Review: Nightwing #71
[Editor’s Note: This review may contain spoilers]
Writer: Dan Jurgens
Artist: Ronan Cliquet
Colors: Nick Filardi
Letters: Andworld Designs
Reviewer: Tony Farina
Summary
Having a chat with the Clown Prince of Crime is scary enough…being captured, tied down, and forced to listen to him is something else! Especially when you’re Ric Grayson, and The Joker just wants you out of action so he can get to the Dark Knight. With no idea what his history with The Joker might be, Ric doesn’t find this situation one bit funny.
Positives
Nightwing #71’s star is not Ric Grayson. It is not Nightwing. It is not the Joker (although he is good, more on that later)… it is Ronan Cliquet. Ric’s whole mental break, memory loss story line is not that great, but Cliquet really had a lot of fun smashing Grayson around. Take a look at the intro image I shared. The rain feels like it is coming for you. The bone crushing nature of the fight sets your teeth on edge. The whole book is full of excellent pages like that. The page later in this above shown fight that involves the joker playing card is amazing.
It is always good to have the clown show up and ruin everyone’s bad time. The Joker War is coming, so he is using up his frequent flyer miles for sure. Jurgens cranks the crazy up to 99 and leaves it there. It is tense for sure and it also sets your teeth on edge, but you know, in a good way.
Negatives
Can the Ric Grayson stuff end now? Honestly, it is time. Memory loss stories can only go on for so long before we want to forget they happened. I am ready to forget. It could be that I am just an old man who wants my old Nightwing back. I suspect that this storyline must have been a hit or it wouldn’t have continued for so long. It could be that DC knows, people just love Nightwing and the pain tolerance is high. Wrap it up team. Wrap it up.
Verdict
Nightwing #71 is just OK. I have not been a super big fan of the “Ric” storyline in general but having the Joker in a book against any Bat person raises the stakes. The action is fast and furious here, but the storyline is simply just OK. I should use a different adjective, but I don’t have one. I love Nightwing, so I would read 32 pages of him reading a phone book (that was how people found numbers before the internet kids).
