Catwoman: Hunted

This February, everyone’s favourite felonious feline kicks off the year’s slate of DC-animated films with Catwoman: Hunted.

In this all-new tale, Catwoman’s attempt to steal a priceless jewel puts her squarely in the crosshairs of a powerful consortium of villains, the ever-resourceful Interpol …and Batwoman. A partnership which just might be enough to contain her. Or maybe not.

The animation takes its attitude straight from ‘60s spy thrillers, like The Saint and Danger Man, and its styling from anime—which isn’t too surprising when you consider that its director, Shinsuke Terasawa, was responsible for the likes of Gintama and Yo-kai Watch.

But there are two things which really make Catwoman: Hunted an hugely enjoyable ride. First is that, this time around, it’s the ladies of DC get to show us exactly what they’re capable of.  Catwoman (Elizabeth Gillies), Batwoman (Stephanie Beatriz), Julia Pennyworth (Lauren Cohan), Talia al Ghul (Zehra Fazal) Barbara Minerva/Cheetah (Kirby Howell-Baptiste) and Cheshire (Kelly Hu), are just some of the characters who get more quality screen-time in this one feature than they’ve had for decades. Frankly, it’s about damn time that these great characters shook off the dust of the ages and got the chance to be more than adjuncts. Because, yes, woman can be superheroes and supervillains too.

Secondly, the storyline, with its wonderfully supernatural-heist vibe, gives us the type of perfectly-pitched genre mashup that we haven’t seen since Justice League Dark—and we all remember what fun that was.

At a time when the big studios are taking fewer risks with their IPs—preferring reboots and sequels to anything really new—Catwoman: Hunted is a standout feature. And, this is just DC animated universe’s first offering of the year. Green Lantern, Teen Titans, DC Super Hero Girls, Constantine: House of Mystery and Batman: The Long Halloween are all slated for release in 2022. If Catwoman is anything to go by, it should be one hell of a year. 

Catwoman: Hunted – Special Features

• When The Hunter Becomes The Hunted (New Featurette). When does the hunter become the hunted? In this case it’s when Selina Kyle steals the Cat’s Eye emerald, making Selina everyone’s No. 1 target. This all-new featurette, looks at the backstory of each villain, from Tobias Whale, Black Mask, Cheshire and Nosferata to Solomon Grundy, Talia al Ghul and Cheetah.
•  Catwoman: The Feline Femme Fatale – Watch the documentary on Catwoman’s history.