What A Way To Go: Reviewing ‘Catwoman’ #61

Selina Kyle has nine lives to burn through, and her latest mission is really taking that idea to the extreme.

Throw on a HAZMAT suit as Tini Howard, Stefano Raffaele, Veronica Gandini, and Lucas Gattoni turn up the radioactive heat in Catwoman #61.

In the previous few reviews, I’ve not held back about my overall concerns about this new story arc. Nine lives to live used to do dangerous things is a solid concept. Its execution though feels kind of boring and so detached from the supporting elements that made the series great. This issue straddles the middle.

We get a brief check-in with Eiko and Dario, but it’s not much. A whole chunk of this issue is Selina actively breaking into a radioactive site, full of smooth action and great establishing shots. On top of all that artwork though are scores and scores of caption boxes as the usually succinct and catty Selina is every detail narrating to us.  Essentially, the story is showing and telling us at equal levels and it was truly hard to not let my mind wander as I read the issue.

Howard tries to bring in some mystical godly stuff to explain the lives, and it’s not bad, but again it’s just not what this run has been about. Taking a very grounded story of Selina trying to save lives and fix crime circles in Gotham and replacing it with suicidal missions and supernatural powers is more than whiplash. Like taking peanut butter and chocolate and substituting one of them for pickles. Each has its place, but it sure wasn’t the combination of flavors I was previously enjoying.

I’ll give it one thing though; the character’s heart is still there. Selina’s feelings as she realizes this is a horrible long way to die, and questioning her choice were handled well. The arrival of Superman and the touching moments at the end were almost enough to redeem the whole issue. Had this been a mostly silent issue (words to set the start, then the action, then that final scene) it would have worked so much better.

A reason that the blow-by-blow telling and exposition weren’t necessary is because Raffaele does a great job of showing. Well-placed panels full of depth/details and fluid kinetic energy do the job, peppered with just enough roughness to set the tone. Some of the effects of the radiation are grotesque in a bit of an over-the-top way but this hits home harder what is happening. There is frantic energy everywhere as Selina is racing a ticking clock of her own making.

Gandini has a bit more room to play here as the action takes place across ravaged areas and nighttime wooded spaces. The opposite of the gray and brown of the city in the previous issue. Shadows provide a mirror of the rough energy in Raffaele’s work, deepening the entire affair. Bits and pieces of the more vibrant super related colors find their way into the mix as needed, especially with the more fantastical moments. Alongside the more neutral/toned-down colors, it allows the story to be both grounded but also not.

As I said, there are a ton of words here. Gattoni makes the most out of it, but there is only so much one can do when trying to fit so much exposition on the page. It still flows and has a spark to it, with various colors and fonts involved. Near the end, we can feel the pain and heartbreak in Selina’s words and the pureness of Superman’s. It helps set the tone and amplifies the pain of it all, and just that pure human connection.

Catwoman #61 is now available from DC Comics.