It’s a new day in Blüdhaven! When Tom Taylor left Nightwing, he left him ready for his next challenge, and Dan Watters has run with that to the max! And that’s ends up being good for everyone because this is a great jumping point for new readers as well as old readers who can enjoy a fresh take. Here, gangs can take over and Nightwing can… get blown up?! There’s a massive power vacuum in Blüdhaven and the various gang’s plans are going to make for something of a problem for Nightwing. Something that makes the character do the unexpected.
With that said, welcome to ‘haven, Dan Watters, Dexter Soy, and Veronica Gandini! In this all-new, all-different era – wait, wrong company – readers can be All In for a fresh new era for Nightwing! In Nightwing #119, readers are introduced to a new villain, a new story, and a new take on the character. But, is it really all that and a bag of chips? Yes!
DC Comics
The story dives right into things and sets the stage for the tone of the new team’s first arc. This works to both introduce readers to the new villain and lay the foundations for this era in front of us. While keeping a steady pace, the story ends up throwing a lot at the reader but in a way that keeps the reader’s interest. Moreover, Watters thoroughly weaves together the new challenges Dick Grayson will be facing with what Nightwing is going up against. Clearly, this is going to be much more than Nightwing versus the mob. It’s going to be Nightwing and Dick Grayson versus the unknown. Not in the typical unknown that comes along with a new rogue, but unknown as Dick enters uncharted waters when making a big decision at the end of the book.
DC Comics
Watters has made one thing quite clear: he’s going to push Nightwing and make him question his way of solving things. Additionally, there’s an unsettling aura around the issue that works to depict how street level and grounded it’s going to be. While the opposing gangs are clearly a smaller threat, Nightwing’s new adversary steals the show insofar as creating a scary environment. The story carries a lot of intrigue and wonder within it, which works well to enter a new era by posing a new challenge for the character. Altogether, the story’s pacing is well balanced between its eerie nature and its grounded approach.
Watters writes Nightwing rather differently than before. Turns out, when things go bad for Dick Grayson, they tend to go bad for Nightwing, and this ends up making for an interesting story. Dick is depicted to be a bit jaded, sarcastic, but not at the sake of his ability to plan ahead. His humor isn’t so brazen that it’s obnoxious, but it’s well placed. It’s funny! Sometimes, comics as a medium can make a quip or two that’s a little forced, or a little too tongue-in-cheek. But here, it works. While we see Dick banter with Barbara and Melinda, we also see his snippy and snarky attitude with criminals or those who irritate him. Moreover, Watters does a good job making the story entertaining by having Nightwing’s humor be well placed and balanced with his strategic thinking on and off the field.
Dexter Soy and Veronica Gandini leap onto the scene in this issue and they knock it out of the park. Soy has an incredibly sharp art style that adds intensity to the story. A great example of this is on the first page, where the grandiose nature of the page almost comes to life. While the story’s new antagonist is puppeteering Dick Grayson’s life, the moment seems to leap off the page due to how Soy angles it. It really feels scary because of it, and it rocks. It’s moments like these that show how creative Soy is with the paneling and is able to manipulate the page space to have certain moments pop more than others.
DC Comics
Not only do the fights appear more vivid and graphic, but they also have more weight. Gandini does a splendid job adding color to the story in ways which help to elevate the intensity.While some pages are almost foggy and add an element of mystery, others pop and feel like a punk rock song turned into a comic. One of the best examples of this is near the end of the issue, when Nightwing is displaying unbelievable acrobatics to doge some lasers. This moment takes advantage of Soy’s sharp and detailed line work and further emphasizes the intensity of the scene through colors that set the page ablaze. The issue is beautifully drawn from cover to cover.
Nightwing #119 everything I wanted and more. As Watters is taking advantage of the groundwork laid in the previous run, this issue is a completely different tonal direction but still manages to captivate the audience in all the right ways. In addition, the story offers a new challenge for Nightwing, as he decides which is sure to come back and haunt him down the line. This is a can’t-miss issue that makes for a perfect jumping point for readers.
You must be logged in to post a comment.