Catwoman #7 Review
Written by Joelle Jones
Art by Elena Casagrande and Fernando Blanco
Colouring by John Kalisz
Lettering by Josh Reed
This book continues to baffle me in the worst way. A book featuring this character affords creators the chance to really delve into the underbelly of the DCU, particularly Gotham, but since this book takes place in the vague city of Villa Hermosa, it's clear that Joelle Jones has her own story to tell, and that's fine. It's a creator's right to do what they want to do. What confuses me is that this new setting does nothing noteworthy for the character aside from Selina wanting to spend time with her sister. I really think that both Jones and DC thought that this move would do for Catwoman what moving to San Francisco did for Daredevil under Chris Samnee and Mark Waid, but this issue was just really dry.
There's something fundamentally off about Jones' dialogue, and the best word I would use to describe it would be stilted. I know this is going to be a strange thing to notice, but her constant use of the exclamation point in her dialogue and thought boxes indicates to me that she really doesn't know how to make her words impactful and has to resort to using the exclamation points in order to emphasise something, be it drama or humour. To say nothing of this issue's plotting, which leaves a lot to be desired. Simply put, not much happens in this issue, and that's something I would ignore if the craft was interesting or well-done enough to get me to forget about it.
This book's artistic consistency is also terrible, as well. That's not to say that Elena Casagrande and Fernando Blanco are bad artists; they're both quite fantastic, and John Kalisz is able to weave the two styles together with his colouring. I do prefer Blanco's work to Casagrande's, mostly since Blanco has been doing work on this series before while Casagrande's presence contributes to the aforementioned artistic inconsistency, which is through no fault of her own.
This just failed on every level for me. I'm sure someone might find somethings to enjoy about this, but the lack of Jones' artwork really goes to show how strong her storytelling gets when she's completely in charge of the story. The plotting was weak and there wasn't anything to really enjoy about this.
Art by Elena Casagrande and Fernando Blanco
Colouring by John Kalisz
Lettering by Josh Reed
This book continues to baffle me in the worst way. A book featuring this character affords creators the chance to really delve into the underbelly of the DCU, particularly Gotham, but since this book takes place in the vague city of Villa Hermosa, it's clear that Joelle Jones has her own story to tell, and that's fine. It's a creator's right to do what they want to do. What confuses me is that this new setting does nothing noteworthy for the character aside from Selina wanting to spend time with her sister. I really think that both Jones and DC thought that this move would do for Catwoman what moving to San Francisco did for Daredevil under Chris Samnee and Mark Waid, but this issue was just really dry.
There's something fundamentally off about Jones' dialogue, and the best word I would use to describe it would be stilted. I know this is going to be a strange thing to notice, but her constant use of the exclamation point in her dialogue and thought boxes indicates to me that she really doesn't know how to make her words impactful and has to resort to using the exclamation points in order to emphasise something, be it drama or humour. To say nothing of this issue's plotting, which leaves a lot to be desired. Simply put, not much happens in this issue, and that's something I would ignore if the craft was interesting or well-done enough to get me to forget about it.
This book's artistic consistency is also terrible, as well. That's not to say that Elena Casagrande and Fernando Blanco are bad artists; they're both quite fantastic, and John Kalisz is able to weave the two styles together with his colouring. I do prefer Blanco's work to Casagrande's, mostly since Blanco has been doing work on this series before while Casagrande's presence contributes to the aforementioned artistic inconsistency, which is through no fault of her own.
This just failed on every level for me. I'm sure someone might find somethings to enjoy about this, but the lack of Jones' artwork really goes to show how strong her storytelling gets when she's completely in charge of the story. The plotting was weak and there wasn't anything to really enjoy about this.
A Look Inside
