Marvel's Black Cat has sported a few different looks over the years, but largely has stuck with her most iconic costume. However, in a new piece of Marvel Comics fan art from artist Stefan Tosheff, Felicia Hardy gets a new costume redesign that gives her a stunning modern look and a perfect new weapon that will assist her during her epic heists - while also showing off her more acrobatic side.
Since debuting in The Amazing Spider-Man #194 by Marv Wolfman and Keith Pollard, Black Cat has become a popular reoccurring figure in the Marvel Comics universe. Felicia Hardy became Black Cat to pull off some of the greatest heists in the universe, which makes her an unwanted adversary of Spider-Man, who the antihero has shared a romantic relationship with. Black Cat seems to show up when least expected, which causes frequent headaches for the web-slinger. However, Black Cat's playful nature and beauty have consistently made Spider-Man overlook her most petty crimes. In her most recent Marvel Comics stories, Felicia Hardy just successfully completed her most daring heist to date, assembling the living wielders of the Infinity Stones to cure her mother's cancer.
On his Twitter account, artist Stefan Tosheff shared his fan art redesign of Black Cat, which gives the antihero a new suit and weapon. The look keeps her black and white color scheme but offers something more tactical and athletic for Felicia Hardy. She keeps her iconic eye mask but has braided hair as opposed to her usual long-flowing hairdo. The costume also features a new set of sharp claws that fit her new aesthetic perfectly. Rivaling Spider-Man, Black Cat can be seen swinging on a wire as she holds onto some (assumably) stolen jewelry.
The look is a nice counterbalance between Black Cat's usual costume. While iconic, her leather ensemble is somewhat impractical and often drawn in a way specifically to sexualize the character. What made the antihero's Marvel's Spider-Man PS4 look so great was it felt like something a thief would actually wear while maintaining the playful side of the character. The new fan art redesign accomplishes the same goal. It's fun but practical.
Ultimately, the new costume and weapon make for a great redesign of the popular Marvel Comics antihero. If Marvel ever wants to give Felicia Hardy's superhero persona a more athletic redesign that stays true to the character's personality and honors her previous looks, they need to look no further than the great piece of Black Cat fan art from @stefantosheff.
Source: @stefantosheff