Black Cat #4

[lordultimus]

Comments

[tinygaylaura]

This issue has got me wanting Felicia and Lily to end up together as a couple here

I mean Felicia is already canon queer

And this ending has so much gay energy

Marvel

Let Felicia pet that pussy...cat

[lissa_quon]

I mean I just got here for these pages and I already ship this.

[tinygaylaura]

Shipping it like FedEx :D

Let these two cats make each other purr

[mesmiranda]

I actually went into the post without shipping goggles on, thinking, "ehh, okay, it'll probably be subtextual and all," and... wow. Nope. That is one panel away from making out on rooftops.

[tinygaylaura]

I'm hoping that will happen the next time they meet :)

[donnblake]

Black Cat wants to flirt by engaging in rooftop chases and fisticuffs? That seems very much in character. As long as we're going with the common version of comic book anatomy that says that hitting someone in the head hard enough that they're unconscious for hours is unlikely to come with any medical complications.

But.

I do not especially enjoy comic book characters framing themselves as comic book characters. I think superheroes should not be consciously operating with a concern for their readability- that was why I never really felt the appeal of Gwenpool.

Spider-man needed Venom to be considered, in universe, a great superhero? For *Felicia* to consider him one of the greats? What? No. Nonsense.

[tinygaylaura]

That's...not what Felicia is saying here though

She's just nemesis flirting with Lily here

And look if comics start admitting that knocking people unconcious is actually a dangerous thing to do they're going to have to admit that Spider-Man, Batman and Daredevil must be mass murderers at this point with entire morgues full of the supervillains and henchmen they've concussed, sometimes with radioactively enhanced strength

[donnblake]

I wouldn't *mind* a superhero comic that dealt with more realistic consequences of violence, but you're right that ninety years into continuity is probably not the time to start.

And the nemesis flirting works fine for me, except between "You're welcome to try again," and "Queen Cat and Black Cat."

"If you want to be a superhero, you need a foil," just doesn't make sense to me as a way anyone would describe their actual life.

[tinygaylaura]

It makes sense in context because Queen Cat is very much defining herself by her need to play superhero right now. Felicia knows she's been through some stuff and that being Queen Cat is helping her cope and she's basically offering to be her "Nemesis" not in a serious way but because she knows this is good for her and also because she knows that if she's Lily's "Nemesis" she hopefully won't get killed doing this since Felicia isn't a villain

Felicia here is basically going "I'll be your nemesis because at least that way I know you're not going to run off and pick a fight with Carnage or Sabretooth"

[donnblake]

I can live with that interpretation, I just don't love "every superhero needs a foil," as this sort of in universe assumption that the world conforms to superhero tropes*. It always feels kind of masturbatory**.

*I will make an exception for "In-universe assumptions that the world runs on tropes," for Terry Pratchett, on the basis that he's damn good at writing it, but other than that it usually makes me roll my eyes, even in works I enjoy like 1602.

And if a book's going to get masturbatory after having two women in skintight spandex start a sexually charged physical relationship, then throw a Mature Only label on the cover and do it right, dammit!

[tinygaylaura]

The world ALWAYS needs more stories about women in skintight outfits having sexually charged physical relationships with each other

[donnblake]

Well, I won't argue with that!

[arilou_skiff]

TBF, Felicia did pretty well against Sabretooth in that old story where she had the terrible outfit.

[tinygaylaura]

That was a cool moment for Felicia but yeah it's a shame it's let down by her being in that truly hideous outfit

I'm glad that in the present day she's back in the beautiful hotness that is her proper costume

[arilou_skiff]

Felicia has had some bad outfits, but yeah, her classic one (or some of the variations thereof) are the best.

[tinygaylaura]

It really is

And yeah any time artists have tried to change it it hasn't worked and has just had none of the fun of the glorious and sexy look she has here

One of the many, many, MANY things about Dan Slott's take on Felicia Hardy that absolutely sucked was the altered costume which seemed like it was some terrible attempt by him to give her an outfit that was more "Modest" or "Realistic"

Which

Just

NO

NO THANK YOU

I don't read superhero comics for modesty or realism thanks very much

[fra080389]

Black Cat is the Joker and Queen Cat is Harley Queen now?

[tinygaylaura]

Well no

More like Black Cat wants to be Catwoman to Lily's Batman

[deh_tommy]

Or the Holly Robinson to Felicia’s Selina Kyle.

[tinygaylaura]

I could be remembering this wrong but wasn't Holly more of a little sister to Selina

[deh_tommy]

True, but I just wanted to keep the cat comparisons going (and like that’s EVER stopped shippers before).

[tinygaylaura]

Fair point on both counts :)

Felicia should start "Hey Adora"-ing Lily every time they meet

[mrstatham]

I enjoyed these pages overall, but does anyone else feel like the 'Tony Stark is an alcoholic' thing is overplayed a bit too much now? It was a significant thing in one story forty years ago and everything since has felt like 'eh, eh? Remember 'Demon In The Bottle? nudgenudge?'.

[lordultimus]

Well, Marvel still isn't sure if Mandarin is racist or not right now, so I guess not bringing him up is inevitable.

[tinygaylaura]

I think it was also a joke on the fact that honestly Tony's rogues gallery kind of sucks

Apart from Madame Masque anyway

The rest of his rogues gallery is pretty much a choice between Red Scare Cold War Paranoia and having the billionaire son of a billionaire beating up on poor people for robbing banks

[lordultimus]

Well, he does have a few billionaires he also beats up.

[tinygaylaura]

True

Though in Justin Hammer's case the sense of satisfaction you might get in any confrontation is slightly hampered by the fact he does look like a stiff breeze will finish him off

[cainofdreaming]

I've always had a soft spot for Living Laser from Tony's rogues' gallery. I mean, he's no criminal mastermind, but his powerset is intriguing. Also Ghost and Spymaster have gotten better with age.

[tinygaylaura]

Ghost and Spymaster are both pretty cool, that's true

I don't know a lot about Living Laser though

[bruinsfan]

I think I have nostalgia for him based on that time he teamed up with Whirlwind and Power Man as the Lethal Legion under Count Nefaria's direction.

[tinygaylaura]

That was a fun story

Any story where a deranged aristocrat pays a mad scientist a "Fuhrers ransom in gold" (Those were his exact words, Dr Strangelove looked at this guy and went "Be more subtle") to give him superpowers because he wants to throw hands with the Mighty Thor is going to at the very least be entertaining

[whatsmoothbeast]

I find it kind of hard to buy that Ghost is the bad guy in that particular match up these days.

[zachbeacon]

Modern Tony fights his own inventions and other superheroes more than he fights actual supervillians at this point anyway.

[donnblake]

Tony Stark's great enemy- the results of decisions Tony made anywhere from the to start of his career up to five minutes or so ago. (And with the existence of time travel, far beyond!)

[tinygaylaura]

Tony Stark: In a way I am my own worst enemy

Not in a metaphorical sense, I mean I keep accidentally creating AI's based on my own brain patterns that then attempt to kill me

[scorntx]

Every year, on December 24th, Tony Stark is visited by three spirits trying to get him to change his ways.
And every year, Tony comes away learning the exact wrong lesson, and screws up yet again in the exact same way.

"Wow, all these dystopian futures caused by my technology going out of control... this means I must live forever!"
"What? No. No! Your over-reliance on your tech, thinking you know best and not listening to your friends is wh-"
"Sorry, wasn't listening, I was trying to come up with a kick-ass acronym for my new AI buddy."
"*sigh* Why is this easier with Victor Von Doom?"

[tinygaylaura]

I hope Tony can live with the fact that his heartless ways mean Kermit and Miss Piggy's son is going to die

(Someone whispers nearby)

No I'm typing a reply it can wait

(Louder whispering)

What?

What do you mean there are no Muppets in the original A Christmas Carol story

Then what the hell was it about...

[thehood]

Lily is the mother of Harry's second kid, right?

[tinygaylaura]

Yeah she is indeed

[zachbeacon]

Lily can't catch a break, can she?

[tinygaylaura]

She's got a woman in skintight black pvc who wants to get physical with her on a regular basis

I know of plenty of women who pay good money for that and she's getting to enjoy this for free

I'd say that's a pretty big break