Marvel’s antihero cat burglar Felicia Hardy, aka the Black Cat, has a masterpiece new costume, as Marvel plunges its mainstream Earth-616 into the epic Queen in Black event. As two opposing gods turn Earth into their battleground, Black Cat will play a unique part in securing victory for humankind.
While Black Cat has existed since 1979, the character has experienced a major renaissance over the last decade, with Jed MacKay’s multiple Black Cat series expanding her backstory and hurling her into a series of daring heists in every corner of the Marvel Universe.
Now, the world’s greatest thief is caught up in a mission to steal something that could save the planet from Hela, the new goddess of symbiotes, and former King in Black Knull, who has transformed himself into a terrifying new god of light.
Black Cat Debuts New Barbarella-Esque Costume
The upcoming Black Cat #14 will tie into Queen in Black, with Josemaria Casanovas’ cover art showing Felicia in a retro sci-fi spacesuit that sparks memories of Barbarella and Flash Gordon. Casanovas’ art gives Felicia a gigantic space helmet, a powerful raygun, and a cut-out catsuit that retains her furred boots and gloves. Red detailing makes her sci-fi belt and raygun pop, while Black Cat doesn’t seem fazed by an army of aliens bearing down on her.
Written by G. Willow Wilson and drawn by Gleb Melnikov, the issue will see Felicia on a mysterious mission to stop the war between Hela and Knull, with the comic’s summary reading:
COSMIC THEFT? The only hope to stop the Knull and the Queen in Black’s war is… BLACK CAT?! Oh, wait – she’s gotta steal something?! PURRRFECT! The stakes couldn’t be higher for Felicia. Hopefully, she knows how to fly a spaceship!
This is the kind of story that has increased Black Cat’s stock so much over the last decade: Felicia drawn into a daring new status quo where the only thing she can really rely on is her abilities as a thief. Past examples include burgling Doctor Strange’s Sanctum Sanctorum, stealing the Infinity Stones, and plunging into hell to steal the deed to Manhattan.
In many ways, Black Cat has become the go-to character for exploring the most interesting corners of the Marvel Universe – and now she’s heading to space. But what role will she actually play in Queen in Black?
What’s Coming from Queen in Black?
In recent issues of Knull, Hela has found a way to steal the power of the King in Black. In response, Knull has traveled the galaxy acquiring light-based powers to oppose her, setting up their epic clash in July’s Queen in Black. Each is seeking to claim Earth as a strategic outpost, including enslaving the planet’s heroes to fight on their side.
With such a major conflict, Queen in Black will include a range of tie-ins, with one-shots starring Black Cat, Thor, Hela and more, as well as dedicated miniseries Defenders of Light and Dark, which will assemble two teams to confront both Knull and Hela.
Black Cat’s inclusion echoes her role in 2020’s King in Black tie-in, where she freed Doctor Strange from Knull’s control, returning him to the battle for the planet. If the Queen in Black tie-in follows the same blueprint, it’ll be a fun one-off adventure that adds to the main event without being essential reading.
Black Cat Has Become the Superhero Answer to Barbie
As Black Cat debuts her new retro sci-fi costume, it’s worth reflecting how Felicia has become Marvel’s #1 clothes horse. Like Barbie, Black Cat has developed a habit of throwing on radically different outfits suited to her adventures, as she encounters the magic, sci-fi and advanced tech of the Marvel multiverse.
From her own Iron Man armor to mystical robes to multiple symbiotes, Black Cat’s frequent wardrobe changes represent how she’s become the wandering star of the Marvel Universe, acting as a de facto fish out of water for wherever writers want to take her. Now, that includes a symbiote-infested planet, confirming that the only truly essential ingredients for a “Black Cat” story are Felicia, theft and a new costume.
Black Cat #14 is coming September 9 from Marvel Comics.
This story originally appeared on Screenrant
