On The Shelf: Two more Bat-icons turn 80

That, of course, would be the Joker & Catwoman. DC recently issued special 80th anniversary one-shots for each, with some of the same creators (i.e. Paul Dini) working on both books.

The Joker volume also includes what may well be---for now, unless something else emerges---the last comic book story written by the late Denny O'Neil, partnered in this case with artist Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez, who's been in the comics business since the mid-70's. The Catwoman volume pays homage not only to the Princess of Plunder's rich history, but there are pin-ups covering her 80 year career. An illustration, circa 1967, offers the inspiration behind Filmation's use of a green catsuit for the 1968 Batman cartoon. I can speak to the fact that the mustard brown ensemble Catwoman wore on 1977's New Adventures of Batman was never used in the comics. By then, she was wearing a green & purple outfit, complete with cape and boots. The brown suit found its way into another piece of pop culture, however, adapted for a 1st season episode of Mork & Mindy, in which Mindy McConnell (Pam Dawber) dons a brown costume & cowl to dissuade Mork (Robin Williams) from selling his life story to a tabloid reporter (Jeff Altman). Catwoman's New Adventures of Batman attire had a domino mask instead of a cowl.

Digression over. Batman '66 writer Jeff Parker returns to that era for a Catwoman solo story in which she becomes a reluctant heroine to fend off an alien invasion, using the Julie Newmar version of Catwoman. Need any other selling points? Didn't think so.

Both 80th anniversary specials merit an A.
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American Mythology has released another Zorro reprint volume, this one, under the label of Zorro: Timeless Tales, which collects a trio of tales first published overseas. The publisher hasn't indicated if this is a 1-shot or a miniseries. The last reprint volume, Zorro Masters, was a 1-shot showcasing the Alex Toth stories from Dell's Four Color Comics. Serious Zorro fans will want this for their personal collections.

Rating: B.
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Meanwhile, American Mythology will mix together a pair of licensed titles in October, as Zorro steps into the world of Edgar Rice Burroughs' The Land That Time Forgot in a 3-issue miniseries. Right now, I'm not sold on the idea.

Before that, the next Zorro miniseries, Children of The Dead, arrives in September. American Mythology has this obsession that Zorro has to deal with supernatural menaces, which are not his forte. Meh.
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Over the course of the last 30-plus years, we've seen filmmakers such as Kevin Smith and actors, like Bill Mumy and Chad Michael Murray, give writing comics a go.

Now, Keanu Reeves wants to try.

With two of his best known film franchises, "John Wick" & "Bill & Ted", having transitioned to comics, Reeves is teaming with popular writer Matt Kindt to do an adventure series for Boom! Studios, due in October. The title, BRZRKR, sounds like a vanity license plate.
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DC is trimming the fat on the Bat-line in October, as Batman & The Outsiders ends with #17, and the current Batgirl volume stops with issue 50. Justice League Odyssey wraps with issue 25, also in October. Part of the problem, of course, is the coronavirus pandemic having wreaked havoc on the industry this spring, but don't despair. At least one or two of the books will be rebooted in the next 18 months after cancellation.