Catwoman #56

Issue Details

Synopsis

THE REPLACEMENTS PART 4 Months ago, Selina asked Holly to meet her on the roof of the Hudsucker Building. She loves Gotham, but she has to stop being Catwoman for a while. Maybe forever. She's going to have a baby. Holly is ecstatic and offers to babysit, or whatever, but Selina has something else in mind... She opens her bag to show a Catwoman costume.  In the present, Selina compliments Holly on her work last issue. She begins to dig through the garbage to find her cell phone, but Holly cuts that short by taking out her own phone and calling Selina's. Selina calls her nanny Miranda back while Holly ties up the henchman and blindfolds him.   Film Freak is at his studio with his henchman Melvin, complimenting him on his moviemaking as Melvin drinks from a water bottle. Melvin insists that he only filmed what was actually happening. To which Film Freak replies, "Always remember, Melvin... Reality is what we make it." They can present reality in any way they wish through choosing what to film, what to edit out, and what to focus on.   They can always add a touch of surprise by throwing in an unexpected element. Like poison, for instance. Melvin drops to the floor, dead, and Film Freak compares his death to several other cinematic deaths. He notes that poison isn't the most cinematic way, but they can fix that. He pops in the footage of Melvin's death and begins editing.   Selina and Holly take a cab back to Selina's apartment. Holly is worried that they could be in danger, but Selina makes small talk with the cab driver and convinces him that they're coming home from a "Masked Avengers"-themed costume party where they came in third. He says he saw the video of Catwoman fighting Angle Man on Film Freak's show, and they look nothing like her.   Holly receives a phone call from Wildcat, who tells her that he's at a warehouse on Eleventh and Franklin where four guys are running a chop shop... if she's up for some action. Holly asks Selina what she should do, and Selina reminds her that Wildcat called Catwoman, not her. Holly gets out of the cab.   Jim Lenahan is up late at the police station, investigating the murder of Black Mask. Carl Worth encourages him to drop it. Black Mask is dead, and Catwoman has vanished. Except Lenahan has Film Freak's footage of the fight between Catwoman and Angle Man, so he knows she isn't gone.   But when Lenahan plays the footage, he realizes this isn't the same Catwoman as before.   Catwoman and Wildcat take out the men running the chop shop, but Catwoman slips up and accidentally calls Wildcat "Ted" while telling him to watch out. He reminds her that their secret identities are all they have to protect themselves.   Angle Man is carving pictures of Catwoman into triangles when he receives a phone call from Film Freak. Angle Man tells him he's busy, but Film Freak knows exactly what he's doing. He says to meet him on the studio in an hour.   Slam is in his office watching "Double Indemnity" when his son Sam comes in, and they briefly discuss the film.   Angle Man makes it to the studio where Film Freak tells him there's a new twist in the plot. The room is pitch-black, and Angle Man demands that Film Freak show himself and talk like a normal person. Film Freak turns on the movie projector to show the film of the two Catwomen Melvin took. Angle Man correctly identifies which Catwoman he worked with and which one kicked his ass, and the latter isn't Catwoman.   Film Freak reminds Angle Man of the film they watched earlier, "Cat People." The main character in that film was named "Irena Dubrovna," and there happens to be a woman living in Gotham under that name, a relative newcomer who arrived in the city about a year ago, mere days after Catwoman disappeared. And Film Freak has her address.   Selina wakes up in a safe house. She is about to go home when her phone rings, and Miranda tells her there are men in the apartment before she is cut off. Selina knows she has to protect the innocent and save the day, but who is she when she does it?   Catwoman throws a brick into a car window and hotwires the vehicle, tearing off through the Gotham streets to save her daughter. It takes her seven minutes to reach her apartment building, three minutes to ride the elevator, thirty seconds to climb up to the roof, and fifteen seconds to secure her whip to the roof before climbing down to her apartment window.   She opens the window and climbs in to find Miranda unconscious on the floor and Helena missing. She follows Helena's cry to her nursery where her daughter is held in Angle Man's arms as Film Freak records, demanding more emotion from "Irena" during her big scene.