There are a lot of comics out there but some stand out head and shoulders above the pack. With “Don’t Miss This,” we want to spotlight those series we think need to be on your pull list. This week, we take a look at DC Comics’s “Catwoman: Lonely City.”
Who’s This By?
This will probably one of the easiest creator sections I will ever have to do on a Don’t Miss This column. The incredible Cliff Chiang has taken it upon himself to write, illustrate, color, and letter “Catwoman: Lonely City” for its entire four issue run. He is also doing the main covers for every issue with guest artists coming on to do variants for each, including the excellent talent of Jock (“Batman”), Annie Wu (“Hawkeye”), Marguerite Sauvage (“Riverdale”), and more!
While having worked on many big titles at DC including “Green Arrow/Black Canary,” “Human Target,” and “The Brave and the Bold,” Cliff Chiang is probably best known for his stellar work on the time traveling, dimension hopping, coming of age adventure smash hit, “Paper Girls” written by Brian K. Vaughn over at Image Comics. Chiang’s signature style is easily recognizable once you’ve seen him lend his hand to any comic book.
Being mainly known for his artwork, it is shocking to see that he is also writing this Catwoman series as well, but as soon as you pick up the first issue it is clear that he has a knack with words. Look no further than his Wikipedia page and you will see he graduated from Harvard with a degree in English literature and visual arts, so he is literally a match made in heaven for the comic book industry. He is a true master with visual storytelling.
What’s This All About?
Ten years after a brutal and bloody massacre that claimed the lives of many heroes and villains, now dubbed Fool’s Night, Selina Kyle returns to a Gotham City she does not recognize. Having spent a decade in prison for the deaths of Batman, Nightwing, and Commissioner James Gordon, she has been released and looks to return home. While the Joker was seemingly behind the deadly chaos that night, his death left him without further blame as the police found Selina standing over a dying Batman.
Now a reformed Harvey Dent is the mayor of Gotham, masked heroes have been made illegal, and the entire city is disconnected from the rest of the country under a police state masquerading as peace. Armed and lethal ‘Batcops’ patrol the streets and anyone who was once a vigilante or super-villain who is now reformed, lives in anonymity; just trying to keep their head down and make it through the day.
The night Batman died, he told Selina she had to find and bring him “Orpheus.” Now, ten years later Selina is trying to break into Wayne Manor and the Batcave, one of the most highly secured locations in the world, so she can figure out exactly what Orpheus is and how it can maybe make things better. With the help of Barbara Gordon, Killer Croc, Poison Ivy, The Riddler, and a few others, Selina plans the heist of a life time for the good of the people and the soul of Gotham City.
So, Why Should I Read This?
Chiang creates a Gotham that so many people would have considered to be the best version of itself, but in reality those in charge have taken the mission of the Batman and twisted it for their own means and version of law and order. His script is tight, to the point, but never lacking in emotion or subtext. You feel the years that have passed in a simple glance from Selina or Barbara. This version of a future in Gotham, not so far from our own plays in the sandbox of the DC universe while feeling realistic enough to be a believable police state. This story tackles head on the argument for Bruce Wayne donating his money and assets to the city instead of blending his philanthropy and his mission as Batman. It makes for a far more interesting argument than one may realize. Especially when it comes this near future where Harvey Dent, who still looks like Two-Face, but claims to be cured, is in charge of law and government.
Continued belowSeeing the middle aged versions of so many beloved characters in a post-Batman world is typically something that doesn’t captivate me or ring true as a story worth telling, but “Catwoman: Lonely City” is so expertly told that I could not help but be pulled in from the first few pages. This is, without a doubt, my personal favorite possible future story told in the DC universe, next to the original Batman Beyond animated series. It doesn’t try to over do it, we aren’t bombarded with an older take on every character in Gotham. We get a handful who are stuck in believable circumstances, hoping, and waiting for the chance for the status quo to get shaken up again, in any capacity; even if their current lives are going pretty well.
Chiang’s artistic technique blends a 1950s advertisement style with 1980s neon pop-art, and the shadows and splashes of muted color of neo-noir. His line work, when paired with his unmatched eye for color, is simply unbeatable. Every cover, every panel, and every page screams of a gritty, unpleasant Gotham barely hanging on under this forced peaceful life. Every bit of artwork in this series is deserving of deep admiration and worthy of being professionally framed on your wall. Chiang has really out done himself on this book so far and it would be a great service to all comic book readers if he were to tackle another project like this again in the near future.
How Can You Read It?
“Catwoman: Lonely City” is a four issue miniseries with the third issue dropping this week. Similar to other DC over-sized miniseries like “Swamp Thing: Green Hell” and “Batman: One Dark Knight.” this series is on a somewhat random release schedule,but keep an eye out for the fourth and final issue of Lonely City this August – plenty of time to catch up on the first three chapters. Available anywhere comic books are sold.
