Review: Nightwing Vol. 2- Back to Blüdhaven

Quick Summary

Pros: The main storyline is exciting and compelling. The volume’s theme is interesting and the way it approaches Nightwing’s current situation works out well. The artwork looks great and helps significantly enhance the storytelling.

Cons: The volume’s main romance doesn’t get that good until the end.

Overall: The second volume in the Nightwing Rebirth series is every bit as enjoyable as the first. The volume combines compelling storytelling with gorgeous artwork to produce a comic any Nightwing fan would enjoy. Then, it layers in some interesting themes and sprinkles in some character development to make the entire experience even better. Readers interested in Nightwing’s adventures in this era should absolutely pick up this collection. 

Story

Nightwing Vol. 2: Back to Blüdhaven, by Tim Seeley, is another easy win for this Rebirth series. The comic continues to connect Nightwing with his past by returning him to Blüdhaven. There, an exciting investigation into the city’s criminal element leads to a highly enjoyable storyline. It also brings up some interesting questions about the interplay of superheroes within a city’s social structure. The volume’s romance is its only real sore spot but even this improves dramatically as the story progresses. All in all, this is a volume with a lot going for it and it continues to make this series worth reading.

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Back to Blüdhaven helps fulfill the Rebirth era’s promise of getting characters to reconnect with elements of their pre-New 52 history. The previous volume brought back Nightwing’s classic costume and now this one sends him off to the city in which he was once a major figure. These simple moves are a treat for longtime Nightwing fans.

The volume does not just use these changes for a change in aesthetic though, it uses them to launch an interesting theme for this story arc. This starts with Nightwing’s desire to return to a time of simple conflicts between pure good and pure evil. However, over the course of this volume, he realizes such a conflict rarely ever exists and, likely, rarely ever existed in the past. This moral dilemma puts pieces of superheroics into question but ultimately decides that, even when the line between good and bad isn’t clearly defined, one can still try to make a difference by being as “good” as they can be.

Alongside all of this, Back to Blüdhaven is also just plain exciting. The story has Nightwing swinging from the rooftops, explores an interesting mystery, and contains multiple twists along the way. It is a narrative that is fun and satisfying to see play out.

My only serious complaint with Back to Blüdhaven is that the romance is uninteresting for most of the read. The majority of Dick’s interactions with Shawn don’t contain the flirty vibe that is present in most of his romances. In fact, at first, there is very little indication that there is any chemistry or interest between the two besides what is said in thought bubbles. The final chapter handles their romance better but, up until this point, it does not add much to the read.

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Art

The visuals in Back to Blüdhaven are excellent and are a huge part of the volume’s appeal. Marcus To’s artwork is clean and highly focused. It allows every character, action, and relevant piece of the environment to stand out in a way that demands attention, instantly guiding the reader’s eyes to where they need to be. This creates a smooth and incredibly visually appealing reading experience. Meanwhile, Chris Sotomayor’s colors help set the tone in each and every scene. Sometimes these colors are vibrant and give the city of Blüdhaven a lively feel, other times they are more somber and help the emotions of a specific scene come through. Together, these factors make the volume look great and make this a better comic book.

Continuity

Nightwing Vol. 2: Back to Blüdhaven continues the story from Nightwing Vol. 1: Better Than Batman (Review).

The story here continues in Nightwing Vol. 3: Nightwing Must Die (Review).

This volume also references other comic books, detailed below:

• Nightwing #9 mentions the destruction caused by the Night of the Monster Men (Review) (Reading Order) crossover and the death of a character (Reading Order) in Detective Comics #940, collected in Detective Comics Vol. 1: Rise of the Batmen (Review). 
• The New 52 Superman (Reading Order) died during the Final Days of Superman (Review) (Reading Order) crossover. A new Superman (Reading Order) took over the role of Superman across Action Comics Vol. 1: Path of Doom (Review).