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During Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee's great run on Batman, ol' Brucie managed to lighten up a bit and not be the colossal grump he's been for more than a decade. What precipitated the change? It's simple; he got some pussy. Specifically, this pussy: Catwoman.
Selina Kyle is Gotham City's master cat burglar - a sexy but dangerous siren who slinks through the night like fog. As Catwoman, she's been both a friend and foe to Batman, but most recently, their entanglement has been romantic!
Tim Bruckner did his usual good work on the sculpt. Selina's feminine, but she's got a much more stable pose than any of the other women in this "Hush" line. While she's still got a contraposto stance, her Doc Martens are planted flat on the ground, so she's much less likely to fall over than, say, Huntress. She's muscular, but since her costume is thicker than Harley Quinn's, the figure isn't as detailed.
Having finally ditched the purple spandex, Catwoman's got a simple, utilitarian costume that still looks good. It's just black leather, like a real cat burglar would wear, with a big zipper down the front. She's got claws on her gloves, tiny ears on her hood and catseye lenses for her mask.
Actually, those lenses are one of the coolest features about this figure. Now, in the package, the mask is pushed up on her forehead, and that would have been plenty cool, because we could see the cute face Bruckner gave her. But DC Direct went one better, and made the mask a separate piece that you can slide down over her eyes if you want. Since the piece is molded from translucent blue plastic, she can still see through it. The rims are silver, and the black strap is the same flat black as the rest of the costume.
Catwoman is 6 1/2" tall, and her ears add another 1/8" to that. She moves at the neck, shoulders, elbows, hips and knees. Selina's got a better range of lateral motion in her balljointed shoulders than most DCD figures do, but it's still a shame that she can't move at the wrists. Her hands are really well done, but since she can't turn them around, it's a bit of a waste.
Other than the removable mask, Catwoman comes with one accessory, her 8 1/2" whip. The handle is plastic, but the actual whipe is made from a cord for maximum flexibility. Of course, it's quite thick, so it tends to hold the shape of being wrapped around her hand in the package. If you want it straight, you just need to stretch it out for a bit.
Of course, she's also got the 3x5 Bat-logo base that the rest of the figures come with, even though she can make do without it.
It's surprising that DC let Jeph Loeb get away with bringing Selina into Bruce's life, since they've spent so much time and editorial energy making him into a sworn loner. In any case, Jim Lee drew her well, and his art has made for a great action figure. A little more articulation would have been nice, but Catwoman is fine without it.
What's your favorite Catwoman costume? Tell us on our message board, The Loafing Lounge.
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