Nightwing #55 – Scott Lobdell, Fabian Nicieza, Writers; Chris Mooneyham, Garry Brown, Artists; Hi-Fi, Colorist
Ratings:
Ray – 5/10
Note: Corrina is not reviewing this series right now because of the writer’s history of sexual harassment at a con panel and because this storyline is simply awful.
Ray: So apparently Eric Esquivel was supposed to be the new writer on Nightwing in the coming months, meaning yet another consequence of his horrible conduct is that we’re likely stuck with the current mess on Nightwing indefinitely.
The inherent concept behind Dick’s brain injury and his new start continues to make less sense with each passing issue – as he seems to recover more and more, getting back memories of his abilities and figuring out who he used to be, he still seems to have zero interest in reconnecting with the people he knew. Instead, he spends most of his time hanging out in a bar and flirting with the bartender, which is where the issue begins as an army of drugged-up goons high on Scarecrow gas burst through the walls. Naturally, “Ric”s inherent martial-arts skills kick in at exactly the right time, letting him deliver a beating to the brainwashed minions before disappearing.
The other half of the issue is devoted to the better of two plots, the story of Detective Sapienza and his cobbled-together team of cops and firefighters dressing up as Nightwing. I’m kind of amused by how many Nightwing costumes they’ve dug up for this story, and the ragtag group of incompetent would-be vigilantes can be amusing. But their plot doesn’t really seem to be going anywhere – except, likely, a bad end for them that will be used to motivate the real Nightwing back into action. The Scarecrow finally comes back into play in a big way this issue, as he seems to kill a major supporting character – although it turns out to be a hallucination, I think. His unleashing of an army of terror-fueled citizens ups the stakes for next issue’s big battle, but overall I’ve seen him used in far better storylines.
Really, every character involved in this story deserves much better.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
Disclaimer: GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
