Benjamin Percy is leading Dick Grayson down the Dark Web rabbit hole. We talk with Percy about what’s next for him in Nightwing #46.

There’s nothing more chilling than the idea that everything you do is being monitored, and that all of your information is being stored by unknown agents on the Dark Web. They say that art imitates life, and that’s exactly what makes Nightwing one of the hottest titles around.

Benjamin Percy exploded onto the Nightwing title by taking Dick Grayson straight into the heart of a technology-laden nightmare. Things go from bad to worse in Nightwing #46, but fortunately Nightwing has Batgirl on his team. We had a chance to talk with Percy about the mysterious Wyrm and where Percy is taking us on this journey into the Dark Web.

SPOILERS FOR NIGHTWING #46

The entire story so far has really taken the idea of the Dark Web and given it a very tangible realism. The first page of #46 shows the trojan spiders invading Dick’s body and they instantly start analyzing everything about what he buys and what he browses. Talk about the metaphor here. This story seems to be one part entertainment and one part cautionary tale.

Ben: I’ve always been interested in stories that channel cultural unease. Frankenstein, for instance, was born out of the Industrial Revolution—and the fear of science and technology, of man playing God. Invasion of the Body Snatchers is about the Red Scare and McCarthyism. We live in a fearful time, and cybercrime is chief among our anxieties.

I’m channeling that onto the page. This age of surveillance we live in. Every time you swipe a screen or click a mouse, it’s feeding into an algorithm. Every time you read about a data breach—every time you click on an attachment—every time you get a call from an unrecognized number—there’s that pang of worry, as you wonder whether or not you’re about to be pirated.

I’m taking this to the next level with Dick Grayson getting bio-hacked. It’s a relatable situation, and it’s also high stakes, given how much this character knows, how much vulnerable data is stored in his brain.



I love that leading up to this point in the story, Dick realizes just how unplugged he is. He has a backup home base, thanks to Batman, but it doesn’t seem like he relies on tech at all. What is it about Dick that makes him so self-reliant as opposed to tech reliant?

Ben: Dick is tech savvy. We’ve all seen him at work in the Bat Cave and at Titans Tower and as Agent 37. But when I read through all of his back issues, something struck me. He doesn’t rely on gizmos as tech shortcuts as often as Batman, Batgirl, and even Damian. Dick doesn’t even wear a utility belt. He relies almost exclusively on his batons and his acrobatic martial arts.

I wondered why that is….and thought it would be interesting to lean in to that.

For personal reasons as well. I think about deleting my social media accounts on almost an hourly basis. I rely on my smartphone, but hate how often every day I’m compelled to look at it. I sometimes receive over two hundred emails a day. I wonder how screens are affecting my kids and hard-wiring them for distractibility.

So what if Dick Grayson makes the choice to pull back on tech—just to keep himself a little saner—separate from the screens glowing and alerts chiming all around us? That’s an interesting position for him to be in at the start of a story about a massive cyber threat like the Dark Web.







Batgirl arrives just in time and she figures out how to construct a device to keep Nightwing rooted in reality until they can figure out how to stop Wyrm. They obviously have a long and complicated history. What does this story say about how much they care for each other?

Ben: Nightwing and Batgirl are a magical pairing. They share a long history—as friends and as lovers. I love the way they play off each other, and I love the way they look together on the page (in and out of costume).

Beyond that, she has a skill set. She’s a techno sorceress. She’s the former Oracle after all. And so there’s no one better suited to join him on this mission.

I’m going to be coy here and say…ahem…Batgirl is going to be a centrally important character in my run on Nightwing.



Were you ever a Dick/Babs shipper, or do you think they are where they’re meant to be in terms of their relationship?

Ben: Stay tuned.



Wyrm pretended to be Babs in a phishing scheme. Why her? Is it as simple as she’s closer to Dick than anyone, or is there more to it? What kept Wyrm from invading Dick’s secret identity initially? The fact that Dick Grayson is able to resists says a lot about who he is.

Ben: This is how phishing works. You troll a wide cross-section of humanity—calling cell phones, sending emails—and you hope for a valuable hit. Maybe one out of a thousand actually respond, and maybe only a few of those who respond have something worth stealing. That’s what Dick Grayson is. A valuable hit.

Via the Mirage tech company, Wyrm has had VR devices (sort of like souped-up versions of Alexa) delivered to every address in Bludhaven. Grayson is suspicious. He tries to take one of the devices apart, and in doing so, makes himself a target.

Right now he’s known by Wyrm only as the ward of Bruce Wayne (not as Nightwing). Grayson is mentally fit for an assault on his mind. He’s spent his whole life keeping secrets. But the neuro-hack has already begun. A lot of his brain is devoted to Babs—because he loves and trusts her—so Wyrm is trying to use her to get at him. To key the lock, break down the door.



“Or” becomes a very important word in #46. There’s the obvious significance that it represents choices, or options. But is there a deeper meaning for the story?

Ben: It’s a kind of chorus for the story. I like to meaningfully repeat objects or phrases to create connective tissues and thematic meaning in stories. Think of the orange from The Godfather or the magic feather in Dumbo or the color red in Schindler’s List (or or or). T.S. Eliot calls this the objective correlative. In this case “or” captures the series of impossible questions Grayson faces. The can’t/must of his predicament. This will continue throughout his struggle against the Dark Web. The motorcycle race in 48 and 49 epitomize it perfectly. He can take several paths, but every one has a win/lose scenario built into it.



Can Bludhaven ever really be free from Wyrm and the Terminals and all of the trojans? Is this just the beginning?



Ben: Bludhaven is just the beginning. The Dark Web’s coming to get the DCU.

Percy’s run on Nightwing is just getting started and we can’t wait to see where he takes us! Big thanks to Benjamin Percy for chatting with us, and thank you for an awesome story so far. We’re ready to venture into the Dark Web with you.

Nightwing #46 is in stores on July 4.

