Slutty Catwoman #1
I was not, and never was interested in reading Catwoman as an individual title, not before new 52, and definitely not during. But apparently there was this huge deal that they were "OVERSEXING" her character and making a "FAN SERVICE" book out of the new Catwoman. I was actually interested to see what the big deal is so I picked the book up.
The book has been out for a while so I'm not going to add spoiler tags, if you feel my review is giving away any crucial meat, please let me know and I'll add spoiler tags where necessary - Wayne
Overview
I think the storytelling by Judd Winick so far is pretty good, I like the flow of the book it doesn't feel like a comic book it feels more like a tv show that is for mature audiences. I can't say the book is more adult oriented because "kids" read the book as well and apparently think Catwoman is a real person. So this new title is getting some hatred from fans because they're injecting a very promiscuous Selina Kyle in this title. But I think that's something that could help interest people in a side character like Selina Kyle, old readers and new readers like myself. (it's not like she's a prostitute again getting secret training from the armless master) LOL!From the very first few pages, she's in her apartment rushing to grab her things, phone, leather jumpsuit, cats and her whip. She's obviously hurrying up to get her clothes on because some uninvited guests are coming along. Alright she's in her underpants, believe it or not some people wear underpants under their costumes and not over them, especially when at home and probably during bedtime.
As far as the artwork goes, I think the storytelling ability of Guillem March is pretty good, I get a nice atmosphere from his work, composition is pretty well thought out and he doesn't waste room on the paper with splash pages. The artwork in some instances isn't all that great. And some other area's it seems like he spends more time working on other things rather than consistent quality. (i.e. : bra decorations)
The coloring is excellent as well, some area's it's amazing and a few other places it seems to cramp the environment of the panel.
Another area in the story I think could've been narrated a bit better so it doesn't seem like a blatant underwear shot is when Selina is in a nightclub trying to pick up information for a score. (Because she's a thief) She notices an old acquaintance she doesn't particularly like. Not much info about them rather than a very graphic flashback and the name Renald. But when she "approaches" said person one panel she has her shirt on next thing her bra and chest are exposed. I think rather than another panel of the glasses being removed, something along the lines of her making her way to the part of the club this person was at and slowly unbuttoning her shirt with some kind of mention of using sex appeal to get his attention than.
I think that would've been a bit less abrasive and maybe not have caused such backlash from the fans about this issue. That's just my opinion. I'm not the professional here. And instead of trying to make a smart exit she blatantly just exposes herself to all of the baddies in the club. "Hey it's me catwoman in your club, just kicked Renalds butt and I'm walking out like nothing matters in the world". And without thinking of consequence we'll just have to wait to see the reaction for her actions.
At the end of the book Batman checks on Selina and she apparently is not worried about her well being but something else. All of that adrenaline going through her blood and being the promiscuous character I've always portrayed her to be jumps on Batman like a lioness in heat.
It's been established that they're a thing, so I don't see the big deal here. I guess the fan service could come from the creative team narrating the sexual tension between these two rather than the typical jim lee batman embrace, hard kissing with a full moon behind them.
Now we're getting a bit more grown up. Nothing any different than you'd see on MTV's Skins which children also watch only it's between two grown ups in latex, leather, etc.
And the issue ends.
All in all I'm actually interested in Catwoman, I can't say I am enamored with the title like I am Batwoman, or Batgirl, or even Batman at the moment. But so far I like what I see, and hopefully some improvements in the artwork will come as well.
- Wayne
Om1kron (my nickname) is a normal participant in the artist showoff forum, and a semi respected member on comic vine. If you're interested in seeing some of my artwork you can head to our artist-showoff forum or check out my deviant art page
