‘Batman / Catwoman Special’ (DC Comics)
Written by Tom King | Art by John Paul Leon, Bernard Chang, Mitch Gerads | Published by DC Comics
DC of late has been absolutely flooding your monthly release lists with Batman and Batman Family titles, and I’ve been actively avoiding them. I love Batman, but I also love variety, and I think if we give DC the message that stick the Bat in anything and we’ll buy it, it’s a slippery slope. This Special, though, gets a pass for a couple of reasons. Firstly, the concept is an excellent one, looking at the connection and relationship between Bruce and Selina over several stages in their lives. Secondly, it contains the last work of John Paul Leon, a superb artist who sadly died of cancer before he could complete this book. Leon’s pages are included here, along with new work by Bernard Chang and Mitch Gerads to finish the book. Let’s take a look.
We start at the beginning, at Christmas, the time of year that is the link between all the stories in this Special. We meet a young Selina Kyle in an orphanage, already labelled as ‘difficult’, already interested in cats, and already aware of Bruce, as his young face looks down from a Wayne Family portrait. Selina’s aware of his tragedy, having read a recent paper headline. She’s sad for him. A very clever girl in a very sad situation. Selina ends up running away and, through necessity, begins a life of crime to survive on the street. As her life evolves, and she evolves into The Cat, then Catwoman, and becomes part of Gotham’s underworld, we see for the first time why Selina is the way she is. Tom King has done as much for Selina as Mindy Newell did back in the late 1980s with her mini-series.
So even before Selina and Bruce become romantically involved as Batman and Catwoman, she was aware of both him and the Wayne Foundation’s influence on Gotham. Her life and Bruce’s have been intertwined from childhood. King loads every scene, every jump in time, with significance, with building the overall story. It’s lovingly done, a love letter to these characters and their history. I love the fact that Christmas isn’t just used as a convenient hook to hang the story on, but has deep relevance for both Selina and Bruce. Their connections at this time of year are important to them, a time of year that reminds them both of what they have previously lost. A time of year heavy with symbolism, King makes the most of it.
There also seems to be a degree of irony that as time goes on, and they become happier together as Bruce and Selina, as Batman and Catwoman the world about them gets darker and more twisted. The Joker’s transition from a relatively sane villain early in her career, to psychotic and deranged in the present is especially disturbing. When 12-year-old daughter Helena wants to join the crime-fighting pair, she is given just one instruction – avoid The Joker, at all costs. She does and becomes Gotham’s newest hero. Time rolls on, and we see an old Bruce and Selina, struggling to let the old days go. Bruce finally has to, leaving Selina as his widow. Not for long as it happens, as Selina has little to hang on for any more. She exits in a very typical Selina way, giving the story an ending that links all the way back to where this all began.
I think Tom King did an absolutely outstanding job with this Special. It was thought-provoking, smart, bittersweet, affectionate, and unique. A writing tour-de-force. The story covered a huge amount of ground, but the jumps in time were done so organically and cleverly through the use of dialogue, you never really noticed. The art was, as you would expect, sublime. John Paul Leon’s art was every bit as gorgeous as expected, but hats off to both Bernard Chang and Mitch Gerads for trying to match the feel of the existing artwork, which they did brilliantly.
As well as the main story, we get some nice text piece extras, some pencil layout examples, some incredible pin-ups, and two extra short stories. ‘The Riddle’, featuring Batman and The Riddler, is a brilliant short by Walt Simonson, with black and white art by John Paul Leon. Style AND substance in this one, the black and white format making you appreciate the Alex Toth lines and art by Leon even more. ‘Reflections of the Heart’, by Ram V and Leon is a Vic Sage/ The Question short, and a hard-hitting one at that. John Paul Leon at his best, all shadows and lines.
The lead story alone was worth 5 stars, but the Special as a whole is a superb tribute to a great artist, to great writing, and to great characters. Love that cover too.
Perfection.
