Nightwing, Vol. 7: On The Razor's Edge

In Bludhaven, the head of its criminal element is the massively strong super villain Blockbuster. Thanks to some surgical enhancements, Blockbuster is a lot smarter than from his first appearances that pitted him against Batman. He's still as unstable as ever and even more ruthless and cruel. He's also at his wit's end. Since his arrival in town, Nightwing has taken an impressive bite out of Blockbuster's empire. To stop this, Blockbuster is testing out some new talent to pit against Nightwing: the assassin Shrike, who has some history with the hero from his days as the Boy Wonder. 

Meanwhile, Dick Grayson has finally made it to the ranks of the Bludhaven Police Department. It's long been Grayson's goal to clean up the BPD which rivals Gotham's police department as the most corrupt law agency in the country. Now if the rookie cop could only get an 'in' with the dirty cops on the force. Grayson thinks he might have that opportunity when his new partner, Officer Any Rohrbach, invites him to meet a special group of people. Only, this group of cops is unlike anything Dick Grayson was expecting. They're honest!

In the middle of all this is some pent up sexual tension. First, Nightwing encounters Catwoman in town to commit a heist against a very powerful crime lord. If there was ever a way that Dick Grayson could ever irrevocably betray Bruce Wayne, it would be hooking up with Selena Kyle. This story very well could be the flame that leads to a powerful explosive of passions. 

Then Oracle, with assistance of Black Canary, comes to Nightwing's rescue after escaping the clutches of Shrike. Babs Gordon and Dick Grayson have always been made for each other. This story proves just that. When will DC finally give the readers what they want and have Dick and Barbara get married?!

Chuck Dixon's writing on Nightwing is phenomenal as ever. I wish I could say the same about the art of Greg Land. Some pages, he's fantastic. In others, I feel like I'm watching scenes from the X-Man Beast's family reunion. It's so inconsistent! Especially in the action-packed scenes.

Another gem I inherited from my late, great best friend.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Nightwing: The Target

Some of you might not know this but after Dick Grayson went off to Blüdhaven to make his way as Nightwing, the former ward of Bruce Wayne attended the police academy and became a cop. It turns out that Blüdhaven's police department is more corrupt than Gotham's thin blue line has ever been. Fighting both petty and organized crime overlooked by dirty cops at night as Nightwing and pursuing justice during the day in uniform, Dick Grayson is on a mission to clean up his new home town. 

Dick's firm boundaries of right from wrong has put Officer Grayson in the crosshairs of the Blüdhaven brotherhood in blue. On his first night on solo patrol, Grayson assists in a pursuit of a pair of thugs with know gang ties. When Officer Grayson witnesses police brutality first hand against two wrongly accused suspects, he takes action. Only the numbers are way wrong and Dick is savagely forced to accept a beating, less someone suspect him of being stronger than he really is. 

Grayson awakens in a hospital room, handcuffed to the bed. His fellow boys in blue have seen to it that neither of those brutalized suspects will ever testify against their misconduct. Not only that, Dick Grayson has been accused as the perpetrator of the violent assaults. With Officer Grayson now under the microscope of Blüdhaven's Internal Affairs Unit, not only does Dick face the rest of his life behind bars, but the entire Batman family is at risk of being unmasked to the general public.

Shelving his Nightwing costume, Dick Grayson dons a new vigilante persona called the Target. Finally free to explore his playful side that came about as a former circus performer, as the Target, Dick Grayson is like a much safer, righteous version of the Joker and I love it! 

Over the span of Dick Grayson's 75 year plus career, he's taken on a number of secret identities. Not counting his time as Robin, the Target is my favorite of them all because of how loose and mischievous Dick becomes. He never crosses the line, but since the Target is an unknown player in Blüdhaven, Grayson is able to do things his own way instead of in the shadow of the Batman.

I'm rather disappointed to research that this prestige format comic book is the only time Dick Grayson becomes the Target. I would be all over a continuation of this persona. If it was an older storyline, I'd be adding those back issues to my wish list. If DC ever decided to rebrand Dick Grayson once more as the Target in an all-new series, I'd add it to my subscription pull over at my favorite LCS right now! 

A great era of Dick Grayson that was over way too soon and obviously all but forgotten. I'm adding this unsure keeper to my permanent collection. But I want more!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.