Hold on to your valuables, Cat-fans! DC Comics will mastermind multiple capers to celebrate the Princess of Plunder’s 80th Anniversary in Catwoman: 80th Anniversary Super Spectacular #1. After 8 decades between good and questionable, a host of writers and artists are ready to show off what makes this master thief such an enduring part of the DC legacy.

In 1940, Catwoman first came on the scene in Batman #1 as another brilliant creation by Bill Finger and Bob Kane to match wits with the Dark Knight in his new series. In his autobiography, Kane explains her feline identity emerged from her role as a foil to Batman given his opinion that cats represent “kind of the antithesis of bats.” Kane was also inspired by actresses on the silver screen as well as his cousin Ruth Steele. Since then, Catwoman has continually inspired comics creators to test the limits of the character's identity between not-quite good but definitely not evil. While 2020 sees Catwoman running headlong into DC’s Year of the Villain (and fighting the undead? And marrying Batman??), DC is also taking time to celebrate all the decades that have made Catwoman such a beloved and hard to pin-down character.

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preview for the new spectacular reveals more storytelling gems than even Catwoman could steal in one go. The 100-page issue will reunite Ed Brubaker and Cameron Stewart for the anthology’s linchpin story, "The Art of Picking a Lock" set in the continuity of Brubaker’s 2001-2004 run with the master thief. Comics legend Paul Dini will be adding something new to the mix with a villain already making people’s skin crawl. In addition to Brubaker, Stewart, and Dini, stories will also be delivered by talents such as Ann Nocenti, Adam Hughes, Tom King, Mikel Janín, Mindy Newell, Will Pfeifer, and Emanuela Lupacchino. For fans excited by Sean Murphy’s (Batman: White Knight) recent announcement about a Catwoman story, they will not see it in this collection, but fortunately, that only means more Catwoman for everyone!

The Art of Picking a Lock - Catwoman

Catwoman’s spectacular will join the ranks of some of DC’s other landmark celebratory issues like Action Comics #1000 and Detective Comics #1000 as well as the upcoming Flash #750 and Wonder Woman #750. However, unlike its contemporaries, Catwoman: 80th Anniversary Super Spectacular #1 will not signal a return to legacy numbering but rather stand on its own. Which, given the character at its center, only seems fitting. Instead, Catwoman’s legacy will be represented not only by the stories but by eight timely covers. Each variant will represent a decade in Catwoman’s history, creating almost a bonus legacy story about the feline thief’s transformations over the years.

Catwoman revealed in Batman 1

Like many of Kane and Finger’s creations, Catwoman has retained a certain sense of magic even when looking back at her earliest appearances. (Who could forget the first time Batman revealed her true identity?) So many creators have had a chance to evolve and refine the character in the many decades since her creation, a celebration of her past promises to properly memorialize The Cat before she launches into her next set of incredible adventures.

Catwoman: 80th Anniversary Super Spectacular #1 in all of its stunning variants will be on sale on April 15th, 2020, from your local comics shop and online.

  • CATWOMAN: 80TH ANNIVERSARY SPECTACULAR #1
  • 1940s variant cover by ADAM HUGHES
  • 1950s variant cover by TRAVIS CHAREST
  • 1960s variant cover by J. SCOTT CAMPBELL
  • 1970s variant cover by FRANK CHO
  • 1980s variant cover by STANLEY “ARTGERM” LAU
  • 1990s variant cover by GABRIELE DELL’OTTO
  • 2000s variant cover by JIM LEE and SCOTT WILLIAMS
  • 2010s variant cover by JEEHYUNG LEE

Source: Newsarama

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