Originally, this arc was going to be Nightwing’s first swashbuckling pirate adventure. An infamous yet secretive pirate crew protecting their mysterious bank needed his help following theft and murder! Unfortunately, I think the ship has sailed on Tom Taylor’s pirate arc. Let’s take a look.
The Heart of The Story
First and foremost, the story does have many high points. One such moment includes a flashback to Grayson’s first year as Robin. Then, Alfred passes on his surgical knowledge from his time as a combat medic. While Robin initially doesn’t understand that he can’t just rely on Alfred, he reluctantly endures Alfred’s lessons on a pig subject. Despite the warm tone, it is worth noting a few anachronisms. Robin wears his iconic pixie boot outfit, and not the New 52 costume. Coincidentally, the Robin from Nightwing #0 spent much of his early days in the cave training before he put on the uniform. How readers feel about it will depend on how much training they imagine Robin needing before being active in the field.
In the present, Nightwing both rescues Bea from the water, and patches her up. After an undisclosed amount of time, Bea awakens on “the same painkillers Batman headbutted a New God” with. In the previous issue, Dirk casually stabs his sister and leaves her for dead. Now, we learn that he has imprisoned her crew and is on his way to claim the Hold. Naturally, Tom Taylor sprinkles this with more useless hype about the Hold’s secrets, but none of it matters to Nightwing. Although she tries to give him a way out, Grayson is a hero who doesn’t need a reason to help a friend.
A Single Pirate Fight
Before the final battle, the readers get some last minute exposition. Apparently, a sea monster terrorized New Netherland in the 1700’s before America. Fortunately, Hendrik, the original ancestor of the Blüd family, defeats the beast and the town becomes his haven. Y’know, Blüdhaven. As the lore goes, the townspeople had so much faith in Hendrik that they entrust all their treasure to him for protection. Hence, the creation of the Hold and the Crew of the Crossed Keys. Nowadays, the Crew of the Crossed Keys has become a large scale operation threatening heroes and villains with their power. Moreover, we also learn that The Quartermaster adopts Bea after she steals a superyacht all by herself. In spite of comparisons to Jason Todd’s origin, I find it extremely hard to believe a thirteen year old could successfully steal a yacht.
Bea and Nightwing manage to beat Dirk to the Hold and prepare an ambush. Unsurprisingly, Nightwing is able to fight his entire crew of mutinous pirates all by himself. All in all, outside of a single pirate squabble, this whole pirate affair comes off pathetic. In fact, the treasure within Nightwing’s vault is a piece of evidence he should have already had as a child. Overall, it feels like unsatisfying filler. This includes the backup story following Robin tracking down missing beast creatures and running into DC’s newest villain “Apex Ava.” However, Sam Basari’s dynamic art in the backup makes the flat Beast World tie-in worth looking at.
Recommended If…
- You’re still reading Tom Taylor’s Nightwing regularly.
- You don’t mind nonstop bluffing from modern pirates.
- Hoping to see Nightwing and Bea resolve their issues.
Overall
Truthfully, I was hoping for more of a pirate adventure. As it turns out, this arc was a simple family squabble within a commercially viable modern pirate crew exaggerating their strength. I love Nightwing as much as the next guy, but if Grayson can own your whole crew in a blouse, it may be time to embrace humility. Furthermore, the reward is equally underwhelming and didn’t warrant a retcon of the Ric Grayson story or supporting cast. At the very least, the art remains consistent highlight with few issues. Worse still, Tom Taylor will explore Nightwing’s sudden fear of heights in another arc.
Score: 5.5/10
DISCLAIMER: DC Comics provided Batman News with a copy of this comic for the purposes of this review
