I’m always careful how far I go praising Jeph Loeb. For every good comic book, there’s a truly dreadful one (Daredevil: Yellow) right around the corner. I dropped Superman/Batman just before his last seven issues because the quality varied so much (it didn’t hurt that the dreaded Ed McGuinness art was soon to return).
Happily, Catwoman: When in Rome is nothing to fear. Tim Sale’s artwork is fine, though he seems to be happier drawing Selina then Catwoman, and the comic is a lot of fun. Ann-Margaret once made a film in Italy called The Tiger and the Pussycat and When in Rome has a few things in common with it. The story--though about serious issues in Selina’s life (again, the search for self, which is the most frequent comic book exploration)--is a Cinemascope travelogue of Italy through supervillain eyes. Loeb brings the Riddler along for humor, gives Selina a love interest, and puts her on the run. In true Loeb fashion, the solution to the mystery is unimpressive and could have been dealt with when originally introduced.
The story falls in between the Loeb/Sale Batman stories, The Long Halloween and Dark Victory, which sort of put Loeb on the map (that and their Superman story)--unless you believe him, of course, that everyone really wants the screenwriter of Commando around. There are threads from these other stories, but, nicely since I don’t remember the specifics of either, When in Rome lets itself go. The characters, though familiar through both comic books and the wonderful “Batman” TV show, define themselves in this story’s context immediately. I’m not wild about the pacing. Six weeks passes in a sentence, but twenty-four hours is spread over issue and a half. The difference is the firm character work. I didn’t have to wait for them to be defined, Loeb did it right away.
Any mainstream comic book, which are about the only comic books that can afford the Loeb/Sale team, should do little more than give me an entertaining story about a conflicted human heart. I don’t expect an exploration of the conflict (especially not from a writer of Loeb’s caliber), just textured characters, reasonable art, and a good time. And not too glaring plot holes. Loeb always requires enormous suspension of disbelief--which, just because it’s about people in tights who fly, he doesn’t always get (or deserve).
Anyway... Catwoman: When in Rome was a pleasant way to spend my time before heading off to work.
