Dick Grayson is running out of luck.
D.A. Emily Eastbourne wanted him brought in with connection to a fatal crash on Bludhaven’s super highway. The guilty party is a mysterious witch who’s continued to elude his search.
That is on the back burner for now. Something bad is happening in Gotham City that is calling Grayson home to help.
NIGHTWING #142 by Dan Watters, David Lapham, Francesco Segala& Wes Abbott (DC COMICS) welcomes Dick Grayson to “Bad Seeds”.
Let’s take a deeper dive into the latest.
NIGHTWING #142 by Dan Watters, David Lapham, Francesco Segala& Wes Abbott (DC COMICS)
*** POSSIBLE SPOILER WARNING ***
Watters takes Grayson out of his Blüdhaven troubles while throwing him directly into the madness of Gotham. The writing stages the “Seeds” attack’s effect on Nightwing’s home city. Watching the chaos takes hold pushes Grayson into a frantic state. Still trying to recover from recent events, it provides an outlet for him to get back to basics. Readers watch as one volatile attack ends Grayson on a wild ride into the belly of the beast.
His conversation with Maggie Sawyer echoes the fear settling in. As the streets get more rabid, their talk drives home the point of Grayson needing to stop what left Blüdhaven. This builds into a personal dive into the weight carried on his soul. Trying to make a bridge to a driver proves more difficult than imagined. Mayor Bisogni’s intervention causes events to become blurred. This allows the writing to bring events up to a feverish plateau before delivering a shocking ending. The fallout proves inviting as Grayson’s return home just became more complicated.
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Lapham steps in for art duties for this event. The slow build into the spores falling adds an anxious look to the events. Keeping a simple panel structure allows Grayson and Bisogni’s initial meeting to have more of a personal touch. This all gets pushed away as an attack forces Grayson to investigate. His findings open up a door for a more dangerous situation to take over the pace. From here, everything starts flying in at a rapid look.
The conversation with Sawyer is filled with worry as the spores’ effect take over. A bold panel closing in on an infected man’s eyes sends shockwaves as the insanity takes hold. This pivots to Grayson’s attempts to thwart the driver’s plans. It opens up Grayson’s frustration as time ticks away. Coloring for the flashbacks highlight the heartbreak as a victim falls to the spores. This pushes events into a striking full page overseeing Gotham in its’ current state. Action panels take over before lighting the match for the conclusion. Lapham’s panel of an eye close-up pops as it goes to the final page. Once here, a full page image welcomes in another factor to the explosive state of affairs. Solid work.
FINAL GRADE: 8.7
Dick Grayson returns to Gotham City but not for a friendly trip. Watters ushers Nightwing into “Bad Seeds” with a highly emotional move. Lapham and the art team craft a thrilling ride into the unstable vision of Gotham. Only time will tell how Nightwing factors in to the overall schemes of “Bad Seeds” but don’t miss the start.
Let me know your thoughts on Nightwing #142 in the comments below. Thanks for reading!
