This former sidekick isn't managing too well on his own at this point.
Nightwing is investigating a murder case with his name on it. However, before he can actually start on it, he receives a distress call from Alfred at the Batcave. Alfred has alerted all allies of the Bat to combat the underworld organization called the Court of Owls, whom have declared war on Gotham City. -summary
Nightwing is definitely among the more disappointing books the New 52 has to offer. While writer Kyle Higgins managed to further develop the character, by DC allowing him to acknowledge his time spent as being Batman for a year, there are just certain elements that continue to keep his stories from being anything more than "decent". The one problem that manages to stick out is the lack of an interesting antagonist. Plus smaller alterations with Grayson's origin. Nightwing - Night of the Owls contains issues 8 - 12 and issue 0, with artwork by Eddy Barrows, Ruy Jose, Raul Fernandez and several others.
The first story arc is a crossover into Night of the Owls, which was a major Batman event that continued his war with the Court of Owls. Batman barely escaped his first conflict with them alive, but he learned a few interesting things about the court. He learned that Nightwing was raised in Haley's Circus to be trained into one of the courts assassins called a Talon. He also learned that the Talon he defeated by the name of William Cobb, was in fact Grayson's great-grandfather with regeneration abilities. Cobb is eventually freed from Batman and he searches for Nightwing. This is by far the best storyline in the book, because not only is the reader treated to some very good action, but there's also some very good background provided. There's actually a meaning behind Dick's last name "Grayson", plus it continues the development of Gotham City as more than just a place people live. Also, William Cobb's origin is quite interesting as it really explores that line between the rich and poor.
There's this strong point of view that the rich will always look down on those less fortunate as unworthy outcast, even if they do manage to bring themselves from the gutter and remotely close to their status. Garbage is still garbage as far as they're concerned; this treatment effected Cobb's life and eventually shaped his view of Gotham City, and forced him to see the place through black and white eyes. This arc is very well paced delivering pieces of story and then action. At first I thought it was a shameful DC double dip since this story can be found in the Night of the Owls event, but without it, this book really wouldn't be much at all.
The second story begins and ends "The Tomorrow People's" story arc. This story follows Nightwing as he continues the frame case he's working on. Apparently someone killed two brothers using one of his Escrima sticks, this causes Detective Nie to hunt him down. Nightwing then encounters a new gang in Gotham lead by a man named Paragon. Everything else about this story is more interesting than the portions directly involving the villain. Paragon is about as stale and corny as a villain can get, and this is just among the problems plaguing Nightwing. He doesn't get an interesting villain to deal with until the Joker shows up in the Death and the Family crossover and defeats him. Unfortunately, that is not in this book.
As a Nightwing fan, I enjoyed some of the story that works into his growth and he decides that he wants to help Gotham in another way besides crime-fighting. It's clear that his time as Batman and the conflict with William Cobbs has effected him but in a positive way. If anything, I'm interested in seeing where he goes from there. The final issue Nightwing 0, is an origin tale retelling his first run in with Bruce Wayne moments after Tony Zucco killed his parents in the circus. There are a few twists to modernize the story which is cool, but again, there's this small altering of his origin though. I didn't like how he was able to figure out Bruce and Batman were the same person. Personally, since I always cared more for Tim Drake as Robin, I feel DC kind of invaded his territory and took away that strong element of observation that made him so unique. After all, he figured out Batman and Robin's identities before the age of 13. Among all of those to be called Robin, it was Tim Drake who appeared to be more like Batman, and the one Batman was most proud of. I think DC took something a bit special from Drake and it just feels forced.
There have been some complaints of the various artist across these issues; I would have a problem here also, but since they all seem to be on the same sheet of music in regards to style and atmosphere, I'm fine with it. The Night of the Owls storyline looks great with some fine character designs, pretty snow-laden backgrounds, and the action is cool to look at. The battle with the Talons is brutal and entertaining with quite a bit of blood. It also does a great job establishing the Talons as formidable enemies. The second story arc looks just as good with the same amount of details in the action and backgrounds. I especially appreciate the effort that went into the backgrounds. There's very little reliance on static; at times you will still be able to notice that the battles are taking place inside of sewers or buildings. The artist and colorist weren't lazy here.
Nightwing Volume 2: Night of the Owls almost feels like filler though. The second story is kind of disposable and I am not looking forward to any more confrontations with Paragon. I do not see a bright future for this villain. In any case, this book is definitely readable. I never felt the urge to just put it down. For me it's decent at best and I still recommend it. It is better than plenty other books running in the New 52.
Pros: Nice artwork and first story arc
Cons: Stale villain, second story arc isn't much, my issue with origin
