Every boy has a dark fantasy. Many diehard comic-book fans will definitely have a fetish for Catwoman, whose onscreen notoriety is as fancied as her print version. From Julie Newmar’s nearly voluptuous portrayal of the character in the 1966 television series Batman to Michelle Pfeiffer’s dangerously seductive take on this femme fatale in Batman Returns (1992), Catwoman has always been shown as a polarised individual in an insane world.
First appearing in Batman No 1 Spring 1940, she has constantly been shown as a person who infiltrates a person’s life without him or her realising it. One must understand the circumstances in which women grew up in the United States of America during that period. The men were away at war, and it was up to the woman of the house to take charge of the family. Women had to struggle to make a living. The early stories of Batman were published during World War II, where people could relate to robberies. Hence, showing Catwoman as a burglar was not unimaginable, yet her antics surprised everyone. Her job description has changed over the decades, permeating even the field of prostitution. Her motives are never simple, which makes her a hard person to read at times.
In Catwoman: When in Rome, Selina Kyle (aka Catwoman) is on a quest with undisclosed intentions. The reader is merely given the clue that she has to deal with the Falcone crime family or at least something to do with its history. For this, she enlists the help of Edward Nigma, also called the Riddler, which is further evidence that she requires answers to certain unaddressed questions.
Once Selina reaches Italy, she is embroiled in a mystery that threatens her very exist-ence. Her first lead dies in a way familiar to most Batman fans.
Catwoman’s only reliable ally is the dashing young Christopher Castillo alias the Blond, but he is equally dangerous to her.
Selina develops a soft corner for Castillo, whom she fondly calls Blondie. In fact, she blushes when he once chanced upon her naked. Here, the writer shows her varying attitudes towards men. While Castillo is considered to be the chivalrous man, Nigma’s despised and Batman, needless to say, is breathtaking as well as a pain in the neck. This provides interesting reading.
At various intervals in the novel, Selina dreams about Batman, her adversary lover from the unholy Gotham City. Although these might seem to be potentially romantic interludes ending in ferocious disputes, they play a key role in the plot. For one thing, though she had stopped meeting Batman, he had ruled her unconscious mind. It had affected her judgement at times.
Writer Jeph Loeb is the Eisner and Wizard award-winning author of Batman: The Long Halloween, Batman: Dark Victory, Superman for all Seasons and Challengers of the Unknown Must Die! His other work is Batman: Hush, which has received critical acclaim and commercial success. Loeb was part of the TV credits for the series Smallville, and for movie buffs, his film credits include Commando and Teen Wolf starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Michael J Fox, respectively.
In When in Rome, he narrates the story in a daily format, which is, each chapter corresponds to a particular day, like Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and so on.
A teenager or a pubescent adult may ogle at the art for a while. The credit goes to artist Tim Sale. He is a known collaborator of Jeph Loeb and they joined forces for projects like Spider-Man: Blue, Daredevil: Yellow and Hulk: Gray. Their work in When in Rome is supported by colourist Dave Stewart, whose dark shades are typical of any title that comes
under the Batman umbrella.
To augment the understanding of the characters, especially Carmine Falcone, reading Batman: Year One and Batman: The Long Halloween is recommended. Catwoman: When in Rome serves as a feminine critique of a seemingly male-dominated superhero universe.
— Nithin blogs at
www.atlasreborn.blogspot.com