Nightwing, Vol. 1: Better than Batman

Nightwing (2016)

by Tim Seeley (Writer), Javier Fernández (Artist)

Dick Grayson is back in Gotham City, fighting to reclaim the life that was taken from him! But when a new evil threatens those closest to him, he must once again tear himself away from his home in order to combat this dark force as Nightwing! Collects REBIRTH #1 and NIGHTWING #1-4, 7 and 8.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Dc Comics, Superheroes, Comic Book, Batman, Graphic Novels Comics

168 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 25, 2017

About the author

Tim Seeley is a comic book artist and writer known for his work on books such as G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, The Dark Elf Trilogy, Batman Eternal and Grayson. He is also the co-creator of the Image Comics titles Hack/Slash[1] and Revival, as well as the Dark Horse titles, ExSanguine and Sundowners. He lives in Chicago.

Reviews

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Better Than Batman?
Well, yes. But that may be because I'm not interested in Batman's solo stuff.



But this was ok. I didn't hate it, but it took me a few days to read through it. Now, I've been super busy with stuff lately, so maybe that had something to do with it, but honestly, I think it was because I never really got sucked into the plot.



I do love Nightwing, though. And I thought Seeley did a great job capturing the character's essence. He's not a broody, dark, knockoff of Bruce Wayne, and I liked that the author highlighted that as the real difference between the two men.
Plus, I thought it was cute that he and Babs were trying to go on a date...



I'm not as bowled over as some of my friends, but I'll definitely keep reading this title to see where it goes.

[Sam Quixote · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nightwing is the worst Rebirth title I’ve read so far. I don’t know how Tim Seeley’s made the charismatic former sidekick of Batman so charmless, uninteresting and soul-crushingly boring but he’s done it! What a garbage writer.

This book picks up where the New 52 Grayson series ended so I was lost immediately as I haven’t been reading that title (I stopped after the terrible first volume, also written by Seeley). Dick stops being Agent 37 of Spyral and becomes Nightwing again for a crap reason then tries to bring down an offshoot of the Court of Owls, the Parliament of Owls, with a cheap Batman knockoff partner called Raptor. How? By stealing the plans of a labyrinth... or something?! Christ, it’s awful.

The lack of anything vaguely resembling a clear, compelling plot made this so maddeningly dull. Seeley’s got Dick running around everywhere but who the fuck can follow what’s going on or why - that’s how sloppy his writing is. Someone in the Parliament turns into an actual monster, Raptor is Dick’s enemy then his buddy then back again (it doesn’t matter), Dick’s sorta dating Batgirl, Raptor’s unnecessarily connected to Dick’s ma, and all this nonsense that adds up to nothing. I kept putting it down because I couldn’t read more than a few pages at a time it was so dull and stupid.

I could go on but I’d just be repeating the same thing: this was a badly-written sleeping aid that’s not worth the effort of struggling through. I like Dick Grayson and I want to read a great Nightwing comic but Tim Seeley hasn’t got the talent to give us that. “Better Than Batman”? HA! It’s not even better than explosive diarrhea!

[Chad · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm glad to see Dick Grayson back as Nightwing. Unfortunately, one of the writers from Grayson (Tim Seeley) came with him. Dick is written so blandly, there's nothing interesting about him. The only thing he has is the occasional meetup with Batgirl. The art is generic with drab coloring. Raptor has one of the worst designed costumes I've ever seen. He looks like a modern day version of Wild Dog with that stupid velcroed on mask. There's no way he could fight in that thing with the coat that comes down around his thighs and cinched. Nightwing was at his best when Kyle Higgins or Chuck Dixon was writing him. I'd love to see one of them come back and set Nightwing on an interesting path.

Received an advance copy from NetGalley and DC in exchange for an honest review.

[Lyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

The New 52 is no more and creative teams spread out from the DC fortress to build the Rebirth universe.

Tim Seeley, Javier Fernandez and team tackle the Dick Grayson quandary: he’s been Robin, Nightwing and a super spy, so now that the world has changed and we need to carry on, what now?

Dick is now doing some undercover work against the Parliament of Owls, an organization built on the idea of global elitism, and he is partnered up with a mysterious mercenary calling himself Raptor.

Meeting the veteran soldier of fortune in Moscow for a job, Nightwing quickly discovers there is more to his new partner than he expected, and Raptor is equally quick to remind the younger hero that he’s not Batman and this new mentor has some valuable life lessons to impart.

In this way, Seeley (author of Revival and Grayson series) makes this graphic novel (collecting the first few issues of Nightwing Rebirth) work so well. By showing Raptor to be a shadow image of Batman, a teacher with a decidedly different tutorial, he makes the story about Nightwing all the more appealing. Early on I was ambivalent about this novel, but Raptor made it so much better.

Nice work by a talented team of artists.

[Chelsea 🏳️‍🌈 · Rating 1 out of 5]

"I owe it to my mom and dad to face fear with a grin. And I try to pay Bruce Wayne back by doing for others what he did for me. By being their net. By catching them before they hit the ground."

Let's get into what was good about this series:
- Emphasized Dick's Romani heritage
- I enjoyed the scenes with Bruce and Damian. All 12 panels.
- I liked Dick's costume.

Let's get into what was 'meh' about this series:
- not my favorite art
- this revolves around the Parliament of Owls
- Damian's dialogue reads like Seeley stole some lines from his Draco Malfoy fanfic.

Let's get into what was bad about this series:
- Raptor I don't think I've ever been so apathetic about a character's existence. There's a point where Babs says that Dick's giving his faults a pass because he's "charming and funny". When? When was he ever either of those things? He's just here. He left no impression on me whatsoever and his ties to Dick's past were so manufactured for the attempt to make his part in this story mean more.
- Parliament of Owls: I wasn't the biggest fan of Scott Snyder's Court of Owls story arc but at least the Owls were better written. Here, Seeley acts like we wouldn't know the Owls were evil so there's literally a part where they talk about eating food picked by "war orphans" or something of the sort. Seriously? That's the point we've come to?
-Maze Guy's strategy: Random aside but this guy built a maze to protect himself. Makes sense except Raptor says he built it so that there would be no trouble getting into the house; just trouble escaping it. How does that make sense? Let's not make it hard to get in and murder me. I'll just make sure you can't leave my house after doing it?
- Babs: I've said it before and I'll say it again - I freaking hate Rebirth/Burnside Babs. She's not the Batgirl I fell in love with and I don't know why she's here. She basically exists to flirt with Dick a few times, get stood up and then treat him like garbage for doing his job. There's a point where she yells at him for something she also could have prevented and it made no sense! I know people hate the New 52 but Gail's run was the last time I found Babs enjoyable. *sighs*
- Action: The action sequences weren't particularly interesting
- Dick: Dick was not his usual, charming self. I've seen people blame this on Seeley but I actually really liked the Grayson series. It wasn't always engaging but I never had a complaint about Dick's personality in those books. He was adorable, charming and made the cutest, cheesy puns of any character I've read. I love him in Grayson and this book read like someone forgot to inject some life into the character.

Look, I adore Batwoman, Super Sons and Detective Comics. That being said, my 2 all time favorite DC characters, Dick and Cassandra Cain, have gotten the short end of the stick in this Rebirth trend. Cass lost all of her development from the pre 52 series and I haven't read a great Rebirth! Dick Grayson comic yet. I know people hate the New 52 but at least it gave me a Nightwing comic I found readable.

1 incredibly disappointed star.

[Oscar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good volume. Been reading series out of order gotta go back and start with Grayson.

[James DeSantis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Talk about getting better as you go along. I wasn't feeling the rebirth issue or issue 1-2 but man, 3 kicked it up, and 4, 7, and 8 are all really good. I really enjoyed this second half a lot.

So that makes it just good, because the whole thing could have been amazing if they focused more. The start feels cheeky, trying to be funny, instead of coming off easy. Lines that make me cringe throughout are all in the first few issues. Once we get down to it, to the past, to Nightwing and Raptor's relationship, it gets so damn intense and good.

I'd recommend reading all the way through to really get the emotional weight of it all. Some great finish up moments and the last two issues in particular give me a lot of hope for the growth of our favorite side hero. I just hope it keeps up with the quality!

[Subham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an epic volume and I loved it!

Nightwing is wrapping up his days as Agent 37 and we see the goodbyes and all and then him coming to Gotham and then knocking down enemies with Bruce and Damian and re-donning the Nightwing costume and well going after the Parliament of Owls but what he finds is more traps laid out by this owls like his new partner Raptor and I love the exploration of him as Dick's nw mentor and their chemistry is something and then long comes a Batgirl and them teaming up to take down the enemies here and there, rescuing people until we see Raptor as a hero or maybe thats what he wanted them to see and its fun the way it all happens until that moment and its awesome!

Plus later what happens when Raptor really reveals himself for what he is and his motives are established and strange connection to Dick too! Its an awesome story in the end and builds up to a great climax with Bruce in danger and Dick quesitoning everything about his past and present and it becomes such a personal story for Raptor and leads to a great face off and resolution!

Just such a great story and its personal and the MC grows up after it which just shows the stakes established here and also I love the role of bruce and damian in it! The art was so great all the way through too!

[Sesana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I admit that I bailed on Grayson part way through the series, so I'm not entirely sure how Dick got to where he is. The truth is that I don't particularly care. Dick's time as an undercover agent faking his death was never going to last forever, and it doesn't really matter how he got out of it. This volume feels like an intentional transition, like Seeley is trying to keep the change from undercover spy to full on superhero as seamless as possible. And that's fine, just as it's fine that this looks like it might be the last chapter in the Owls. I think we were all pretty much done with those guys anyways, right? The first couple of issues are fine, if not exciting, but things start to get interesting when Dick teams up Raptor. In fact, it seemed like every issue was an improvement on the previous. This isn't the best Rebirth book I've read so far, but it's solid enough and there's promise for future issues.

[Vanessa Gayle ⚔️ Fangirl Faction · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this. Nightwing is one of my favorite characters and I really enjoyed seeing his character growth in this. Not relying on Batman to guide him, and following his own path. Making his own decisions unhindered. I loved the story arc in this one. I really love when the stories are personal and reveal something about the character's past, as this did. I loved the Raptor's character and where the writer went with it. And I always like seeing Batgirl and Nightwing work together, so that was an added bonus on this one. I did fangirl a little bit on the last page. I can't pass up a Bruce/Dick family moment. I think that this is a must read for Batman family fans.

[Will Robinson Jr. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nightwing: "He Almost Killed you Bruce", You fell and...
Bruce: "Dick, I didn't fall." "I jumped". "I jumped because I knew you would catch me".

What an ending, Right? Nightwing volume 1: Better than Batman. DC Rebirth continues to work some comicbook magic for DC Comics. This book was quite simply amazing. Tim Seeley continues to be in a groove coming off the incredible work he & Tom King started with Grayson, Volume 1: Agents of Spyral. It is amazing growth that Dick Grayson aka Nightwing has under gone. He has been a sidekick, a superhero, a spy and found his way back to being Nightwing. I love the audacity of the title here, "Better than Batman". This I feel becomes very true as Seeley takes Grayson on a journey to becoming his own man. As Nightwing begins his most dangerous assignment yet he is instructed by his mentor Batman to trust in himself and that he no longer needs a mentor. In this first volume of the series Nightwing must infiltrate one of the most secretive and dangerous organizations running Gotham, the Court of the Owls, and destroy them from within. This mission seems impossible and suicidal. Batgirl also thinks Nightwing has a death wish. He is not entirely alone on this mission as he is soon joined by a mysterious thief who works for the Court of the Owls called Raptor. Raptor has his own plans to takedown the Owls and maybe bring Nightwing over to the dark side as well. Seeley uses a tight plot and action to get into the head of what makes Nightwing tick. I really enjoyed the artists team's work on this book. Fernandez pencils some great fights and Sotomayor's colors work well with the tone of the story. Seeley writes some great dialogue for the characters and the mystery of Raptor keeps you engaged up until the climatic end. I really enjoyed the moments with Batgirl and Damian. The ending to this arc was extremely satisfying. I can not wait to read the next arc.

[Steve · Rating 1 out of 5]

I received this from Edelweiss and DC Comics in exchange for an honest review.

Wow, so bad. No clear plot that I can see or follow.

[Vinton Bayne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I forgot how much I love Grayson. This definitely has me wanting to juggle around the comics I keep up with to make room for it.

[Corey Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, I really need to read Batman, Volume 1: The Court of Owls.

So, I didn't love this in the beginning. I just wasn't into the story. But then about half way through, I started to really enjoy it. I don't really know what happened. Maybe, It was raptor. Cause he was cool.

I thought the inclusions with all of the bat family was fun. Honestly, I liked a lot of things about this book. I just wish it didn't have such a rough start.

I didn't really like the art. There were some pages that looked cool, but overall I wasn't a fan.

I look forward to seeing if this series will improve!

[William Aicher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took a bit to get into, but eventually this story really gelled. Some excellent exploration of Dick Grayson and how he lives in the shadow of his mentor, struggling to stand out and be his own person (and hero). The strong story, along with some magnificent art panels, make this one definitely worth picking up - especially if you are a Batman devotee who's looking to see what's happening on the peripheries of the Batman world.

As soon as I finished, I went ahead and ordered the next collection of Nightwing stories.

Above all, love seeing Dick back in the Nightwing suit. One of the definite highlights of the DC Universe.

[Stewart Tame · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yet another "Volume 1" that isn't actually the beginning of the story. It's the beginning of an arc, sure, but, if you don't know some of Nightwing's history going into this, you're going to have problems following it. Pretty much all I know of Dick Grayson's recent history is the descriptions of graphic novels from Goodreads listings. I know he was some sort of secret agent for a while, and I vaguely recall reading the original Court of Owls TP. And I also remember the debut of Nightwing a long time ago in the pages of the New Teen Titans, but that's because I'm as old as the hills (provided that the hills in question first appeared 49 years ago.) So somebody new to comics, unacquainted with all of this background, is going to care about this book because ....? I'm all for continuity and all, but if you're going to call it "Volume 1, " some sort of summary for new readers would be nice.

As to the story ... eh. It's not bad, but nothing really special. It's basically about Nightwing establishing his brand, showing the ways in which he is not like Batman. The volume does end more strongly than it begins, but it's pretty average superhero fare overall. Not great, not terrible ... ultimately not memorable, either. Read it if you like, but there are much better titles out there.

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 4 out of 5]

After the spectacular rollercoaster ride that was Grayson, Nightwing returns as to the tights and Bat-Family, but he's not about to just go back to the usual superheroics, oh no. With the aftermath of Robin War weighing heavily on him, Nightwing sets out to take down the Parliament Of Owls (an off-shoot of the Court Of Owls with a more international bent), and along the way runs afoul of Raptor, a Talon-esque anti-hero with scary similarities to Dick himself.

Having Tim Seeley, one of the co-writers on Grayson for the majority of the run, carry on as writer for Dick is a no-brainer. He grasps Dick's voice so well by this point, and the addition of Raptor to the story helps to explore some of what Grayson wasn't able to get into - how Batman's influence has shaped who he is.

Javier Fernandez draws this arc, with Yanick Paquette drawing the Rebirth issue. Fernandez's art is lithe and nimble, turning itself to all of the insane settings that Dick finds himself trapped in (like another Owl labyrinth, because everyone loves those), and Paquette's interiors are always lovely.

Nightwing continues to blaze his own path in the DC Universe with Rebirth, and if you liked what came before, you'll love this too, I expect.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Can't judge a book by its cover . . . I mean title? Nightwing, Vol. 1 was better than some of the various Batman collections I've devoured in the last six months. While I've occasionally had some difficulty jumping cold into DC's Rebirth titles without the full backstory (ahem! Batgirl, just earlier this week) this one had sufficient expositionary dialogue / thought balloons that it did not leave me feeling lost. I was kind of intrigued by Raptor and the later 'reveal' with his connection to Grayson's family. Then there's the final page exchange between characters . . .

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this review and more on my blog.

I received a free copy of Nightwing Volume 1: Better Than Batman from DC Comics in exchange for my honest opinion.

Considering how I have not read any of Nightwing’s previous books, I found it very easy to pick up where he was at the start.

The storyline is around the Parliament of Owls blackmailing Dick into working for them. We then follow him on a series of missions set by the Parliament of Owls and him trying to get into their organisation so that he can take them down. Whilst a fairly simple plot, I still found it very enjoyable with enough plot twists to not make it boring. I do find that sometimes, having a simple plot that only focuses on one thing (in this case Dick trying to take down the Parliament of Owls) can benefit the story as it does not get bogged down by trying to do too much.

Although the storyline is an important aspect of a comic book, a great story cannot make up for bad artwork. Fortunately, for Nightwing Volume 1, the artwork worked very well with the story. I was able to tell exactly what was going on, and it was easy to focus on the right part of each panel (I do have a tendency to jump panels if the artwork grabs my attention). If was to nitpick, then I would only complain about the facial expressions. I was able to tell what they were trying to get across but they occasionally just did not seem quite right. Now I am no artist, so I cannot say what they should or should not change or even how they should do it; but if the facial expressions were more realistic then for me this would have been almost perfect.

If you know that you do not like Nightwing, then give it a miss but most people will enjoy this.

[Liz Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nightwing is my favourite of the Bat-family, and I’ve been quite upset with the whole “he is an agent of Spyral” thing. He’s not a member of S.H.I.E.L.D. for goodness sake! The point is, I am not a fan of where they took the character. Tim Seeley is a good writer, and he did quite good with what he was given to work with, however, as a fan of Dick Grayson, it felt like a betrayal to have all that happened to him lead him down that specific character path. Lucky for me, most things have been returned to the status quo, including him back on tights.

Dick is back home after the catastrophe that was his life, however, an evil force is threatening to hurt his family and friends, so he must leave again and destroy the evil at his door. Poor Dick doesn’t get a break, I just want him to be happy after the catastrophe that is his life.

It does seem that they are trying to be very ambitious with this series, and I am not so sure that what they are trying to achieve will be the best for the character. BUT I BELIEVE IN THIS STORY!

[rosie (jason todd's version) · Rating 4 out of 5]

(⭐3.75)

UGHHH THE WAY DAMIAN AND DICK'S RELATIONSHIP WAS PORTRAYED IN THIS 😭😭😭 i am so unwell for them oh my goshhh 🥹💖

"Dick, I didn't fall. I jumped. I jumped because I knew you'd catch me."

STOP IT STOP IT RIGHT NOW BRUCE LOVES HIS SON SO MUCH I'M GONNA CRY 😭(i already did like twice)

AAANYWAY yeah i don't write much for comics/graphic novels but this one was so gorgeous if a little slow <3 art style was mwah mwah chef's kiss!

[Molly™☺ · Rating 2 out of 5]

30% | D | Meh

"Bite me, Turkeyhead"

Dick Grayson, having just finished an undercover mission as Agent 37, dons the mantle of Nightwing once more and attempts to take down The Parliament of Owls

Cheesy, light and lacking substance, this is an unmemorable story which is a chore to get through. I found it to be incredibly boring, especially when compared to the other comics I've been reading recently ( see New X-Men & The Court of Owls ). Admittedly, there are a lot of call-backs to Seeley's run of Grayson, a series which I never finished due to the absolute slog that is the second volume, so perhaps I'm not getting the most out of this and it's due a re-read once I finish Grayson. Dick doesn't feel like the character that I enjoy reading about ( where are the quips, where is the charm? ), and nor do Bruce, Damien, or Barbara for that matter, they all just seem...off. It feels wrong to give this the same rating I gave Gotham High, but at least that falls into the Riverdale category of being so bad that it can be considered good. This is just downright bland and doesn't deserve the character of Nightwing who can absolutely shine with the right writer and plot.

[Matěj Komiksumec · Rating 2 out of 5]

Musím říct, že Nightwing je opravdu velké zklamání. V podstatě celý příběh stojí na premise "Já vážně nejsem Batman a chci být jiný"! Paradoxem je, že Batman je zmíněn na každé druhé straně a tak místo toho abychom se od Batmana odprostili tak nám je neustále připomínán (sakra vždyť je i v tom názvu). Dick Grayson je úplně nemastná neslaná postava která je regulérně tupec a nebýt vedlejších postav tak by chcípnul hned v prvním čísle. Vedlejší postavy jsou to jediné co to jakž takž zachraňují ale furt to není nic zázračného (jen ve srovnání s Dickem je to jednoznačně lepší). Kresba jako taková je jak na houpačce, určité pasáže či dvonstránky fungují ale akční sekvence vypadají docela divně (hlavně Nightwingův obličej).

Sumec Sumárum je tohle zatraceně o ničem a nevidím jediný důvod v této sérii pokračovat, není to vůbec dobrý a je to naprostá nuda.

[kesh · Rating 4 out of 5]

nightwing got hella daddy issues. raptor (the bad guy who was clearly an ex eng lit student) is definitely on some saw shit because what the fuck:

“when the stock price reaches $200, this lever will be released, plunging a sharpened silver spoon right into your blue-blood-pumping heart” 🤓☝️

it was lowk hard to get into at the start but picked up towards the end. wouldn’t recommend if you don’t know too much about the court of owls and grayson’s back story but other than that, as a straight man,

i love di- scussing my interest in dick grayson (*^_^*)

3.75/4.

[haven ⋄ f (hiatus) · Rating 2 out of 5]

just a cash grab from DC. obvious twists and turns in the plot. low quality art. i wish the artist didnt give everyone a receding hairline (just because their hairline is receding doesn't mean everyone else's is). im genuinely not sure if the artist knows how to draw people in civvies.

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is what we ended Grayson for? :'(
A weak start with an ironic title.

Not a fan of the art, not a fan of Dick here, not a fan of Raptor or the Parliament of Owls. The only thing I really did like here was Bruce (see, ironic).
The silver spoon was way over the top, even for some Nightwing villain shtick.

Some Dick/Bruce bromance quotes:
Nightwing: "...Bruce...gave me everything he could, so I wouldn't become him. He saved me. And it saved him."
and Bruce: "Dick. I didn't fall. I jumped. I jumped because I knew you'd catch me."
<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

[Ivy · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 🌟

Dick Grayson starts using his superhero identity, Nightwing, again. The Parliament of Owls has him do missions where he is partnered with Raptor.

Batman and Batgirl also make cameos.

I thought it was good that Nightwing is back. Glad to see them take down the Parliament of Owls. Also liked seeing Dick with Babs and Bruce.

[Parker J · Rating 4 out of 5]

This might be more of 3 and 1/2 star read but for Dick Grayson I'll bump that up to 4

[Mad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un'avventura per Dick Grayson con un bel cammino e uno sguardo al passato.
Un po' deboluccio il confronto con il cattivo (forse perché in fondo in fondo ha ragione?), Ma davvero azzeccato il confronto con Bruce.

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Nightwing as a character, and although I'm a bit tired of the usual friction between him and Batman, this Rebirth volume sends our intrepid hero out on a mission to take down the Parliament of Owls (ugh, so tired of them already), finding a new partner, Raptor, along the way. Seeley throws in some references and characters from the late, lamented Grayson series, so that was a huge plus, and gives some new dimension over the relationship between Nightwing and Batgirl.

The art was ok, not super great, and the scenes which also featured Robin (Damian Wayne) were a bit whack, because Damian has always been portrayed as a skinny kid, but here he's kinda chunky. Some of the fight scenes were a bit off, as well, but being a bit nit-picky here.

I liked the Raptor character a lot and thought Seeley did a good job with the surprise ending. I miss Nightwing as Grayson, but it's nice to see him back again in his super-hero personal. Looking forward to the next volume.