The second arc of Catwoman is shaping up to be a stronger outing than the impressive first arc, with a focus on Selina's friend Holly and the welcome return of Slam Bradley to the book's supporting cast. The artwork also remains strong, with Rader picking up the style that Cooke established and putting his own spin on it, maintaining the same gritty street tone that the book needs. The focus on characterization in this book has paid off with some of the richest and most interesting material on Selina Kyle that I've ever seen, and Selina's outside-the-law status quo lets Brubaker spin tales that are quite different from the way Batman would approach these plots.
What I really love about this book is how Brubaker has humanized these characters, bringing them down to earth. Selina feels more like a real person, a criminal who is trying to make good, rather than a femme fatale cliche or a super-villain. Slam Bradley reads like a tough ex-cop who has gone his own way. Holly reads like a girl who has made a lot of mistakes and is trying to recover before her youth is gone. And Leslie is the tough social worker/doctor that she's always been.
In addition, while there are familiar elements to the plots and character archetypes, they are familiar from crime fiction, not superhero genre fiction. The dirty cops, almost gleeful in their corruption and remarkably nervous in their fear of being caught, play out like great bad guys, since they can't just be turned over to the law if they're caught. And the interaction between Selina and Slam is more like good 1940s romantic comedy banter than the back-and-forth of a pair of allies.
Part of why I get a 1940s feel from this book is the artwork, which is unsurprisingly reminiscent of the timeless style that defined the Batman animated series. Though modern technology and attitudes abound, there is no doubt that a sort of 1940s/1950s feeling pervades the setting and the characters. It gives the book a classic noir look, perfect for the stories that Brubaker is telling, and it also features characters who are easy to read and yet capable of a range of emotion.
There are any number of reasons to read Catwoman right now. It has a distinctive and classic look and a noir crime style of writing that makes it really stand out from the rest of the Batman line and indeed much of DC's super-hero line. It has some of the most solid characterization you'll find in comics right now. And it has exciting action and intriguing mystery, along with an edge to it given Selina's operations outside the law. Basically, this is one of DC's strongest books right now, and as good a read for fans of 100 Bullets as it is for readers of Detective Comics.
