Has it been a month already? By the appearance of the latest issue of Nightwing, it must be. I know I shouldn’t be encouraging DC Comics by continuing to buy this comic, but I just can’t look away from the train wreck. Maybe I’ll try shoplifting the next issue. Sigh. Let’s get on with it.
When we last left our hero’s story, Jason Todd had gotten himself into a pickle: eaten by a monster who disguises himself as a short, old man. Nightwing’s secret identity was blown to the token red-headed bimbo, Cheyenne. And Dick Grayson was forced into becoming a male model and to dress up as Nightwing in a runway show.
So far, the whole "One Year Later" experience for Nightwing has been really bad. Thanks, Bruce Jones!
Anyhoo, as issue #121 opens, Jason Todd’s been barfed up by the old monster guy: I guess his stomach juices are able to solidify around what he eats (to preserve them for eating later? I don’t know). Considering he had a full grown former-sidekick in his belly, though, Mr. Monster Guy was remarkably trim.
Meanwhile, at Dick’s apartment, our titular hero is getting a super-powered massage from the aforementioned Cheyenne. I’m still not sure what her powers are. Dick seems remarkably unfazed by the fact that his secret identity has been blown. Dick and Cheyenne get into a fight and Dick gets beaten up by a novice. And also does some beating. The whole sequence is just too weird.
Apparently, Dick’s behavior at the fashion show was a big hit: he’s now in demand as a model or actor or something. So remember kids, dressing up like a superhero and attacking people = big bucks! Gah. They tried this with Firestorm. It was stupid then, it’s stupid now.
Nightwing stalks Clancy some more. I guess Dick never studied any psychology, so he’s got to bother a med student. Clancy spurs Nightwing into going to save Jason. You know, I used to get annoyed when Nightwing would call Oracle every other issue to find out what to do. It’s still annoying. I think Bruce must have fronted some money for the Crime Doctor to give Dick a lobotomy. That would explain everything except why I’m still buying this comic.
Nightwing finds where Jason is being held and calls Cheyenne to warn her away from where he’ll be. Yep, she shows up anyhow. Dressed in a conveniently available female Nightwing costume, the two blunder their way into Mr. Old Monster Guy’s clutches. And Mr. Wrinkled Old Monster Guy eats Cheyenne.
Listen, if you are an alien, or a extra-dimensional creature, or a meta-gene-activated super-villain, and your power consists of swallowing people and then regurgitating them in barf-cocoons, you’ve got problems. You probably should be really careful who you eat, you know? Former sidekicks turned evil are probably fine and likely to be good-eating, but super-powered redheads with super-cleavage? You should probably pass. Predictably, Cheyenne blows up, ripping apart the old guy. Nightwing doesn’t seem concerned that Cheyenne just killed the guy (seems like he freaked out when Blockbuster was killed). And Jason is still trapped. Oh, and those twin guys that have been hanging around show up too.
Does this arc actually have a plot? I’ve been reading it, but I don’t understand what Mr. Splattered All Over The Room Monster Guy’s plan was (unless it was to get splattered all over the room: if that was it, then congrats, Monster Guy, you totally nailed it).
It seems that Bruce Jones’ main contribution to the "Nightwing Mythos" so far (beyond making him the weakest link of the whole Batman Family) is to introduce a female version of the main character. And we all know how well that works out.
Nothing is really working in this comic: the writing is horrid. Devin Grayson was always criticized for her Nightwing plots being just gussied up fan-fiction. But the current Nightwing is much, much worse than anything she’s done. The art is serviceable, but nothing to write home about, and the covers are just awful.
The good news is that the next issue wraps things up. Or, as the next issue blurb says (and I kid you not): "The finale of our chaotic arc." The bad news is that Bruce Jones hasn’t been fired yet.
This entry was posted on Friday, June 16th, 2006 at 9:17 pm and is filed under DC Comics, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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Responses to “Nightwing #121: I’m Buying It So You Don’t Have To”
A very entertaining review of what sounds like a truly dimal comic experience; kudos to you. However, i have one small complaint: you mentioned the nauseating “RonRay” incarnation of Firestorm. I have spent the past several years in denial of this ever happening, and there you go, ripping the scabs off of that mental wound, letting the pain come flooding back.
And yet, I still feel like dealingwith “RonRay” would be better than reading Bruce Jones’ Nightwing.
Bruce Jones: the new Chuck Austen?
June 17th, 2006 at 9:22 am |