Review: Under the Moon- A Catwoman Tale
Quick Summary
Pros: The main narrative is compelling and centers around a great main character. The story is both endearing and emotional. The artwork looks beautiful.
Cons: The conclusion leaves a lot on the table.
Overall: This is a beautiful and well-written book. It manages to combine a sweet and meaningful storyline with a wonderful cast of characters. This is then further enhanced by gorgeous visuals, which simply bring out the best in the story. The only problem is that the conclusion feels lacking. Overall, this is a book for readers who want to see a unique take on Catwoman, one that captures the struggle of her life through the lens of a young adult.
Full Review
Under the Moon: A Catwoman Tale, by Lauren Myracle and Isaac Goodhart, is a tragic but sweet story. The main narrative follows a young Selina Kyle as she leaves home and is forced to live on the streets.
The most compelling aspect of Under the Moon is Selina Kyle. Her journey throughout this book is interesting from the start and remains so throughout the read. The choices she makes and the character development she undergoes are great to see. It also helps that she is likeable and well-written throughout the read.
Myracel’s writing does a particularly good job in making you understand and sympathize with what Selina is going through. Even when her choices seem illogical or irrational, the background presented earlier immediately makes you understand why she would make that decision.
Through Selina’s story, Under the Moon is able to capture real issues. It looks at how a broken home life can have a tragic impact on someone’s development. It also looks at how this tragedy may not present itself in the way one would expect. Altogether, it is emotional and endearing in a great way.
On top of all of this, the artwork in Under the Moon is great. Goodhart’s visuals look beautiful and do a wonderful job in depicting both character and environments. They are also wonderfully expressive, capturing the intense range of emotions on display. Plus, the colors and the contrasts between colors help set the mood in specific scenes or highlight a specific moment.
The only real downside to the book is that the conclusion makes it feel incomplete. It feels like there is more to this story that should have been told. The final few pages even introduce a new mystery that is never resolved. As of now, the book does not have and is not set to get a sequel, which makes this problem even more upsetting.
Continuity
Under the Moon: A Catwoman Tale is, currently, a standalone book. It does not continue the story from any other comic and the story here is not continued in any other comic.