Absolute Catwoman #4 Review

 

Absolute Catwoman #4 Review

Writers: Scott Snyder & Che Grayson

Artist & Cover Artist: Bengal

Colorist: Giovanna Niro

Letterer: Lucas Gattoni

Variant Cover Artists: Marcio Takara, Dustin Nguyen, & Is*A Works

1:25 Variant Cover Artist: Riley Rossmo

Editors: Andrew Marino, Katie Kubert & Chris Conroy

Publisher: DC Comics

Price: $4.99 US | Variant $5.99 (Card Stock)

Release Date: November 4, 2026

 

Selina Kyle had plans for a life after the Calicos. She might have been raised in foster homes. Even without connections and resources, Selina aspired to an enviable career. But after the explosion in David Cain’s apartment, Selina believed Cassandra had died. She couldn’t pursue her dreams knowing that she had cost the girl her life. So, Selina took responsibility for the Calicos. She turned herself in. Yet fate had other plans in store for Selina Kyle.

 

After rebuilding her life on her own, Cassandra’s Copycats blew up Selina’s London Penthouse the way the Calicos blew up Cassandra’s childhood home. And Selina discovers that the girl she thought she had killed still lives. Selina has reunited with two members of her former team. They have traveled to Candia to rescue the fourth. But can they rescue Holly Robinson from Cassandra Cain's clutches? Or will Cassandra destroy their world? Let’s leap into Absolute Catwoman #4 and see!

 

Story

Life might have separated them, but Holly Robinson always believed in Selina Kyle. Fearing an Artificial Intelligence would rewrite her reality, Holly snuck Selina Kyle the key. Now, Cassandra Cain holds Holly hostage. She controls the Yarn, which would knit everyone's life into a new, global tapestry. Selina has reunited with her former Calico partners, Victoria and Helena. She uses Jonesy, her personal AI, to search for the Yarn's probable location.

 

As Selina, Victoria, and Helena search for Cassandra’s stronghold, Scott Snyder and Che Grayson stitch Selina’s past into her present. While the Calicos use the methods that brought them success in Gotham, Selina remembers how Gotham repaid her repentance with condemnation. Yet Absolute Catwoman #4 isn't just Selina's story. It also follows Cassandra Cain, as she attempts to make her plans her new reality.

 

Selina Kyle is a thief. Cassandra Cain is an assassin. While they seem worlds apart, they both seek the same things. Safety. Security. And most of all, belonging. Cassandra grew up among Gotham's elite before becoming a woman who inhabits the shadows. Selina climbed above the cruelty of the foster care system and others' indifference to join the world's elite. Yet as Selina wrestles with her insecurities and her yearning to trust others, Cassandra knows she can never be safe. So, Cassandra Cain fights to escape the shadows in Absolute Catwoman #4.

 

Art

As ground-level cameras follow Selina to GCPD Headquarters and then toward the courthouse, inset panels reveal Gotham's lies. Bengal uses downshots and upshots to reveal the city’s cruelty. Selina remembers Gotham’s towers. Yet skyscrapers dominate Candia. The camera constantly roves up and down to catch the action, as Selina leads the Calicos above the city. Cassandra and the League of Shadows stride through the streets, unnoticed by those they pass.

 

Compared with Gotham's limited, muted colors, Giovanna Niro fills Candia with bright, luminous colors in Absolute Catwoman #4. Pink light shines down on Cassandra as she gazes up at Holly. Bound to a rat’s nest of pipes and conduits, Selina’s former stray seems a necessary sacrifice to awaken a new world. Pink lines overlay an indigo map guiding Selina’s mission of mercy. As the Calicos once bounded past a pink neon sign, Cassandra walks beneath a yellow one in this gleaming yellow city. Cassandra’s actions seem cruel as she clutches the blue orb. Yet red highlights the kill-or-be-killed nature of Cassandra’s reality.

 

Lucas Gattoni slips black uppercase letters into white dialogue balloons. White uppercase letters in blue boxes blend Selina’s past with her off-screen dialogue and thoughts. Stylish black letters in light blue fields locate readers in space and time. Unable to speak, Cassandra shares her thoughts with lowercase letters in beige parchment scraps. Sound effects accompany Selina's rough welcome to Blackgate Penitentiary, Cassandra’s offer to choose her fate, Selina’s attempt to make a good impression, and her decision to emulate Holly. Thanks to DC Comics for sharing this story with us.

 

Final Thoughts

Selina Kyle grew up without knowing her parents. All she had was a list of names and a postcard. Believing her family abandoned her, Selina made her own way and pushed anyone who got too close away.

 

Her father taught her not to speak up. Her mother’s voice became the foundation for Cassandra Cain's new life. Like Selina, Cassandra also had a list of names. But unlike Selina, she risked her place in her family so everyone on her list felt like they belonged.

 

Now, life is bringing Selina Kyle and Cassandra Cain together. But whether this clash brings them more pain or healing remains to be seen in Absolute Catwoman #4.

 

Rating 9.6/10

 

 

To look inside see Absolute Catwoman #4 Preview. 

 

For how the girl the Calicos injured remade her life, see Absolute Cassandra Cain: The Shadow's Hand #1 Preview. 

For Selina, Victoria, and Helena's original post-Calicos plans, see Absolute Catwoman #3 Preview. 

For how Selina reunites with Victoria and Helena, see Absolute Catwoman #2 Review. 

For Selina's desperate battle to rescue Holly, see my review of Absolute Catwoman #1. 

For Selina Kyle's relationship with Bruce Wayne, see my preview of Absolute Batman #12, 

 

 My preview of Absolute Batman #13, and 

 

My preview of Absolute Batman #14. 

 

Mind Mgmt: New & Improved #5 Cover Preview

 

Cover A By Matt Kindt

The future has never looked bleaker. Every day brings new opportunities for society to go off the rails. To stave off Humanity’s extinction, Mind Mgmt agents work in a variety of fields to prevent bad actors from igniting the spark that will detonate the world. 

 

 

Mind Mgmt trained Jon Swon to see with his nose. By mixing custom scents, Jon can focus witnesses’ memories or pacify criminals. His partner, Gemini Delphi, has mastered the world’s most lethal martial arts. Yet she’d rather employ her secondary skill of Ultimate Calm to apprehend suspects. 

 

 

After arresting the world’s luckiest assassin, what case will the existential detectives tackle next? And why doesn’t Jon’s boss want him to remember more of his past?

 

 

Here's all the info from Oni Press:

 

 

 

Mind Mgmt: New & Improved #5 Cover Preview

Writer, Artist, Colorist & Letterer: Matt Kindt

Cover Artists: Matt Kindt & Mike del Mundo

Editors: Sierra Hahn & Joelena Despard

Designer: Winston Gambro

Production: Melanie Ujimori

Flux House Production: Ella Kindt

Publisher: Oni Press

Issue Description: 32 Pages, Full Color

Price: $4.99 US

Release Date: November 4, 2026

 

 

 

All-New Arc!

All-New Jumping-On Point! 

 

 

 

From the mind of New York Times bestselling cartoonist and multiple Eisner Award nominee Matt Kindt (BRZRKR, Dept. H), enter a brand-new, self-contained starting point for the genre-bending, cerebellum-piercing “psy-fi” epic that AiPT! heralds as “an unsettling, must-read return that turns memory itself into the mystery.”

 

 

When Detectives Swon and Delphi are together, nothing can take them by surprise—or maybe that’s what Mind Management wants them to believe. But their professional bond and uncanny abilities are about to be tested in more ways than one as Swon’s feelings for his partner begin to deepen, and Delphi experiences the full-on cognitive shellshock of another operative’s tragic mission gone wrong. If only Swon’s extrasensory cognition could let him see into the future... But, even if he did, it would already be too late.

 

 

Welcome to the all-new Mind MGMT. We’ve been expecting you.

 

 

 

Here are more collectible covers:

 

 

 

 

 

Cover B By Mike Del Mundo

 

 

 

 

Full Art Variant (1:20) By Mike Del Mundo

 

 

Thanks to Oni Press and Superfan Promotions for sharing this cover preview with us.

For how Agent Ayush killed an Immortal, see Mind Mgmt: New & Improved #4 Review. 

For how Agents Swon and Delphi escape a death cult in Arizona, see Mind Mgmt: New & Improved #3 Review. 

Batgirl #25 Preview

 

David Cain trained his daughter to be an assassin. Yet eventually, Cassandra found a new father who helped her find a better path. When Batman alerted her to Poison Ivy’s hyper-accelerated plant growth, Cassandra Cain wanted a more specific mission than staying indoors and protecting people. But when a flower made a little girl sick, Cassandra left her brother and Jaya to protect the customers in Bà Bao’s Noodle Shop while she rushed Mimi to Gotham General.

 

Tenji Turner may dream of becoming a famous hero. Yet unlike her brother, Cassandra Cain realizes being a hero isn’t always glamorous. Some people in Gotham would happily report her to collect Vandal Savage’s Rat Out The Bat campaign. And even though Cassandra carries a sick child, his TUCOs attack her with lethal force. Will all that change when an unexpected winter storm wipes out Poison Ivy’s prehistoric plants? And after her mother’s return propelled her across the world, how will her biological father’s return disrupt Cassandra’s return to Gotham?

 

Here's all the info from DC Connect:

 

 

Batgirl #25 Preview

Writer: Tate Brombal

Artists: Takeshi Miyazawa & Damion Scott

Cover Artist: David Talaski

Variant Cover Artists: Mike Choi & Nogi San

Foil Variant Cover Artist: David Talaski

Publisher: DC Comics

Issue Length: 40 Pages

Price: $4.99 US | Variant $5.99 US (Card Stock) | Variant $7.99 US (foil)

Release Date: November 4, 2026

 

 

 

Batgirl Celebrates A 25-Issue Milestone!

 

 

 

Happy Birthday, Batgirl!

 

Well, it isn’t exactly our favorite brooding girl’s birthday, but it is the 25th issue of her ongoing series, so we’re celebrating with an oversize issue! It would sure be a shame if anything spoiled the celebrations like, say, the long-awaited return of…David Cain?!

 

Uh-oh, blow out the candles, Cass—things are about to get messy. Not to mention, Damion Scott, the co-creator of our special girl, returns to the character for a special backup! You don't want to miss this!

 

 

Now, let's take a look inside:

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks to DC Comics for sharing this preview with us.

For the entire Bad Seeds Event, see my Bad Seeds Event List. 

For Batgirl's unexpected meetup with other members of the Bat-family, see Batgirl #24: Bad Seeds Week 7 Part 2 Preview.

For how Batgirl got injured, see Batgirl #23: Bad Seeds Week 2 Part 2: Preview. 

For how Cassandra broke free of a mental prison, see Batgirl #22 Preview.

For how Cassandra sought to solve the murder of a friend from her youth see my preview of Batgirl #21. 

For how Cassandra investigated a crime scene staged for her, see my review of Batgirl #20.

 

Spielberg Review

 

Spielberg Review

Writer, Artist, Colorist & Letterer: Amazing Ameziane

Publisher: Titan Comics

Book Description: 192 Pages, Full Color

Paperback Price: $24.99 US

Kindle ebook: $23.74

Release Date: October 13, 2026

 

His father enjoyed repairing TVs. His mother loved to dance. Together, they inspired their son to make movies. Even though they would eventually part, the Spielbergs supported their young son’s interest in filmmaking. Then, young Steven saw a movie that made him wonder if he had what it took to be a director.

 

Instead of giving up his dream, Steven returned to the cinema to watch Lawrence Of Arabia again. As he rewatched the movie, Steven began to understand how David Lean alternated spectacular imagery with the personal and seemingly ordinary. So, when he moved to Hollywood to study filmmaking, Steven took guided studio tours. Then, he snuck onto the set of another director he admired and watched him until he got thrown out.

 

How would Steven Spielberg get his start as a movie director? And how would he go on to make some of Hollywood’s biggest films? Let’s grab some popcorn, leap into Spielberg, and see!

 

Story

When Sid Sheinberg saw Steven's college movie, the Universal TV exec signed the aspiring filmmaker to a 7-year deal. At first, Steven struggled to find his feet. But in his second year at Universal, he became one of the studio’s busiest directors. Steven had to learn how to work with people of all ages. As he impressed actors, crew members, and studio execs with his artistry and finished episodes on time, Steven found a project that propelled him into the movie business.

 

Spielberg shows how things didn’t always go his way. Some movies, like JAWS, could have ended the director’s career. Still, he aimed high and strived to tackle subjects in unexpected ways. When one of his films proved a big success, he used the opportunity to film a passion project. Steven climbed the Hollywood ladder with some ambitious friends, including George Lucas and Martin Scorsese. While he helped them when he could, both directors guided Steven to make some of the most important films of his career.

 

After portraying Steven Spielberg’s youth in the 1960s, Amazing Ameziane devotes additional chapters to the 1970s, ‘80s, and ‘90s. Perhaps because some critics hail 2002’s Minority Report as Spielberg’s last great film, the author combines the director’s 21^st-century work into one final chapter. Yet this later period produces some of Steven’s most personal films. All these lead up to 2022’s The Fabelmans, which fictionalizes his journey toward Hollywood success.

 

Art

While Amazing Ameziane shares how Steven Spielberg’s films inspired him, he allows the director to tell his own story. A full-face view of Steven often dominates a page, with dialogue balloons introducing the movie, his struggles, or the people in his life. Friends and collaborators interact with the director. Actors appear in character amid film settings in Ameziane's Spielberg.

 

Interactions with his friends may appear in Black and White. Amazing Ameziane usually adorns films with a limited or full palette. Vibrant colors adorn full-face portraits. Some of his highest-grossing films receive one or two pages. Some popular films are only mentioned in passing, if at all. While JAWS gets 10 pages, two passion projects equal or receive more. Schindler’s List, the film in which Steven confronts his heritage, receives 16. Pixel art characters enliven Steven's stories about making his movies. They star in their own version of a game that once dominated arcades. Still, the shark that rarely worked in the ocean lurks beneath the story, before unexpectedly arising to attack pages.

 

While Steven speaks to the reader through dialogue balloons, narrative boxes also showcase off-camera dialogue. He also shares his thoughts and provides commentary between panels and on the sides, bottoms, or tops of pages. As the director ages, his appearance diverges from the image that readily sticks in our minds. But then, the director often challenges viewers' assertions about his career in Spielberg. Thanks to Titan Comics for providing a physical review copy.

 

Final Thoughts

As Steven Spielberg sought to make his mark in Hollywood, he invested in his heritage. Yet while living his childhood dreams, his parents’ divorce haunted him. So as he made movies about aliens, dinosaurs, or archeologist adventurers, Steven Spielberg also made movies about the struggles that bind families together and tear them apart. He may have adopted Martin Scorsese's suggestion as his career formula. Yet as Spielberg nears the end, Quentin Tarantino points to another reason for the director's extraordinary success.

 

Rating 9.8/10

 

For a look inside see Spielberg SC Preview. 

Absolute Green Lantern #20 Preview

 

Governments store knowledge. But they also protect secrets. Recently, Cameron Chase discovered uncomfortable facts about her department. As she studies File #0, Simon Baz appears with a woman from the past. Emily “Zero” Hawke has justified Paul Kirk’s faith in her. She has returned from a realm that most people, including her former boss, never escape. But now, like Simon and Cameron, Emily has a target on her back.

 

Can Cameron Chase, Simon Baz, and the OSS agent who vanished in 1943 live with what they’ve learned? And can Jo Mullein and her team defend them from Task Force X?

 

Here's all the info from DC Connect:

 

 

Absolute Green Lantern #20 Preview

Writer: Al Ewing

Artist: Sid Kotian

Cover Artist: Jahnoy Lindsay

Variant Cover Artists: Davide Paratore, Aka & Martin Simmonds

Publisher: DC Comics

Issue Length: 32 Pages

Price: $4.99 US | Variant $5.99 US (Card Stock)

Release Date: November 4, 2026

 

 

Strange New World!

 

 

Jo Mullein and the other Lanterns return from space to find things not quite how they left them. Can the Lanterns navigate this new threat that’s bearing down on them?

 

 

Now, let's take a look inside:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks to DC Comics for sharing this preview with us.

For the forbidden truth about the Department of Extranormal Operations, see Absolute Green Lantern #19 Review. 

For Emily Hawke's confrontation with Baron Blitzkrieg, see Absolute Green Lantern #18 Preview. 

For how the battle for Earth ended, see Absolute Green Lantern #17 Preview.

For what happened to Kari Limbo, see my Absolute Green Lantern #16 Preview.

For Jo Mullein's battle with Tomar Re, see my Absolute Green Lantern #15 Review. 

For Cameron and Simon's last battle with Hector Hammon, see my Absolute Green Lantern #14 Preview.

For how Emily Hawke ruined Overseer Shade's day, see my Absolute Green Lantern #13 Review.      

 

DC All In Saga: Darkseid vs. the World #1 Review

 

DC All In Saga: Darkseid vs. the World #1 Review

Writers: Scott Snyder & Joshua Williamson

Artists: Sanford Greene & Yasmine Putri

Colorists: Matt Herms & Yasmine Putri

Letterer: Steve Wands

Cover Artist: Sanford Greene

Variant Cover Artists: Mark Spears, Javi Fernández & Alejandro Sanchez; Anthony Marques, J Bone & Dave Stewart; Juan Ferreyra

Editors: Chris Rosa, Sophie Philips-Roberts & Paul Kaminski

Publisher: DC Comics

Price: $5.99 US | Variant $6.99 US (Card Stock)

Release Date: October 28, 2026

 

When Darkseid conquered reality, the Quantum Quorum rewound time, giving Earth's superheroes a brief window of freedom. They could use it to say goodbye to their families. Or they could even live on, after a fashion. But the Justice League didn't want to live on as reflections of themselves in a mirror universe. So, to reclaim their reality, they had to fight for it.

 

Yet after their victory, visions bound Earth’s heroes to perform onerous tasks. They had to stand alongside villains in their Watchtower and go on missions together. Earth’s governments had to accept that the people they counted on to protect them might have pasts drenched in blood. And inexplicably, Cyborg has preserved the Heart of Apokolips in Mount Titan.

 

Are Earth’s heroes and villains ready for Darkseid’s prophesied return? And why does Darkseid have an insatiable need to control everything? Let’s leap into the DC All In Saga: Darkseid vs. the World #1 and see!

 

Story

People may fear him. They may dread his return. But Darkseid has a plan he is working toward. He wants everyone to understand how his great dream benefits everyone. So, as heroes celebrate their victory in the Omega Tournament and prepare for Darkseid’s return, he takes his message directly to the people. But before he paints his rosy future, Darkseid looks back at where he came from.

 

In DC All In Saga: Darkseid vs. the World #1, he addresses the reader. He shares how he became the Lord of Apokolips. Then he shares his recent past, including how and why he created his Absolute Universe. Still, Darkseid isn’t through. His plan encompasses all of space and time. So, as he intersperses his narrative with clashes between himself and superhumans on two worlds, Darkseid shares his ultimate dream.

 

Ironically, Darkseid’s goal evokes the futures that the Heart of Apokolips offered each contestant. Many contestants would likely have been tempted to accept the Heart's offer and transform Earth into their version of paradise. Yet Superman, who triumphed in the tournament, resisted the Heart's offer and returned Earth-Zero to its former state. Thus, Darkseid needs to get his message out. Superman may be perceived as a champion of hope. But Darkseid sees Superman as a destroyer of everything that matters in DC All In Saga: Darkseid vs. the World #1.

 

Art

As a star travels through space, it burns and swells with energy. Then it forms a symbol before resolving into Darkseid. He stands before the Heart of Apokolips, which empowers him. Then he stands before the machinery that will help him build his miraculous new reality. Circles portraying heroes from different worlds float in space. Darkseid rises in profile behind them, gazing up with determination as he resolutely works toward his dream. Then he faces his audience. While Earth-Zero is crucial to his plans, the giant visionary gazes over the planet, showing how his plans extend far beyond one world.

 

Sanford Green helps Darkseid tell his story across panel-packed pages and one-page montages. Double-page layouts showcase conflicts between Darkseid and metahumans and introduce the heroes of the Absolute Universe. While Matt Herms adorns DC All In Saga: Darkseid vs. the World #1 in the colors of Darkseid’s eternal enemy, violet and indigo also appear as he carries out his plan. But then, Darkseid wants to give people what he believes is best for them.

 

Harbinger: Story

In this 10-page story, Joshua Williamson shows Darkseid’s desire to share his Omega energy with everyone. He resurrects Pandora and gives her a new purpose. Darkseid’s abilities allow him to see the truth she hides from others. But like the superhumans of all the Earths in the multiverse, Pandora must decide whether to fight Darkseid or bow to his will.

 

Harbinger: Art

Darkseid wishes to dominate all reality. Yet Pandora stands between heroes from different universes as the Flash races around the Earth. Despite her reddish-violet cloak, lines of color flow across her. Yet when she revives across an orange 9-panel grid, Pandora loses her kaleidoscopic appearance. The woman with light-indigo hair rises before Darkseid. Instead of the Flash’s yellow energy, white energy crackles around Darkseid. Red lightning bolts encircle Pandora's features. Yet, Yasmine Putri shows the red fire burning in Darkseid’s eyes.

 

Lettering

Darkseid shares his past and reveals the reasons behind his plans, using white uppercase letters in black narrative boxes. When he addresses heroes, he speaks white letters into black dialogue balloons with straight-edged borders. His opponents, and the woman he wants to serve him, speak black letters into spherical white balloons as they defy his glorious vision. Yet Pandora reveals her thoughts and tells her story in white boxes with red borders. Steve Wands’ sound effects enhance Darkseid’s encounters with metahumans, his determination to make Pandora his servant, and his sacrifice to give everyone a better tomorrow.

 

Final Thoughts

When they traveled into the Earth’s core, Earth’s heroes had to play by the Heart of Apokolips’ rules. They battled their morals and pushed past their self-imposed limits to achieve victory. Yet the heroes’ justification for killing their opponents seems eerily similar to Darkseid’s rationale for building his kinder, gentler, and more fulfilling reality in DC All In Saga: Darkseid vs. the World #1.

 

Rating 9.8/10

 

To look inside see DC All In Saga: Darkseid vs. the World #1 Preview. 

 

For when Darkseid told the Justice League, "Thank you," see DC All In Special #1 Preview. 

 

For Time Trapper's plan to save the DCU (& how Lara's friendship with Ursa would eventually save Earth in Kingdom Of Zod), see Justice League: The Omega Act #1 Preview. 

 

For how the heroes' plans for the Omega Tournament go awry, see DC K.O. #1 Preview. 

Conan & Dragonero #7 Preview

 

Cover A: Lorenzo Nuti

Conan of Cimmeria has traveled across the Hyborian Age. Recently, ancient magic opened a portal between worlds. When Conan traveled from Tarantia to Erondàr, he befriended Ian Aranill, also known as Dragonero. After returning to Conan’s world, they recovered the gems preventing an ancient demon from entering the Hyborian Age. But their journey across two worlds took time. And when they secured the gems, no portal offered them rapid transit back to Tarantia. Without Myrva’s skyship, Conan and Ian endured a long journey across desert, river, and sea.

 

Now, Conan and Dragonero have reached Capital of Aquilonia. But the gems have been away from their resting place too long. Nightmarish creatures attack and kill the fleeing inhabitants. Can Conan and Dragonero slay the creatures terrorizing Tarantia? And can these warriors from two worlds prevent an ancient demon from invading the Hyborian Age?

 

 

Here's all the info from Titan Comics:

 

 

Conan & Dragonero #7 Preview

Writers: Luca Enoch & Stefano Vietti

Artist, Colorist & Cover Artist: Lorenzo Nuti

Letterers: Richard Starkings & Tyler Smith

Editor: Chris Butera

Publisher: Titan Comics

Issue Description: 32 Pages, Full Color 

Price: $4.99/$14.99 Foil

Release Date: November 4, 2026

 

 

Beseiged By Demons

 

Pulled to the mysterious land of Erondár by dark forces, Conan comes face to face with the famed dragon slayer, Dragonero, and the two warriors must set aside suspicion to stand back-to-back against a supernatural force poised to doom both their worlds. 

 

 

 

Now, let's take a look inside:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are more collectible covers:

 

 

 

 

Cover B: Lorenzo Nuti Virgin Cardstock

 

Cover C: Lorenzo Nuti Foil 

 

Thanks to Titan Comics and Heroic Signatures for sharing this preview with us.

For how this series began, see Conan & Dragonero #1 Review.

For the Colossus of Kuthchemes, see Conan & Dragonero #6 Preview.