Nothing new here...
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Oh my! It's retcon time again. Long time comic fans approach these with caution. What beloved piece of cannon will be sliced out? What new ones will be spliced in? In Nightwing: Year One, the first Robin's transformation into Nightwing is retold. There isn't much new here in terms of what was previously established for the character.
While this is the Nth retelling of the dissolution of the Batman and Robin partnership, it still makes very little sense whatsoever (unless the point is for the reader to think "Batman is a jerk" in which case it succeeds very well.) Only kids cartoon, Batman: the Animated Series has so far got it right.
The graphic novel treads the familiar path of Batman firing Robin, but if you're expecting the Teen Titans (the group that Robin/Nightwing led that the time) to be in this, think again. They merely make cameo appearances. Making a much larger appearance is Jason Todd, the second Robin (famously offed in a phone vote) which reeks of exposition for the events that occur in Infinite Crisis. And while the loose bonding that occurs between these two new "brothers" is interesting, it distracts too much from the purpose of the story. Indeed, this isn't so much "Nightwing: Year One" as "Robin II: Year Zero."
Most interesting is the portrayal of Batman as a cold, calculating general callously recruiting boys into his war without regard for their emotional and physical wellbeing while a number of ham-fisted "in-jokes" to the campy 60's TV show lowers the whole tone.
On the whole, this isn't a bad graphic novel. The art is quite good and it makes for a pleasant read, but if you're already familiar with the story, you'll be disappointed.
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