Catwoman: What could've been

[sadoeuphemist]

"Some people will say they were censored, but that´s not exact. The new pages were not a toned down version of these, they were telling another story. [...] Maybe DC didn´t want to explore that storyline, so it´s not that obvious that the new pages were drawn just to remove the sexy content. It´d have been much more easy to censor these pages than having to redraw them all."
-Guillem March

















You can see more unpublished pages - including some in color - at Guillem March's blog.

Comments

[icon_uk]

Hmmm.... Not really my area of experitse, but I do feel that the "two heads over boobs" and "one head over nether regions" and "smirk over butt" superimposition panels make these a more skeevy than the simple nudity would have done (as seen on the blog)

[ozaline]

I do agree with that, it makes it feel "wrong," where as nudity feels natural if it's done matter of factly (or even sexily)... but American Squeamishness disagrees with me.

[lilacsigil]

...has she been turned into a giant?

[crimsonmoonmist]

I guess she was on the bat-computer screen?

[ozaline]

I'm more concerned with the fact that I thought Alfred was a Samurai in that panel at first glance, and then I assumed he was a Samurai lawn ornament. I need my eyes checked I guess.

[lieut_kettch]

Is this supposed to be pre-nu52?

[kurenai_tenka]

No, it was meant to be Catwoman #3 and #4.

[althechi]

This feels more exploitative than Jim Balent's Catwoman stuff.

...Wow, so that's what scraping the bottom of the barrel so hard it breaks is like.

[lissa_quon]

Aw Nu 52 why did you have to make this relationship skeevy?

Bruce looks very much like he doesn't want this - which just reminds me of the weird psuedo rape from the beginning of this series.

Though kudos to the artist for know what a bra looks like - though I'm not sure how she got it off without unclasping. (it could be a sportsbra sort of thing that doens't clasp but that is some seriously awkward non sexy stripping when you pry those off)

[icon_uk]

Was it a pseudo rape? I just thought it was some of the worse illustrated sex I've seen,

I was speaking recently to a well-known professional comic book artist (who I won't identify, but they are someone whose opinion I respect) and that scene came up (as part of a discussion about what looks sexy to a hetero and homosexual audience). They just couldn't understand how any artist could be FINALLY given a chance to draw canonical Catwoman and Batman sex, and make such a complete and utter hash of it, in terms of atmosphere, style and general presentation.

You have two superb physical specimens whose sexual activities should be somewhere between spectacular and "OH MY GOD!!!!" in both an aesthetic and physical sense and you end up with something that is just... bad and DULL bad at that.

[filthysize]

If it wasn't clear, what's happening is not Selina throwing herself at Bruce and him not liking it.

This is Selina figuring out that Bruce is Batman from the way they kiss and breaks into Wayne Manor to taunt him about his secret. Bruce tries to play it off at first but she wouldn't budge, so he drops the act and tells her to fuck off. The change in expression is him going from "Bruce Wayne" face to "Batman" face.

That's why these pages were scrapped. DC decided they don't want Selina to be that smart and know his identity.

[janegray]

Awww crap, looks like Bruce and Selina are going to fight. My OTP ;_;

[shingi70]

Don't really see the big deal. Its kind of screwed up buy I assume this is excatky the type of shit someone who dresses in skintight leather and runs around during the night would do.


I think that there's a hint of fetishim that comes with the whole capes idea. Like the screen from All Star Bats where bats and Canary decide to keep the masks on and what not.

I'd say there's something wrong with the art the people look a tad but weird.

Makes me wonder what Morrison plans to do with Wonder Woman Earth one on regards to the bondage stuff.

[thatnickguy]

*sigh* With every new issue, I miss Ed Brubaker's version of Catwoman more and more.

[mortimerwclankitybritches]

Hell, with every new issue, i miss Halle Berry's Catwoman more and more.

Also is anyone else finding Bruce's face on page 5 um.....FUCKING TERRIFYING!?

[mrstatham]

This. Brubaker and his assortment of artists - in most instances - really understood how to make the character sexy without it being pathetically exploitative or designed to appeal solely to adolescents. This is just comically bad, and given it would've been a Winick comic, I imagine the dialogue being suitably terrible too. It's a shame, given March is a pretty great artist when not being wasted on cheesecake.

[kaileighblue]

Silly/creative ways to cover nudity amuse me to no end.

[junipepper]

OK, that just looks way too much like Bruce and Alfred are being breast-fed by Selina. Ick.

I don't even know what to say about the rest of it.

[joetuss]

Can we have more nude selina please...or just more nude woman in general

[starpiper]

What's up with Selina's eyes on the first page? It makes it look like she's possessed by one of the demons from Supernatural. Same goes for Bruce's white-out eyes on page 7.

[doctor_spanky]

No no no this isn't exploitive. This is a killer sequence

It establishes that Selina is intelligent enough to deduce Bruce's identity - she's his equal. That's the dynamic of their relationship, they can keep up with each other and even compete. And Selina is actually mature enough to know what she wants and ask for it (showing up naked on his front lawn, which I don't think is out of character [she's always been bold] and not necessarily skeevy).

And Bruce's response is to fall into his secret identity bullshit and patronize her. Which she instantly sees through and dismisses. And he can't handle it so he basically runs away (of course he'd never do anything with Alfred watching [it's hilarious that he's in the background witnessing this])

Yeah I think this is actually pretty definitive of the whole relationship and why it never works out. Selina doesn't respect boundaries (moral or otherwise) but is open / honest, while Bruce isn't mature enough to open up but has a deeper moral sensibility

Plus the art is just cool. And sexy, obviously, but not sexist. She's naked, but there's nothing submissive about her body language

[zapbiffpow]

"Selina doesn't respect boundaries (moral or otherwise) but is open/honest, while Bruce isn't mature enough to open up but has a deeper moral sensibility."

Hmmm, I'm all for Bruce and Selina together, but I kind of like that assessment. It shows the good things about them but drives home the flaws that make up their 'dog chasing its tail' romance.

Also, I've always wondered about Bruce's exact level of maturity. Did the child in him die in Crime Alley, or did he never grow up?

[sadoeuphemist]

I'm going to say that showing up naked on the front lawn of someone you're sleeping with - when they haven't even told you where they live yet - crosses the line from "bold" to "could possibly land you on the sex offender registry."

[ensiform]

Silly and immature. Meant for people who don't routinely touch real boobs.

[icon_uk]

Not that NOT touching real boobs is necessarily a bad thing.