Review – Nightwing #126: Ghosts of Bludhaven
Nightwing #126 cover, via DC Comics.
Ray: Dan Watters' run on Nightwing has had some very intriguing plot threads as the city is consumed by a gang war, but this arc is far and away the best. Guest-drawn by the brilliant horror artist Francesco Francavilla, who has drawn some iconic Bat-stories, it focuses on Captain Hallow, a mysterious plague-doctor inspired villain who stalks the Bludhaven Police Department. According to legend, this is the spirit of the first officer to fall in the line of duty in Bludhaven, and he uses his cursed guns to target officers who fail their oaths. But in reality, what we have is a serial killer who is targeting officers who are deemed to have betrayed their fellow men in blue – and one of their top targets currently is Commissioner Maggie Sawyer, whose efforts at reforming the police department have made her plenty of enemies. And it may not be one person under the mask at all… The collective. Via DC Comics.
Last issue saw Captain Hallow nearly die at the hands of the officer he was targeting – but that's not close to the end of this threat. Maggie, much like last issue, is really the main character here, with Nightwing only playing a minor role. I think that's a smart choice – it nicely grounds the story in a much more street-level style of violence than we usually see. There's a great human storyline involving Maggie meeting her girlfriend's daughter for the first time, and trying to win over the timid young girl who has grown up distrusting police officers. But as the two try to awkwardly bond, the girlfriend's house becomes a danger zone as one of the assassins targets them – and they're not afraid to use the girl as a pawn. This is one of the tensest DC Comics I've read in a while, which is the result of this being a perfect fusion of writing and art. The tonal shift as this run began was pretty dramatic, but Dan Watters has solidly won me over.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes. Liked it? Take a second to support GeekDad and GeekMom on Patreon!
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