Nightwing Vol. 1- Traps and Trapezes

Quick Summary

Pros: Quick quips and plenty of action keep this story both light and gripping as we see Dick Greyson back in his element as Nightwing. In addition, the story is great and offers a very interesting new perspective into the Court of Owls storyline, started in Batman.

Cons: The story does not do anything too amazing or different and mostly just ends up being a very “by the numbers” superhero comic, meaning it’s not bad but also does not really stand out either. On top of this, if you do not like DC’s “house art” then you won’t be happy here.

Overall: Though not the strongest, Nightwing is definitely one of the stronger titles to come out of the New 52. It manages to combine a great story, a great message, and some great tie-ins to other stories, together to make a really good trade. On top of this, the trade is very easily accessible and makes a perfect jumping on point for anyone’s Nightwing reading.

 

Story

(spoilers start here)

Kyle Higgins starts the story by throwing a lot of things at you at once; Nightwing is back, Mr. Haly is dead, and Dick Greyson suddenly is in charge of the circus. At first, I really disliked this because it seemed way too jarring and all over the place but I ended up liking the fact that this puts readers in a place where they know exactly what the status quo currently is and exactly what to expect from this iteration of Nightwing. This is comforting for old and new readers alike because, for old readers, it confirms what you know about Nightwing and states that the New 52 reboot did not really affect his past and, for new readers, it allows you to learn all of the necessary information required to read this trade effectively. This all makes this collection very nice for both Nightwing fans and people encountering him for the first time (something not all of the New 52’s initial collections did well).

Surprisingly, one of the best parts of this collection is one of the parts I thought I would like least about it, the Court of Owls storyline. My fear was that this comic would simply become a secondary story to the main story in the Batman comics and would not be allowed to become its own entity. However, this collection mostly focuses on Nightwing’s personal struggle with both his identity and his past, most of which happens through his attempt to maintain the circus while dealing with the assassin Saiko. The Court of Owls portion, instead of dominating the work, stays in the background for most of the time and then comes in at the end to solidify the story’s moral, that our past does not define us and that we can be what we want to be. I loved the way this worked out because it used this additional storyline as a way to enhance Nightwing’s story, instead of just a crutch like some other works.

There is not really anything too outright bad about this collection, its biggest issue is simply that there also is not really too much great about it either. The story ends up being pretty standard and feels almost like it could have been done with any other character. By this I mean that it involves a young hero with a tragic backstory who has to fight a villain from his past while trying to make something of his present; basically if you have seen Iron Man 3, The Dark Knight Rises, or Winter Solider then you won’t be seeing much new from the story’s main plotline. However, the story is not completely formulaic, as aspects like the Court of Owls mystery and Nightwing’s classic quips and attitude manage to subvert this to some extent.

(spoilers end here)

I have always viewed Nightwing as sort of a “fun Batman”, where he provides all of the action and intrigue that Batman provides but does it while joking around and having fun; this story excels with this and really manages to return Nightwing to his fans. It gives us the return of Nightwing in a way both old and new fans will love. Although the story is a little too standard, it is still a good story and sometimes it isn’t too bad of a thing to have a good “by the numbers” comic every now and then. Overall the story is really good, not the best out of the New 52’s initial offerings, but a great story to be sure. It also gives hope that maybe Higgins, now that he has solid ground to work with, will do something more fantastic in the future.

Art

Eddy Barrows’s art in this collection is something which will probably divide people. The art falls heavily in line with what is commonly known as DC’s “house art”, an art style which is featured heavily throughout many of the titles introduced in the New 52. This “house art” is a rather realistic art style baring a strong resemblance to many works by Jim Lee. Although it can be good sometimes and is generally a little more realistic than some art out there, it really is not anything special. This type of art is something that, if you do not really read comics that much, you will probably have no problem with. However, if you read too many comics, especially ones at the beginning of the New 52, then you may end up disliking this style simply because of its oversaturation of the marketplace.

Despite all of this, I thought the art was enjoyable. As stated earlier, this may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I really do not have a problem with DC’s “house art” style. Overall, I would be very surprised to hear that this is anyone’s least favorite art out there, however I would also be surprised to hear that it is anyone’s favorite either.

Continuity

Since this starts at the beginning of Nightwing’s New 52 journey, there are not a ton of connections to other works. Obviously, this collection will lead directly into the next collection, Nightwing Vol. 2: Night of the Owls (Review), since it continues the same story.

• The collection starts out with a vague connection to Nightwing’s short career as Batman. This happened before the New 52 in Grant Morrison’s Batman and Robin run.
• In a connection with the Batgirl series, issue four of this collection contains a small wrap up from issue three of Batgirl. In issue three of Batgirl, Batgirl and Nightwing have a fight and the outcome of this fight is seen in this collection. To see where this comes from check out Batgirl Vol. 1: The Darkest Reflection (Review).
• This collection has a good deal of connections to The Court of Owls storyline. The story peppers these connections in throughout the work where they lead to a reveal at the collection’s end. This ending reveal is identical to a scene from the Batman comics except that it is shown from Nightwing’s perspective instead. Most all of these connections are explained in Batman Vol. 1: The Court of Owls (review).