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CATWOMAN #5
"Trickle Down Theory"
Highly Recommended (9/10)
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DC Comics
Writer: Ed Brubaker
Pencils: Brad Rader
Inks: Cameron Stewart
Colors: Matt Hollingsworth & Giulia Brusco
Letters: Sean Konot
Editor: Matt Idelson
Price: $2.50 US/$4.25 CAN |
This issue of Catwoman is notable for several reasons, including being the start of a new art team, a standalone accessible story and the return of Slam Bradley from the Detective Comics story that
reintroduced Catwoman via Brubaker's scripts. Though I expected a little letdown
after Cooke left, Rader and Stewart maintain the clear and unusual style that
the book has developed in their own fashion, and Brubaker's script, though a
little ambiguous in its ending, provides an interesting look into who Selina is
now for new readers and continuing readers alike.
There's a lot of potential in this new Catwoman to look at various aspects of
crime that heroes usually don't tackle, because there's too much black and white
morality among them. It takes someone like Catwoman, who has been on the other
side of the law, to go after the smaller levels of crime like dope dealers using
mules, especially to go after them in any sort of meaningful way. Though Batman
or the Punisher could easily be seen working a case like this, they wouldn't
take it as personally or go to such lengths to punish those responsible for the
crimes. Giving Selina a personal link to the case is a nice touch, but even
without that, it's easy to see why she would be a little more harsh and
threatening in her interrogation and methods than most heroes.
Of course, Selina has spent a
good deal of time as a burglar, and Brubaker does a nice job of conveying her
transition from that job into her current one. Her narration about how what she
does now is similar to what she did when casing for a job gets us right into her
mindset, and it was interesting to see Slam Bradley, who met her in her prior
incarnation, react to her new calling. Actually, it was good to see Slam Bradley
again, period, as I can't think of a much better supporting player for
Catwoman's current status quo than a longtime private detective with a tendency
to work street-level cases.
Though this is a single issue
story, centered around one plot and wrapped up at the end, Brubaker does leave
some questions open in the ending. It almost feels more like the start of a new
arc rather than a single-issue story, as we now see a couple of corrupt cops in
the Gotham precinct as well as meeting one of the corrupt higher-ups in Gotham's
crime hierarchy. There are also some nice subtle character moments, whether it's
the echo of Selina as mother figure to Holly that is implied during their talk
about Dexter or the rekindling of the relationship between Slam and Selina.
Though I'm a fan of Brubaker's work, what initially drew me to Catwoman
was the artwork of Darwyn Cooke, and I was a little nervous to see him replaced
after the first arc. I needn't have worried, as Brad Rader (also an alum of the
animated series, I believe) and Cameron Stewart turn in a top-notch job. The
opening aerial sequence of Selina slipping into a hospital room is very vivid
action work, and the simple but expressive designs for the various characters
come through in the artwork as well. In particular, Slam Bradley's distinctively
craggy face is just as recognizable and character-defining as ever, and Rader
and Stewart make Selina sensual without making her a sex object. Also,
Hollingsworth and Brusco deliver fantastic color, dark when it needs to be but
not so oppressive that the sunlit scenes aren't effective, especially when
contrasted with Selina's night-time escapades.
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