The premise of the issue is that Dick allows himself to be chased by four St. Hadrian's students that discover his presence at the school because he misses running along rooftops at night. That's a remarkably insightful take on Dick, one that I didn't even consider. I figured that Dick would get his jollies on that front from all the spy stuff. But, Seeley has actually made it clear just how different this new world is from Dick's old one. He's uncomfortable with the death and lies that surround him, and he longs for the life that the Crime Syndicate took from him. In fact, Seeley manages to remind us that we have no easy solution in the future for Dick's current situation. Given the unlikelihood of the DCnU's version of Dr. Strange, Iron Man, and Mr. Fantastic casting a spell that robs the world of its memory of his identity, Dick is really forced to confront this new status quo as a permanent one. Seeley really conveys that helplessness in this issue, turning what could've just been a fun one-off issue into a real study of the despair that seems to lie at the heart of Dick's current state of mind. It's really well done. (Plus, the shirtlessness.)
Moreover, unlike the last iteration of "Nightwing," this series has some honest-to-goodness supporting characters. Seeley brilliantly has Helena reveal to Minos that the source of the radio signal going outside the School was from the cameras that one of the students rigged to keep an eye on the professors, explaining both how she discovered Dick in the first place and how Dick gets off the hook from being discovered as the leak. But, Seeley doesn't make it clear if Helena doesn't also know the truth. Her invitation to Dick to chase her across the rooftops reminds us of the affection that she feels for him, making her motives all the more unclear. She continues to be a mystery, and I have to admit that I've decided to keep reading in part to learn more about her.
In other words, I'm a surprisingly happy camper.
**** (four of five stars)
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