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acidicorchid's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
I'm still not much of a DC Comics reader, but this is hands down one of my all time favorites. I'm 10x the Catwoman fan that I was when I started lol.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Blood and Violence
rnbhargava's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is an excellent, fairly character based take on Gotham City post-Batman starring older versions of several notable DC characters, obviously leaning toward the Batman corner of the universe but with a few interesting additions as well. It’s quite funny at points but also emotional, as I found myself getting quickly attached to these older aged versions of characters while they pull off “one last heist” basically. It’s an alternate Gotham that feels similar yet different in certain ways compared to the work in the “Batman: White Knight” which some might compare this too. Both Chiang’s work here in “Catwoman: Lonely City” and Sean Murphy’s “Batman: White Knight” series of books are worth reading for the excellent writing and art respectively. Don’t feel like you have to choose.
I really like the older aged twists on Poison Ivy, Killer Croc and Riddler. The older Two-Face isn’t that different. Barbara Gordon older aged is kind of similar to other older aged depictions of the character.
I really like the older aged twists on Poison Ivy, Killer Croc and Riddler. The older Two-Face isn’t that different. Barbara Gordon older aged is kind of similar to other older aged depictions of the character.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, Alcohol, Misogyny, Police brutality, Self harm, Classism, Gaslighting, Murder, Blood, Confinement, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship
How some people might think of some of the deaths and how they happen could be controversial. Please note potential for suicide vs mercy killing murder discussion.billyjepma's review
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I went into this with some trepidation because, despite my affection for Chiang's art, I wasn't sure how he'd manage a Catwoman story, especially under the premium Black Label format, which has been incredibly inconsistent at best. But lemme tell ya, he killed it. After the visually appealing but narratively predictable first issue, things picked up in all the ways that count. Chiang settles into a unique vibe that plays like a weird and delightful mixture of golden-age comics and an HBO drama. His storytelling isn't remarkable, necessarily, and Chiang's plotting can be a little clunky and/or crowded. But I'm pretty forgiving with the plot when the character work is this strong, with only minor a few minor exceptions.
I don't think Chiang's interpretation of these characters is all that surprising, but I consider that a positive, especially considering how many of these Black Label miniseries' have struggled. Having four issues to work with versus the usual three also helps and should definitely be the standard the label uses moving forward. I respect that Chiang kept his iterations subtler, as it allows him to piggyback off what we know of these characters, which also helps his characterizations feel more organic. That's a lot of words to say that I loved a lot of what Chiang did here.
His art is also reliably excellent, the coloring especially. His illustrations strike a good balance between playful and mature, but the colors make the book's visuals soar. There's so much volume to the pages Chiang turns out, from the vibrantly dense environments to the specific expressions of the characters—this is a gorgeous book. Consider this a 4.5-star book and one I can absolutely see myself revisiting.
I don't think Chiang's interpretation of these characters is all that surprising, but I consider that a positive, especially considering how many of these Black Label miniseries' have struggled. Having four issues to work with versus the usual three also helps and should definitely be the standard the label uses moving forward. I respect that Chiang kept his iterations subtler, as it allows him to piggyback off what we know of these characters, which also helps his characterizations feel more organic. That's a lot of words to say that I loved a lot of what Chiang did here.
His art is also reliably excellent, the coloring especially. His illustrations strike a good balance between playful and mature, but the colors make the book's visuals soar. There's so much volume to the pages Chiang turns out, from the vibrantly dense environments to the specific expressions of the characters—this is a gorgeous book. Consider this a 4.5-star book and one I can absolutely see myself revisiting.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Police brutality, Violence, Cursing, and Death
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
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