REVIEW: ‘Catwoman,’ Issue #35

Catwoman #35 is published by DC Comics, written by Ram V, art by Nina Vakueva, colors by Jordie Bellaire, and letters by Tom Napolitano. As Selina struggles with the fallout from Hadley’s death last issue, the denizens of Alleytown struggle to keep their streets free from Simon Saint’s encroaching fear state. But can the people hope to mount a successful resistance without their Queen?

As a direct result of the attack on Arkham Asylum, the Gotham City Government has welcomed The Magistrate into Gotham to regain control of the city. With the arrival of The Magistrate, and the line-wide crossover that comes with him, Catwoman #35 finds itself in a semi-awkward spot. It’s that issue where the current events of the story, Selina’s impending rematch with Father Valley, will get put on hold so the story can pivot into the larger crossover that is coming to engulf our favorite heroic thief. But while this comes with some of the slowness, one might expect as pieces get put into place, and plots get set up, writer Ram V and company do a great job of making the narrative transition as smoothly as one could ask for.

With Catwoman #35‘s opening focused on Selina’s loss and her struggle to deal with it, Ram V delivers the title character at her most vulnerable. Her guilt over the fact that the shot was fired simply to hurt her makes Selina feel burdened with a weight of responsibility. This is only increased as the narrative reveals the further ramifications of that fateful bullet on Selina’s life.

But there is only so much time to dwell on the past as Alleytown fights against the encroachment of The Magistrate. While all the wheels that are set turning in the back half of this issue look like promising grounds for storytelling, my favorite is the continued use of Clayface and his band of former baddies searching for atonement. The makeup of the group looks great, and I hope they get some time to shine in future installments.

While this issue sees the arrival of a new artist in Vakueva, the story suffers little for the change. Vakueva easily manages to create a visual personality for the story that, while noticeably different than the predecessor’s work, still feels like a natural continuation of the tone and mood the book has established for itself. And as always, the art in Catwoman #35 is further enhanced through the striking color work of Bellaire.

The colorist shows a great awareness for when the story’s panels are better served with a full coloring job or when it should be washed in shades of a single color. These single-color panels both create some striking contrasts throughout the book but also always reinforce the feelings of the moment through the choice of the overriding color.

Rounding out the book’s presentation is Napolitano’s letters. A variety of fonts and dialogue box styles are utilized to give some characters a unique presence to their voices while still keeping the dialogue clear and easy to follow.

So, when all is said and done, Catwoman #35 manages to shift its gears to face the oncoming Fear State storyline admirably. As Alleytown rallies to expel the newest menace, searching to oppress them, it will be interesting to see what hurdles the creative team will throw at them before they reach their goal.

Catwoman #35 is available wherever comics are sold.