This review contains spoilers.
Catwoman #49 is written by Frank Tieri with art by Inaki Miranda and colors by Eva De La Cruz. In this issue, Catwoman has to deal with being framed for murder and having a bounty on her head.
Previously, Catwoman was hired to steal a diamond but also framed for murder. The diamond belonged to Penguin who put a bounty on Catwoman’s head which Killer Croc came to collect.
Joshua Middleton’s cover is wonderful. Showing Batgirl is something that excites me while Killer Croc looks absolutely terrifying in the background.
The issue begins with Killer Croc attacking Catwoman. Batgirl intervenes which allows Catwoman the time to incapacitate Killer Croc before Batgirl tries to arrest Catwoman.
The fight between Batgirl and Catwoman is awesome. I like how much skill Batgirl has to the point that it impresses Catwoman. It’s a fun fight that it is ultimately interrupted by Killer Croc getting back up. However, Catwoman is able to convince Killer Croc to stand down because of their friendship before the cops arrive. Killer Croc distracts them so that Catwoman can escape. She starts to run but is cornered by the Riddler who she quickly disposes of. She then receives a text message from the client that wants the diamond who leads her to an escape.
At home, Selina deduces that the diamond might be more than it seems. She smashes it and discovers a flash drive. The drive contains Penguin’s blackmail files on the rich and famous of Gotham City.
Worried that she is in over her head, Selina goes to Bruce. However, it is the current Bruce that doesn’t have his memories so he turns her over to the police. The issue ends with Robo-Batbunny arresting Selina.
My only complaint is that Bruce is drawn clean-shaven. This is an inconsistency that is just meant to fool the readers into thinking this might be the traditional Bruce. It is a nice reveal but I wish there was consistency with the other Bat-books.
Verdict
This is another fantastic issue. The team is hitting it out of the park with every issue. The art and colors by Miranda and De La Cruz are outstanding with terrific plotting by Tieri. The action scenes are dynamic with stellar layouts. I cannot recommend this issue, and the previous two, any higher. This book is firing on all cylinders.
