WARNING: The following article contains major spoilers for Batman #55 by Tom King, Tony S. Daniel, Danny Miki, Tomeu Morey and Clayton Cowles, on sale now.


Dick Grayson has been at Bruce Wayne's side, both literally and figuratively, ever since Selina Kyle left Bruce at the proverbial altar in Batman #50. First, Dick had temporarily assumed the role of Batman when Bruce was sequestered while serving on the jury during the trial of Mr. Freeze. Now, Dick has resumed his identity as Nightwing, partnering with his former mentor not unlike how the pair once teamed up during Dick's days as the first Robin.

In Batman #55, Dick's attempts to cheer Bruce out of his post-rejection doldrums barely crack Bruce's emotionally-hardened walls. Now, though, an unexpected and tragic development threatens to forever change the course of Nightwing's life and career, and send Batman even further into emotional isolation. That development? As Batman and Nightwing meet with Commissioner Gordon, Dick is taken out by a sniper.

And the man behind that sniper rifle is none other than the KGBeast.

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The Fate of Nightwing

While Nightwing's injury certainly appears to be nothing short of a fatal head shot, DC Comics' own statements about the character's fate suggest otherwise. The injury has been described in DC's solicitations as "devastating," implying, despite its severity, that it's at least something less severe than lethal. And since the character's title is carrying on, the likelihood that he'll remain a part of it remains high.

Dick's injury stands to change the nature of the character, at least for the foreseeable future. Does he still stand to serve a role in the extended Bat-family, not unlike Barbara Gordon's Oracle once did, if his days as a superhero are through? Will he recover physically, but suffer some kind of drastic personality change? Or will his character temporarily be taken off the table, with other members of the Bat-family stepping in to fill his role?

The Fate of Batman?

Just as significant, what will Dick's attempted assassination mean for Batman? Bruce is already in emotional turmoil in the aftermath of Selina's rejection, and the grievous injury to his oldest partner holds the potential to damage him further. Being left behind by the woman who was nearly his wife, and now coming close to losing the man who was all but his son, potentially leaves Bruce in the most fragile emotional state he has ever experienced.

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This tragic development also potentially plays right into Tom King's ongoing subplot that questions Bruce's resolve to continue being the Batman. During his engagement to Selina, Bruce came to the realization that he deserved to be happy, but since then, he has been anything but -- and, in fact, has since been even less so. It also aligns well with Bryan Hill's recent arc in Detective Comics, where Batman's concerns regarding other members of his crime-fighting family, and their safety, are brought to light.

Nightwing's fate very well might be intertwined with Batman's own.

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Why the KGBeast? Why Nightwing? And Why Now?

The KGBeast's covert arrival in the United States, and the steps leading up to his mission, are chronicled throughout the issue while Dick tries to get through to Bruce. Less clear, though, are the motives for the villain's mission, and why Dick was the presumed target. DC's solicitations continue to offer some cryptic insight, although the copy for this issue raises more questions than it answers. The solicitation states that KGBeast's actions have "to do with Bruce Wayne’s recent court case involving Mr. Freeze."

Some of those questions are: What could the KGBeast possibly have to do with Victor Fries' trial? Is the assassin acting on behalf of someone else and, if so, who? And what did Nightwing have to do with all of it?

So many questions, yet so few answers. Unless it's totally fabricated by DC, the tease that KGBeast's mission is connected to Fries' court case likely has some truth to it, if only in that incidental sense. It was the trial of Mr. Freeze, after all, that took Bruce out of commission as Batman. This, in turn, required Dick to travel from Blüdhaven to Gotham to maintain the presence of Batman there.

If Dick was the KGBeast's target, why did he wait for Dick to come to Gotham to take him out? The assassin could have accomplished his mission anytime had he simply journeyed to Blüdhaven instead. This points to the possibility that the attempted assassination of Nightwing had to take place in Gotham -- that is, in the vicinity of Batman.

Or, perhaps, right in front of him.

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Not Just Why, But Who?

KGBeast and Nightwing are foes, sure, but what would drive KGBeast to try and kill Nightwing, when it's Batman who's historically been his true enemy? And if KGBeast did have some motive for assassinating Nightwing, why wait until now? It's not like Nightwing doesn't make any visits back home from time to time.

No, the timing and circumstance point towards a larger overall motive. A motive that goes beyond the standard method of operations employed by the KGBeast. Meaning that KGBeast is essentially just a hired gun, and that someone else is behind it.

Someone wanted Nightwing taken out. They wanted him taken out right in front of Batman. And they wanted it to happen while Batman was already emotionally ragged. Just who would engage in such twisted psychological torture against the Bat?

Perhaps it's the man who once literally broke the Bat, and is now in the process of doing so again, emotionally. That man, of course, is none other than Bane, who was last seen at the end of Batman #50 and was revealed to be pulling the strings of several Batman villains. It appears now that the KGBeast just might be the latest among them.

Yes, such a move would flow right along with Bane's master plan, as the Bat, in the aftermath of what's just happened to his oldest partner, stands to be utterly devastated.

Bane's machinations are those of a future storyline. First, though, what's next for Nightwing is a more immediate concern. The next chapter in Dick Grayson's life begins in Batman #56, on sale Oct. 3.