Evil Catwoman vs. Lovesick Catwoman

[High C]

Bat lugosi asked these questions on another thread:

A question for the haters of the schoolgirl crush Catwoman, is it that you dislike the silliness of it and the loss of an evil edge? Or is it you would rather not see them have a romance or physical attraction at all? And if the attraction isn't a problem but the execution is, how would you handle that aspect of the relationship? I'm very curious.

These are legitimate questions, and I felt it would be appropriate to answer them in a new thread.

Here’s how I see it. I would welcome a mature Bat/Cat attraction. But IMO the show didn’t give us that. I thought it was too silly and I never bought in. I know I’m bucking public opinion on this, but I HATED CW’s ‘We’ll kill him’ line about Robin. Made her look silly for a cheap punchline.

I think for the Bat/Cat forbidden romance to work it’s absolutely necessary to have Selina Kyle be in the mix. If Catwoman dresses as Catwoman 24/7, then there is no alter ego. To me, the Bat/Cat relationship would have benefited from the mutual duality, if you will, of Bats/Bruce Wayne and CW/Selina.

And I also think the portrayal of Batman by the writers as a super square didn’t help. Just what would a woman as free-spirited and exciting as CW see in Batman? OK, maybe opposites attract, but still. Selina Kyle would be more impressed by Batman than would CW.

According to Adam’s book, Julie told the showrunners early on she thought Catwoman should be mysterious and teasing to Batman. I think she was right, especially given her strengths as an actress. Julie as CW came across as a force of nature, and not just because of Julie’s incredible body. It also was her inner strength and commanding presence. To be quite frank, it partly was due to Julie’s performance that I didn’t believe she was all that smitten with Batman.

Did she want him? Sure. But it’s not as if she would be in despair if she didn’t get Bats. For comparison, check out Pamela Hensley’s portrayal of Princess Ardala and her fruitless pursuit of Buck Rogers about 12-13 years later. There are moments where Hensley’s acting shows just how much Ardala yearns for Buck, and how crushed she is that unlike Batman, he won’t reciprocate AT ALL. Sorry, never got that vibe in Newmar’s performance, so it struck me more as schoolgirl crush/puppy love than believing Bats was her soulmate.

So given the lack of Selina Kyle, and the fact that Julie was such a larger-than-life actress, I much preferred an evil Catwoman. Doesn’t mean if the parameters were different that I wouldn’t like the ambivalently evil, Batman-smitten CW just as much. But it needed to be written differently and probably cast differently.

OK, so here is how I would’ve handled it. I would’ve used the Selina Kyle alter ego, or better yet, considering Julie’s presence, I would have based the alter ego on a character she portrayed on Route 66. The character, who appeared twice, was named Vicki Russell. She was a motorcycle-riding, free-spirited heiress who had lost her family in a plane crash and is roaming the US looking for adventure. She wasn’t necessarily evil, but she was kind of an anti-heroine. Newmar played the role quite well. (Thanks to board member epaddon for the Route 66 idea.)

[dell]

I like a lot of the points you make High C; Catwoman being in love with Batman could have been done, but it had to be as two adults. In the first few episodes Catwoman is clearly a strong, dominant character who is just as much of a threat to Batman and Robin as any other criminal. Then she turns into a lovesick little schoolgirl who is reluctant to harm him.

An alternative would have been to make her a tease like in the episode where she descends the stairs in the house and tries to seduce him. Then she reveals that she had poisonous perfume and was actually trying to kill him. I don't think this would have worked all that well as this would have grown tired too, but it would have been better than the lovesick routine.

I always liked the 'We’ll kill him’ line. I think it shows just how shallow she was as a villain.

[Riddler Fan]

I always thought CW used her "attraction" to Batman as just another weapon in her arsenal. She is and always will be 100% evil.

[elmrgraham]

I agree Riddler Fan.

[dell]

At the end of "The Bat's Kow Tow" Catwoman surrenders since she can't shoot Batman because of how she feels about him. As Batman leads her away to prison they walk by Robin who proclaims "Holy Mush!". I couldn't agree more! She was far from 100% evil in that scene. At best she was 18.7% evil.

[Progress Pigment]

At the end of "The Bat's Kow Tow" Catwoman surrenders since she can't shoot Batman because of how she feels about him. As Batman leads her away to prison they walk by Robin who proclaims "Holy Mush!". I couldn't agree more! She was far from 100% evil in that scene. At best she was 18.7% evil.

I think for young people at that time, and maybe even now, the idea of CW having her odd, deranged version of a crush on Batman added a lot to the show. She was still Catwoman, she didn't give herself completely over to Batman like Zelda, the Great or False Face's Blaze. But she couldn't imagine being without him. Gorshin's Riddler was much the same way! Batman exuded a lot of Bat-magnetism. For me, a 100% evil CW would be 100% boring. She's multifaceted. Adam West described Julie Nemar as 'mercural'. Why not Catwoman?

[High C]

At the end of "The Bat's Kow Tow" Catwoman surrenders since she can't shoot Batman because of how she feels about him. As Batman leads her away to prison they walk by Robin who proclaims "Holy Mush!". I couldn't agree more! She was far from 100% evil in that scene. At best she was 18.7% evil.

Totally agree. Catwoman also, in that scene, says something like 'she wants what every woman wants, the love of a good man.' Doesn't sound very evil to me.

[Riddler Fan]

At the end of "The Bat's Kow Tow" Catwoman surrenders since she can't shoot Batman because of how she feels about him. As Batman leads her away to prison they walk by Robin who proclaims "Holy Mush!". I couldn't agree more! She was far from 100% evil in that scene. At best she was 18.7% evil.

I disagree. I feel that CW may have wanted not to shoot Batman in order that she may continue to sexually torture him yet another day, which she obviously enjoys. Yes, deep down she may have some feelings for Batman but the very fact that she chooses to continue her life of crime shows that villainy is her higher priority. The very episode you mention CW had just put B&R into a trap designed to make their heads explode. Not exactly a convincing way to prove your love for someone.

[robinboyblunderer]

I disagree. I feel that CW may have wanted not to shoot Batman in order that she may continue to sexually torture him yet another day, which she obviously enjoys. Yes, deep down she may have some feelings for Batman but the very fact that she chooses to continue her life of crime shows that villainy is her higher priority. The very episode you mention CW had just put B&R into a trap designed to make their heads explode. Not exactly a convincing way to prove your love for someone.[/quote]


The ending of that episode is the epitome of the "lovesick Catwoman" as presented, by two actors who completely inhabit their characters and understand comedic timing. Catwoman isn't coming across as if she's looking forward to torturing the Caped Crusader, but as someone madly in love. She really does care for him, she really does want that date and she really does want that kiss.

[Riddler Fan]

I still think she's just toying with Batman to drive him crazy.

[robinboyblunderer]

It's been a while since I've watched these but I think this episode end with an epilogue where Bruce Wayne meets Catwoman as her parole officer and her actions and dialogue demonstrate more of the lovesick Catwoman.

[robinboyblunderer]

I enjoyed the "evil" Catwoman of Season 1 quite a bit but can also appreciate the lovesick Catwoman too. Now that I think about it, maybe Bruce as parole officer happens in her last appearance, the college episode...I don't recall.

[SprangFan]

Here's my take: I think Catwoman sees Batman as the only man in the world worthy of her attentions. Obviously, he's in peak physical condition, which can't hurt for a woman who's quite the specimen herself, but more importantly he's the most talented and intelligent man she's ever met. Other men no doubt desire her, but they're all easily duped; some are more handsome than others but ultimately they're all patsies to be fleeced and left behind. It's entirely possible she never feels anything for a man until a certain caped crusader comes along.

Batman, however, is her mental match, indeed the first man to out-think her and best her on a regular basis, and that's got to trigger something in her. Sure, he talks like a Boy Scout Troopmaster, but how square can he be when he dresses like that? Any guy who goes outside in that flashy outfit --even a cape! -- is automatically more interesting than your average stiff, and that mask makes him mysterious. Maybe whatever compels him to dress like a bat and go on about "bat-this" and "bat-that" isn't so different from what drives her own cat obsession. Maybe, if things were a bit different, they could make a connection. In short, for the first time in her life, Catwoman is smitten, and so she's as awkward as a teenager: "how do you court a man, anyway?"

And so at times she flirts with the notion of reforming, and other times wishes for Batman to turn bad, so that barrier between them will fall. Because ultimately however well-matched they may be, they can never be a couple because of who they are. Like that great quote from the 90s cartoon, there's undeniably something between them, but unfortunately it's the law.

So I see it as one of the great unrequited loves of TV (and comics -- there are hints of romance between the characters as far back as Batman #1). It's fun to watch them together because of the dance they do -- you want them to get together but at the same time you don't. And that adds an extra dimension you just don't get with the male rogues.

Of course this only applies to Julie's version. Lee's is a cold-hearted manipulator for whom "romance" and "attraction" are only weapons in her con artist toolkit, and with Eartha, gender is irrelevant.

[robinboyblunderer]

Well said!

[Gleeps, it's Batman]

I always liked the Bat-Cat romance stuff as a kid.

From tonight's MeTV episode, the start of the Cat-Bat dance:

Catwoman: "If we weren't on opposite sides of the law, Batman, I could go for you, in a small way. You're about the only man I've met lately who'd be worthy of me."

Robin: "Holy lovebirds. I think she's sweet on you, Batman."

Catwoman: "The Joker called for a date last Monday. He's fairly attractive, but I can't stand his green hair. And the Penguin's too small for me."

Then Batman tells her she's been hanging around with a bad crowd, and then she says nobody likes a moralizing crimefighter, and she gives them the hot foot to end all hot feet.

TV Land cut out much of this part, along with most of James Brolin's part. I'm glad MeTV aired them.