Review: Nightwing- The Joker War

Quick Summary

Pros: The volume contains some exciting fights. One of the chapters is a good showcase for Nightwing.

Cons: The narrative feels disjointed throughout the book. Most of the characters are written poorly. The volume repeats too many story features from the previous volume. The conclusion is lackluster.

Overall: This is one of the most troubled volumes in this era of Nightwing’s history. It contains a number of storytelling problems that prevent the narrative from accomplishing much. This, combined with only a handful of truly entertaining moments, creates a book that disappoints more often than it delights. This book may be worthwhile to fans who really want to see the conclusion of the Ric Grayson storyline but will not likely appeal to fans just looking for a good story.

Story

Nightwing: The Joker War, by Dan Jurgens, contains a lot of negatives and not enough positives. The main narrative is disjointed, the characters are often written poorly, the central theme feels like a rehash of the previous volume, and the conclusion is disappointing. There are a few moments of fun action and one of the chapters tells a story that feels like “classic” Nightwing. However, the problems here are too numerous. In the end, this may be the worst of the Ric Grayson-era Nightwing stories.

(spoilers start here)

Nightwing: The Joker War is troubled from the start. The volume begins by introducing an interesting team of people who have an interest in Nightwing. This team is then immediately discarded for the rest of the volume, making their appearance feel entirely unnecessary.

Then, the narrative focuses on the Joker and has him brainwash Dick Grayson. This storyline has even more problems. The Joker is written in a way that makes him come across as nearly omnipotent, as he seems to know exactly what has happened to Nightwing recently, exactly where to find him at all times, and exactly how to exploit him using a crystal he just found. Meanwhile, Dick is written in a way that feels nearly identical to the previous volume, with his refusal to kill someone overpowering mind-control. Even the minor characters are written poorly, with Tim Drake serving as comic relief rather than anything meaningful. There are a few moments of worthwhile excitement or emotion within this storyline but, overall, it is too much of a mess to be redeemed. 

After the Joker chapters, the book deals with the aftermath of Nightwing getting his memories back. These chapters have a few solid moments within them, specifically how Nightwing deals with the return of KGBeast. However, the way Dick deals with Bea feels contrary to his optimistic, better-than-Batman character and damages this story.

The best chapter in the volume is the final chapter. This is a fairly straightforward story that serves to highlight what makes Nightwing such a fun character. It captures his optimism, his sense of community, and his love for the people around him. It is easily the brightest spot in an otherwise dull collection.

(spoilers end here)

Art

The artwork in The Joker War ranges from average to slightly below average. I actually enjoyed Ronan Cliquet’s work in this volume far more than I did in the previous volume. Chapters from Cliquet generally feel better connected to the themes in this book than they did in the previous book, particularly in the final few chapters. However, the chapters from Ryan Benjamin do not look quite as good. In these chapters, chaotic linework makes characters and even backgrounds look a little strange. Overall, this volume doesn’t look bad but it also does not stand out in a dramatically positive way either.

Continuity

Nightwing: The Joker War continues the story from Nightwing: The Gray Son Legacy (Review).

As of now, this is the most recent Nightwing volume.

This volume also references other comic books, detailed below:

• Nightwing was shot and lost his memories in Batman #55, collected in Batman Vol. 8: Cold Days (Review).
• The events of Batman Vol. 1: Their Dark Designs (Review) explains Joker’s return to Gotham and his reasoning behind launching the Joker War.
• Nightwing #70-73 serves as a prelude to the full Joker War event.
• Nightwing #72 references a fight between Punchline and Harley Quinn. This fight took place in Batman #93, collected in Batman Vol. 1: Their Dark Designs (Review).
• Nightwing #74 references a fight between Dick Grayson (Reading Order) and Red Hood (Reading Order). This fight took place in Red Hood: Outlaw #48, collected in Red Hood: Outlaw Vol. 4: Unspoken Truths. This fight is also a tie-in to
• Nightwing #74 makes a quick mention to something Joker (Reading Order) did to Batgirl (Reading Order). This is a reference to Batman: The Killing Joke.
• Nightwing #75 references the fight between the KGBeast and the Teen Titans (Reading Order) from Teen Titans #43, collected in Teen Titans Vol. 3: Seek and Destroy. 
• A note in Nightwing #75 states that the events of this issue take place before the conclusion of the Joker War storyline. However, the issue primarily focuses on the aftermath of the Joker’s attack, which makes it seem as if this note is incorrect.