Catwoman Timeline
This timeline is designed to detail the exploits of Catwoman (Selina Kyle) throughout different eras of comic book history. These summaries are here to help make reading about Catwoman easier. For more information regarding our timeline project, see our about page here.
This timeline is heavily based on our “Catwoman Reading Order“. Non-indented sections correspond with Catwoman’s “Essential” storyline while indented sections correspond with Catwoman’s “Extra” storyline. Make sure to check out our reading order here for more information.
New 52
With the beginning of the New 52, the DC Universe’s continuity was restarted. Most of Catwoman’s past is wiped out, though her flirtatious relationship with Batman is maintained. She starts the New 52 as a criminal in Gotham City and her adventures continue from there.
Also be sure to view the New 52 era of our “Catwoman Reading Order“.
The Game
Catwoman has been a thief for a while and has made plenty of enemies. Now, she is forced to quickly leave her home when some of those enemies barge in and blow it up. To pay for the damages, she picks up a new job from her friend, Lola. However, Catwoman becomes emotionally invested in the job and ends up turning two rival gangs on each other. Along the way, she has a sexual encounter with Batman and states that this type of encounter is not unusual, though she does not know Batman is Bruce Wayne. She finishes the job with plenty of money but finds that Lola was killed by Bone, the same man who blew up her home.
She tracks down Bone and nearly kills him, but is stopped by Batman. Now, she is forced to work a new job, which puts her in direct confrontation with corrupt police officers. They catch her and nearly kill her but she is released by Detective Alvarez, a good cop who has been investigating Catwoman’s crimes. She, once again, runs into Batman, who confronts her about her self-destructive lifestyle. Realizing how bad she has become, she reaches out to an old friend for help and even tells her that she is Catwoman.
This storyline extends through issues #1-6 of Catwoman Vol. 5. These issues are collected in Catwoman Vol. 1: The Game (Review).
Dollhouse
Catwoman has been working for her old friend, Gwen, for a while now and is starting to like it. However, one day, she falls for a police setup and has to be saved by a man with electric powers, named Spark. She and Spark start working together, though Gwen disapproves. The duo find a rare set of daggers but discover that one is missing. When they track the missing dagger to Penguin, they find him face to face with one of the Court of Owls’ Talons. Catwoman saves Penguin but he kills the Talon.
While all of this was going on, Catwoman also noticed a van kidnapping prostitutes late at night. She discovers this has been a problem for a while but the police have refused to do anything about it. Earlier in life, Selina was kidnapped so she feels a personal connection to the issue. She teams up with Spark and Detective Alvarez to catch the criminal. It turns out that the criminal is Dollhouse, a woman obsessed with preserving dead human bodies and arranging them like dolls. She stops Dollhouse’s plans with a little help from Batman. The storyline ends with Gwen discovering that Spark is working for the corrupt police who Selina stole money from. She kills him and thanks Penguin for the information.
This storyline extends through issues #7-12 of Catwoman Vol. 4. These issues are collected in Catwoman Vol. 2: Dollhouse (Review).
Death of the Family
Catwoman takes what appears to be a simple job from a man named Trip Winters. However, the job ends up being for the Joker, who tortures Catwoman for a while. He tries to get her to admit her feelings for Batman but she denies them. Eventually, he leaves her alone, though she is pretty traumatized by the entire incident.
This storyline extends through issues #13-14 of Catwoman Vol. 4. These issues are collected in Catwoman Vol. 3: Death of the Family (Review).
The Black Room
Catwoman takes another job from Trip Winters, who she also kisses. This time, the job is to steal something from A.R.G.U.S.’s “Black Room,” a room full of powerful magic artifacts. When Catwoman gets there, various magical objects are unleashed, including a powerful demon. She is eventually able to calm the magic but a page from the demon’s book gets stuck to her shoe on the way out. Once she is finally out, Trip picks her up and takes care of her because she is exhausted.
This storyline extends through issues #15-16 of Catwoman Vol. 4. These issues are collected in Catwoman Vol. 3: Death of the Family (Review).
He Said, She Said
Catwoman and Gwen plan to steal a painting. However, when the job is done, Gwen is not there to pick her up. Instead, Gwen has been brought into the police headquarters for questioning, though she is quickly released thanks to Penguin’s help. Now, Catwoman has to contend with Batman, who is going through a rough time and loved the paintings that she stole. She reminisces about her past on the streets and remembers how hard it was. Eventually, she puts the paintings back and Batman is happy. The storyline ends with someone turning into a demon, due to the piece of paper that Catwoman let loose in “The Black Room”.
This storyline extends through issues #17-18 of Catwoman Vol. 4 and the Catwoman story from issue #1 of Young Romance: A New 52 Valentine’s Day Special. These issues are collected in Catwoman Vol. 3: Death of the Family (Review).
Origin
In the past, Selina Kyle is caught after a failed burglary job. She is offered a position in the Second Chance program, where she makes an honest living for herself. However, after trying to access her personal file, she discovers that the company is keeping secrets from her. Her boss eventually confronts her and even tries to kill her. Upon surviving, she decides to become Catwoman.
Note: this entire story is almost never mentioned again.
This story is told in issue #0 of Catwoman Vol. 4. This issue is collected in Catwoman Vol. 3: Death of the Family (Review).
Justice League of America: World’s Most Dangerous
Catwoman is approached by Steve Trevor, who offers her a spot on the Justice League of America. She accepts.
For their first mission, this new League needs to infultrate the Secret Society of Super-Villains. Since Catwoman is the only known villain on the team, she serves as bait. The League “catches” Catwoman stealing an artifact and imprisons her in Arkham Asylum. After escaping, she is contacted by the Society and brought to their headquarters.
The rest of the League tracks her there and stages a rescue/attack. However, the leader of the Society teleports the entire headquarters away before the League is able to learn much of anything. With their first mission a failure, the Justice League of America is nearly shut down but Steve Trevor argues for their existence.
This storyline extends through issues #1-5 of Justice League of America Vol. 3. These issues are collected in Justice League of America Vol. 1: World’s Most Dangerous (Review).
Slam
As part of a mission for the Justice League of America, Catwoman is voluntarily caught and imprisoned in Arkham Asylum. While there, she meets Black Mask and is tormented by Dr. Jeremiah Arkham. Eventually she is able to escape through the tunnel system below the asylum, which also gives her a glimpse of the Gotham Underground.
This story is told in issue #19 of Catwoman Vol. 4. This issue is collected in Catwoman Vol. 4: Gotham Underground (Review).
Trinity War
Catwoman’s involvement in the Trinity War event is very minimal. She helps the Justice League of America attack the Justice League, specifically providing a counter to Batman. She is also there when Pandora’s Box is opened and the Crime Syndicate appears.
This storyline extends through issues #22-23 of Justice League Vol. 2, issues #22-23 of Justice League Dark Vol. 1, and issues #6-7 of Justice League of America Vol. 3. These issues are collected in Trinity War (Review). See our “Trinity War Reading Order” or our “Trinity War Timeline” for more information.
Forever Evil
Catwoman escapes imprisonment with the majority of the world’s heroes by hiding away with Batman and a badly injured Cyborg. The healthy duo rush Cyborg to S.T.A.R. Labs, where Batman reveals that he trusts Catwoman enough to give her access to the Lab. He then takes her to the Batcave, for the first time. From there, they team up with Lex Luthor’s Injustice League and work to take down the Crime Syndicate.
Throughout the fighting, Batman expresses worry that he hurts everyone who gets close to him. When the Crime Syndicate is defeated, Selina’s criminal record is erased and Batman says she can start a new life. Selina expresses interest in starting this new life with Batman but he refuses.
This storyline extends through issues #1-7 of Forever Evil Vol. 1. These issues are collected in Forever Evil (Review).
Gang War
Catwoman gets in a fight with Joe Pazzo, one of Penguin’s henchmen, while stealing from Penguin. When she runs into him later, he has been turned into a demon due to exposure to the piece of paper Catwoman took from the “Black Room”. Eventually, Catwoman is able to kill the demon. Penguin is enraged that Catwoman stole from him and killed his henchman.
As a response, Penguin fires a smart bomb programed to hunt down and kill Catwoman. However, thanks to technology from a new friend named Alice, Catwoman is able to avoid the bomb. Penguin kidnaps her instead but she quickly breaks free.
To get revenge on Penguin, Catwoman decides to start helping the Rat-Tails, a rival gang that has been giving Penguin trouble. Her efforts with the gang work and cause Penguin significant damage. Catwoman even becomes close with the gang’s leader, who goes by the name Rat-Tail. However, just when she thinks she has the upper hand, Penguin’s men bomb Rat-Tail’s location. The action causes him to fall into a deep hole in the street.
This storyline extends through issues #20-21 and annual #1 of Catwoman Vol. 4. These issues are collected in Catwoman Vol. 4: Gotham Underground (Review).
Gotham Underground
Catwoman goes into the Gotham Underground to find Rat-Tail. Once there, she meets Doctor Phosphorous, who is leader of an entire tribe of underground people. She agrees to help Phosphorous broker an alliance between his tribe and another underground tribe, run by a man named Warhog. However, the deal falls through and hostilities between the tribes rise. In addition, Joker’s Daughter, who also runs her own tribe, attacks Phosphorous’s tribe.
Soon a war breaks out between the three tribes. In the middle of it all, Catwoman finds Rat-Tail. Together, they discover a stash of bombs Phosphorous planned to use to destroy Gotham. They set the bombs off early and seal all three tribes deep underground, where they can no longer harm Gotham.
This storyline extends through issues #22-24 and #26 of Catwoman Vol. 4 and issue #23.4 of Batman: The Dark Knight Vol. 2. These issues are collected in Catwoman Vol. 4: Gotham Underground (Review).
Zero Year
Years in the past, Selina Kyle had not fully devoted herself to a life of crime. She was a kleptomaniac but never pulled larger jobs. This changed when she discovered a rich man had been hording tons of resources, despite the fact that Gotham was about to be hit by a major storm. Selina infiltrated his apartment and stole various resources from him. She used these to give back to the community in their time of need.
This story is told in issue #25 of Catwoman Vol. 4. This issue is collected in Catwoman Vol. 5: Race of Thieves (Review).
Gothtopia
All of Gotham is under a shared delusion, one that shows the city as a nearly crime-free paradise. Influenced by this delusion, Catwoman is no longer a criminal. Instead, she goes by Catbird and is Batman’s partner/girlfriend. She spends half of her time fighting crime with him and half of her time working as a suicide-hotline operator.
When Batman breaks out of the delusion and begins to completely reject the reality everyone else believes to be real, Catbird turns him in and brings him to Arkham Asylum for rehabilitation. However, she also begins questioning the nature of their reality and wondering if what Batman said was true. Eventually, someone convinces her to pull a few criminal jobs, to remind herself what she used to be. She begins to see reality of what it is but hates doing so.
Eventually, Batman is able to free Gotham from the spell of Gothtopia.
This storyline extends through issues #27-28 of Catwoman Vol. 4. In addition, issues #27-29 of Detective Comics Vol. 2 give additional, but optional, information about this storyline. The Catwoman issues are collected in Catwoman Vol. 5: Race of Thieves (Review) and the Detective Comics issues are collected in Detective Comics Vol. 5: Gothtopia (Review).
Crash and Grab
Catwoman pulls a job for a client who needs her to steal two drugs from a medical company. One she keeps and the other she smashes at the site.
Her client ends up being Batman. He wanted one drug smashed because it could be weaponized and should not be released to the public. He wanted the other drug stolen so that the company wouldn’t worry about making more of the smashed drug. Now, with the job completed, Batman owes Catwoman a favor.
This story is told in issue #29 of Catwoman Vol. 4. This issue is collected in Catwoman Vol. 5: Race of Thieves (Review).
Race of Thieves
Despite wanting to leave her life as Catwoman behind, Selina Kyle gets back in the game when she receives an invitation to a mysterious “Race of Thieves”. This race is a competition between some of the world’s greatest thieves, put on by a woman named Roulette. The competition involves fights between competitors, stealing valuable objects from an old mansion, and a souped-up car race. Though Catwoman doesn’t win the actual Race of Thieves, she placed a large bet on the man who ends up winning, netting Catwoman a serious profit.
While participating in the Race, Catwoman also discovers that the entire competition is an elaborate ruse designed to cover up for the Race’s mastermind’s true plan. Catwoman stops the evil mastermind and also takes out revenge on Roulette, who had bothered Catwoman during the Race.
This storyline extends through issues #30-33 of Catwoman Vol. 4. These issues are collected in Catwoman Vol. 5: Race of Thieves (Review).
Remote Life
Catwoman helps her friend Tesla deal with a man who stole the duo’s data. To take him down, they go to his headquarters, where Tesla takes him on in a battle of coding. Catwoman helps by disrupting him physically and Tesla is able to wipe the data he stole.
This story is told in issue #34 of Catwoman Vol. 4. This issue is collected in Catwoman Vol. 5: Race of Thieves (Review).
Futures End
In a potential future, Selina Kyle has united all of Gotham’s criminal organizations into one group. She convinced them to pool their money together in one account, to preserve peace. However, she is betrayed and killed by one of her underlings, who now has the only access to the account. When he tries to access it, he finds it empty. The other criminal leaders are angry that he lost their money and decide to kill him.
Meanwhile, having faked her death, Selina Kyle is relaxing on a beach. She stole all of the money from the account and let her underling take the fall, since she knew he would betray her. Now, she plans on living out the rest of her life in rest and relaxation, using the immense amount of money she stole.
This story is told in issue #1 of Catwoman: Futures End. This issues is collected in Catwoman Vol. 5: Race of Thieves (Review).
Batman Eternal
When Gotham becomes more chaotic during the “Batman Eternal” storyline, Catwoman and Batman help each other out at various points in time. Batman helps save Catwoman from gangsters who come after her; including Carmine Falcone, who is upset Catwoman scratched his face in the past, and Bone, who is upset that Catwoman nearly killed him during “The Game” storyline. In addition, Catwoman helps Batman by assisting him in uncovering a villain conspiracy. Though the two maintain a flirtatious relationship throughout the entire storyline, it never progresses beyond this.
As the chaos in Gotham continues to rise, Selina Kyle’s father reaches out to her and offers her his old place as head of a Gotham crime family. Selina is hesitant to accept but agrees so that she can bring order to Gotham. She assists in the take-down of various supervillains and even captures Spoiler, who provides information about the conspiracy Batman is investigating. Soon, Catwoman is in charge of nearly all organized crime in Gotham.
When the head of the villain conspiracy unleashes pandemonium in Gotham, as a part of his endgame, Selina forbids the crime families from getting involved. In fact, she uses their power to help fight against the conspiracy. Batman is thankful but also notes that all of the businesses she protected happened to have items missing after accepting Selina’s help.
This story is told through multiple issues of the Batman Eternal Vol. 1 series. See our “Catwoman Reading Order” for a precise list of issues.
Keeper of the Castle
Selina Kyle is head of the Calabrese crime family and also has control over multiple other families. She uses this position to launch a renovation effort in Gotham. She insists that this will buy them goodwill with the people and also ensure that the city they rule is worth ruling. However, Black Mask steals the city renovation project out from under them. This is part of Black Mask and Mason’s plan to usurp Selina Kyle as Gotham’s head gangster.
While this is happening, Selina is trying to get the Hasigawa crime family on her side. They agree to join her if she agrees to distribute drugs for them; a deal Selina is not happy about. The deal goes sour for multiple reasons and Selina is even forced to kill her cousin in the process. Eventually, Selina sabotages the entire drug operation herself because she abhors the thought of filling Gotham’s streets with drugs. This causes distrust in the Calabrese family, forcing the Hasigawas and other families to side with Black Mask.
However, the daughter of the Hasigawa leader, Eiko, is impressed. Eiko has hated her father’s criminal ways for a long time and has secretly taken up the mantle of Catwoman in order to fight injustice.
With tensions between Selina and Black Mask at an all time high, a gang war appears to be right around the corner. Selina makes a deal with Penguin, who Black Mask believes is working for him, to ensure Penguin’s support of Selina’s power. When the war breaks out, Penguin secretly provides support, which lessens the war’s damaging effects.
The storyline ends with Selina putting on her Catwoman costume again, which she has not worn for a long time.
This storyline extends through issues #35-40 and annual #2 of Catwoman Vol. 4. These issues are collected in Catwoman Vol. 6: Keeper of the Castle (Review).
Inheritance
Selina has the war confined to a few small sections of Gotham and is using her Catwoman persona to further disassemble Black Mask’s empire. However, all of this has caused Selina to become increasingly dissatisfied with her life as a mob boss.
In an attempt to end the fighting, Black Mask shows up at Selina’s apartment and waits for her to arrive. However, instead of Selina showing up, Eiko shows up dressed as Catwoman. Black Mask shoots Eiko, believing her to be Selina, and lets her fall to the streets below. On the streets, Eiko is saved by Killer Croc, who saves her as a courtesy to Selina. He also carries her back to the Hasigawa headquarters.
Black Mask witnesses Eiko being taken back to the Hasigawa headquarters. Still believing Eiko to be Selina, he now thinks that the Hasigaws have betrayed him by sheltering his prime enemy. With this in mind, he attacks the Hasigawas and kills their leader, Eiko’s father.
To prevent Eiko from taking out Black Mask in a fit of revenge, Selina decides to do it herself. She has Penguin lure him into a false sense of security and then she attacks him, nearly killing him. However, he survives and begs Penguin for mercy, which Penguin agrees to in exchange for Black Mask leaving town and giving Penguin control of his criminal empire.
Meanwhile, Eiko, now leader of the Hasigawas, throws a party for the heads of all the minor crime families of Gotham. There, she has all of them killed. Though Selina’s family disagrees with her methods, they are happy that it has effectively ended the gang war.
The storyline ends with Selina passing on control of the Calabrese family to her cousin. She leaves town, ready to be Catwoman full-time once more.
This storyline extends through issues #41-46 of Catwoman Vol. 4. These issues are collected in Catwoman Vol. 7: Inheritance (Review).
Run Like Hell
Catwoman has moved to New York City and gone back to her criminal ways. She is asked by Louis, an old friend and fence, to steal a million dollar diamond for a mysterious client. She steals the diamond but, upon dropping it off, finds Louis dead. He was killed by a corrupt police officer, who is now pinning the death on Catwoman unless she hands over the diamond. She refuses and flees the scene.
To find more information about this conspiracy, Catwoman approaches Penguin. Penguin reveals that the Calabrese crime family is falling apart and that the diamond is his. He then puts a million dollar bounty on Catwoman’s head. Killer Croc nearly kills Catwoman to collect the bounty but Catwoman appeals to their past friendship and Croc lets her go.
From there, Catwoman begins receiving help from her initial mysterious client. When she is captured by the police, this client even helps her break out of jail. Eventually, Catwoman learns that the diamond is really a USB drive containing Penguin’s blackmail files and that her client is actually Lex Luthor. Lex demands the drive and offers to clear Catwoman’s name in exchange, though he refuses to give her any money for the job.
At first, it seems as if Lex has won. However, Lex soon discovers that the Catwoman swapped out the drive for one containing a computer virus, causing serious damage to Lex’s company. The virus also gave Catwoman a chance to wire herself a million dollars from Lex’s accounts. She celebrates by donating half of the money to Louis’s family and using the other half to go on vacation.
This storyline extends through issues #47-50 of Catwoman Vol. 4. These issues are collected in Catwoman Vol. 8: Run Like Hell (Review).
Intruder Alert
At some point in time, Catwoman manages to break into the Justice League’s Watchtower. However, it is revealed that the Justice League invited her to break in, so they could test their security. Catwoman claims their security is not up to par and walks away triumphantly.
This story is told in issue #50 of Catwoman Vol. 4. This issue is collected in Catwoman Vol. 8: Run Like Hell (Review).
Faceless
At some point in the distant past, the Faceless Mask was created near Gotham City. The mask bestowed great power but also cursed the wearer. An entire society, the False Face Society, was created around the Mask. However, the mask was lost over time.
A few years before the present, Catwoman and her boyfriend, David, were hired to steal the Mask for Black Mask’s father. They succeed but David threatens their client and is killed for his actions.
In the present, Black Mask’s father dies and leadership of the False Face Society falls to the mysterious White Mask. Catwoman quickly discovers that White Mask is her old boyfriend David, who faked his death to join the False Face Society. When Black Mask challenges White Mask for leadership of the False Face Society, Catwoman refuses to intervene, insisting that the man she loved died years ago. However, she does swipe the Faceless Mask before she leaves.
This storyline extends through issues #51-52 and the “Night at the Museum” story from issue #50 of Catwoman Vol. 4. These issues are collected in Catwoman Vol. 8: Run Like Hell (Review).
Rebirth
Coming Soon