Advance Review: Black Cat Annual #1 Infinite Destinies

Everyone knows the high regard I have for the black Cat series, under the writer-ship of Jed MacKay. This time though, I am not sure of a couple of things in this very loosest of tie-ins.

Black Cat has finally been collared, in Korea of all places. Now partnered up with another Fox, this time a a White Fox, Felicia is tasked with saving Taegukgi, a Sentry level powered hero who has been captured and controlled by a mob boss. Along for the ride are The Tiger Squad who are there to “help”.

The humour that you would come to expect from Jed MacKay is in full effect, with banter and easy flirting going on between Felicia and well, I am not sure to be honest. The banter serves as the smoke for this story. MacKay takes a pop at the Suicide Squad giving a key element a bit of a Marvel twist. The rest of the writing, the situations that the Cat and the Fox find themselves in is pacy and not even the clichéd monologuing of the villain in the final act doesn’t slow things down. The inclusion of the Tiger Squad feels like a bit of missed opportunity as they get very littel panel time. The book also has the next chapter of the Infinite Fury storyline, again by MacKay, though I am not sure if the back-up is the reason that you will buy this book.

The art of a “bad girl” book has to have elements of curves and cheesecake; here Joey Vazquez excels, squeezing Felicia an Fox into their respect outfits, though I don’t remember Felicia being so chesty. Clichéd cheesecake elements are a plenty; the ripped/slashed suit for example, though Vazques does utilise limited body poses to down some of the curvy vibe. Vazquez also applies a faux magna feel to faces, which is quite appropriate for a book set in Asia. Colors are provided by Brian Reber who maintain the depth fo colors well, in line with the current look and feel of the regular book. Letters are supplied by Ferran Delgado who does well with the aforementioned amount of verbiage in the final act. The art for the back-up is provided by Juan Ferreyra in a style that is dark and heavy which suit an espionage tail. VC’s Joe Caramagna delivers a traditional font that helps the reader through the story.

Whilst, this may not seem like much of a tie-in to the overall Infinite Destinies story, I cannot pass up the chance for another Black Cat issue. Cynics may say that the book is vacuous, empty and style over substance. I say this book is full of fun dialogue, is pacy, has attractive characters and most importantly, is great fun!

Writing – 4 Stars
Art – 4 Stars
Colors – 5 Stars

Overall – 4.5 Stars

Written by; Jed MacKay
Art by; Joey Vaquez & Juan Ferreyra
Colors by; Brian Reber
Letters by; Ferran Delgado & VC’s Joe Caramagna
Published by; Marvel Worldwide Inc.

Author Profile

Johnny "The Machine" Hughes

I am a long time comic book fan, being first introduced to Batman in the mid to late 70's. This led to a appreciation of classic artists like Neal Adams and Jim Aparo. Moving through the decades that followed, I have a working knowledge of a huge raft of characters with a fondness for old school characters like JSA and The Shadow

Currently reading a slew of Bat Books, enjoying a mini Marvel revival, and the host of The Definative Crusade and Outside the Panels whilst also appearing on No-Prize Podcast on the Undercover Capes Podcast Network