Catwoman #85 – Torunn Gronbekk, Writer; Davide Gianfelice, Artist; Patricio Delpeche, Colorist
Ray – 8.5/10
Ray: Selina has spent most of this run abroad, on the run from demons of her past as she battles old enemies and came face to face with Carmine Falcone – who she has a complicated past with. She survived the Court of Owls, and now she’s ready to return to Gotham for the first time in over a year our time. But it won’t go smoothly – our first indication is that she’s immediately returned to a life of crime. When we first see her, she’s in disguise as a pregnant woman, using it to infiltrate GCPD headquarters. The story also has an unexpected allusion to the baby she had with Sam Bradley during the One Year Later era, given up for adoption. This story isn’t quite as forgotten as Stephanie Brown’s teen pregnancy by the DCU, but I still didn’t expect it to show up again. Of course, the only thing she’s actually expecting is getting the drop on the guards and striking a blow against Vandal Savage’s militarized forces.
The story jumps back and forth between two timelines, with the other following Selina returning to Gotham, discovering that she’s been evicted, and reuniting with an old friend. But as she’s also meeting with Holly, who needs her help to bail her girlfriend out of prison, Selina’s personal arch-nemesis Black Mask is back in action. Ol’ Roman is getting bored with torture and needs something to spice up his life, so he’s excited when he gets a visit from a mystery woman who reminds him that Selina is back in town – and they both share the same agenda. This builds to a shocking, violent finale that gives Selina something new to fight for. After over a year of complicated European cloak-and-dagger plotting, this feels like a back-to-basics reset that brings in some major players from Selina’s past – for good and for bad. Hopefully it keeps the momentum of this fresh start.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes
