“Batman” #44

Poison Ivy’s plot has been foiled, and the march to the bridal altar begins with ‘Bride or Burglar,’ the first in a two issue arc that follows Selina as she does a little late night wedding dress “shopping.”

Cover by Mikel Janín

Written by Tom King
Illustrated by Mikel Janín and Joëlle Jones
Colored by June Cheung and Jordie Bellaire
Lettered by Clayton Cowles

Follow Batman and Catwoman on two separate but parallel paths as their wedding planning kicks into high gear. Selina picks out her dress, and Bruce starts to make arrangements for their new life together-but this being Gotham City, and they being Batman and Catwoman, you can bet that nothing will go as expected!

If “Batman” #44 feels familiar it’s because Bruce and Selina have been inseparable lately, with Tom King examining and re-examining a relationship that has spanned the entirety of their alter egos’s existence. King clearly enjoys delving into the complexities of their relationship, like examining facets of a jewel that wink on and off as it turns under the light, and he has been willing to test the patience of readers by stringing them along for almost a year’s worth of issues since Bruce asked for Selina’s hand in marriage at the end of issue 24. When Selina said yes at the conclusion of Bruce’s retelling of ‘The War of Jokes and Riddles’ in issue 32, it felt right. It felt earned. Bruce had revealed a dark chapter in his life, and Selina had accepted him on her own terms.

At this point, nothing else need be said, and King conveys that comfort level by plotting an issue that is wordless in the presentation of present day events. Expanding on their history, King saves the pithy repartee for the flashbacks in which The Bat and The Cat are playfully represented in not just their past costume iterations but also in scenes that capture plots and dialogue style of the eras that are being represented. It’s a helluva good time that may send readers back to the stories that inspired these vignettes. In a final metatextual twist, the multiple costume changes becomes a sartorial metaphor for the two of them constantly striving to find an image that fits as well as literally mirroring Selina’s search for the perfect dress, no matter the cost.

It’s a simple conceit, and with it King embraces comic continuity at the same time he sticks his thumb in its eye, short-circuiting literal-minded readers who might not take a shine to the irreverent joke under the veneer of their perpetually 30-year-old heroes who nonetheless have decades of history together. It’s a conceit one must accept with King’s scripts: revering but recontextualizing the past. He does the same thing with “Mister Miracle.” Read more about that here. It’s a friendlier and more welcoming tactic for reaching new readers, and it gives the lifetime reader a nudge in the ribs with a wink and an “I got you.” It rewards them for their fandom while also pointing out the ridiculousness of rigid notions of continuity.

If this issue’s plot has a failing it’s that it’s not quite meaty enough. Perhaps it re-examines these two one too many times, but as the events of the issue unfold the primary theme reveals itself. As madly in love as Bruce and Selina are, they can’t change who they are. The criminality in Batman (he is a vigilante after all) understands the burglar in Catwoman, and Catwoman admires the selfless sacrifices made by the billionaire. Even with this the issue starts to show the potential cracks in the relationship without an exchange of words, and they are cracks that may never be mended. Perhaps Bruce just assumed that Selina would no longer steal when he put a ring on her finger. Why would she need to? And what does it mean that she can’t control the urge even when sleeping in Wayne Manor? These are compelling questions for which King provides no easy answers, but it may lead to a certain amount of trouble in paradise. Time will tell.

A more optimistic and oversimplified interpretation might be that Selina has found the perfect dress and therefore the perfect match in her union with Bruce. They no longer need to hide who they really are from one another, and if Selina steals a $28,000 wedding dress, Bruce will playfully scold her and write a check when he finds out. It’s a gamble for Selina, but it says something about her character that it’s a gamble worth taking. It also says to Bruce that this is who she is, and if they are to be together, he must accept that, just as she has accepted and even enabled his suicidal crusade against crime.

At 44 issues into his run on DC’s flagship title, King deserves praise for another scripting feat, namely the way he has structured his issues and arcs to accommodate multiple artists under the rigors of a twice-monthly release schedule in the most seamless way possible. Issue 44 is another example of that clever editorial balancing act with Janín handling the flashbacks and Jones handling the present day Selina narrative. And both are excellent fits for their tasks. Janín’s perfect rendering of anatomy and heroic postures evokes bygone comic eras interpreted through a modern cinematic lens while Jones’s grasp of how to make Selina look both puckish and glamorous fits well with her shopping excursion. The splash page where Selina finally tries on the ideal dress is jaw dropping, complemented by Jones’s thick and confident line. Both artists are masters of the female form, but Jones makes Janín’s accomplished draftsmanship look stiff in comparison. If DC gives Catwoman her own book again, Jones should be their first phone call.

While the book reads quickly, the artwork really is a joy to peruse panel by panel. From Selina’s facial expressions to the madcap absurdity of the early flashback setups, it’s a fun ride that one hopes signals a certain amount of peace and purpose (to borrow a phrase from The Last Jedi). Bruce and Selina have both surrendered themselves to punishing lives brought on by their own mania and loneliness, and they deserve some level of happiness and contentment . . . for now.

Final Verdict: 7.5 – “Batman” #44 is a fun, if a bit too brief, romp through the history of Bruce and Selina that says as much about who they once were as it does about who they’ve become.