Review – Catwoman #10: Heist Night in Villa Hermosa

Catwoman #10 – Joelle Jones, Writer; Fernando Blanco, Artist; John Kalisz, Colorist

Ratings:

Ray – 8/10

Corrina: A Heist Goes Wrong

Ray: Joelle Jones’ take on Catwoman has been a pretty straightforward crime thriller, with a few surreal twists along the way. By isolating Catwoman away from Gotham and in the international crime haven Villa Hermosa, it puts Selina in her element as a criminal player rather than a vigilante. Catwoman #10 jumps around nearly as much as a Christopher Nolan movie, starting in the thick of the action with one of Selina’s allies in the back of a truck as Selina and one of her allies play their part in a high-end art auction. Jumping back and forth, we’re introduced to these two characters before their story actually begins. It’s a tricky way to kick off the issue, but I think it works – letting us follow along with their adventures and get to know them through their actions. Flashbacks show this all began with Selina’s rendezvous with Penguin – the pacing of this issue isn’t really helped by the fact that there was a fill-in issue last month.

Once Selina and Penguin battle over an ancient relic and wind up splitting it between them against Penguin’s will, the story shifts back to the Creel family – easily my least favorite part of the book. The surviving son is running for Mayor, while the evil Raina has resurrected her other son as an insane drooling zombie. Not exactly what I’d expect from a Catwoman comic, but then the character has been through some bizarre and horrific things before. Case in point – the fate of her sister, who Selina has now taken out of a mental hospital so she can care for her at home. That segment is easily the most powerful of the issue, showing how even your best can sometimes not but enough for what a person needs. The end of the issue dovetails back to the heist and shows off the title at its best. The plot of this series zig-zags around so much, though, that it’s hard to say what the main narrative is.

Corrina: The art of this book is fantastic, evoking some of the best work the late, great Darwyn Cooke did on the Catwoman revamp so many years ago now. Selina’s “voice” works well too, as she’s back into a role where she feels comfortable–being one step ahead of everyone, even Penguin. I’m also pleased someone remembered her sister, Maggie, though it seems like Selina is fooling herself thinking she can care for Maggie on her own.

This narration of the heist in this issue is effective, as it’s always great to see an outsider’s perspective on Selina, as is Selina’s confrontation with Penguin, in which she does not lose.

But, as Ray said, the overall narrative of the whole series is murky. Ideally, this series would be about some sort of character journey for Selina, as she realizes what she wants her life to be away from Gotham. Instead, it seems to veer from one plot to the next.

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Disclaimer: GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.