Review: Catwoman Vol. 3- Friend or Foe?
Quick Summary
Pros: The main narrative is intense and works well as a climax to the comic’s current story arc. The comic is compelling from start to finish. The entire adventure is tremendously fun and isn’t afraid to eschew boring details to focus on pure enjoyment. The artwork is beautiful.
Cons: There are a few small places that feel a little too silly.
Overall: This volume takes everything good about the previous volumes and refines it. The stakes are higher, the story is more compelling, the emotions hit harder, and the writing is tighter. Plus, the artwork shines the entire time and makes everything even better. The overall impact is very positive and instantly positions this as the best volume in the series so far. Anyone who has been enjoying this series should definitely read this book and anyone interested in Catwoman should consider picking it up.
Story
Catwoman Vol. 3: Friend or Foe?, by Joëlle Jones, sees this Catwoman series truly come into its own. The volume takes all of the development accomplished over the past two volumes and uses it to launch a seriously thrilling and compelling narrative. Here, Catwoman’s fight comes to its explosive conclusion that is as tense and satisfying as fans could ask for. It also makes for a seriously fun adventure all around. There are still a few minor places that feel a bit weird but, for the most part, this comic is a major success. Hopefully, the series maintains these highs going forward.
(spoilers start here)
As mentioned above, Friend or Foe? is essentially the climax of the comic’s current narrative. Raina Creel has unleashed chaos on Villa Hermosa and has critically injured one of Catwoman’s friends, forcing Catwoman to make a final stand against her. Meanwhile, Catwoman is still emotionally torn over her place in the world, her connection to the people around her, and her decision to leave Gotham. This creates a tense and high-stakes narrative with more than a few great twists. I found myself heavily invested in everything that was going on and read the full volume in a single sitting.
Friend or Foe? also succeeds in simply having fun with the overall adventure. This comic is pretty over-the-top. It has a zombie army, cats that help the heroes, a random team-up with Zatanna, and near constant costume changes. However, the weird thing is that nearly all of it works. The comic focuses on fun and doesn’t get bogged down in the doldrums or focus too hard on explanations. There is even a point where the comic skips the main villain’s monologue in order to focus on the fun instead.
I will admit that there are a few points where this over-the-top attitude goes a little too far. For example, having the zombie version of Raina’s child kill her and then turn to Catwoman’s side was a little strange. However, the overall impact is still positive and allows the story to work.
(spoilers end here)
Art
Like the story, the visuals in Friend or Foe? are some of the best in the series so far. At this point, most fans are aware that Joëlle Jones is incredibly skilled at bringing Catwoman to life through fantastic illustrations. However, this volume is even better than previous ones. Catwoman’s changing costumes allow for some creative designs, the action scenes allow for some epic and well-structured battles to take place, and the high-stakes allow for some intense emotion to be on display. Plus, a guest appearance gives Jones a chance to provide a creative interpretation of a popular DC hero. Many of these same positives are also present in Fernando Blanco’s pencils, which also look better than in previous volumes. All of this ends up looking good and makes this a better book overall.
Continuity
Catwoman Vol. 3: Friend or Foe? continues the story from Catwoman Vol. 2: Far From Gotham (Review).
The story here continues in Catwoman Vol. 4: Come Home, Alley Cat (Review).
This volume also references and continues the stories from other comic books, detailed below:
- The story explaining Maggie’s current condition is told across the “Catwoman: Relentless” story arc, collected in Catwoman Vol. 2: No Easy Way Down.
- Lex Luthor’s (Reading Order) “gift” is a reference to the Year of the Villain (Review) storyline.
- This volume references Catwoman’s (Reading Order) decision from Batman: The Wedding (Review) (Reading Order). Part of her thoughts on this also relate to a conversation she had with Joker (Reading Order) prior to the wedding in Batman #49, also collected in Batman: The Wedding.