Brothers in Blood

[bw38]

I just got my TPB copy and I was so disappointed. I was planning on ordering more Nightwing TPBs but I really don't know if I should after reading this one. I was really looking forward to this because I loved Under the Hood 1 and 2. Jason Todd seemed like he would make a great villain or at the very least had the makings of a good anti-hero. But this story was just all over he place. Meta-humans vs regular humans do not make for good stories at all. And how in the world does Jason Todd turn into a meta-human and then somehow go back to being normal? No explanation at all given. The story could have been real good. Dick vs Jason. But they just had to throw meta-humans in there. Not to mention, Nightwing really seemed like he was doing more talking to girls whether it was Cheyne or the psychiatrist (i forget her name right now) than actual crime fighting. It sucks that they couldn't really do anything good with Jason Todd in this story. It just seems like now that he's back from the dead he's wandering around into different stories where he just doesn't really fit. He needs to stay in Gotham and his character as a 'superhero' who is willing to kill needs to be strengthened.

And yes I realize a lot of people don't like the fact that Jason was brought back. But that doesn't matter anymore since he's back. His character has potential, and hopefully it gets fulfilled. Same goes for Nightwing (I sincerely hope the other Nightwing comics are not like this)

[Captain Jim]

I just got my TPB copy and I was so disappointed. I was planning on ordering more Nightwing TPBs but I really don't know if I should after reading this one.

Don't judge Nightwing or other NW trades on the basis of this book. If you had read the past threads here, you would have seen that this arc was almost universally panned by fans. And not only because they don't like Jason; it was just plain badly written. Most fans are much happier with the stories by original Nightwing creator Marv Wolfman that have followed.

And the earlier NW trades by Chuck Dixon are wonderful.

[Nosyarg Kcid]

I just got my TPB copy and I was so disappointed. I was planning on ordering more Nightwing TPBs but I really don't know if I should after reading this one.

I jumped back into Nightwing comics in the middle of this arc. And, um ... it hurt. However, I have to say that the book got better as it went on. Maybe I should say it started off even worse. When I pulled Brothers in Blood from the shelf and read through the first few chapters, they were even more abysmal than the issues I have at home.

I can't stand Jason Todd (the returned version; I thought he was great as a Robin and then as a dead Robin ...) to begin with, but the writing in BiB made it even worse.

None of the characterizations worked. When Dick runs into Clancey, you wouldn't recognize her character if she didn't introduce herself. The dialogue is so stilted throughout the book that I had to re-read some sections five times before I finally could figure out what was going on; the monologue is just as bad.

Dick comes across as nieve, which makes no sense. He has lead an entire generation of super heroes (not to mention the Justice League), defended earth from cosmic forces, and fought crime since his childhood. He doesn't look confused when he needs to find an apartment, he isn't shocked when a male character expresses attraction towards a female character, and he has no problem paying rent!

If, by random chance, my first issue jumping back in to DC comics had been at the start of Brothers in Blood, I would probably be reading Daredevil and Avengers right now ...

PS - The series even has a stupid acronym! BiB!

Edit: If you want to go after some good Nightwing trades to get the taste out of your mind, find A Knight in Bludhaven and Renegade. Year One and Love and Bullets were both passable, also.