This past week we had the release of a special one-shot titled DC’s I Know What You Did Last Crisis. With this one-shot DC Comics gave the opportunity to various creators the chance to tell new stories around various Crisis events. These Crisis events where Crisis on Infinite Earths, Millennium, Zero Hour, The Final Night, and Final Crisis. One story stood out for all the wrong reasons. That story was none other than written by former DC Comics Co-Publisher Dan Didio titled “Nightwing in Crisis Obscura.” With this story Didio accomplishes reminding us why a bad idea will always be a bad idea and DC Comics does not like the Young Justice generation.
DAN DIDIO OBSESSION WITH KILLING NIGHTWING
It is no secret that Dan Didio has a controversial past with Nightwing. Back in Infinite Crisis Didio pitched Nightwing’s death to during the fight against Superboy-Prime. Greater minds were able to nix the idea of then Executive Editor. Didio didn’t give up on his quest to he made sure he pitched to the death of Dick Grayson as part of both the Forever Evil and City of Bane Saga. Each time Didio was denied having this idea reach paper, though the final reported time did lead to the Ric Grayson era.
Not letting a bad idea stay forgotten Dan Didio was finally able to make the death of Nightwing in DC’s I Know What You Did Last Crisis. Since no other creator would do it Didio was able to convince DC Comics to let him write the story he’s been obsessed with having be published for 20 years. The way he did that is by having Conner Kent lure Nightwing into his basement to rant about all the times Dick Grayson should’ve died. Conner Kent finally accomplished this goal by having the former Superboy throw Nightwing into a continuously looping dimension where Dick Grayson would be killed in what was likely the different ways Didio pitched the idea.
From the moment that Conner Kent showed up in his hooded figure form their was a malicious tone being taken. While there are moments Didio tries to sell he idea of this is supposed to have a tongue-in-cheek tone that is not at all the case. Throughout this short story the tone is dark and mean-spirited. It all comes off as a creator so desperate to have his idea be published that he didn’t himself after being turned down by so many other creators and editors.
Adding to this is Didio using Conner Kent as his proxy for his obsession of seeing this death of Nightwing story to be published. At no point did it sound like we were reading Conner Kent in this story. We’ve had many stories already by the likes of Geoff Johns and others who have shown that Conner found a way to move on. The one who didn’t move on was Didio and spoke through Conner rather than telling a story that would remind the reader why he is a great character. It is made even creeper with how “Conner” hides what he sent Nightwing to his infinite doom from his wife Cassandra Sandsmark knowing we are hearing Didio speak through the character.
WHINING CONNER KENT CONTINUES TERRIBLE YOUNG JUSTICE TREATMENT
The treatment of Conner Kent in DC’s I Know What You Did Last Crisis is unfortunately not at all surprising. Since New 52, if not before, DC Comics has shown they don’t know what to do with the Young Justice generation of characters. The DC Universe is filled with characters in generations born before and after Young Justice that are getting the creative attention.
We most recently saw an example of how this in the Dark Crisis event. In the Dark Crisis: Young Justice mini-series with see a toxic fanboy from the Fifth Dimension named Mickey Mxyzptlk try to have Tim Drake, Conner Kent, and Bart Allen live in a world where the Young Justice are seen as the best. While the trio along with Cassandra Sandsmark and others overcame Mickey’s plot the creator purposely focused on the negative “sign of the times” aspect of Young Justice to make it was never a good generation. The cherry on top was that nothing Young Justice did in their tie-in mattered at all to the Dark Crisis event.
Especially with the introduction of new generation characters like Damian Wayne, Jon Kent, and Yara Flor there is very little room for these characters room to even make an appearance. The only character that has consistently gotten development is Tim Drake, though that is in part thanks to him being part of the Batman Family. There are just too many generations of legacy characters for the Young Justice team to get time and space to progress.
At the end of the day Young Justice has become the forgotten generation in the DC Universe. Maybe the upcoming Justice League Unlimited concept will provide an avenue for certain characters from this generation to step forward from the background. But if Dark Crisis: Young Justice and Dan Didio’s “Conner Kent” stories are any indication of how DC Comics views these characters it may be for the best for the team to stay a remnant from the past.
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