Written by Scott Lobdell and Fabian Nicieza
Illustrated by Travis Moore and Garry Brown
Published by DC Comics
This is the second part of a storyline called “Night Terrors.” It spins out of the events of Batman #55.
Nightwing is back in the field but he isn’t doing so well after his ordeal. And if he doesn’t snap out of it, he just might not make it.
The issue opens with Nightwing dusting off his costume for the first time in over four months. He starts gathering himself together. But he’s experiencing a fear of heights and even a case of vertigo.
What is a superhero going to do?
Lobdell sets up the story with an interesting concept.
We see Nightwing meet up with Alfred in a bar who checks up on him. Dick (now going by ‘Ric’) is putting on a brave front, but Alfred can see that he isn’t doing so well at all.
So then, guess who makes an appearance in this?
The Scarecrow. He is the perfect villain to challenge Dick at this point.
He doesn’t come up against Nightwing yet but it’s looking like he might in upcoming issues. The groundwork has been laid down.
So then near the end, Dick is held up at gunpoint. Can he escape this? Will he get his spirit and soul back? Well, he stops the criminal. But then he almost kills him. Then he runs away, horrified about his action. Nightwing isn’t supposed to act this way.
What’s Dick going to do?
The story by Lobdell is very strong. Nicieza writing the dialogue almost loses it for me though. It’s not a good fit as Nicieza doesn’t have a good handle on Nightwing and all of the dialogue is forced and overwritten.
The art is a little inconsistent on this as well. Hopefully it turns around in the upcoming issues. It’s not bad but it’s uneven. And it could be better.
RATING: C+
