My Rating
“She’s Not There”
Things have changed for Patsy Walker. Her path seemed straight enough back in New York. Her temp agency was taking off with the financial backing of her mother’s inheritance, and for once, the future looked promising. Then one domino fell after another.
Hedy was certainly no help. Patsy’s lifelong frenemy had always been a thorn in her side—even when she was supposedly playing nice. Maybe it was simply Hedy’s nature. Patsy always tried to take the high road, but these days that road was getting awfully difficult to find.
After spending some time alongside billionaire playboy Tony Stark, Patsy eventually moved back into her old family home in Centerville, California. Unfortunately, sorting out her life becomes considerably more difficult when the ghosts of her past begin showing up—literally. Dorothy Walker, the domineering mother of Hellcat, has returned to haunt her daughter from beyond the grave. Is this some kind of sick joke?
Why have the police arrested Hellcat for the murder of Spalding Grantham? Have the Dream Police somehow gotten inside her head? What is preventing Patsy from using her psychic abilities? Collect the series to find out!
Review
She’s…back! Patsy Walker, a.k.a. Hellcat! Apparently, I’ve missed a pretty big chunk of her story since the 2017 conclusion of her previous solo series. The last thing I remember was Jennifer Walters winning Patsy’s court case, giving her access to the royalties from Dorothy Walker’s old comic books. Patsy had also launched a successful superhero-for-hire temp agency. Things were finally looking up for our favorite frisky redhead. What the hell happened?
This new series has already won my loyalty for another reason. Can you say Sleepwalker? Woot! As the proud owner of the complete run of old Sleepy, I have to give this appearance a 1990s Cool Beans shout-out. Even better, Rick Sheridan is still along for the ride as Sleepwalker’s human host. I certainly wasn’t expecting to see these two turn up in a Hellcat comic, but I’m not complaining!
Christopher Cantwell wastes little time throwing Patsy into a supernatural murder mystery filled with ghosts, strange dreams, psychic interference, and plenty of unanswered questions. That is exactly the kind of weird Marvel storytelling I enjoy. Between Hellcat, the return of Dorothy Walker, and an unexpected dose of Sleepwalker nostalgia, there is plenty here to bring me back for issue number two. I’m giving Hellcat #1 four out of five stars.