Nightwing #78

May 2021 · DC · 3.99 USD

📊 ~31,886 copies sold its debut month

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“Leaping Into the Light Part 1”

★ 1st appearance — Melinda Zucco★ 1st appearance — Heartless

About this Issue

Nightwing #78 marks one of the most consequential creative resets in Dick Grayson's publishing history, launching the Tom Taylor and Bruno Redondo run that would go on to earn multiple Eisner Award nominations in 2022 — with the series winning Best Continuing Series — and cementing Nightwing's standing as a genuine A-list DC hero rather than a perpetual Batman satellite. The issue seeds a cascade of status-quo changes that redefine the character for a generation: Dick inherits Alfred Pennyworth's secret billion-dollar fortune, acquires his three-legged canine companion Haley (initially nicknamed 'Bitewing' by fans), and encounters Melinda Zucco — a new character who would later be revealed as his half-sister — all within a single debut chapter. Its design as a genuinely new-reader-friendly entry point, despite continuing an existing volume's numbering, demonstrated that a legacy series could successfully relaunch its creative identity without renumbering, and the immediate sell-out that forced multiple printings confirmed a real hunger in the market for a hopeful, street-level Nightwing story.

writer Tom Taylor · artist, inker Bruno Redondo · colorist Adriano Lucas · letterer Wes Abbott · cover Bruno Redondo

ComicBooks.com Value

Our Model is In Beta

Raw (NM) $23

CGC 9.8 · 234 in census $121

CGC 9.6 · 82 in census $57

CGC 9.4 · 28 in census $48

CGC 9.2 · 12 in census $48*

CGC 9.0 · 5 in census $46*

CGC 8.5 · 6 in census $37*

Show all 9 grades ▾

CGC 8.0 · 1 in census $37*

CGC 7.5 none in existence

CGC 7.0 · 1 in census $28*

* estimate — limited direct-sales data at this grade

Our model’s value — refined as new sales data arrives · CGC census counts shown where available

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Variant · 3rd print $3.99 Variant · 3rd print $4.79 3rd print $4.95 3rd print $4.99 NM- $5.99 Variant · 3rd print $6.26 NM+ · Variant · 3rd print $6.79 MINT · 3rd print $7.08

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History

The Taylor-Redondo pairing was announced in December 2020 by DC as the creative team to revitalize the Nightwing title following DC's Future State publishing initiative, which had temporarily replaced the mainline DC books with near-future stories. The announcement came as the series needed a clear direction after a divisive multi-year arc in which Dick Grayson had suffered amnesia from a gunshot wound and operated under the name 'Ric,' a period many readers found unsatisfying. Taylor, already a New York Times-bestselling DC writer through Injustice and DCeased — projects on which he had also worked with Redondo — publicly framed his mandate as restoring Dick Grayson to what he called 'DC A-lister' status. The issue's full creative team was Tom Taylor (script), Bruno Redondo (art and main cover), Adriano Lucas (color), and Wes Abbott (letters), with a variant cover by Skan; Jessica Chen served as editor.

Trivia · 9 facts

First appearance of Melinda Zucco, installed as mayor of Blüdhaven by Blockbuster (Roland Desmond), and later revealed in subsequent issues to be Dick Grayson's half-sister through their shared father John Grayson.
First appearance of the three-legged puppy later named Haley — her civilian name was chosen by a fan poll Tom Taylor held on Twitter, with 'Haley' winning over options including Shadow, Blue, and Hope; the dog was nicknamed 'Bitewing' by fans prior to the poll.
Dick Grayson learns via Barbara Gordon — named executor of Alfred Pennyworth's will — that Alfred secretly accumulated a billionaire-level fortune through Wayne Industries stock and prudent investment, and left it entirely to Dick; this inheritance becomes the financial engine for the Alfred Pennyworth Foundation introduced later in the run.
The issue contains a key retroactive continuity scene: a flashback depicting a pre-costume first meeting between young Dick Grayson and young Barbara Gordon, with Detective Jim Gordon also appearing, which rewrites their pre-Robin/Batgirl relationship.
Blockbuster (Roland Desmond) is reestablished as the dominant crime lord of Blüdhaven in his first scene, killing the sitting mayor with his bare hands — a brutal re-introduction designed to echo his classic Chuck Dixon-era role in the city.
Written by Tom Taylor with art by Bruno Redondo, colors by Adriano Lucas, and letters by Wes Abbott; variant cover by Skan; edited by Jessica Chen. Published March 16, 2021, with a cover date of May 2021.
The issue sold out its first printing immediately, prompting DC to announce a second printing before the next issue (#79) had even shipped; at least three printings of the issue exist, each with a different cover.
The Taylor/Redondo run launched by this issue earned five Eisner Award nominations in 2022 — including Best Continuing Series (which it won), Best Penciller/Inker, and Best Cover Artist for Redondo — making it one of the most-nominated single series in that awards cycle.
The opening arc launched by this issue was collected as Nightwing Vol. 1: Leaping into the Light, and the full Taylor run (issues #78–100 plus related tie-ins) was later collected in a hardcover Omnibus format from DC.