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Writer: tom Taylor / Artist: Robbi Rodriguez and Adraino Lucas / DC Comics
Nightwing’s time in Gotham and the Fear State story is over, but it honestly was a fun little break that ultimately built the anticipation for his return to Blüdhaven.
Nightwing #86 is the final issue of this tie-in, Nightwing, both Batgirls, Spoiler, and Robin go up against the all-seeing Seer for the final time in her floating villainous sky base.
The goal was clear, but how were they gonna get up there without the Magistrate stopping them the second they stepped into the light? Well, they had to become the Magistrate.
They kicked, punched, embarrassed, and scarred the Magistrate the only way sidekicks of Batman know how to do, and stole their uniforms so they could sneak onto the base. Robin has a funny line about how they basically had to become what the Magistrate thinks they are in order to save the day. Life is messed up like that sometimes.
The action in Nightwing #86 was what really sold it for me. That and the very on-brand banter between the Batfam. Taylor really understands these characters and how they navigate as bitter yet loving siblings who are always poking fun at one another. It makes for a very fun and lighthearted read.
And like I said, the action was great. Dropkicks and uppercuts galore fed my soul in these 25 pages. Thank you, Rodriguez.
Ultimately, the events of this story are going to lead into the new Batgirls book coming out in a few months. Never has a tie-in been more effective in getting me interested in an upcoming book, but shoutout to everyone involved because they understood the assignment and they did their job.
As surprisingly entertaining as this tie-in was for me personally, I’m so excited to get back on track with the main Nightwing story next month. I need more Heartless now! And I need those wholesome moments that Taylor so effortlessly weaves into Nightwing and his surrounding cast. See y’all in Blüdhaven in about a month!
9 Floating Villain Hideouts out of 10
Enjoying Nightwing? Check out BNP’s other reviews here.
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The post Nightwing #86 Review appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.
Writer: tom Taylor / Artist: Robbi Rodriguez and Adraino Lucas / DC Comics
Nightwing’s time in Gotham and the Fear State story is over, but it honestly was a fun little break that ultimately built the anticipation for his return to Blüdhaven.
Nightwing #86 is the final issue of this tie-in, Nightwing, both Batgirls, Spoiler, and Robin go up against the all-seeing Seer for the final time in her floating villainous sky base.
The goal was clear, but how were they gonna get up there without the Magistrate stopping them the second they stepped into the light? Well, they had to become the Magistrate.
They kicked, punched, embarrassed, and scarred the Magistrate the only way sidekicks of Batman know how to do, and stole their uniforms so they could sneak onto the base. Robin has a funny line about how they basically had to become what the Magistrate thinks they are in order to save the day. Life is messed up like that sometimes.
The action in Nightwing #86 was what really sold it for me. That and the very on-brand banter between the Batfam. Taylor really understands these characters and how they navigate as bitter yet loving siblings who are always poking fun at one another. It makes for a very fun and lighthearted read.
And like I said, the action was great. Dropkicks and uppercuts galore fed my soul in these 25 pages. Thank you, Rodriguez.
Ultimately, the events of this story are going to lead into the new Batgirls book coming out in a few months. Never has a tie-in been more effective in getting me interested in an upcoming book, but shoutout to everyone involved because they understood the assignment and they did their job.
As surprisingly entertaining as this tie-in was for me personally, I’m so excited to get back on track with the main Nightwing story next month. I need more Heartless now! And I need those wholesome moments that Taylor so effortlessly weaves into Nightwing and his surrounding cast. See y’all in Blüdhaven in about a month!
9 Floating Villain Hideouts out of 10
Enjoying Nightwing? Check out BNP’s other reviews here.
Want to get Black Nerd Problems updates sent directly to you? Sign up here! Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, and Instagram!
The post Nightwing #86 Review appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.
This week, Keith and Victoria come back with the latest nerd news for you as they recap Disney Plus Day’s announcements, talk about the latest crop of live-action anime adaptations in the works, and plenty more!
Hear about that and more on This Week in Nerd News.
Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher.
Check out other episodes of TWINN here.
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The post TWINN: Will We Ever Get a Good Anime Adaptation? appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.
There are neither beginnings or endings to the turning of the Wheel of Time. But this is a beginning.
Excuse me while I do my dance, I’ve been waiting for this day since the first time I picked up Eye of the World, back in the early 90’s. I’ve been patiently re-reading the books, writing about my love of WOT in past articles, and we are finally here. Today is WOT-day, the day Prime Video unleashes what I think will be the best rendering of a high fantasy series ever. Not the best small screen rendering, the best PERIOD.
I think Wheel of Time will supplant Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones and make you forget about anything else on the horizon. There are scenes in the Wheel of Time that make Helms Deep look like a day trip to a spa (looking at you Dumai’s Wells) But I get it, you’re skeptical. LOTR was a franchise and Game of Thrones broke your heart, but fear not beloved. I will tell you henceforth 3 reasons why the Wheel of Time series will go down as the GOAT.
1. The Books are Already Finished
Let’s be honest, the biggest problems with Game of Thrones really didn’t pop up until we got to the end of the series. Some of the best parts in the book translated perfectly into the television series. The (yet again) death of Sean Bean, The Red Wedding, Joeffry’s Murder, the Trial by Combat between Floyd Mayweather and Shaquille O’Neil, all great moments. They were great moments because they were lifted, in some cases, word by word from the books.
But it’s not exactly a moment in courage to take the stance that the last few seasons was a bit of a letdown. I’ve seen a lot of online speculation as to why that was, but I think the biggest reason was that the books weren’t done. For season after season the producers of Game of Thrones had a detailed road map to work from. Then all of the sudden in the last few season the wi-fi went out, the signal got lost, there was no books and they found themselves on the part of the map that says, ”HERE BE MONSTERS.” They had no more road map and thus had to rely upon themselves and from all accounts they had an unearned confidence in their own ability to wrap this story up.
Wheel of Time, on the other hand, is done, finished, THE END. There will be no speculation as to how things are supposed to be. The road map is crystal clear. The wi-fi is strong. We aren’t going to have a situation where the author of the books says “yeahhhh their ending was different than mine“. But I know what your asking, what happens is the show runners decide to call an audible and change stuff up at the line of scrimmage. Well, that leads me to point number 2.
2. HARRIET AIN’T HAVING IT
Harriet Popham McDougal Rigney, 1st of her name, Protector of the Realm, Warden of the Wheel, Keeper of the Flame is not here to play games with y’all. And if you don’t know who that is, let me educate you. Harriet Rigney is a Gawd tier editor in the genre. She’s worked on Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game, Sanderson’s Way of Kings and the legendary Black Company series by the godfather of grimdark himself Glen Cook. She was the editor for the Wheel of Time series and by the way she’s also Robert Jordan’s widow.
For those new to the series, Robert Jordan is the author/Gawd of the Wheel of Time, who passed away right before the series ended. Harriet, has been rightfully protective of his legacy, and I think she will be protective of Robert Jordan in the same way that George R.R. Martin wasn’t protective of himself. Harriet owns the rights of the Wheel of Time, and this was Jordan’s magnum opus. This was his gift to the world. All of the evidence we have tells us she is meticulous with WOT.
After Jordan’s death, she carefully picked Brandon Sanderson who immediately showed why he was a great pick by re-reading the entire series and giving us updates on his thoughts as he went along. Sanderson ended up writing the last 3 books in the series, (using Jordan’s notes), and he did a phenomenal job. So, we don’t have to guess at what Harriet will do. We’ve seen what she’s done, and we already know how much she cares for and values the Wheel of Time. She will not allow cowboys disguised as producers run ragged all over Jordan’s legacy. In the words of Suge Knight, there won’t be any producers, singing, rapping all over the record, and they won’t be quoted in embarrassing tweets saying things like, “I don’t know why George R.R. Martin trusted us with his life’s work.”
3. Diversity
Not the, “Let’s build up a Black character to murder them ruthlessly,” diversity. Not the “You got locked in a vault or thrown off the palace walls,” diversity. Not the scene where 1000 enslaved brown folks, raise you up to the heavens and call you mommy…diversity. This is main character diversity. This is Sal finally got some brothers on the wall diversity. The kind of diversity that pisses off CPAC and makes Tucker Carlson twitch in his sleep.
Mat has always been my favorite, but I’ve always thought Perrin had the better story, was more fleshed out, had to make harder decisions. Tuon is/should/shall be a blockbuster sleeper character that steals every scene she’s in. Lan makes Aragon look like a boy scout, and I’m pretty sure Siuan Sanche is Machiavelli. Then, if you look at the rest of the main casting, people of color everywhere.
We aren’t hastily tucked into a scene, we aren’t background noise, walk-ons and extras. We are: Lan Mandragoran, the last king of Malkier, Nynaeve al’Meara, power ranger and healer extraordinaire, not to mention Loial, Padan Fain, Min, and Egwene. I can’t think of the last fantasy series that had so many high-profile people of color in MAIN roles. These aren’t tokens. They are fully fleshed out characters that have compelling arcs and great stories, and we don’t often get that in high fantasy.
So, in conclusion…there are no endings,
but come on over and give Wheel of Time a chance. I know you’ve been burned before, but this time it’s different. It’s: books finished, brown folks all over the place, you are NOT going to mess with my late husband’s legacy…different. It’s Dumai’s Wells, Bao the Wyld, Stone Dog, Maidens of the Spear…different. It’s Hunters of the Horn, Blood and Bloody ashes, Band of the Red Hand…different. And you are going to love every minute of it. Welcome to the fandom, we got plenty of room, have a seat, grab a snack and tune in to your newest obsession. “Dovie’andi se tovya sagain, time to roll the dice.
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The post 3 Reasons Why ‘Wheel of Time’ Will be Better than ‘Game of Thrones’ appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.
Seriously, y’all…we should really be paying attention to Radiant Black. Image Comics has been making the rounds in the past decade or so, rebranding as a mainstream launching pad for indie titles, many of which have gone on to become new classics or get optioned for movie/tv deals. So, it was really only a matter of time before they wanted to stake their claim again in the superhero genre as it has become a cornerstone in modern day Hollywood.
We’ve seen superheroes team up, inspire and even break the fourth wall a la Bugs Bunny. And for the most part, it’s been a lucrative venture. But it’s time for heroes to start breaking the molds again and subverting the status quo. The Invincible animated series is a pretty good retelling of Robert Kirkman’s epic comic saga, but certain parts are clearly dated and can’t get around the Walking Dead writer’s storytelling flaws. Watchmen’s resurgence on and off screen has been welcome, but the various retcons and time jumps are a reminder that Alan Moore’s work hasn’t all aged well in terms of race and gender politics. All of this isn’t necessarily to imply that Radiant Black has taken the throne as Invincible’s successor in a mere ten issues, but it’s been long enough since a comic of its ilk came along that it deserves to be watched.
In fact, Radiant Black reads more like Invincible‘s descendant, breaking Kirkman’s generational curses, improving upon the predecessor through risky narratives. Instead of the “son improving upon the father” trope, Kyle Higgins rips apart the “chosen one” narrative with his tale of a down on his luck writer discovering a mysterious power source that allows him to access a suit of great, otherworldly power. Now, I’m supposed to explain to you how this guy uses his unique imagination and boundless optimism to master his powers and ascend to greatness, but he gets his ass kicked and ends up comatose. And with the power passing onto his equally unlucky but ambitious-to-a-fault best friend Marshall, our hero (whether we like it or not) discovers that he’s not the only one out there and that his world is about to get bigger than he’d imagined.
Radiant Black takes the “irreverent superhero” genre and delivers a swift, much-needed kick to its nethers with a hero that is hard to like even at his most relatable. And make no mistake, his frustrations are understandable at times. Whereas Mark, the main character in Invincible, starts out searching for his own greatness instead of settling for the shadow of his father’s….Marshall is a Millennial just searching for some sense of purpose and dignity. He’s very aware he’s not living up to his potential, but he’s just as aware of that partially being because of the way the world is. As the story goes on and we learn more about this guy, Higgins (perhaps unknowingly) taps into a frustration shared by many real people left in the pandemic’s wake. And yet, though he isn’t exactly giving us T’Challa levels of virtue, he ultimately seems driven by his need to do right by his friend’s good name when he could be using his newfound secret identity to run up the price of Bitcoin or sell Pop dolls.
The book’s total worth is yet to be seen, but from what we’ve been given to work with in a mere ten issues, it’s setting itself up to be the standard bearer of this generation’s “hero’s burden.” Superhero comics are the modern-day fables and myths of the western world, the funhouse mirror image of what our world would look like guided by unlimited hope and imagination….and so far, Radiant Black is a fable speaking up for its time.
Cover image via comicsbeat.com
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The post Not Even A Year Old, ‘Radiant Black’ Wants to Be the Irreverent Voice of a Generation So Bad appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.