SYNOPSIS: What is it that they say about house-guests and bad fish? How they both start to stink after a couple of days? Well, Oswald Cobblepot has been hanging around Catwoman’s new city, and Selina Kyle has been holding her nose for far too long. It’s time to send the Penguin packing! I mean, the guy smelled like fish even before he arrived.
This month’s issue of Catwoman continues with “Something Smells Fishy”, Part 2.
Selina is tasked by The Penguin to steal a precious item, that produces a priceless elixir. That elixir has also been given to Mrs. Creel, that ghastly woman who plans to use it on someone who met an untimely death in this series. However, we readers are the only ones who know what this elixir truly does.
What a blast of an issue. The source of this story spreads out to three different plot threads, yet ultimately all ties together by issue’s end. While it connects, we also get a lot of great action. First, Catwoman takes on some mysterious people that have seen better days. Then she fights with the Custodian (not a janitor, but a woman who refers to herself as the Custodian). Both battles only go on for a couple pages, but the effects are important.
Joelle Jones again does a great job scripting this issue. Her dialogue is impactful and smooth. Selina speaks with such clarity, her words sounding somewhat poetic but also sharp. This book never gets bogged down with dialogue, but we wouldn’t have a problem if it did.
Art duties yet again are split between Elena Casagrande and Fernando Blanco. They do a mighty fine job and work in Jones’s Catworld. They play up the dark shadows, which makes sense because it takes place at night. But they also do a great job depicting the action. Nothing is too dark or blurry to make you guess what’s going on. Their art, like Jones’s scripts, are clear and sharp.
Catwoman continues to be a fun comic book. The pacing is brisk, the art is clear and the story isn’t overcomplicated. Bring on the next issue. – Ryan Lower
GRADE: B+