Deprotonation of [Ni II (H 2 L 1 )]I‚0.5CH 3 OH (1), where (H 2 L 1 ) -represents the ligand pentane-2,4-dione bis(Smethylisothiosemicarbazonate(-), in an ethanol solution of aqueous ammonia under argon affords air-sensitive red-brown [Ni II (HL 1 )]‚C 2 H 5 OH (2). Air oxidation of 2 in ethanol/NH 3 yields the paramagnetic green-black dinuclear species [Ni(L 1 -L 1 )Ni] (3) where the ligand (L 1 -L 1 ) 6is formed by oxidative C-C coupling at the methine carbon atoms of (L 1 ) 3-. In this formulation the nickel ions are trivalent. Reaction of 3 in ethanol with concentrated HCl affords red diamagnetic [Ni II (H 2 L 1 -L 1 H 2 )Ni1I I ]Cl 2 ‚0.5C 2 H 5 OH (4). This reaction is a 2 electron reduction of 3 with concomittant protonation at the ligand. Deprotonation of 4 in C 2 H 5 OH/ammonia under argon gives red-brown [Ni II (HL 1 -L 1 H)Ni II ]‚C 2 H 5 OH (5). Replacement of the S-methyl groups in (H 2 L 1 ) -by two dodecyl groups, (CH 2 ) 11 CH 3 , gives the ligand (H 2 L 2 ) -; the complexes [Ni II (H 2 L 2 )I (6) and their dinuclear, oxidized forms [Ni(L 2 -L 2 )Ni] (7) have been prepared analogously. The molecular structure of 3 (C 18 H 28 N 12 Ni 2 S 4 ) has been determined by X-ray crystallography. Crystal data for 3: space group P1 h with a ) 11.475(2) Å, b ) 13.615(1) Å, c ) 18.207(6) Å, R ) 83.87(1)°, β ) 88.36(1)°, γ ) 72.58(1)°, V ) 2698.7(10) Å 3 , and Z ) 2. The structure refinement converged to R ) 0.066 for 8865 unique reflections. Electronic and NMR spectra, the magnetism, and electrochemistry of new compounds are reported. It is shown that 3,4-diacetyl-2,5-hexanedione-tetrakis(Salkylisothiosemicarbazonates) are noninnocent ligands in 3 and 7.