An added bonus on the Batman Year One DVD (review forthcoming), Warner Bros. released a short feature centered on that feline vigilante and vinyl fetishist, Catwoman. Catwoman is voiced by Eliza Dushku (of Joss Whedon fame) who fits the character so well that Warner Bros. would be mad to not pursue more animated projects in which she could reprise the role. The ideal blend of tough and sexy, this is how it is done.
Written by the legendary Paul Dini (of Batman the Animated Series and more) and directed by Lauren Montgomery, a veteran of several DC animated films, the story is rather straightforward but told in such a clever fashion that it holds the viewer’s attention throughout. On the trail of some gangsters led by Rough Cut (voiced by John DiMaggio). The trail leads to a seedy strip club where Rough Cut (whose teeth have been replaced with diamonds) tips the dancers with rough cut jewels. Catwoman takes the place of one of the dancers and proceeds to engage in the most adult content that I have ever seen in a DC-related animated product.
No, this is not a 'family friendly' cartoon
Disarming the thugs who think that she is just the next dancer (and dressed as she is, who wouldn’t mistake Catwoman for an erotic entertainer?), Catwoman unzips her catsuit and extrudes her bullwhip from within… one of the weirdest moments of fan fetish I have ever seen. That costume may look skin-tight but apparently it is like Doctor Who’s TARDIS and has inner dimensions that far exceed the outward appearance. Using her whip and her feline grace, Catwoman brutally beats the thugs and takes on Rough Cut single-handedly. The violence is very extreme and definitely indicates that DC Entertainment are interested in pursuing a more ‘adult’ path in their releases.
The battle extends to the streets of Gotham where Rough Cut takes off in his limo and Catwoman gives chase on a stolen motorcycle. The chase finally ends at the docks where, if anything, the action gets more extreme and there are explosions aplenty. The animation is incredibly fluid and the action spread out with cinematic flair. Neither too short or drawn out, the feature is well-timed. I had no real anticipation for this short but it really delivers the goods and should make fans hungry for more. This is exactly where DC should be putting their attention in developing their properties for mass consumption as they have always excelled in animation.
I am more than a little concerned with the attraction of extreme violence and titillation, as the Catwoman short dances the fine line of appropriate material. I can’t understand why there cannot be a Catwoman cartoon suitable for young women instead of old dudes for instance. She’s one of their most beloved characters and deserves a more approachable product. Since Julie Newmar purred her way into the living rooms of America in the 1966 Batman TV series, Catwoman has been a sexy character. The modern interpretation presents Catwoman as not only lovely to look at but dangerous and determined to boot.
An exemplary animated feature, the Catwoman short sets a high water mark for the character that should have Anne Hathaway sweating in her high heel boots.
The Daily P.O.P. 
Sexuality is always a weird thing… I often find myself asking the same things as you. The comic companies always talk about how it is “hard to attract female readers” but then their strong female characters are often written/drawn towards an adolescent male audience!
On the flip side, though… human history is filled with anecdotal evidence that the games kids play are “practice” of a sort for adult behavior. Young girls are encouraged to flirt or be “girly” long before there is an intentional sexual component to it… so there is an aspect of human nature that is a truism… that being sex is part of nature, and while we don’t want to sexualize children, you can’t remove all evidence of it because kids learn from observing how adults behave.
Kids don’t need to see sex, obviously, but seeing their parents be affectionate with each other has been proven to result in happier kids who become stabler adults.
I guess where I’m headed is that there needs to be a happy medium where we don’t attempt to eradicate all sexuality BUT don’t put it there just for titillation sake.
I remember, as an example, being in a G-rated Disney movie (Hunchback of Notre Dame) and the bad guy there was a little over the top stalky towards the female lead in that movie… it seemed odd and misplaced for a movie aimed at kids.
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At the risk of being pedantic, I think you’re mixing up a few concepts here; sexuality, sex as an act, objectification of a gender and general affection. Girls are encouraged to embrace the idea that women are sexual objects in fashion, music and general entertainment (like this short, actually). There’s no actual sex in the film, but as a hero Catwoman is a sexual object… in fact all of the women in the short are sexual objects (strippers, prostitutes, etc). It’s very short-sighted.
In my opinion, there’s definitely a way to avoid sexual objectification and its not in our nature at all, it’s our culture. Western culture specifically sexualizes little girls yet paradoxically decries sex crimes. It’s ugly and awful but sadly the state of our culture that can only change from within.
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I think we are probably feeling the same thing here… but semantics are getting in the way.
I see lots of examples of overt and covert sexuality in programs that don’t contain any actual sex acts. It’s “easy” to avoid (or find depending on the audience) actual sex in cinema… and usually movies (or cartoons) that contain actual sex acts are properly marketed so there is no confusion.
But then there is the larger grey area of cinema that features evidence of sexuality, sometimes in places where it doesn’t have to be. Catwoman, for example, could be written as a strong female character that embraces being female without being portrayed in an overtly sexual way. The problem, comes with where that line is drawn.
I can’t comment specifically on this cartoon since I haven’t seen it yet… but based on your description it sounds like lots of examples of overt sexuality that doesn’t have to be there to carry the plot.
I’m not a prude, though sometimes I come off as one based on my analysis of things… but at the same time, I recognize that probably some level of examples of sexuality are part of human nature. That’s all I was trying to get at.
It’s hard for me to draw the line sometimes… because while I grant you there are lots of poor examples of poorly written female characters, I don’t think kids should be looking to fictional characters to model themselves after anyway. So, while I am critical sometimes of things that I think don’t need to be there.. it’s hard to separate myself from the idea that it is “just” entertainment and not meant to be a guide to life.
I think the larger problem is when we portray actual women in real life as only having power as sexual objects… less so when it is a comic character that could be better constructed.
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