There are some good character things here. Dick having to hide his skills and wealth from those around him, both with his girlfriend, his secret tenants and his police academy colleagues and teachers, is a very enjoyable shtick. The banter between Barbara and Dick is lovely and sweet, and the Superman cameo in the first issue is warm and lovely. The plotlines that surround this, though, are mostly forgettable -- with the notable exception of the attack on Oracle's base during No Man's Land, which is a terrific display of her Batman-esque intelligence, overpreparedness and paranoia, always appreciated. Otherwise, it's unfortunately a read that's enjoyable enough, but won't stay with you, whether it's Nightwing hunting down a pair of acrobat steal-from-the-bad-guys sisters or being sent into Blackgate during No Man's Land to usurp Lockup's domain. There is also an entire issue spent on a hallucinated let's-revisit-Dick-Grayson's-entire-history bit, which feels obvious and -- with the exception of its reveal of the origin of the Nightwing name -- not very engaging. Add to that two major subplots about a Nightwing-wannabe and the main bad guy's heart problems, neither of which have any resolution within this volume, and the book is by and large just a bit of filler. Albeit with some nice character moments for Grayson, and the hugely impactful decision to join the police force hidden between the seemingly larger, and ultimately far less interesting, events the book actually focuses on. ( )

Plotwise, this was pretty meh, and the artwork really wasn't my thing at all. Points for it being about Dick (well, yeah), the Dick/Barbara interaction and the bit with the Bat boxers. This also has the stories from the No Man's Land arc, which was an interesting addition to the Batman volumes. If only the artwork could've been different; I think I would have liked it better than. Especially during the flashback on Dick's life (which was a tad heavy-handed). But it was still fun to read. ( )