Nightwing #101 is published by DC Comics and written by Tom Taylor. Artwork is by Travis Moore. The new backup story is written by C.S. Pacat with pencils by Eduardo Pansica, inks by Julio Ferreira. Both stories have colours by Adriano Lucas and letters by Wes Abbott. Main cover art (left) is by Bruno Redondo.
Nigthwing #101 is available now, both in print and on digital, where all good comic books are sold.
Synopsis
After the events of Dark Crisis, Superman has a talk with Nightwing, letting him know that now is Dick’s time to lead…so Nightwing gathers a group of friends to be the premier league in the DC Universe and moves their base of operations to Blüdhaven. Meet the new Titans! Then, following the events of the Nightwing 2022 Annual and the Superman and Nightwing crossover, Nightwing continues to mentor Jon Kent in ways that Dick learned from being trained by Batman…but in his own more encouraging way.
Review
Last month’s 100th issue of Nightwing brought the series to a huge turning point. Over the past decade the character has become one of DC’s finest, easily rivalling the popularity of the Trinity. With that comes huge pressure to keep the character fresh and interesting.
So I was glad to see that the 100th issue wasn’t the end of Taylor’s run with the character. Whilst it’s difficult to know when is the right time to move on. There’s is so much mileage left in Taylor’s storytelling the it would have been criminal to leave the book behind at such a crucial stage.
This month we pick up with several plot threads which have been running throughout the most recent arc. The direction of travel did, however, come as a total surprise to me. It was clear that Nightwing would need to pick up with the arrival of the Titans in Bludhaven. Their new found presence is going to make the city another central focal point in the DCU. Against levelling the playing field and giving the fictional location a fighting chance alongside Gotham, Metropolis and Central City to really widen the storytelling horizons.
What I hadn’t anticipated was that Taylor would lean in to some of the more supernatural elements which have lurked in the background for some time. Issue #101 opens in what Taylor calls “The Depths of Hell” as Lord Neron struggles to understand how his forces were defeated by Nightwing and Bitewing back in issue #98. It seems he still wants to collect the soul of Blockbuster’s daughter Olivia and it’s going to be up to Nightwing (and the Titans) to protect her.
During his tenure on the book, Taylor has stuck closer to the classic vigilante vs. villain story. Yes there has been super powers. But the book hasn’t leant too much in to the dark, supernatural side of the DCU. So it’s going to be interesting to see how this plays out over the next few weeks.
Travis Moore provides the artwork for the main story, with colours by Adriano Lucas. Moore’s art feels a little more static that series’ artists Bruno Redondo. Certainly scenes in hell take on darker, more shadowy quality as well as Lucas’ striking colour palette. Hell certainly stands in strong contrast to brighter scenes set above ground. Moore brings an else sense of emotion to his characters with some incredibly strong facial features and expressions which keep the book engaging throughout.
From this issue onwards, Nightwing will not feature a backup story by writer C.S. Pacat and artists Eduardo Pansica and Julio Ferreira. The story features a cool team up between Nightwing and Jon Kent and a trip to the circus. Unlike other books, the two stories currently don’t seem to be related so I’m intrigued to see where this one is going to go.
Pacat pens a story which feels very true to the history of the Nightwing character whilst Panscia and Ferreira bring some cool visuals. Much like the work on the main book, their art is incredibly immersive and details. A nice change from the usual breezy, ultra-stylish art of Redondo.
Verdict
Nightwing #101 returns from its landmark issue with a strong sense of direction and some intriguing new plot elements which certainly broaden the series’ horizons.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
