News & Notes

Springfield Punx, the blog where they make Simpsons-ized versions of everything, had previously made Catwoman, but in honor of Bane's role in The Dark Knight Rises, produced the above Bane.

And in an interview, Wally Pfister, the cinematographer for most of Christopher Nolan's movies, seems to have confirmed that Anne Hathaway is in fact Catwoman and not just Selina Kyle, something some people had lingering doubts about. Pfister also said she looks "great in the wardrobe," but that shouldn't be surprising to anyone who's seen Anne Hathaway before.

Filming Starts in May

Shooting for The Dark Knight Rises begins in May.

Bane on Young Justice

I didn't know it was coming, but Bane ended up appearing on the Cartoon Network's Young Justice episode "Drop Zone" that aired yesterday. It was a pretty typical interpretation of Bane, voiced by Machete star Danny Trejo. Io9 has some clips here, or if you live in the USA, it looks like it will be aired again Sunday at 8pm.

(and if you're a fan of Batman in comics, in addition to checking out Bane, you can be confused by the Robin who is apparently named Dick Grayson but has Tim Drake's costume and computer skills)

The Inevitable Photoshops

It didn't take long for people to start doing art/photo manips/photoshops featuring Tom Hardy as Bane and Anne Hathaway as Catwoman, though for somewhat obvious reasons, people are having a lot more fun with the lovely Ms. Hathaway.

Note: I can't find the original authors for most of these, so if you are or know of the original author, drop me a comment and I'll provide an appropriate credit/link.

Above Hathaway/Catwoman by Fan Art Exhibit.





MTV's Splash Page made the above Catwoman (and one other one, which you can see here).


Some others have taken less serious approaches:

A (not so) Brief History of Catwoman

Some folks have pointed out that the press release clearly says Anne Hathaway will be playing Selina Kyle but doesn't even mention Catwoman, but I'm happy to assume that Catwoman will be appearing in The Dark Knight Rises. So while a lengthy Bane overview seemed reasonable, everyone knows the basics of Catwoman: she steals stuff, she likes cats, and she's into Batman, but she is a 70 year old character. As you can see above, over the years there have been many different interpretations of Catwoman, most of which will seem pretty unfamiliar to those who only know the character from television and film. So here goes, with almost certainly the longest post I've written here (but lots of pictures to hopefully break up the monotony).

Background

Catwoman first appeared in Batman #1 in 1940 (the same issue that introduced the Joker and Robin, though Batman himself had already been appearing in Detective Comics). Bob Kane and Bill Finger, Batman's creators, also created the character of Catwoman.

DC Comics, the company that publishes Batman comic books, has a long and complicated history. They began publishing Batman comics in 1939, and expanded Batman's universe to include other superheroes. While some titles had their characters grow older, others, like Batman, stayed the same age. Batman would end up fighting alongside the son of a previous teammate even though Bruce Wayne did not appear a day older. Fans began to wonder how this could be, so DC introduced the concept of multiple earths to explain the inconsistency. Then in 198e, they had a major event called Crisis on Infinite Earths which collapsed all the earths into a single world, and started all their titles over with updated origin stories, as if none of the previous 40+ years of stories had ever happened.

Since this gets complicated, I'm going to break this up into a few different sections for different versions of the character that don't take place in the same continuity.

Catwoman in Golden Age/Earth One Comics


First only referred to as the Cat, she is a beautiful thief who is attracted to Batman. Batman is attracted to her as well, but as a crimefighter he can't get involved with a criminal. Still, because of his interest in her, he had a tendency to let her get away more often than his other foes.

After years of plaguing Gotham City with her crimes, it is revealed that Selina used to be a law-abiding stewardess, but she suffered amnesia after being struck on the head. With her memories now recovered, she starts to fight crime at Batman's side. Their team-ups are short lived, however, because it is soon revealed that the amnesia story was a fake and she returned to her life of crime.

In the 50s and 60s, the US government and special interest groups became concerned over the influence of comic books on children, so the publishers adopted the Comics Code which had strict guidelines on content. Catwoman's tight costumes along with her criminal nature and the lack of consequences for many of her crimes were likely in violation of the comics code, so she all but disappeared from the primary, Earth One, universe for many years.

She reappeared in comics in the 1970s, but, despite her success on television, she did not have any notable storylines.

Catwoman in Earth Two

Though Catwoman was no longer allowed to appear in Earth One, DC's alternate Earth Two universe proceeded as if she really had suffered amnesia and reformed her ways. Selina and Bruce fell in love and married. They had a child together, Helena, who would herself become a costumed crimefighter, The Huntress (in modern comics, this character would be reinvented as the daughter of a mobster and renamed Helena Bertinelli). This version of Selina would eventually be blackmailed into going back to being Catwoman, which ultimately lead to her death.

Catwoman in Modern Comics

Earth One and Earth Two stories now set aside, Catwoman received the first of several major overhauls.

Batman: Year One



Batman's revised origin also provided a radically new take on Catwoman. Selina Kyle is a dominatrix/prostitute who, after seeing her pimp abuse her sister, trains herself to fight in order to break away her pimp. She is often accompanied by Holly, a young runaway who Selina cares for like a daughter. Shortly before she escapes from him, her pimp gives her a skin-tight catsuit, which she decides to use as a disguise when she changes careers and becomes a burglar.

Subsequent comics have largely re-written the prostitute angle, but no matter the interpretation she lived a rough life, her sister endured abuse, young Holly is her constant companion, and then she begins to steal professionally. Elements added to her backstory include an interest in gymnastics during her childhood, her mother's love of cats and eventual suicide, and spending much of the rest of her youth in an orphanage.

Dark Victory/When In Rome



As a young and skilled thief, Catwoman frequently crossed paths with both Batman and the Gotham's criminal underworld. She comes to believe that Carmine Falcone, one of the most powerful men in the local mob, had an affair with her mother, and that she may be Falcone's daughter. She sets out to confirm her suspicions, and though she finds plenty of supporting evidence, she is unable to prove it.

Catwoman: the Series



Catwoman got her own comic series in the 1990s, and the character underwent further changes. Though she remained a criminal, she became much more sympathetic. Her love for cats expanded to a general concern for the environment. She teamed up with computer hackers and environmentalists to find polluting corporations, and steal from them as punishment. She also, at this time, got a little... shall we say "top heavy" as you can see above, presumably to appeal to the comic book audience which now consisted more of adolescent boys and men than young children.

She eventually moves to New York, schemes her way into running a corrupt corporation, and makes an ultimately unsuccessful run for mayor.
After failing in her campaign for mayor, Selina returned to Gotham after an earthquake devastated the city. She helped Batman put the pieces of Gotham back together, but then is believed dead at the hands of Deathstroke.

Though this series ran for quite a while, the only addition to her character that really stuck was the idea that she had been trained to fight and generally mentored by Ted Grant, aka Wildcat, one of the members of the Justice Society of America.

Catwoman: The Series, Take Two



Private detective Slam Bradley becomes convinced that Catwoman is still alive and tries to hunt her down. Eventually he does, but rather than turn her over to the police, they become close friends. Selina and her old friend Holly, now about 20 years old, settle in Gotham's East End where Selina grew up. It's a run down neighborhood, and as Catwoman Selina becomes its unofficial protector. She still commits crimes but her primary motivation is to keep the East End safe.

This new development came with a new design as well, and the almost pornographic design was replaced by a still sexy but much more practical design, as you can see above. Gone were the skin tight purple suit, tail, high-heeled boots, and long flowing locks of hair, replaced with a more reasonable black outfit, boots appropriate for running, and the kind of haircut a woman would have if she doesn't want a combatant to be able to grab onto it. Additionally, her body returned to more normal proportions, and she began to wear goggles which could be switched to night vision.

Hush



Hush would not only introduce a new villain that would eventually become important in Catwoman's life, but it rekindled the long dormant romance between Batman and Catwoman. They began dating in earnest, and for the first time (hard to believe, given how long the character had been around), Batman revealed to her that he is, in fact, Bruce Wayne.

Unfortunately, the events of Hush lead Batman to believe he has been manipulated by the eponymous villain and by The Riddler, so he breaks things off with Selina.

Zatanna

Selina's criminal activities were by this point basically nonexistant, most of her time was spent either helping Batman or protecting the East End. How she went from a career criminal to a hero seemed strange until it was revealed that the magician Zatanna (I can't believe I never made a post on Zatanna) had performed a partial mindwipe on Selina, which removed her criminal urges. Selina was justifiably angry, and went through an extended period where she didn't trust herself or her memories.

Black Mask

Black Mask was the kingpin of his own little criminal empire in Gotham by this point, and he had it out for Catwoman in a bad way. Selina grew up in her orphanage with a girl named Sylvia, who fell into a life of crime and eventually associated with Black Mask. Sylvia told him that Selina was Catwoman, so Black Mask kidnapped Selina's sister Maggie and forced Maggie to watch as Black Mask removed her husband's eyeballs, then Black Mask forced her to eat them, driving her insane. Black Mask also threatened Slam Bradley and Holly, so in a fit of rage Catwoman killed him, despite never having killed anyone before.

One Year Later



"One Year Later" was a gimmick in which all the comics skipped ahead a year, with many radical changes happening, and the events that lead to those changes would slowly be revealed. In "One Year Later," Catwoman is still wanted for the murder of Black Mask. Though Selina is nowhere to be found, Catwoman keeps making appearances. It's eventually revealed that Selina's longtime friend Holly has taken up the role of the East End's protector.

Selina, in the missing year, had rebuffed the advances of her much older friend Slam Bradley, but instead had a brief affair with Slam's son. Selina became pregnant, and left Gotham knowing how badly her actions would hurt Slam, and how much a pregnant woman shouldn't be leaping from rooftop to rooftop. She kept the baby and named her Helena. For a time, Selena enjoyed motherhood, but after careful consideration, she decided she would be unable to escape her past. Despite living under an alias, the daughter of Catwoman would never be safe, and Selina herself could never live a normal life, so she felt Helena deserved a real mother. With Bruce's help, Selina fakes the death of her alias and her daughter, then gives Helena up for adoption, but is heartbroken over the whole thing. She even asks Zatanna to erase her memories of Helena, deeming them too painful, but Zatanna refuses.

Heart of Hush

After Hush's initial failure to take down Batman, he decides on a different tact for his second major assault on Bruce Wayne's life. After learning of Catwoman's feelings for Batman, Hush abducts her and removes her heart, attempting to affect Batman emotionally as well as forcing him to confront Hush to recover her heart. Obviously Batman prevails, but Selena is once again left emotionally scarred.

Post-Heart of Hush



Since the cancellation of her own series, Catwoman's appearances have been less frequent and her characterization varied. She briefly enters into another relationship with Batman, but then he is lost in time after a confrontation with Darkseid. She joins The Network, a group of Gotham City heroes combining forces to keep order in Batman's absence. She takes on a sidekick in Kitrina Falcone, who wears a hideous black and pink costume and takes on the name Catgirl. She's visited by a resurrected Black Mask when the events of Blackest Night cause the dead to rise from their graves. And, most notably, she takes on two roommates: Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn, and their adventures together are told in the Gotham City Sirens series.

Reception

Catwoman is obviously one of comics' best-known villains, but her film and TV appearances have been much better received than her time in comics. Many of her stories either cast her as a damsel in distress, a femme-fatale without any real danger, or a pin-up girl in largely pointless adventures mostly designed to show her in skin tight and/or minimal clothing.

However, the work of Ed Brubaker, Darwyn Cooke, Cameron Stewart, Will Pfeifer, and others in the version of her solo series that ran from 2001 to 2008 was incredibly well received by critics. It was a time when comics sales were shrinking after the boom of the 1990s, so it was never a tremendous commercial success but it is beloved amongst Catwoman fans.

Outside of Comics



In the 1960s Batman series, Catwoman was initially played by Julie Newmar, and was one of the series' most popular villains. Though the show tended to be campy, a sexy actress in a tight costume added a new dimension. Newmar eventually left and was replaced by Eartha Kitt. In the subsequent motion picture, the role was again recast, with Lee Merriwether taking over.


In 1992's Batman Returns, Michelle Pfeiffer played Catwoman. Selina Kyle was re-imagined as a secretary to a corrupt businessman, who survives a murder only to be revived by a cat. This version of Catwoman is notable for her hand-sewn vinyl cat suit, whip, and possibly supernatural ability to survive treacherous situations thanks to her "nine lives."

Catwoman was involved in the backstory of the short-lived WB Network series Birds of Prey, very loosely based on the comic book of the same name. The Huntress in this series is, in fact, the child of Batman and Catwoman, but Catwoman only appears briefly in flashbacks.

Every animated version of Batman (that I'm aware of) has had its own take on Catwoman. The 1990s animated series made Selina a blonde to stay close to Michelle Pfeiffer's movie depiction, but recast Selina as a socialite commuting crimes to fund her efforts to care for lions and tigers and other large cats whose habitats were in danger. In The Batman, she was similar to the earlier series' depiction, but had gone back to black hair. On Batman: The Brave and the Bold, she wears one of the golden age costumes, a purple dress/green cape combo, and is merely a thief with a love/hate attitude towards Batman.

Catwoman has also appeared in a number of video games, most of which I haven't played, but she's featured prominently in the promotional artwork for the upcoming Batman: Arkham City, which looks pretty good.


Halle Berry played Catwoman in the 2004 movie, which looked so bad I didn't bother to see it. The movie had nothing to do with Batman or most anything previously established about the character in any medium, and was a commercial and critical disaster. Though Ms. Berry did look very good in that otherwise ridiculous costume.

Recommended Reading

Catwoman suffered from infrequent appearances, poor writing, and cheesecake art for much of her career in comics, but here are some times where she came out ok.

Batman: Year One by Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli is the definitive origin of Batman and one of the finest superhero comics ever. Though its depiction of Catwoman is controversial and a little odd, it's still a fantastic read.

Catwoman: When in Rome by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale follows Catwoman in her pursuit of the truth about her real father. It does feature the cheesecake art that I dismiss above, but with Tim Sale handling the art, it's really good cheesecake art.

Catwoman: Selina's Big Score by Darwyn Cooke places Selina in an old fashioned heist story, and it's incredibly well-done. Darwyn Cooke is one of the finest artists in comics, and if you're a fan of a retro-cool style or heist movies, this should be right up your alley.

Any book from the Catwoman series written by either Ed Brubaker or Will Pfeifer. Here's volume one. Reading them in order is best, but the paperback volumes' stories are relatively self-contained. Some of the volumes are out of print, but they're recent enough that they can be found used fairly cheaply. This series was top notch from start to finish.

A (not so) Brief History of Bane

Since Bane is the lesser-known of the two confirmed villains in The Dark Knight Rises, I thought it might be good idea to get a little more detailed about the character than I did in my original post. Some spoilers for Bane's comic book appearances will follow, which may turn out to be in the movie, so proceed with caution.

Background

Legendary Batman writer Dennis O'Neil laid the groundwork for Bane in his work on The Question and in the Batman: Venom storyline in the Legends of the Dark Knight comic series. He created the fictional island of Santa Prisca and the highly addictive, steroid-like drug Venom. He also served as the editor of all the Batman-related comics when Chuck Dixon, Doug Monech, and Graham Nolan (no relation to Christopher, as far as I know) created the character of Bane in the highly popular 1993 storyline Knightfall.

Bane in Comics

Bane was born in the fictional Caribbean island nation of Santa Prisca, son of a revolutionary who sought to overthrow the government. His father escaped capture, so the corrupt government decided Bane, at a very young age, would be punished for his father's crime. He grew up in the notorious prison Peña Dura. Being surrounded by prisoners and corrupt guards, he was never taught any moral behavior, but he was a voracious reader and spent hours in the prison gym. As he grows up, his intelligence, strength, and ruthlessness lead him to a position of authority among the prison population. The prison authorities, beginning to fear him, forced him to be a test subject for the experimental drug Venom. Though it killed previous subjects, Bane manages to survive. It makes him preternaturally strong, but he is immediately addicted to the drug. He requires regular doses of Venom, or he suffers severe withdrawal.

Knightfall

While in prison, Bane heard tales of Gotham City's legendary crime fighter, Batman. Like Batman, Bane is an ordinary man with an relentless drive for excellence, so he sees Batman as the ultimate challenge of his worth. Bane escapes from prison with a small group of followers and heads straight for Gotham. Bane dons the mask of a luchador, a Mexican wrestler, and has a steady supply of Venom pumped directly into his bloodstream.

At first merely observing Batman in action, Bane believes the secret to defeating him is through careful planning rather than simply challenging the Bat to a fight. So Bane decides to break in to Arkham Asylum and release dozens of prisoners, including some of Batman's most dangerous foes.

Batman spends months rounding up the escapees, and by the time he captures the last of them, he is completely exhausted. Which, of course, was Bane's plan all along. When Bane finally challenges Batman directly, pumped full of Venom, he is able to take down the Dark Knight without much trouble. In one of the more recognizable panels in Batman comics history, Bane lifts Batman high over his head, and drops him on his knee, breaking Batman's back. Bane declares himself king of Gotham's criminal underworld.



Bruce Wayne is left paralyzed from the waist down, and is forced to hand over the title of Batman to Jean-Paul Valley, aka Azrael. Azrael gradually becomes more and more violent, and Batman's costume becomes armored and full of weapons. Though Bruce ordered him to avoid taking on Bane directly, Jean-Paul does, and actually defeats Bane by cutting the lines that feed him his Venom. Bane is taken to Blackgate Prison, where he overcomes his Venom addiction.

Post-Knightfall

He eventually escapes and helps Bruce (now back to being the one and only Batman) take out a drug ring dealing in Venom. Bane now believes that Venom was responsible for his criminal acts, and sets off to find his father. Bane discovers that the revolutionary for whom he served a prison sentence may have not been his real father.

Bane of the Demon and Legacy



Soon, he meets Talia al-Ghul and her father Ra's. Much as he had been with Batman, Ra's is impressed with Bane's intellect and after some time working together, believes Bane to be a suitable heir for his empire and wants him to marry Talia (an idea that, as seen above, Bane is totally cool with). He and Talia have a brief affair, but she ultimately rejects him, seeing him as a poor substitute for Bruce. Bane and Ra's conspire to release a bioweapon in Gotham City, but Batman puts a stop to their plans and defeats Bane in a rematch of their earlier contest. Bane and Ra's end their partnership and Bane vows revenge, traveling to Ra's Lazarus Pits and destroying them.

Tabula Rasa

Bane then returns to his quest to find his father, and discovers that Thomas Wayne visited Santa Prisca and knew Bane's mother around the time of his conception. Having previously deduced Batman's identity, and maintaining a great respect for Bruce's abilities, he thinks its only natural their similar strength, cunning, and dedication come from being half brothers. Informing Bruce of what he learns, and awaiting a blood test to determine their relation, Bane lives in Wayne Manor, fighting crime alongside Batman for a time. When the blood tests come out negative, Bane leaves vowing to find his true father.

Eventually, he does find his father. King Snake, a British martial artist and mercenary who became a drug kingpin in Asia. Bane confronted him, but at the same time Batman and Robin appeared to stop King Snake. Though briefly conflicted, Bane sided with the dynamic duo, eventually taking a bullet to save Batman's life. Near death, Batman decides to take Bane to one of the few remaining Lazarus Pits, restoring Bane's health and giving him a fresh start.

Post-Tabula Rasa

Bane then returns to Santa Prisca. Claiming to be again addicted to Venom, he infiltrates the government, deeply entangled in the Venom trade. He tries to end the Venom production, take down the corrupt government, and give his homeland free democratic elections. He is ultimately unsuccessful, and for a time joins Amanda Waller's Suicide Squad.

Secret Six



His time in the Suicide Squad is short-lived, and he eventually joins the villains-for-hire group The Secret Six, alongside, among others, Deadshot, Catman, and Scandal Savage (pictured). Bane feels an instant bond with Scandal, the troubled daughter of the immortal Vandal Savage. He remains in the Secret Six today, and his time there is noted by a fatherly concern for Scandal's well-being.

Reception

Bane's first appearance in Knightfall as the man who broke the Bat was well-received and Knightfall was an extremely popular comic. Fans eventually soured on the storyline as it focused more on Jean-Paul Valley/Azrael than on Batman and Bane, but it is still Bane's most popular and recognizable appearance.

His subsequent appearances have been a mixed bag. Though his initial battle with Batman was notable for his unusual and effective strategy, most of his appearances since have portrayed him as simply a fighter, occasionally mentioning his intellect but rarely putting it to use.

However, since resurfacing in Secret Six, Bane has gained some new fans. Though it's nowhere near as popular as Knightfall, Secret Six has been well-received by critics and fans have praised writer Gail Simone's treatment of the character.

Outside of Comics



Unfortunately, Bane's most recognizable appearance was in 1997's Batman & Robin, where Bane, played by wrestler Robert Swenson (pictured), was re-imagined as a plant monster created by Poison Ivy. Both Batman & Robin and its treatment of Bane are pretty much universally hated.

He also appeared in Batman: The Animated Series voiced by Henry Silva. He did not appear until very late in the series. Reportedly, the producers did not feel that he fit well in their vision of Gotham City, but eventually decided to take a stab at him. They re-imagined Bane as an assassin hired by a local Gotham mobster to take out Batman. He retained the luchador mask and the venom habit, but though he posed a real threat, Batman is eventually victorious.

Bane has made further animated appearances in Batman: The Brave and the Bold, The Batman, Batman Beyond, and will reportedly make an appearance on the new series Young Justice. He also showed up in the popular video game Batman Arkham Asylum.

Recommended reading

Many of Bane's appearances from the 90s have not been collected in trade paperbacks, and some that were are no longer in print. The popularity the character will presumably gain from appearing in The Dark Knight Rises may result in DC reprinting more comics featuring Bane.

Batman: Venom by Dennis O'Neil, among others, doesn't actually feature Bane, but introduced the concept of Venom.

Knightfall, Part One, Part Two, and Part Three, by Chuck Dixon, Doug Moench, Jo Duffy, Alan Grant, Dennis O'Neil, Graham Nolan, Jim Balent, Jim Aparo, Norm Breyfogle, Klaus Jansen, and many many others. This is Bane's first major storyline and still his most famous.

Batman: Legacy, by Alan Grant, Doug Moench, Chuck Dixon, Jim Aparo, and Graham Nolan.

Secret Six Vol. 1: Unhinged, Vol. 2: Depths, Vol. 3: Danse Macabre, and Vol. 4: Cats in the Cradle, by Gail Simone and various artist with occasional guest writer John Ostrander. Bane joins a villains for hire group. Though technically not a "mature readers" title, Secret Six is not for kids.

Anne Hathaway is Catwoman, Tom Hardy is Bane

This is not a rumor.

Bane is an interesting choice. Well known to comics fans, but barely known by everyone else, he was the main villain in a major crossover Batman event in the 1990s, then no one seemed to know what to do with him after that, until very recently when Gail Simone's Secret Six found a home for him.

Catwoman is, of course, one of the most iconic characters out there.

Anne Hathaway is a fairly safe choice for Catwoman, since she fits the bill of a sexy brunette. Tom Hardy is strange for Bane, since he is neither Hispanic, nor a hulking wrestler type, so that might imply a pretty different take on the character.

This is very exciting.

More on the Rumor About Two Women

A while back, the big rumor was that two female roles needed to be cast for The Dark Knight Rises. That rumor returns today from the Hollywood Reporter, with the roles reported to be Vicki Vale and Talia al Ghul. Contenders include Jessica Biel, Kate Mara (pictured), Anne Hathaway, Keira Knightley, Gemma Arterton, and Charlotte Riley (who I don't think I've ever seen in anything).

Leaked Script?

Io9 points to a supposedly leaked script that claims to be an early draft of The Dark Knight Rises. I call shenanigans on it, because it has too many villains and the synopsis doesn't have the same feel as the previous two movies.

News & Notes

Merry New Year, and all that. Jeff and Celeste present an awesome (but sadly failed) pitch for Gotham High featuring teenage versions of Batman, Batgirl, Catwoman, Joker, and others. In actual The Dark Knight Rises news:

• Filming is scheduled for LA, the UK, and another location. Previous reports had listed New Orleans as a location (which tied in with Killer Croc rumors), but both Batman Begins and The Dark Knight used Chicago extensively for Gotham City, so it would be somewhat surprising if the third movie stayed out of the windy city entirely.
• An interview response from Anne Hathaway has some thinking she's confirmed that she's up for a Dark Knight Rises role, but it seems like a stretch.