Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Nightwing #118I was nearly about to flip tables halfway through the final issue of Tom Taylor and Bruno Redondo’sNightwing. On the whole,Nightwing #118is a wonderful conclusion to the run Taylor and Redondo first began in 2021 withNightwing #78. However, there was one moment where I nearly started to riot, fearing that Tom Taylor had become as heartless as DC’s Heartless himself.
InNightwing #118by Tom Taylor and Bruno Redondo,Dick Grayson returns to his city of Blüdhaven, having overcome his fear of heightshe recently received from the villain Heartless. In the interim, Heartless had been posing as Grayson himself to discredit everything Nightwing had done to improve his city and help its people. However, this final confrontation also involves Dick Grayson’s adorable pit bull Haley, the three-legged dog Dick saved at the beginning of this run. Shockingly,Bitewing saves Dick Grayson by taking a bullet that was meant for him (also known as the moment I nearly lost it):
Taking a bullet in the side from Heartless' butler that was meant for Dick, Bitewing’s loyalty is unquestionably unmatched. However, the thought of Nightwing losing his adorable companion is unthinkably tragic and cruel, even for fiction. After all,this is the dog who was literally named by DC fansvia an online voting system when she first debuted in Taylor and Redondo’sNightwingrun.
Haley aka Bitewing Is One of DC’s Best Super Pets Ever
An Adorable Creation From Taylor and Redondo
After rescuing her as a puppy from some teenagers who’d been abusing her, Dick Grayson took Haley aka Bitewing home to live with him as his own. Since that time, Haley has been primarily cared for by bothNightwing and Barbara Gordon’s Batgirl, having become adorably loyal and all kinds of cute. While the name Bitewing makes perfect sense, the name Haley is arguably even better, having been named after Haly’s Circus where Dick grew up with his parents.
Bitewing has also become a true Super Pet in her own right. Thanks to the efforts of the fifth-dimensional imp and Nightwing super-fan known as Nite-Mite, Haley temporarily got her own suit and even the ability to talk, helping Nightwing save Olivia Desmond from several demons. To that end, one would be hard-pressed to find a better dog than Haley.Keeping that in mind, Bitewing’s sacrifice in this final issue is something she would undoubtedly do for Dick. However, it makes it no less tragic had that been how her story ends…which it thankfully isn’t.
Thankfully, Haley Lives On To Be The Best Bitewing She Can Be
(I Can Rest Easy)
Thankfully, the beautiful final page of Taylor and Redondo’sNightwingrun sees Haley alive and well, having recovered from her wounds and happily sitting next to Dick and Barbara.As such, it means I can rest easy knowing that such an adorable DC Super Pet gets to live on. More importantly, it also means Tom Taylor gets to rest easy and doesn’t have to worry about what would have been a very strongly-worded letter written by yours truly. Taylor would never be that cruel (despite having teased otherwise) andNightwing #118remains a truly epic conclusion to his and Redondo’s award-winning run.
Nightwing #118is on sale now from DC Comics.
Nightwing
Nightwing is the superhero moniker taken up by Dick Grayson, upon his aging out of the Robin role and becoming a superhero of his own. Inspired by the original Kryptonian hero of the same name, Grayson has risen to comic book immortality with the identity, earning respect as one of the greatest leaders in the DC Universe.
