Nightwing #136 Review

 

Written by: Dan Watters

Art by: Denys Cowan

Inks by: Norm Rapmund

Colors by: Francesco Segala

Letters by: Wes Abbott

Cover price: $4.99

Release date: March 18, 2026

Like most of the other DC Comics, Nightwing is getting a bit of a fresh start coming out of K.O. Yeah, technically you could argue this is just the start of a new story arc, but the way Dan Watters rushed his Zanni story to a conclusion last issue makes this feel like a bit of a restart/course correction. If you enjoyed what Watter's has done up to this point, you may disagree, and that's fine, but IMO, this book has been a convoluted mess of ill-defined characters and storylines that were more likely to be tossed aside than concluded in any sort of satisfactory way. The Zanni, Captain Hallow, Olivia Pierce, Spheric Solutions, the Teddies, Flyboys, etc., Nightwing Prime, Night-Might is soup, the new Mayor, and on and on...  With all that said, I was looking forward to this issue, hoping that maybe Dan Watters would keep true to one of his promises - that Nightwing would be more street-level going forward. Well, the story does involve a street! Let's dive into Nightwing #136...

It makes sense that Dan Watters is going to treat this as a jumping-on point for new readers, so there is a bit of catch-up in this issue. There is nothing wrong with that in concept, but I have an issue with the execution. The issue starts with two randos telling us that Nightwing has no money. It's a bit clunky, and that clunkiness will continue. We are then told that the new Mayor (who defeated Dick's half-sister pretty much off-panel) has built a new Superhighway that cuts through Bludhaven. It's obvious there is a time jump between the last issue and this one, but building a Superhighway? Those don't go up overnight. I live in Pennsylvania, and legit, this would easily take 10-12 years! I bet you didn't think you'd get some PennDot shade in a Nightwing review, so count that as a bonus!

Obviously, none of this ruins the issue, but there are so many other things that are left unsaid. Where is Barbara?!? What about Haley, Dick's dog?!? Those two have been a HUGE part of this run for years, and it just feels off not to mention either.

Then there is the matter of Dick Grayson's dialogue. To say it's clunky is an understatement. Throughout the issue, Dick pontificates about rooftops, driving cars, asphalt, and windshields. Dan Watter's is telling a horror story here, but I actually laughed out loud at a majority of dialogue and narration. As a public service to new readers, Nightwing doesn't usually sound like a middle schooler pretending to be smart while padding a report that has to be two hundred words more than he's already written. If you told me this was Dick making fun of Batman's numerous nighttime soliloquies, I'd believe you. It's that bad.

So what about the story?  Well, this new Superhighway has been a bit deadly, and Nighwing has heard rumors. So, he hits the road (Jack?) and quickly picks up a girl who looks sus from the get-go. I don't want to judge a book by its cover, but it's so obvious she is a witch that it becomes comical to watch Nightwing jump to so many conclusions that I was afraid he might tear an ACL. Watter's seems to be trying to show Dick's compassion, but instead of engaging with this girl, he just makes things up. I'm sure a lot of the things he says will end up being true, but not because they make sense, but because this is just shitty storytelling.

Nothing much really happens in the issue, but by the end, the girl pulls a bone knife on Dick, bleeds from her eyes, and causes an accident...and then disappears into thin air. That last bit is such a basic bitch trope that I again laughed out loud!  Then the icing on the cake is Dick Grayson wondering if she was ever there (check the cut on your neck, Dick!) and if it was him who caused this deadly accident.  I'm not the only one out there who thinks this smells like the beginning of Chip Zdarsky's Daredevil run, and while I did like that, I don't need it here.

The art by Denny Cowan is great and fits the story's supernatural vibes, but I was hoping we'd be getting away from this nonsense, which makes it kind of bittersweet.

Bits and Pieces:

Dan Watters keeps trying to force supernatural storylines into his Nightwing run, and it keeps falling flat.  Deny Cowan's art is a nice surprise and fits this type of story well, but the clunky dialogue, the odd jumping to conclusions, and the overall boring story just disappoint. It was easily the funniest book I read this week, with a couple of solid laugh-out-loud moments, but sadly, I was laughing at the book, not with it.

3.5/10