Written by: Tom Taylor
Art by: Bruno Redondo
Colors by: Adriano Lucas
Letters by: Wes Abbott
Cover art by: Bruno Redondo (cover A)
Cover price: $4.99
Release date: July 17, 2024
Nightwing #116, by DC Comics on 7/17/24, sets Dick Grayson on a spiritual journey to overcome his fear of heights while Heartless takes control of Bludhaven.
Is Nightwing #116 Good?
Good gravy! October can’t get here fast enough. In an already slow, meandering, do-nothing arc centering on a villain who remained unchecked and undeterred by Nightwing for years, Tom Taylor still manages to find a way to waste even more time. I mean hats off to Taylor for making an uninteresting plot even more uninteresting, but that’s not the kind of feat that’s going to earn anyone an Eisner (Although, the qualifications for earning Eisners these days appear to have little to do with talent or accomplishments).
When last we left Dick Grayson in Nightwing #115, Heartless made his big move to set Dick Grayson up as the “real” Heartless and criminal mastermind in charge of the city. Bruce Wayne seemed content to let Dick Grayson be carted away in a nondescript ambulance, where Heartless and Tony Zucco discovered the domino mask in Dick’s jacket, proving he’s Nightwing. The issue concluded with Dick waking up wearing Heartless’s mask and standing near the body of a Heartless victim when police arrived.
In Nightwing #116, news travels fast. Tom Taylor sets up a rapid-fire montage of reporter questions and press conference answers that use circumstantial evidence to link every plot point in Tom Taylor’s run together in a damning spider web of incriminating activity that suggests Dick Grayson is Heartless. Meanwhile, Dick Grayson lies handcuffed in a hospital bed, under police guard, while he recovers from being shot and beaten by Bludhaven police during his arrest.
Tom Taylor has the right idea, but the execution is lacking. The reporters bring up photos, meetings, seemingly connected events (like the homeless encampment fires), and more in a way that suggests Dick is in the right place at the right time to cause all of it. However, the execution is lacking because Dick should be able to easily present proof of his whereabouts on several, if not all, of those events to show he couldn’t have done it. Further, the montage of “damning evidence’ is only possible because Nightwing has done nothing to stop Heartless since the beginning.
Dick escapes the hospital and heads to Barbara’s place. She acquired a copy of his medical report which shows traces of fear toxin in his blood, specifically modified to cause a fear of heights. The toxin is mostly gone, causing Dick and Barbara to conclude that his lingering fear is psychological. Dick decides he has to leave town for a spirit walk, and he needs everyone to remain to keep Bludhaven safe in his absence.
Again, Taylor has the right idea but executes it poorly. If Dick’s fear was caused by an infusion of fear toxin, a simple blood test should have picked it up as soon as he noticed a problem. Didn’t he get checked out? If so, how did fear toxin get missed? The explanation only works because everyone around Dick is incompetent, which really means Taylor didn’t put in the work to make this plot point believable.
Dick begins an international trek to Nanda Parbat with his dog to receive mental and spiritual help from Boston Brand, aka Deadman. Brand helped Dick to overcome his fear when he fell for the first time as a boy. Now, Dick seeks Brand’s help again.
“Wait a minute! Isn’t Brand dead-dead after last Summer’s horrible Knight Terrors event?” you might wonder. Yes, you’re right. An editor’s note confirms as much. Dick somehow immediately deduces that Rama Kushna brought Brand back and bound his spirit to Nanda Parbat in a huge development that nobody saw. Again, really lazy work from Taylor.
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