Knight Terrors: Catwoman #2 – CommunUnion of the Snake

Knight Terrors: Catwoman #2 continues as Selina finds herself in a Gotham City of her own making, which, as she says, made crime worse, not better as she had intended. Last issue, she met an inexperienced Bruce Wayne in the early stages of his crime-fighting career and takes it upon herself to train him to face The Joker, who has set his sights on her estranged sister Maggie, who is a nun by day and Sister Zero at night.

In Selina’s Nightmare, snakes are a reoccurring theme as they are associated with the young Joker, seen slithering unnoticed on the floor, and their venom is part of The Joker’s machinations as he poisons the communion sacraments with venom. Howard further incorporated the snakes as Catholic symbolism of temptation and the Greek mythology that the snakes told Apollo’s priestess Cassandra the future. As she seemingly wakes up from the nightmare, Selina, interprets the dreams to mean that she needs to release control and step back before her plans plunge Gotham into more chaos.

While it is unclear if she will play a role in Knight Terrors: Nights End, this two-issue tie-in plays less into the main Knight Terrors story arc and more so sets up the upcoming story arc from Howard and Zdarsky, Batman/Catwoman: Gotham War, which looks to cause a rift Bat-Family. The story as a whole is an interesting look into the mind of Selina and how she has dealt with her checkered past, and how it will affect her moving forward.

Leila Leiz and Marissa Louise bring Howard’s nightmare to life for Selina with their trippy and surreal renditions of Selina, Sister Mercy, Batman, and The Joker, a defined shift from the ongoing series and apt for the story being told. They also adeptly insert some nice easter eggs, such as the graffiti of Harley Quinn’s classic look in the background, without drawing attention away from the story being told and incorporate the snakes seamlessly into the nightmare unnoticed by the characters.

Overall the tie-in was an enjoyable read, and it will be interesting to see how and if it factors in upcoming story events.