Nightwing No. 59 review: Who is Malcolm Hutch?
By Monita Mohan
With a change in the creative team, the Nightwing series takes a moment to flesh out the backstory of Red Nightwing, Malcolm Hutch.
Nightwing No. 59
Writer: Dan Jurgens
Artist: Chris Mooneyham
Nightwing No. 59 cover (Credit: DC Comics)
The Joker’s Daughter has disappeared, giving the team of Nightwings some much-needed respite to recuperate. Malcolm Hutch, the Red Nightwing, has taken it upon himself to train Ric Grayson, a de facto member of the Nightwings. Though Ric isn’t interested in becoming Nightwing again, his latent abilities ensure that he cannot stand by while Blüdhaven is on fire.
Which is exactly what’s happening in Nightwing No. 59. Reports of random arson events have reached the Nightwings, and Hutch and Ric are quick to attempt a rescue. They are in for a shock when they realize the cause of these fires. Who is this new villain in Blüdhaven?
Discovering Hutch’s Backstory
Hutch is the only new Nightwing who doesn’t work for the police force. He is the youngest deputy of the fire department, but his original dreams were of being a cop. In Nightwing No. 59, writer Dan Jurgens gives readers a glimpse into Hutch’s story.
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Hutch’s backstory was a bit of a surprise, as we had surmised several issues ago that Hutch could have been a victim of systemic discrimination – that would have made a stronger story for the series, though it seems the creative team have decided to go down a more personal route for the character.
As a rookie cop, Hutch was involved in an incident that changed the life of a “good man” and made Hutch swear off the police badge forever. He continues to repent for his misdeeds, primarily by working for the fire department, but now as a Nightwing as well. Have we reached the extent of Hutch’s origin story, or will other details surface over the next several issues?
New team, new style for Nightwing
Hutch vs. Ric in Nightwing No. 59 (Credit: DC Comics)
Dan Jurgens taking over writing duties immediately makes Nightwing No. 59 read differently from the issues before. Gone are the tiresome recaps which always felt out of place, giving way to one of the most substantial single issues in the series since Benjamin Percy’s hasty exit.
Where Jurgens’ writing fails is in its expositional style. The majority of the interactions in this issue were made up of expositional dialogue. It doesn’t read like authentic speech – let’s just say, this installment did a lot of telling, not enough showing.
Chris Mooneyham returns to the series with his own distinctive art, but the revolving door of artists on the series makes for a disjointed reading experience. If Mooneyham sticks around for this new arc, it will make sense, though we’re not holding our breaths, considering how regularly the creative team has changed over the past year.
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Whittling down the protagonists of this issue to mainly Hutch, and a little bit of Ric, made the issue feel compact and well paced. These characters continue to be fascinating to read, especially the new villain introduced during the denouement of Nightwing No. 59. This is a foe the Nightwings may never have heard of before, and it will be interesting to see if the creative team can make this enemy a compelling character. Jurgens and team have certainly piqued our curiosity.