, I am a “Wingnut,” and it’s impossible for me to judge this final book without judging the series as a complete and final product. I really feel like Nightwing was allowed to fizzle and lose steam. DC has done to Nightwing and Robin what is also doing to Justice League; it’s letting these book slip into mediocrity. This book has been plagued by revolving artist and try-out writers. If it’s not the talent, it’s the “cross-over” or “event” going on in the DC Universe that has some affect on the book. This book was great when it was in Bludhaven, when Nightwing was his own man. But for the past couple of years, Dick has been subjected to a lame book that hasn’t been taken seriously.

Nightwing #153 felt like it was going down the same path that every book goes down when it’s about to make a big change. I’ve never been a fan of the “clip show,” when a sitcom does flashbacks of all the “greatest moments” from episodes before. Remember when Dick Grayson had a one-night stand with some random woman, but Rachel got upset, even though they were on a break? How about the time, 2/12/09ish Grayson and the Gooch were caught drinking by Mr. Drummond? Or the time Nightwing jumped the shark? Because that is what happened, Nightwing’s series jumped the shark! My best guess was right around the beginning of “One Year Later.” I’ve read the internet rumors that at one time, that was suppose to be his actual last issue, because he was originally going to meet his fate in the pages of the Infinite Crisis. But instead, the “Powers That Be” gave into fan disappointment and let Nightwing have a little more life.

Now, I love the character Nightwing, more than just about any other, but his book has been junk for about two years now. It ultimately makes me sad, because I really like the direction Peter Tomasi was taking the grown up Robin. The suspense and twist that Two Face hires Dick to protect a District Attorney that was once a love of Harvey Dent’s was a great story. Who is Nightwing protecting her from, but Harvey Dent, the villain himself. Then we have Dick’s venture into skydiving. No one was really sure what this metaphor was leading into. I kept waiting for there to be a reason, and maybe the full story was never able to be told. And I think that is the main downfall to what’s happened to Nightwing. His book is plagued by cross-overs and tie ins, Batman villains and other stories that keep Dick from being his own man.

The final issue of Nightwing wasn’t a bad issue. In fact, the last five or so books have been worth buying, but, to be honest, it’s like doing surgery on a patient that is already dead. This is a disappointing series ending to one of DC oldest characters. I would have liked a bigger story to end on. Not the sad path this book has been following.

One last opinion – – I really don’t want to see Dick in that cowl!!

Jason @ Legend Comics
Nightwing #153 by Peter Tomasi and Don Kramer is the finale of this long running series, to be replaced with several new titles debuting later this year. It doesn’t seem that long ago that Dick Grayson moved to New York and set-up a cover identity as a museum curator. This issue finds Dick packing up and moving (I have an idea for a new series: JSA Moving Company) back to Gotham City to fill the void left by the late Batman. It also features an “Omens & Origins” back up story.

There is no real action in this issue as Dick shares some touching personal moments with Wally West, Tim Drake and Alfred and he also visits a place integral to the entire Batman mythos, Crime Alley. Ordinarily I greatly enjoy this kind of character development even to the point of preferring it to all-out action comics. The problem here is that I find it impossible to get emotionally invested in the various (well-written by Tomasi as usual) scenes because let’s face it – – we ALL know Bruce will be back sometime and my money is on sooner rather than later. In fact, I’d be willing to bet that by this time next year he will be back or the storyline of his return will be playing out. The numerous superhero re-births is even mentioned in this issue in a conversation between Dick and Alfred, but they are convinced Bruce is gone for good. Of course they don’t have the benefit of knowing that Batman is a huge cash cow for Warner Brothers (although some have suggested that Warner Brothers doesn’t even know they own a comic book company). Heck, DC even said the reason they didn’t make a big deal out of Batman’s “death” to the mainstream media was that everyone knows he will be back. I am utterly sick and tired of death as a story device. If you kill a character, KEEP THEM DEAD!!!

The “Origins & Omens” feature is short and simple as we see Barbara Gordon and Dick celebrating Barbara’s birthday. Some fun dialogue ensues as Barbara, blindfolded, tries to guess where Dick is taking her. No major revelations, with one possible exception on the last page, which depends on how you interpret it. Without giving anything away, I’ll ask the question: Is that the past or the future?

Don Kramer does a great job on art in main story and Joe Bennett is perfectly OK in the back up. I wish I could care more about this issue’s happenings but I don’t. Grade: B-