The wedding of Batman and Catwoman in Batman #50 has been a long time in the making.
How long? How about seventy-eight years, give or take a month or two. That’s how long, in publishing years, that Batman and Catwoman have played their often-times sexy game of (a-hem) cat and mouse.
Or Cat and Bat, to be more precise.
Catwoman, you see, made her first appearance in the pages of Batman #1, way back in the summer of 1940, and the two characters have loved each other ever since.
Critically acclaimed and burgeoning go-to fan favourite writer, Tom King (Sheriff of Babylon, Mister Miracle, Vision, Omega Men) has been telling the “it’s complicated” love story of the Dark Knight Detective and Selina Kyle since he first started his run on DC Comics’ most important monthly publication in the very first issue (of this particular volume), just over four years ago.
A year ago, Bruce Wayne proposed to Selina, and she (eventually) said yes. It made all the news. In the months that followed, their fateful bliss has been tested, especially by arch nemesis, the Joker, who’s upset that he never received an invitation.
The Clown Prince of Crime should be the Best Man, no?
Today, King is visually aided by the strikingly detailed illustrative work of Mikel Janin and a who’s who of artists, as Batman #50 invites readers to the actual nuptials.
Batman #50
Written By: Tom King
Illustrated By: Mikel Janin and many others
Published By: DC Comics
A strange things happened on the way to Batman #50, however.
Usually, big reveals like a death of a superhero, the return of a major villain, or the unlikely marriage of a long-held romance via major crimes and jail time, would get spoiled in the days leading up to the unveiling.
That’s the internet’s job, after all.
But this time, in advance of Batman #50’s publication, DC Comics got proactive on all the interweb bloggers out there, and spoiled the main storyline themselves!
Spoiler alert! You can catch the big bomb drop over in the July 1st edition of the New York Times right here.
So, why spoil things, DC?
Well, according to the company, it was strictly to beat sites and chat boards and Twitter pundits to the punch. Rest assured, we here at Biff Bam Pop! would never knowingly spoil such large and important matters – where’s the fun in that? – without at least giving you a solid “heads up”.
That somewhat cynical action has made some people pretty angry, but the event comic book story is still the event comic book story to read today.
Besides, Tom King has said that he’s only halfway through his Batman and Catwoman story. There are still fifty more issues to come and, if they are half as great as what he’s produced so far, we’re all in for a big, long-lasting treat! And that’s something you don’t find in monthly comic books nowadays.
It should also be mentioned, that Catwoman #1, written and illustrated by the wonderfully talented Joelle Jones, is also released today. That story takes place right after the events of Batman #50, so it might be a good idea to make it a double today!
Get dressed up in your best suit or dress, dab the perfume behind your ear, and take one last look in the mirror.
You look marvellous!
It’s a special day! Make the Wednesday run to your local comic book shop and pick up the oversized and celebratory Batman #50 and Catwoman #1 and read about the why’s and why not’s of comicdom’s greatest, longest lasting, romantic couple, the Bat and the Cat!
