Knight Terrors: Nightwing #1 is a stylish, yet simplistic exploration of Dick Grayson’s psyche as he confronts the possibility of being a murderer. The set up allows Daniele Di Nicuolo’s art to shine, but Becky Cloonan’s and Michael W. Conrad’s script offers no surprises or compelling insight into the title character.
Right from the start, having an entire storyline consisting of dream sequences is a hard pill to swallow. It allows the creative team to shake up a character’s normal state of being, but deep down readers know that nothing happening truly matters. The inherent strength of such a storyline is that it allows a focus on characterization since everything that occurs is an extension of Nightwing’s own hopes and fears. It’s a shame then that Cloonan’s and Conrad’s script merely goes through the motions of a superhero’s nightmare. Nightwing wakes up in Arkham Asylum, tied down and being transferred to his cell by guards who take the form of humanoid animals. This feels like an obvious choice for a superhero’s nightmare and a sense of familiarity creeps into the narrative from these opening pages. Most of the dialogue and narration also hinges around Nightwing not remembering exactly why he’s being imprisoned while his fellow inmates, including Two-Face, taunt and applaud him for his actions. Is it that hard to guess what Nightwing has done? Not really.
What does work is Di Nicuolo’s page layouts that do a great job matching the trippy narrative as Nightwing suffers further nightmares within his own nightmare. The layouts become less rigid unlike the asylum scenes, favoring canted angles with figures that spill over the edges of their own panels. The action is well rendered and impactful as Di Nicuolo’s figure work is incredibly expressive with just the right amount of cartooning that doesn’t render the action weightless. Adriano Lucas’s colors are also fantastic throughout the issue, effortlessly capturing the grimness of Arkham Asylum while injecting a burst of color into the nightmare within a nightmare sequences. Panel backgrounds turn red when danger looms, which then shift into blasts of yellow and blue once Nightwing fights back making for an engaging visual experience. Wes Abbott’s letters also do a commendable job keeping the dialogue easy to follow despite the constantly changing environments and tricky sequences which include characters speaking through doors and intercoms.
However, by the midpoint it’s clear that the narrative offers very little for readers to chew on, especially once Nightwing starts having visions of his dead parents. The only interesting aspect arrives late in the issue when Nightwing discovers Scarecrow is his secret cell mate who has been hiding under his bed the whole time. Instead of another fight sequence, Nightwing starts to work with Scarecrow and Two-Face in order to escape the asylum. This is a genuinely interesting angle for the story to take as Nightwing teaming up with his villains is something you can get away with in a dream story, but not so much the real world. The central mystery of why Nightwing is in Arkham Asylum never takes off, but there is some potential fun in seeing Nightwing play a little dirty to escape.
Recommended if…
- Daniele Di Nicuolo’s art is worth the price of admission.
- You don’t mind elaborate dream sequences being the entire narrative.
- The Knight Terrors event appeals to you.
Overall
Knight Terrors: Nightwing #1 is a competent, yet uninteresting dive into the darkest corners of Nightwing’s mind. The reveals are obvious and there’s a lack of truly gripping characterization in a story that is ripe for exploring Nightwing’s morality. Daniele Di Nicuolo’s art is great, but Becky Cloonan and Michael W. Conrad’s script does little to entice readers that are not already on board with the Knight Terrors event.
Score: 4/10
Disclaimer: DC Comics provided Batman News with a copy of this comic for the purpose of this review.
