Nightwing #13
Nightwing #13 (October 2012) serves the dual function of introducing the New 52 version of Lady Shiva to DC's rebooted continuity while also opening the volume of issues that feeds into Scott Snyder's Batman: Death of the Family crossover — one of the most structurally ambitious Bat-Family events of the New 52 era. The Joker's campaign in that crossover was designed to attack each Bat-Family member through what they held dearest, and for Dick Grayson that meant the Haly's Circus community he had spent the preceding twelve issues rebuilding, giving the tie-in storyline genuine emotional stakes rooted in character work rather than borrowed urgency. The issue also marks a notable creative handoff moment: regular series writer Kyle Higgins stepped aside for guest scripter Tom DeFalco for this two-issue Lady Shiva arc, illustrating the editorial choreography required to synchronize a crossover of Death of the Family's scale across nine separate titles.
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The New 52 Nightwing series launched in September 2011 under writer Kyle Higgins and penciller Eddy Barrows as part of DC's line-wide continuity reboot following Flashpoint. By issue #13, the editorial calendar required bridging the Night of the Owls aftermath into the Death of the Family crossover, and DC brought in veteran writer Tom DeFalco to script issues #13 and #14, with interior art by Andres Guinaldo and inks by Mark Irwin — while Barrows provided the cover. DeFalco used the two-issue window to debut the redesigned New 52 Lady Shiva, described by the writer himself as 'very different' from her pre-Flashpoint incarnation in terms of backstory and visual design, though her reputation as the world's premier assassin remained intact.
Trivia · 8 facts
- On sale date: October 17, 2012; cover-dated December 2012; published by DC Comics as part of the New 52 imprint.
- Written by Tom DeFalco (guest scripter for issues #13–14); pencils by Andres Guinaldo; inks by Mark Irwin; cover by Eddy Barrows; colors by Rod Reis.
- Marks the New 52 (Prime Earth) debut of Lady Shiva — a significantly redesigned version of the character, younger than her pre-Flashpoint counterpart, sporting a teal kabuki-style costume and mask rather than her traditional black coat.
- The story, titled 'The Hunter,' involves Nightwing learning through the Penguin that Lady Shiva has arrived in Gotham City on an assassination contract, with the issue ending on a first-page-reveal of Shiva herself.
- Batgirl (Barbara Gordon) appears as a guest, hunting the Joker in a scene that cross-references the concurrent Death of the Family storyline running through the Batman title.
- Although it opens the 'Death of the Family' collected volume (Nightwing #13–18), issue #13 is a prelude chapter; the direct DOTF crossover tie-in issues for this series are Nightwing #15–16.
- Collected in the trade paperback Nightwing Vol. 3: Death of the Family, which gathers Nightwing #13–18 and Batman #17.
- Regular series writer Kyle Higgins returned to the title for the core Death of the Family chapters (#15–18) after DeFalco's two-issue arc.
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Reprinted in Batman - The Dark Knight #13 (2013), Nightwing #3 (2014), Batman Giant #13 (2019)
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