“Long Time, No Time” – Part Two
Writer: Torunn Grønbekk
Artists: Marianna Ignazzi
Color Artist: Patricio Delpeche
Letterer: Steve Wands
Review by Adam Ray
As a reviewer and writer of fiction, I do my best to see the merit in all titles. Catwoman #74 and for what this current run of Catwoman does, it does exceptionally well. It deeply disheartens me to say that the current run does very little well given its current storyline. There is a stark difference between creative directions between the phenomenally cosmic epic of the past creative team, to the mediocre and aimless crime narrative of this one.
The creative team has consistently and creatively depicted the city skylines from all over the world. In my own research for some of the European destinations I’ve not been to, I can say that they’ve got the buildings picture perfectly accurate each time. In this issue, we see the iconic billboards and crossings in Tokyo’s Shibuya district down perfectly.
I’m also visually delighted by the colouring. Soft, muted tones give each page a real ease and welcome delight to the eyes, and the manner in which the characters are framed gives the thoughtful narration space to breathe, and the dramatic action the pace it needs to hit.
My positivity for this issue and this current run of Catwoman ends abruptly here. The current storyline that Grønbekk is attempting to put forward is meandering and aimless. There’s very little indication as to why Catwoman is involved with this particular crime family. Other than a far fetched connection to her chequered past. We have no real reason to feel the impact of deaths of side characters. It feels as though a lot of the drama put forward on the page has no bearing on anything that came before, and is deeply dissatisfying given the previous quality of the story.
Conclusion
I will persevere with this title beyond Catwoman #74 simply because of my love of the character, however there is a lot of work that needs to happen for this seasoned Catwoman reader to feel happy with the story’s direction.
Images Courtesy of DC Entertainment
