Written by: Tini Howard
Art by: Nico Leon
Colors by: Veronica Gandini
Letters by: Lucas Gattoni
Cover art by: David Nakayama (cover A)
Cover price: $3.99
Release date: October 17, 2023

Catwoman #58 finds the Gotham War heating up when Vandal Savage plans to get the Henchmen Union and Batman's rogues on his side, turning Gotham City into a burning war zone.
Is Catwoman #58 Good?

There's very little I can say about Catwoman #58 without sounding like a rant, so we'll stick to the basics.

This is a terrible comic. That's not an "it's not meant for me" assessment or an "art is subjective, so it doesn't match my tastes" reaction. This is objectively a poorly written, and yes, sub-par drawn comic.

When last we left the Bat and the Cat in part four of Gotham War, Jason Todd inexplicably felt inclined to lead Selina's mass robberies in her ridiculous scheme to reduce violent crime by increasing non-violent crime. Rightfully fearing Jason had gone too far, Batman captured Jason and subjected him to an unethical mind whammy that causes crippling fear whenever Jason's adrenaline spikes. The ethically compromised Bat Family were none too pleased, and fighting ensued.

Now, Batman vacillates between hero and blubbering, ineffectual idiot while Gotham is burning down around his ears. Selina confronts Scandal and Vandal about their secret machinations, leading to an offer by Vandal to grant immortality if they join forces. The Rogues are given a similar offer by Vandal to ransack the city to recover special artifacts, resulting in Rogues equipped with Bat-gadgets laying siege to the city.

What's great about Catwoman #58? Really, the only good thing you could say is this issue feels like the first in the event to live up to its title. Gotham is experiencing a war in the streets. The path to get here is silly, and the execution is horrendous, but we're finally at a point in the event that feels like a war has begun.

What's not so great about Catwoman #58? There's not enough room in this review to cover every flaw, so I'll touch on the highlights.

First and most glaring, Batman is written like an ineffective idiot. Buildings are exploding all around him, the city is burning, and yet, he doesn't make a move to stop any of it or help innocent people in peril. When several buildings begin exploding right in front of him, he only pauses to take Selina's hand and look lovingly into her eyes. As fires rage, Batman simply goes home and gets into his civvies to relax. It's hard not to conclude Howard has never read a Batman comic in her life.

Second, everyone is in reaction mode, only saying or doing something when Vandal Savage makes the first move because Vandal's presence is somehow a secret. How did Selina's Henchmen Union come under Vandal's control without her knowledge? How did Vandal walk into the Rogues meeting without anyone noticing?

Third, forget about the plot and pacing. The scenes are strung together, but there's no flow, urgency, direction, or tension. This comic reads like a checklist of canned scenes just to get the story from A to B, but at best, it's a loose collection of individual ideas.

How's the art? For readers keeping score, Nico Leon made a public dust-up a few months back about being given impossible deadlines to finish the art due to late script delivery. This is the comic referenced. Does this comic look rushed, incomplete, or otherwise sub-par in the visuals? Yes. I'm sure Leon worked with the time he had, but you can tell the quality took a dip. Some panels are blatant copy/paste shortcuts. The characters look quickly sketched on pre-rendered backgrounds. And the design choices are odd (why is Selina wearing platform stilettos?). In all, not Leon's best work, so as unprofessional as it may be to air his grievances in public, his grievances were warranted.

About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.

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