“Rise and Revenge” – Part Two
Writer: Tini Howard
Artist: Sami Basri, Vicente Cifuentes
Color Artist: Veronica Gandini
Letterer: Lucas Gattoni
Review by Adam Ray
Catwoman #52 shows us that Selina’s handling her time in prison well. We saw her gather allies inside and out throughout the previous issue, and this chapter sees her trying to take matters further.
This issue showcases multiple concurrent plotlines being handled with a lot of care and attention, and with a strong consistency of art that always makes Catwoman a reliable and entertaining title.
This issue’s surprisingly dense with story, as Catwoman’s running her own Orange is the New Black style narrative. The criminal elements of Gotham are at it again, and even though she’s in prison, Selina’s the target. Meanwhile, her allies are doing what they can to keep Alleytown safe. All these narratives feature many characters deeply ingrained into the DC universe, as well as new ones introduced by Tini Howard. It’s not easy to handle a big overlapping story like this, but she consistently makes it look easy.
The previous issue had the prison setting be utterly drab and made with deep grey walls. We see a lot more color in Catwoman #52. The movement of her improvised whip and the methods she uses to train her new friends in the library give a welcome break in the visuals. It all mirrors Catwoman’s feeling that she’s getting used to being locked away.
We’re also treated to a new Catwoman costume from the person who’s operating in Selina’s stead. The combination of grey on black is a very nice call back to the look from the animated series, and earlier comics. It also looks very improvised, which adds to the new Catwoman look.
Conclusion
Catwoman #52 gives us a masterfully handled, multi-layered story that balances the tone of each character and what they’re doing perfectly. The only issue I have is that it’s a very hard title to start in the middle, but is very rewarding to those who have kept up with Selina’s story.
Images Courtesy of DC Entertainment
