The Hilarious Magical Heist Continues In Black Cat #3

The Black Cat has pulled off quite a few heists, but none weer quite as complicated as stealing something from Doctor Strange’s Sanctum Sanctorum. Nothing goes quite as planned. Fortunately, Felicia Hardy thrives on this kind of chaos. When one of her crew goes rogue, she has to think outside the box to get out of this place alive.

The absurdity of this heist is nothing short of hilarious. What really puts this over the top is Dr. Strange’s ghost dog, Bats, who mistakes the Black Cat for Silver Sable. This adds such a fun aspect to the whole book, heightening the frenetic energy of the job. When this opportunity arises, Felicia grabs it with both hands.
Artist Travel Foreman captures this realization in a pitch perfect sequence as Felicia stares at Bats. She goes through a few different facial expressions, each more humorous than the last. There’s an almost cartoonish quality to some of the antics that follow as the Black Cat runs through the insanity of Xander the Merciless’ attacks with clenched teeth.

The Black Cat has some vague luck-based powers that come into play in a pretty interesting way in this issue. Writer Jed MacKay explains this in a matter-of-fact manner. I don’t know if it’s intentional, but it really sets up the Black Cat as a potential player in the magic side of the Marvel Universe. This sounds like it would be out of Felicia’s wheelhouse, but it could open up all kinds of story possibilities. There are quite a few supernatural items out there that she could get her hands on.
The magical energy clashes in a pretty explosive battle in the Sanctum Sanctorum. Colorist Brian Reber uses a variety of shades to depict these blasts as they whip across the page. Each one is big and bright, adding to the intensity of the fight. Letterer Ferran Delgado gets in on this action with Xander’s spells appearing in a mystical looking font.

This series has been interspersed with flashbacks from Felicia’s early life as a thief, illustrated by Michael Dowling. These provide some deeper insight into her actions in the present day. Dowling’s style highlights the simpler times in Felicia’s life.
I’m a sucker for heist stories and Black Cat delivers one awesome and hilarious one in the Marvel Universe. We’re only halfway through this mini-series, but I’d love to see more if this is what we can expect. It’s a nice blend of action and comedy.
Black Cat #3 from Marvel Comics is currently available at your local comic shop and digitally through ComiXology and Amazon Kindle.