What do you think?
Rate this book
Nightwing and Flamebird #2
Superman: Nightwing and Flamebird, Vol. 2
Following the startling events of "New Krypton," the only thing standing between Earth and impending doom are the all-new Nightwing and Flamebird! Collected from ACTION COMICS #883-889!
208 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
108 people want to read
About the author
Greg Rucka
1,512 books1,929 followersGreg Rucka, is an American comic book writer and novelist, known for his work on such comics as Action Comics, Batwoman: Detective Comics, and the miniseries Superman: World of New Krypton for DC Comics, and for novels such as his Queen & Country series.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
September 30, 2011
Very unique story comes to a conclusion as Nightwing and Flamebird attempt to fill Big Blue's big red boots.
March 1, 2013
It was the last great pre-TheNew52 Superman storyline. It was supposed to entertain and enlighten and energize the Superman books for years to come. It was one of the most massive, interconnected tales of Kal-El ever told.
And I thoroughly enjoyed it.
And I think I was one of the few who did.
And that is a complete shame.
Superman New Krypton is a storyline that takes place over almost two years worth of Superman, Action Comics, Supergirl, Superboy, World of New Krypton, Adventure Comics and various one shots and mini-series. One of the slight modifications after Infinite Crisis to the mythos was opening the floodgates to plenty of other Kryptonians being alive and well, and this concept became a tidal wave when Superman faced off against Brainiac for the “first” time and freed the kidnapped bottled city of Kandor.
In all classic and neo-modern versions of this tale, these fellow Kryptonians become jolly good friends of Superman and benevolent helpers to him. Those stores would always bore me to tears. Even when they enlarged and got their own planet, I couldn’t have cared less.
This time, this contemporary version, they range from arrogant to somewhat ungrateful to outright hostile to all sorts inbetween. It is made abundantly clear that one of the points of New Krypton is that a great part of makes Superman “Super” is the parentage of Ma and the now late Pa Kent. Early on the now powered up Kandorians relish “their” new planet, and view the current inhabitants, namely us humans, as like pets. The part with the whale illustrates this dichotomy so precisely, it is downright prescient of what future troubles are brewing.
Tensions immediately escalate when Lois’s presumed dead father, General Lane, enacts Project 7734, with the goal of fulfilling his genocidal hatred of all things Superman. Plots within plots within plots, each met with large body counts, becomes the constant theme here. Anyone and anything that gets in the way of eliminating these filthy aliens must be abolished. The massacres the Kandorians have to endure, and their counter measures to ensure their safety, cause global tensions and bring about a huge cadre of superheroes to sort the situation out.
At this point the preamble is done, the Kandorians see the welcome mat yanked away, which makes them launch their city off into space, create a crystalline planet for themselves, and take up orbit on the far side of the sun. Goodbye you crazy humans!
At this point, Kal is still trying to fix all the myriad problems that have come about here, and so with a heavy heart he talks to wife Lois and mother Martha and goes off to outer space and New Krypton.
The stage is set and the players are now in place.
Kal-El is now world building, society changing and evil plot solving in the World of New Krypton comic by James Robinson, Greg Rucka and Pete Woods. Guest stars like Green Lantern, Adam Strange and Jemm pop up here because of the new galactic power this planet represents. We also see the creators reinvent Krypton by incorporating as many different previous versions as possible, and somehow keeping internal logic. Kal learning about how things work here does not make him a happy Superman, and brings out the social revolutionary in him.
Meanwhile, back in Metropolis, new protectors have emerged in the Superman comic, by James Robinson and Renato Geudes. Through a series of flukes, Mon-El has been plucked from the Phantom Zone and managed to be cured, while another clone of the golden age hero The Guardian has come to town. These two bring truth and justice and subplots galore here every month.
But what of all the subterfuge between the two planets? Action Comics by Greg Rucka and various artists plays with this concept by showcasing the hunt for Kryptonian infiltrators by Nightwing and Flamebird. This crime fighting duo, and potential couple, are also Kryptonians and fighting against the evil General Zod’s plans for Earth.
The tale of someone genuinely torn between the two worlds is in the Supergirl comic, by Sterling Gates and Jamal Igle. Whether she is on New Krypton endlessly arguing with her mother – and leader of Kandor, or learning about humanity while living with Lana Lang back on Earth, Supergirl is constantly challenged. She is also subjected to relentless yellow journalism by Daily Planet gossip hound Cat Grant, trying on the secret identity of Linda Lang, and recovering from Kryptonite poisoning, which by the way, is a brilliant pot device to fix the many many problems plaguing the character over the years. Supergirl 43 is the absolute best of this series, featuring her birthday and choosing a guild.
Joining in on the fun is Adventure Comics, by Geoff Johns and Francis Manapul. Starting with Superboy slowly becoming a part of everything, the series than evolves into telling the tale of how the time travelling Legion of Super Heroes are involved with this crisis.
Along the way with this sweeping storyline, we get some one shots giving us the journey of Jimmy Olsen as he investigates General Lane, and another one shot at a critical junction of everything. A personal favourite is the World’s Finest miniseries, by Sterling Gates and various artists, which has several very important plot developments. But the real reason this is a classic part of New Krypton is that these four issues have a literal whackload of Superman and Batman supporting characters teaming up, arguing, bantering, and just giving us readers a grand old adventure. Come on, Guardian and Robin Damian taking on Mr Freeze and the Parasite, what more can you ask for?
The only downside to this undertaking is the midway point. You can tell the gears behind the scenes were being shifted slightly, with some ideas, like Mon-El’s powers or what to do with Guardian’s “kid”, becoming increasing sidelined. By the time of the epic ending with The Last Stand of New Krypton comic, you can feel the lethargy kicking in. This is not to say the conclusion, which reaches its final crescendo with the War Of The Supermen mini-series, was not good and gripping and emotional, but it is obvious the fatigue from creating all those stories had taken it’s toll.
Afterall, besides everything I have mentioned, New Krypton also stars Lois Lane on a quest for the truth about her father, Perry White trying to guide her, Lex Luther being the master manipulator, Atlas being a brute, Steel helping out in Metropolis, the Creature Commandos making a comeback, Reactron being a ruthless murderer, Doomsday terrorizing everyone, Captain Atom playing a role, Daxam history getting re-explained, Codename: Assassin getting a dust-off, Silver Banshee giving a shout out, Insect Queen crawling about, Rao gaining new followers, and a partridge in a pear tree. With all this, and so much more, is it any wonder that everyone involved probably needed a nice long vacation when it was all said and done?
One issue that was present from the start, as related in interviews by writer Greg Rucka, is that New Krypton was very much behind schedule right from inception. Playing catch-up was always a present concern for all creators, who all want to do their best, but are facing a super deadline looming before them.
Because of this rushed nature of the series, and despite the promotional push from DC Comics, fans seemed slightly jaded before New Krypton even began. I myself got every issue, but only read them all last month. Because of this malaise, I firmly believe sales of the entire storyline were far below expectations, which is most likely why virtually all aspects of it were promptly ignored as soon as it ended. And this failure was also the most probable reason why the major surgery was committed on Superman’s history with The New 52 Relaunch. Think about it, this massive sweeping tale of epic proportions with far reaching ramifications vanishes from continuity a year later? Such a shame.
Everyone has a favourite Superman. Mine is the From Crisis To Crisis era. This storyline, with a nip and tuck and a bit of mental rewiring, can still fit somewhat gently into that beloved version of the Man of Steel. Yes, some leaps are harder to take than others, and I am looking at you Lucy Lane, but so many of the basic concepts are still present and accounted for.
So many thoughts and ideas are expressed here. The Clark Kent of Ma and Pa Kent faces off against the Kal-El of Krypton, nature versus nurture on a planetary scale. Earth and New Krypton on a collision course caused by madmen, people who know nothing of what Superman stands for. All this encompassing something like 150 comics in total.
A Super tale for a Superman.
And I thoroughly enjoyed it.
And I think I was one of the few who did.
And that is a complete shame.
Superman New Krypton is a storyline that takes place over almost two years worth of Superman, Action Comics, Supergirl, Superboy, World of New Krypton, Adventure Comics and various one shots and mini-series. One of the slight modifications after Infinite Crisis to the mythos was opening the floodgates to plenty of other Kryptonians being alive and well, and this concept became a tidal wave when Superman faced off against Brainiac for the “first” time and freed the kidnapped bottled city of Kandor.
In all classic and neo-modern versions of this tale, these fellow Kryptonians become jolly good friends of Superman and benevolent helpers to him. Those stores would always bore me to tears. Even when they enlarged and got their own planet, I couldn’t have cared less.
This time, this contemporary version, they range from arrogant to somewhat ungrateful to outright hostile to all sorts inbetween. It is made abundantly clear that one of the points of New Krypton is that a great part of makes Superman “Super” is the parentage of Ma and the now late Pa Kent. Early on the now powered up Kandorians relish “their” new planet, and view the current inhabitants, namely us humans, as like pets. The part with the whale illustrates this dichotomy so precisely, it is downright prescient of what future troubles are brewing.
Tensions immediately escalate when Lois’s presumed dead father, General Lane, enacts Project 7734, with the goal of fulfilling his genocidal hatred of all things Superman. Plots within plots within plots, each met with large body counts, becomes the constant theme here. Anyone and anything that gets in the way of eliminating these filthy aliens must be abolished. The massacres the Kandorians have to endure, and their counter measures to ensure their safety, cause global tensions and bring about a huge cadre of superheroes to sort the situation out.
At this point the preamble is done, the Kandorians see the welcome mat yanked away, which makes them launch their city off into space, create a crystalline planet for themselves, and take up orbit on the far side of the sun. Goodbye you crazy humans!
At this point, Kal is still trying to fix all the myriad problems that have come about here, and so with a heavy heart he talks to wife Lois and mother Martha and goes off to outer space and New Krypton.
The stage is set and the players are now in place.
Kal-El is now world building, society changing and evil plot solving in the World of New Krypton comic by James Robinson, Greg Rucka and Pete Woods. Guest stars like Green Lantern, Adam Strange and Jemm pop up here because of the new galactic power this planet represents. We also see the creators reinvent Krypton by incorporating as many different previous versions as possible, and somehow keeping internal logic. Kal learning about how things work here does not make him a happy Superman, and brings out the social revolutionary in him.
Meanwhile, back in Metropolis, new protectors have emerged in the Superman comic, by James Robinson and Renato Geudes. Through a series of flukes, Mon-El has been plucked from the Phantom Zone and managed to be cured, while another clone of the golden age hero The Guardian has come to town. These two bring truth and justice and subplots galore here every month.
But what of all the subterfuge between the two planets? Action Comics by Greg Rucka and various artists plays with this concept by showcasing the hunt for Kryptonian infiltrators by Nightwing and Flamebird. This crime fighting duo, and potential couple, are also Kryptonians and fighting against the evil General Zod’s plans for Earth.
The tale of someone genuinely torn between the two worlds is in the Supergirl comic, by Sterling Gates and Jamal Igle. Whether she is on New Krypton endlessly arguing with her mother – and leader of Kandor, or learning about humanity while living with Lana Lang back on Earth, Supergirl is constantly challenged. She is also subjected to relentless yellow journalism by Daily Planet gossip hound Cat Grant, trying on the secret identity of Linda Lang, and recovering from Kryptonite poisoning, which by the way, is a brilliant pot device to fix the many many problems plaguing the character over the years. Supergirl 43 is the absolute best of this series, featuring her birthday and choosing a guild.
Joining in on the fun is Adventure Comics, by Geoff Johns and Francis Manapul. Starting with Superboy slowly becoming a part of everything, the series than evolves into telling the tale of how the time travelling Legion of Super Heroes are involved with this crisis.
Along the way with this sweeping storyline, we get some one shots giving us the journey of Jimmy Olsen as he investigates General Lane, and another one shot at a critical junction of everything. A personal favourite is the World’s Finest miniseries, by Sterling Gates and various artists, which has several very important plot developments. But the real reason this is a classic part of New Krypton is that these four issues have a literal whackload of Superman and Batman supporting characters teaming up, arguing, bantering, and just giving us readers a grand old adventure. Come on, Guardian and Robin Damian taking on Mr Freeze and the Parasite, what more can you ask for?
The only downside to this undertaking is the midway point. You can tell the gears behind the scenes were being shifted slightly, with some ideas, like Mon-El’s powers or what to do with Guardian’s “kid”, becoming increasing sidelined. By the time of the epic ending with The Last Stand of New Krypton comic, you can feel the lethargy kicking in. This is not to say the conclusion, which reaches its final crescendo with the War Of The Supermen mini-series, was not good and gripping and emotional, but it is obvious the fatigue from creating all those stories had taken it’s toll.
Afterall, besides everything I have mentioned, New Krypton also stars Lois Lane on a quest for the truth about her father, Perry White trying to guide her, Lex Luther being the master manipulator, Atlas being a brute, Steel helping out in Metropolis, the Creature Commandos making a comeback, Reactron being a ruthless murderer, Doomsday terrorizing everyone, Captain Atom playing a role, Daxam history getting re-explained, Codename: Assassin getting a dust-off, Silver Banshee giving a shout out, Insect Queen crawling about, Rao gaining new followers, and a partridge in a pear tree. With all this, and so much more, is it any wonder that everyone involved probably needed a nice long vacation when it was all said and done?
One issue that was present from the start, as related in interviews by writer Greg Rucka, is that New Krypton was very much behind schedule right from inception. Playing catch-up was always a present concern for all creators, who all want to do their best, but are facing a super deadline looming before them.
Because of this rushed nature of the series, and despite the promotional push from DC Comics, fans seemed slightly jaded before New Krypton even began. I myself got every issue, but only read them all last month. Because of this malaise, I firmly believe sales of the entire storyline were far below expectations, which is most likely why virtually all aspects of it were promptly ignored as soon as it ended. And this failure was also the most probable reason why the major surgery was committed on Superman’s history with The New 52 Relaunch. Think about it, this massive sweeping tale of epic proportions with far reaching ramifications vanishes from continuity a year later? Such a shame.
Everyone has a favourite Superman. Mine is the From Crisis To Crisis era. This storyline, with a nip and tuck and a bit of mental rewiring, can still fit somewhat gently into that beloved version of the Man of Steel. Yes, some leaps are harder to take than others, and I am looking at you Lucy Lane, but so many of the basic concepts are still present and accounted for.
So many thoughts and ideas are expressed here. The Clark Kent of Ma and Pa Kent faces off against the Kal-El of Krypton, nature versus nurture on a planetary scale. Earth and New Krypton on a collision course caused by madmen, people who know nothing of what Superman stands for. All this encompassing something like 150 comics in total.
A Super tale for a Superman.
March 15, 2026
Despite his ridiculously convoluted history, I like Chris as a character and his relationship with Thara is great. Here, they get in over their heads and it was an interesting read but also not what the title needed. I was hoping for more espionage type story involving sleeper cell Kryptonians but that's not what we get for the most part. There is too much dealing with Kryptonian religion and it fell flat. Lois interacted with her insane father was great and her ability to use her connections and knowledge was showcased. The sleeper cell part could have been done much better. The art here was very good especially the fight scenes. Overall, missed opportunities but still entertaining.
October 11, 2025
De todas las series que estaban componiendo la historia llamada "New Krypton" esta es la que al final me terminó gustando menos. Aunque Greg Rucka siguió apareciendo como escritor, le agregaron a un co-escritor, Eric Trautmann y creo que se siente. Al final todo lo que sucede aquí termina teniendo repercusiones pero no me encantó todo lo que tuvo que ver con el científico kryptoniano y la historia del nuevo Rao. Lo voy a comentar en otras entradas, pero sentí que al final estuvo apresurado todo lo que pasó y por ende, en este caso anticlimático.
April 5, 2018
Not terrible, but not that impressive. The Kryptonian mythology had compelling aspects, and Rucka and Trautmann do a fine job setting it all up. Then they draw it all out way too long.
The explosion in Mon-El: Man of Valor is explained in a chapter detailing Nightwing and Flamebird's near capture at the Science Police HQ in Metropolis.
There's a fairly decent, if predictable, stand-alone chapter about the deaths of the final two Kryptonian sleeper agents on Earth.
The explosion in Mon-El: Man of Valor is explained in a chapter detailing Nightwing and Flamebird's near capture at the Science Police HQ in Metropolis.
There's a fairly decent, if predictable, stand-alone chapter about the deaths of the final two Kryptonian sleeper agents on Earth.
May 18, 2021
A story that started out well enough and then got completely bogged down in Kryptonian mythology. I’m sure there’s an audience for that but it’s not me. The art didn’t help as it was borderline amateur looking. Consistency from panel to panel was fine, but overall the figures looked like fan art.
September 3, 2025
Fun action adventure stuff, love how Krypton's mythology makes this feel almost high fantasy.
This is only tangentially connected to the New Krypton Saga, however.
This is only tangentially connected to the New Krypton Saga, however.
March 6, 2015
Review originally posted at
Nightwing and Flamebird serves to flesh out the New Krypton story-arc, focusing on the titular characters and their efforts to expose and destroy General Zod's sleeper agents on earth while avoiding the storm of neegative press the machinations of General Lane has brought about.
The name of Nightwing being associated with a Superman related character has been confusing to some as most people associate the name Nightwing with former Robin, Dick Grayson. But it was from hearing stories from Superman about "the Nightwing" that Dick Grayson chose the name.
Nightwing and Flamebird heads in a slightly different drection than most boks of the New Krypton by delving very heavily into Kryptonian mythology. Personally I found this to be really interesting as we don't really know much about the Kryptonan faith other than the fact that Kal-El occasionally invokes the name of Rao.
Overall Nightwing & Flamebird volume 2 is a really interesting read and really does serve to fill in some the gaps in the story and to tie up some of the loose threads.
Nightwing and Flamebird serves to flesh out the New Krypton story-arc, focusing on the titular characters and their efforts to expose and destroy General Zod's sleeper agents on earth while avoiding the storm of neegative press the machinations of General Lane has brought about.
The name of Nightwing being associated with a Superman related character has been confusing to some as most people associate the name Nightwing with former Robin, Dick Grayson. But it was from hearing stories from Superman about "the Nightwing" that Dick Grayson chose the name.
Nightwing and Flamebird heads in a slightly different drection than most boks of the New Krypton by delving very heavily into Kryptonian mythology. Personally I found this to be really interesting as we don't really know much about the Kryptonan faith other than the fact that Kal-El occasionally invokes the name of Rao.
Overall Nightwing & Flamebird volume 2 is a really interesting read and really does serve to fill in some the gaps in the story and to tie up some of the loose threads.
July 7, 2015
I have read bits and pieces of these characters before and I haven't fully been able to understand it.
I have yet to read Vol.1 of this collection or Superman Last Son which has the debut of Chris Kent/Lor-Zod. I have read some of the New Krypton story with Thara Ak-Var and I have to admit she is a really spirited girl and of great courage.
Yet I really found this God of Krypton thing as a little weird but it was great having Lois meet her father and learn just how much of a monster he is. All this and more it makes me wonder how much of this is a tie-in and of course the major part of the story.
B
I have yet to read Vol.1 of this collection or Superman Last Son which has the debut of Chris Kent/Lor-Zod. I have read some of the New Krypton story with Thara Ak-Var and I have to admit she is a really spirited girl and of great courage.
Yet I really found this God of Krypton thing as a little weird but it was great having Lois meet her father and learn just how much of a monster he is. All this and more it makes me wonder how much of this is a tie-in and of course the major part of the story.
B
June 10, 2012
As much as I usually enjoy the writing tandem of Greg Rucka and Eric Trautman I know why this volume in the whole New Krypton storyline felt a little flat to me. It was, and it felt massive, an exposition dump regarding Krytponian religion. As a general rule I enjoy world building, and from that aspect I like it. The aspect that was the turn off for me is that Chris and Thara are supposed to be avatars for these aspects of the religion. Whereas, I enjoyed the first volume because it dealt with their pursuit of Zod's undercover agents on Earth. A decent, but not an above average read.
February 9, 2012
Public library copy. I liked it all except the final story "Awake," which was not written by Greg Rucka. I found this collection to be quite a dense read that could have been less truncated and stretched to two volumes. I also found this volume's stories paled in comparison to the volume that came before. I'd have preferred if one artist drew the entire story arc and it'd have been nice if Superman actually was around...because, you know, it's titled "Superman: Nightwing and Flamebird."
July 10, 2013
This loses most of what made the original good. The story is all over the place and ends in a boring multi issue fight against a big monster. The story by Eric Trautmann that ends things is actually better than the main storyline and actually addresses the issues from the previous volume of Nightwing and Flamebird.
August 20, 2012
Such a waste, of both the potential evinced by "The Sleepers" (the centerpiece of "Superman: Nightwing and Flamebird, Vol. 1") & of my time. I'm reminded of why I stopped reading D.C. comics in the first place.
February 3, 2013
Creative, clever, quipy. With no lulls in the action, this is a very pleasing conclusion to a really great "New Krypton" side-story. Good ol'Rucka; he's a reliably-good storyteller. 4/5
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews