WRITER: DENNIS ‘HOPELESS’ HALLUM | ART: LUCA MARESCA | PUBLISHER: MARVEL | FORMAT: SINGLE ISSUE | RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

Comics are often criticised for objectifying female characters, the taut lycra of costumes for all genders tending to emphasise power fantasies of muscly strength in male characters and erogenous zones in the ladies. This is partly why this reviewer has always been so fond of Felicia Hardy AKA The Black Cat, not because she is a taut black leotard full of erogenous zones but because she brings out Spider-Man’s sexy side. And Spider-Man is very, very sexy indeed. Fortunately this comic gets it and watching the interplay between Spider-Man and his erotic nemesis led to some momentous of flushed excitement, we don’t mind telling you. But we’ll come to that. Plot first…

At the story’s beginning, Spider-Man and Mary Jane are a picture of domestic bliss, as MJ remotely guides her boyfriend on a mission to foil a Maggia heist. However, after a number of henchmen’s heads get busted, things get complicated (for heist foiling and domestic bliss alike) with the arrival of an old flame. From there things hot up, as we see Peter Parker’s past dealings with the Black Cat and spool forward to a shocking cliffhanger revelation.

The storytelling, although dominated by flashbacks, rolls along at sufficient pace to develop a good deal of plot, making the issue feel pleasantly longer than it actually it. Meanwhile, the art, while not being above tightly stretching leotard over erogenous zones, also captures some great moments of sexual tension between Spider-Man and Black Cat, through body language and subtle touches, combing action and sexiness with deftness and skill. Throughout all of this, Spider-Man’s body language describes a man who happens to look great in lycra but who is way out of his depth.

It’s not a world-shaking story, but it is nice to see the Black Cat back and, perhaps more importantly, Spider-Man activating sexy mode. Now can somebody douse us with ice, please?