Catwoman

Real Name: Selina Kyle

First Appearance: Batman #1 (1940)

Powers: Skilled Gymnast, Hand to Hand Combat, and a Highly Trained Thief

Affiliation: Gotham City Sirens, Batman Family

Love Interests: Batman

Enemies: Batman

Did You Know: Before she was known as Catwoman, she had the name The Cat.

A Little History

Born in Gotham and living a life filled with tragedy, Selina Kyle has become one of the highest-regarded “villains” in comic history.

At a young age, her mother committed suicide, and her father drank himself to death. Rather than waiting around for the police, young Selina fled to the streets. Living on the streets of Gotham requires a certain skill set, and Selina utilized her natural gymnastics ability to become the best cat burglar that the police had ever seen.

She began her assault on Gotham as a thief by night called The Cat, all the while hiding cleverly under the guise of a pet store owner by day. What made Selina different from the other criminals in Gotham was that she was a typical Robin Hood-type thief. That is, she gave most of what she stole to the poor. This led to widespread speculation as to whether or not she was a villain at all. On top of that, she would do what few Gotham villains would do and never commit murder.

As Batman began investigating The Cat’s crimes, Selina fell for him. In turn, Batman reciprocated the feelings. This led to a number of times where Batman let Selina escape before the police arrived. Consequently, Batman would often question his morals as someone who sought justice.

Over time, Selina wore a mask that was shaped like a cat. This new look, coupled with her incredible skill as a thief, coined her the name Catwoman by the authorities. As she began to adopt the new name, her costume underwent one more change. She would finally wear her most widely known and accepted costume, and it is probably the one that you are familiar with. The costume includes a body suit, razor-sharp claws, and goggles.