The various Batman books are requiring an increasing amount of suspension of disbelief as Death of the Family wears on. How is Joker able to to simultaneously administer such elaborate forms of psychological torture on each member of the Bat-family in the span of time it takes Batman to drive from Wayne Manor to Arkham Asylum? Why does Joker even bother with all of this hooplah if his goal is merely to eliminate Batman's many sidekicks and allies from the picture? How can Nightwing take a spiked mallet to the face and wake up with nothing more than a few skin lacerations?
If you can put all of those questions aside, Nightwing #16 is a gripping read. Last month I complained that the arc was banking too heavily on character relationships that hadn't had enough time to coalesce. But that becomes moot after a while. As Joker systematically tears down Dick's world in this issue, the reader can't help but feel for the tortured hero. If anything, there comes a frustration from the fact that Dick isn't allowed even the hollowest of victories against the Clown Prince of Crime. Characters like Batgirl and Robin have been allowed to fight back and stand tall before ultimately falling to Joker's well-laid plans. Why is it that Dick, generally the most well-adjusted and level-headed member of the group, is reduced to a quivering, helpless mess almost immediately?
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