Originally published on Patreon
The current story arc comes to a close in the latest issue of Nightwing, where the villain Blockbuster has discovered that Nightwing and Dick Grayson, two men he hates, are one and the same.
The last issue ended on a pretty dramatic moment, with Dick being de-masked in front of Blockbuster, his identity out in the open. As such, we all knew that whatever was coming next was going to be big; but it still didn't prepare us for how good this issue was going to be.
Dick knows that Blockbuster can't be allowed to escape with the knowledge of who he is, so does the only thing he can do; beats the shit out of him. The fight that ensues here feels different to things that have come before. Dick isn't smiling, he isn't having fun, he's not cracking jokes. This is him putting someone down, and doing it as hard as they can. And if it were someone who want's Blockbuster it probably would have worked out a lot better.
Unfortunately, whilst Dick isn't able to stop Blockbuster, Oracle is able to disrupt his plans and his power a bit more than she already had, by revealing his connection to a private prison to his underlings. Knowing that Blockbuster was making money off one of the worst prisons in the country, his lieutenants and goons basically turn their backs on him in a scene that honestly made me laugh out loud. The comic code logos blocking out the swearing was a genius, ridiculous touch that I loved.
Fleeing into the city, alone, defeated, and with nothing to fall back on, it looked like Blockbuster was done for. The rest of the issue is focused on the fallout of what happened here, with a lovely scene between Dick and Barbara where he tries to break off their relationship to try and protect her, but she refuses. The two of them are a thing, and it doesn't look like the normal 'but we can't be together because of X' is going to be something that we're going to have to put up with.
The final pages end up doing something quite surprising, that seems to put this story to bed, and sets up for the future.
As usual, Nightwing is a comic that knows where the strengths of these characters lie, and really leans into it. The characters feel like characters, with personality that jumps off the page. The dramatic moments feel like they have a lot of weight, whilst the levity is just enough to make you laugh at the right time, but not become silly.
The art, by Bruno Redondo, and Adriano Lucas, is superb as always, and the characters all look fantastic, the action is really clear and dynamic, and the panels are filled with tiny details and nice touches. The colours look really nice this issue too, and the entire look of the Nightwing comic is superb.
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