“Never Let Them Smell Blood” – Part One
Writer: Torunn Grønbekk
Artist and Color Artist: Patricio Delpeche
Letterer: Steve Wands
Review by Adam Ray
Catwoman #76 is the newest of the tonally confused, narratively lost, and emotionally dry run of Catwoman that’s been littering our comic book store shelves for far too long. Once again, we are paraded with a series of characters and dialogue, presented to us as though it’s groundbreaking drama that ought to shock and tantalise a reader, but instead leaves us deeply questioning why we should care and whether we should keep reading.
Where’s The Cat?
Narratively speaking, we’re continuing with the same crime drama that started Grønbekk’s run. In the previous issue, we were given some historical context as to who these characters are and why it mattered to Evie (the name Selina was going by at that time).
The issue opens with three different jumps across time that all read with the same tone. The only difference is that it leaves a reader utterly confused. We’re presented with events like side character deaths, and real name reveals with such dramatic reactions on the character’s faces. It’s as though they’re meant to be big revelations to us readers as well, but they fall flat to say the very least.
The saving grace that Catwoman #76 brings us is that the artwork Patricio Delpeche brings us is always stellar. We get to see the expressions of these characters, and the dynamic movement of all the actions all grip the reader as fine comic book artwork. The choices of colour evoke mood and perfectly set the scene in terms of both location, time, and the feeling we all get scene by scene.
Conclusion
Catwoman #76 continues the title; in title alone. We’re treated to the same meandering and underwhelming narrative of names and characters that leaves the entire comic feeling like 30 pages of air, and the reader wondering where the title went so wrong.
Images Courtesy of DC Entertainment
