SYNOPSIS: As the forces of the WHITE GLOVE prepare to put Gotham City in a stranglehold, Selina finds herself in need of emergency medical treatment from the steady hands of none other than HUSH. Will the Feline Fatale survive her procedure and live to protect her beloved precious city…or will she be reduced to fish food at the bottom of the Gotham City bay?
Writer Tini Howard has put a lot of work into building this narrative and it has all culminated in Selena’s forces fighting the White Glove at the docks in Gotham with Selena herself in the medical care of Hush and Flamingo.
No, that’s not a typo. Long story short, Selena has a shard of meteorite in her brain from the Gotham War and now it is killing her. Hush is going to remove it to use Selena as blackmail, with Flamingo aiding so he can eat some of her. Yeah.
Fortunately, Selena has built up a family of sorts over Howard’s run on the character and they all combine forces to do what Gotham needs them to do, including a certain Bat who is enamored still, no matter what a certain Cat has done.
Howard continues to play with the potential of the metaphysical being involved, leaving it up to the reader if the goddess Bastet is actually interacting with Selena, or it’s a figment of her imagination caused by the shard impeding on her brain. Is Valmont actually appearing to her as well, or is it a fever dream caused by her guilt and physical state? Regardless, it helps usher in a sense of closure for something that Selena has been wrestling with for quite some time.
It wouldn’t be a season finale without bringing in a big guest star and Batman certainly fits that bill. I liked how Howard uses him and his iconography and thought it was particularly clever how he interacts with Selena. There is no definition of their relationship status, but it does feel like a modicum of closure was achieved with some of the issues they have been having.
Carmine Di Giandomenico delivers his usual stellar cinematic art style, aided once again by the colors of Veronica Gandini. Lots of widescreen panels and close-ups on pairs of eyes fill the page with a vibrant color palette, particularly in scenes in the afterlife. Ptah, God of Justice, looks suitably impressive and the last panel is Casablanca worthy.
“Nine Lives” has been a heckuva thrill-ride and I’m happy to say Howard and Co. stuck the landing, tying in various elements throughout the run. I appreciated the ambiguity on the why behind Catwoman’s various resurrections. I found myself not really concerned about the fight on the docks, being more invested in Selena’s peril and spiritual journey. When it came to those aspects, Howard did not disappoint. The White Glove isn’t exactly the Black Glove, a fact pointed out by one of the characters, but they were able to give Catwoman some daring heists, so from that perspective they were a success.
Howard definitely leaves the slate clean for the incoming creative team next month to go in any direction they choose. Not every arc of Howard’s was a home run for me, but she ended on a high note. With energetic visuals, “Nine Lives” comes recommended as a closing arc! – Javier E. Trujillo