Nightwing #49 and Batman #55: These issues are odd because they're in theory connected, but they aren't at all.
In "Nightwing" #49, Percy begins to bring his story to a close by curiously deciding to make it more complicated. The Silencer is apparently at the race to save Dick (not kill him) because he's become the target of all the Leviathan underbosses; Leviathan is essentially playing a meta-game at the race, with Dick as the trophy. If the Silencer can kill the underbosses, she's freed from her life as an assassin. I don't read "The Silencer," so her plight means nothing to me. But, even if I did feel for her, I'm pretty sure her insertion into this story would still feel awkward. We already had enough happening in this title; we didn't need to import drama from another title. After all, we still don't really know anything about Wyrm's plan, despite his dominating presence over the last six issues. In spite of constantly falling behind the other racers (given the need to evade the team of assassins after him), Nightwing somehow wins the race, because "time works differently" here, blah blah blah. At any rate, Nightwing manages to ask exactly the right question allowing Cimialcinnus to reward him with more time. Cimialcinnus pretends to be hacked so Dick has time to find a way to save Vicki and William. OK, fine. Percy wanted to tell a space-race story, and he did. It wasn't awful, but I figured we'd return to the Wyrm story to bring it to a close. But, I was wrong
Instead of Dick immediately trying to save Vicki and Willem, he goes to Gotham in "Batman" #55 again to spend time with a sulking Bruce. He's his jokey self as they take down yet another forgettable villain, this time called the Phantom Pharaoh. He does manage to goad Bruce into a diving contest, where they jump off a building and the first one to use a grapple loses. Just like last issue, Bruce isn't totally biting, but King does a good job of implying he appreciates Dick's presence, annoying though it may be. But, it's here where the B story collides with the A story. Throughout the B story, a one-armed man makes his way through Gotham: he arrives from overseas, buys a sniper rifle (and pays to expedite the background checks), scribbles on a napkin in a diner, and kills someone to use his apartment as a nest. It's surprisingly the napkin action that ruins the diving game, as Bruce responds to the Bat-signal. On the GCPD rooftop, Gordon tells them "the Napkin Man" (as Dick calls him) wrote, "Who's afraid of the Joker?" on the napkin, with an oversized question mark. Bruce mentions it's around the anniversary of the War of Jokes and Riddles, and Dick starts to make a joke. But, then, he's unexpectedly shot in the head. I admit I was surprised by it. But, the more I sat with it, the more I rolled my eyes, since it was clear Dick isn't dead.
I then did something I don't normally do and skimmed "Nightwing" #50 and "Batman" #56. Other than Dick looking finer than he ever has, it appears the point is Dick is going to lose his memory. I'm totally on board with this story. But, it's hard not to feel blindsided by it, as Dick is involved in at least three different stories -- the fight against Wyrm, the race with Cimialcinnus, and patrolling with Bruce -- over the course of these two issues. On some level, that only supports the impact of the amnesia story: tragedy doesn't strike when your arcs are conveniently summarized. But, we're not talking about real life here; we're talking about a comic book. If Percy merely drops the Wyrm story for this turn of events -- seemingly by editorial fiat -- I can't say I'm going to be a happy camper, at a time when I'm already still pissed at DC for "Batman" #50.
The Wild Storm #17: Whoa. Just, whoa. The thing that amazes me so much about this creative team is Davis-Hunt can deliver five pages of nearly wordless art, where we once again see the amazing extent of the Thunderbook subjects' powers, but Ellis can still advance the increasingly complicated narrative in a way that makes sense. It’s still a joy to read after all this time, and I get excited each time I open an issue.
- Lynch tracks down Stephen Rainmaker, a Native American whose alien apparently gives him the power to control the weather. We learn Rainmaker is the last person on John's list. He apparently feared Rainmaker the most, because he was always the angriest and “killed a lot of people.” (Given how many people the Thunderbook subjects killed, that’s...impressive.) John updates Rainmaker on everyone else's status and observes he no longer seems to be the most uptight. Rainmaker says he’s made peace with the alien by learning how to control his anger, breaking the feedback loop. (Ellis hints Rainmaker might not be aware that his "peace" might not exactly be true.) John asks if Rainmaker had any children, and he admits he did, after a suspiciously easy set of circumstances. (He had a one-night stand with the hottest woman he ever met, and a limo appeared two years later dropping off the kid.) John informs him everyone but Slayton had a child, and he wants to find them. (Gen13, here we come.) Rainmaker says Lynch can bring them to the reservation, because they’d be safe among people who understand what it feels like to be an alien.
- In a conversation between Jacob and Kenesha, we learned Lucy was known as Zannah, but, according to Jacob, she betrayed Halo. However, Kenesha notes she didn’t “betray” Halo so much as she didn’t agree with its goals. Jacob doesn’t see the difference. They then discuss their concerns over Angie getting too good at what she does, something Angie sees by spying on them through Jacob's Halo Angel voice-assistant device. (Amazing.) Kenesha then shows Jacob an article in the “Daily Planet” (also amazing) detailing how the singer Voodoo went to rehab and someone sold her files to a tabloid. In therapy, she drew out the monster who inspires her songs, and it's a Daemon. John is stunned to discover "they're still out there." Kenesha observes Michael Cray set off Jacob's "xenobiological alarms," which means he could also be a disguised Daemon. John dismisses that fear as paranoia, but Kenesha reminds him they're threatened.
- Meanwhile, a Daemon appears to Angie as she's watching this scene. The Daemon claims they've never meant any harm, but Marlowe and his crew have always misunderstood that, leading to a constant state of war. He claims 2,500 years ago a human named them "Daemon" and all they seek is "balance." Jacob, or Emp, and the other Khera are invaders who seek to "deform the growth of this world." Angie's act of selflessness tipped the Earth further off balance, so the Daemons must "speak." When they do, he suggests Angie seek out "Sparks" since she has the authority to restore the balance. He then disappears.
- Elsewhere, Slayton appears at a house on his hunt, but a shadowy Apollo and Midnighter scare him into leaving.
I recently read that the follow-on series to "The Wild Storm" are "Wild C.A.T.s" and "Zealot," and I have to say I'm pretty excited about getting to that point. I have no idea where Ennis is taking us in the meantime, but I know I can't wait!
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