Comics Should be Good looks at issue 149 of the former Teen Wonder's title, and from the description of the "torture porn" taking place in this chapter of Dick Grayson's solo book, it's clear that this book is headed for disaster...

If you don’t know anything about this arc, this character (and it’s obvious) then don’t write about it.

So have you read every review and or comment Greg has written for this blog, and perhaps every other piece written on the blog to see it in the larger picture?

Because otherwise you've got no right to write about this as you aren't writing what you know.

Show some respect.

Or....

LEAVE NIGHTWING ALONE!!!!!!

(That's to be read in the style of that weird arse kid on youtube).

Thanks for having my back, Lynxara! I just wish people wouldn't get so angry about things. It's just a comic book. If I had so much power to influence people to NOT buy titles, why don't I have similar power to get people to buy ones I like? Why aren't Rex Mundi and Godland top sellers?

That you dislike his choice of format and viewpoint does not invalidate his writing in any way. There is a long and totally valid tradition of criticizing installments of a serial on their own individual merits, and I would suggest you familiarize yourself with it.

I have never said that I just want fun comics. I want good comics. Again, check out what I like before you put me in your little boxes, like other commenters have done to you. This issue is not good. So I don't like it. End of story.

Kristen, kudos for saving your money. But...

"And comparing the torture porn in Nightwing to Teen Titans to Final Crisis is really just a reflection of which books you personally are being loyal to. From the outside, they really are all just as bleak."

No. incorrect. You cannot lump them all together as if they're the same. They're not. It's unfair to Morrison, Rucka, McKeever and Tomasi and all their respective artist teams. You have several different brand of writing styles there. Tomasi's for certain is not bleak and McKeever's used to not be. On top of that, each book has a different audience.

The reason I mention Teen Titans is several reasons. One...it's own title is enough to attract younger readers. Two, there was a cartoon by the same name that attracted another wave of young readers. and three, Sean McKeever is known for writing MaryJane Loves Spiderman which is considered to be a very fun youthful book.

But if anyone's been following his work in DC, well...it's of a very different and more violent flavor. I'm not arguing that DC is making more violent comics, No way. The fact of the matter is they got one of the funnest writers from Marvel to come over and write bleak, angry, angsty, violent stories for what could've been a youthful fun book but isn't.

Just so you know that way folks can stop putting me into their little boxes so I can fit in with their stereotype... I read both dark and silly/fun comics, though I lean more towards fun comics. I'm a big fan of Blue Beetle, Tiny Titans, Teen Titans Year One. Hell, I even read cute shojo (girl's) manga. But I also love reading Nightwing, Robin, Detective Comics, Trinity and Batman on occasion.

I never read Nightwing before because it WAS too bleak. But since positive writers like Fabian Nicieza and Peter Tomasi began writing the character this year, I found the book to be quite charming so I began reading it.

I would have more respect for the writer of this article if he had picked up MORE than one issue of ANY DC comic to make his point about where DC is going. (ya know, like a real journalist/researcher would...) But no...he's simply relying on ONE issue of Nightwing, a book he's clearly not interested in and telling people to not buy this series.

And it's just laughable because for once the book has become a positive fun book like what he wants to see in comics and he's using this one tie-in issue to judge DC's trend toward the darker. It's ironic.

Sorry, you had to see something so offensive Mr. Burgas, but it's not definitive of the Nightwing title anymore. (then again, since when are Tie-in issues ever?) Peter Tomasi is not writing what you consider torture porn on a monthly basis. If he were, I would not be reading it. This one issue is just definitive of the Batbooks editorial and DC wanting to revamp their Batman character through special events such as RIP. Is that a good thing? You would say no, I would say, who knows...But...I think a certain box-office hit movie featuring the character this summer had a hand in that... I could be wrong! But it is what it is.

"I freely admit that I’m reading it out of context."

Wish you had started out your review with that and reminding readers that yeah...this is a TIE-IN issue. I wouldn't have read this article (cuz tie-in issues are usually not indicative of the entire series and so I could care less about the review of one) if not for the fact that someone I usually read linked you and has gotten a rather incomplete view of the book because of you.

"There’s absolutely no reason for this issue to exist except as “torture porn,” meaning that it allows the creators to indulge in horrific violence for violence’s sake, and they can’t even use the excuse that it’s all in Dick’s head, because the character he’s supposed to saved gets gut-shot and bleeds to death."

Oh noes, superheros are not allowed to fail, even ONCE. But more to the point...each writer is now responsible for the writing of other writers before him/her!

so if other writers have written contstant blood and gore, and this writer wants to write one failure after a bloody/gory hallucination...he's NOT allowed to! Regardless of the fact that he's mostly written positive fun stories, or that this issue serves to show the hero fighting his hardest against his enemies for once in spite of his fear of failing or hurting others.

Oy, it's not perfect, but I already explained why. Judging the series by this one issue is wrong, no matter which way you look at it. And Peter Tomasi has no need to apologize or feel shame for something that when taken into context, isn't as awful as newcomers would imagine. If you must criticize DC for anything it should be for pushing long over-arching stories that people have to buy many issues of in order to get the whole story.

Oh wait. they won't. They want to guarantee sales. Imagine that. They're thinking like a business. Hm...

"Don’t worry, though - I have no plans on buying the rest of it, so I can show some “respect” by not enabling this kind of crap. Where’s the respect DC shows its readers?"

Thank god, cuz you really dont' have a clue for someone trying to write an informative review for a comicbook website. You might as well have posted this on your personal blog, it's about as unbiased as a fanboy's blog can get.

As for how DC's not showing respect to its readers...which readers? It's not a parent that has to be equally loving with all its unique children.

Don't worry, though - I have no plans on buying the rest of it, so I can show some "respect" by not enabling this kind of crap. Where's the respect DC shows its readers?

If you release it as serialized fiction, it’s completely fair to judge each part on its own - that’s the downside of serialized fiction.

If you don't know anything about this arc, this character (and it's obvious) then don't write about it.

Show some respect.

Part of the reason I'm so turned off is just that it's so bad. But part is also the rest of the world. Ten years ago, blood and guts storylines weren't an issue. But IF you read comics in part for escapism (and remember we don't all have the same reason for reading them, so that eliminates a lot of universal reactions right there), and suddenly real life is dominated by blood and guts, then having your comics be "good versus silly" is actually pretty darn appealing.

Many people do react the opposite way. There was that IFC documentary about how the first rise of slasher flicks (Texas Chainsaw, etc) was a direct psychological response to Vietnam. And now we have Hostel etc. Some parts of the comics industry, including most divisions of DC, have decided to cater to that half. And it's a big, lucrative half.

Although I still really hope that the far more extreme crap that Ennis and Ellis are grinding out over at Avatar is going too far and doesn't find a market.

The comic remains bad, but sure, it is helpful to note WHY the comic was bad.

I got a better analogy. You go to a restaurant known for serving the best steaks in town. Unfortunately, it's Good Friday, and the restaurant decided to change their menu for the one night due to the head chef/owner being a christian who will not eat meat and expects everyone else to follow. And they do, because they want to keep their job.

Still you just happened to be in the neighborhood and you're starving and want protein, so one of the chefs offers you fish.

At this point...you can walk away and come back on Easter Sunday when the restaurant will serve steak again or you can sit and eat fish, which you don't even like.

Whatever the case is...does the one night they don't serve steak take away the fact that when they do make steak like normal, it has been awesome? I don't think so. It's just one night that happened because of some special event, in this case a religious holiday.

Nightwing 149 happened because of Batman RIP.

It's a tie in storyline made on short notice and made to match the somber, trippy, violent mood of Batman RIP. And it's NOT the only book to have done so. Batman and the Outsiders, Robin, Detective Comics were all effected in the same manner by Morrison's impromptu plotting and writing of Batman RIP.

You actually HAVE to read all of Big Leap to understand this fic. This review is not fair and makes you look very unintelligent. Peter Tomasi has been nothing but brilliant with Nightwing. Want to complain about how Nightwing’s being written? Go read the Batman issues of Batman RIP

If you only want to be judged by the complete story, then release it as a graphic novel.

If you release it as serialized fiction, it's completely fair to judge each part on its own - that's the downside of serialized fiction.

I’m sorry, but the idiot who wrote this doesn’t know what the fuck he’s talking about.

Grow up and enjoy the arc.

Way to address the points he made...

Peter Tomasi has written the best Nightwing arc in a long time. He writes Nightwing to his full potential, and this guy is blabbing about violence in comics. There is so much worse out there that it's not even funny. Grow up and enjoy the arc.

Actually, I’m just grateful Mr. Burgas refers to me as “the Other Greg” and not “the old Greg.”

But who wouldn't want to be Old Gregg?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUSvXzYnQZM&feature=related