Ladies, gentlemen, non-binary friends…it’s finally happened. An issue of Catwoman where we get to experience the rare phenomenon of plot progression as this issue finally starts to utilize all the plot points this series has acquired so far. Does it do it well?

The story opens with the death of one of Selina’s old acquaintances from when she was Evie Hall, serving both as an overall reminder of the plot and smoothly bringing Suzy Sinner back into the narrative. We still don’t have too much of a clear picture of what Suzy’s deal is, but at the moment, she serves as Selina’s girl-in-the-chair.

Suzy isn’t the only one who made her way back into the story as we see Anton (if you don’t remember who that is, well, wait for it) hunting Selina out of revenge for what he did to his brother (not that the creep didn't deserve it). This makes him the proverbial spanner in the works for Selina’s plan to get what she needs. And without spoiling too much, let’s just say the fight between the two has consequences for Selina.

Speaking of the fight, let’s talk about that for a bit. We get multiple pages dedicated to a one-on-one fight, which feels fluid and impactful (especially with all the blood flying around). Admittedly, we tend to visit a white void while the fight takes place, but the setting is a stairwell surrounded by white walls, so what can be done?

But as much as this issue improves on what came before, it fails to escape the sins of its past completely. For instance, the characters have failed to make very little impact so far, and as such, their re-appearance may not have the narrative punch that would be needed. Fun fact: while I was writing this review, I accidentally thought “Anton” was “Adam” and would’ve completely missed that if I didn’t check the issue again. Suzy’s been around for even fewer issues and made her debut further back in the run, so I wouldn’t be shocked if people completely blank out on her. While a comic book run shouldn’t go out of its way to catch the reader up on each issue, the fact that, barring Catwoman, every single character has been an original one so far does make it harder for them to stand out. The fact that they are all generic people with civilian wear and indistinct personalities isn’t helping either. When did costumes become uncool in a DC comic?

Recommended If

• You’ve been following this run diligently
• You know who Adam and Anton are
• You like a good ‘ol brawl

Overall

Catwoman #74 is an extremely necessary step forward for the run as Selina faces a few challenges, and the overall plot gets addressed for the first time in a long time. Maybe I'm being a bit more lenient because the comic actually tries to tell a story in this issue, but there is a feeling that everything is coming together for a finale, with multiple established elements starting to pop back up. If only these elements were a bit more recurring.

Score: 7.5/10