The views of this article are the perspective of the author and may not be reflective of Confessions of the Professions.
Catwoman Costume Comparison
Catwoman is by far one of the most recognizable female characters alongside Batman. She could even be the most iconic DC Comics superhero (or villain).
Since the character was first introduced in the 1940s, Catwoman has always had a particular look that’s defined by her feline personality traits and physicality. Cat ears feature in every costume and she almost always wears a set of black leather boots to match her kick-ass mentality.
But over the many decades that she has featured in TV shows, movies, comic books and games, her costume has varied in a few different ways.
Cat claws have featured as a weapon and a visual accessory in most versions of Catwoman except the first costume seen in a comic and the most recent Selina Kyle character in the TV show, Gotham.
The original outfit appearing in the comics was also the only version that wore a cape. Maybe this was because all the different filmmakers of each Batman movie wanted to exclusively have the heroes wear a cape. Catwoman wasn’t always fighting for the good guys after all.
Everyone knows that cats see exceptionally well in the dark and it’s the same for Catwoman. She only recently had infrared night vision goggles in modern Catwoman iterations though. In earlier forms, Catwoman was just disguised by a small mask over her eyes of or a full-faced mask.
But one thing that was always hanging off the side of Catwoman’s hip was a trusty whip. This was either a bullwhip or a cat-o-nine tails.
See how else each version of Catwoman compares in the infographic below.
Click to open / Right-click for save options
Text-Friendly Version
CAT WOMAN COSTUME COMPARISON
CATWOMAN STARTED OFF AS A HUMBLE CAT BURGLAR AND A FOE OF BATMAN. SHE HAS NOW BECOME AN INTEGRAL CHARACTER OF THE DC COMICS UNIVERSE, APPEARING IN FILMS, TV SERIES, AND VIDEO GAMES, BUT EVERY ITERATION COMES WITH A SUBTLE DIFFERENCE. SEE HOW EACH OF THE NINE LIVES THIS FELINE CHARACTER HAS LIVED BELOW.
1940s-1980s
MEDIUM: COMIC
FACT: SHE WAS REFERRED TO AS THE CAT AND WAS THE FIRST COSTUMED VERSION.
1966
MEDIUM: TV
FACT: JULIE NEWMAR, EARTHA KITT, AND LEE MERIWETHER ALL ACTED IN SIMILAR COSTUMES
1992
MEDIUM: FILM (BATMAN RETURNS)
FACT: MICHELLE PFEIFFER PLAYED THIS UNHINGED & VERY CAT-LIKE CHARACTER.
1992
MEDIUM: TV (ANIMATED)
FACT: THIS SERIES WAS KNOWN AS ONE OF THE BEST CARTOONS BASED ON THE COMICS.
1993-1999
MEDIUM: COMIC
FACT: THIS CATWOMAN WAS ARTIST JIM BALENT’S MOST RENOWNED WORK.
2001
MEDIUM: COMIC
FACT: THIS WAS THE FIRST HEROIC CATWOMAN, WHO WENT OUT OF HER WAY TO MAKE FRIENDS.
2011
MEDIUM: GAME (BATMAN: ARKHAM CITY)
FACT: CATWOMAN HAS A UNIQUE ABILITY OF RUNNING BEHIND HER ENEMIES WITHOUT ALERTING THEM.
2012
MEDIUM: FILM (THE DARK KNIGHT RISES)
FACT: ACTOR ANNE HATHAWAY PRACTICED MIXED MARTIAL ARTS DURING SHOOTING – IN HEELS.
2014-CURRENT
MEDIUM: TV (GOTHAM)
FACT: THIS YOUNG SELINA KYLE CHARACTER WAS NOT KNOWN AS CATWOMAN YET.
WHIP: THIS IS CATWOMAN’S WEAPON OF CHOICE. SHE IS AN EXPERT WITH A WHIPE AND PREFERS IT OVER OTHER WEAPONS AS IT CAN’T BE USED AGAINST HER BY AN AMATEUR.
BOLAS: WITHOUT HER FAVOURED WHIP, CATOMWAN WILL TURN TO THROWING HER BOLAS TO ENTANGLE ENEMIES. THE WEIGHTED CORDS MAKE FOR A PERFECT DEFENSIVE APPARATUS.
CLAWS: CAPABLE OF SLASHING THROUGH THE BARREL OF A GUN, THESE GLOVE ATTACHMENTS ARE A TRADEMARK OF CATWOMAN. THE RETRACTABLE METAL CLAWS HELP HER CLIMB AND FIGHT.
GOGGLES: MODERN VERSIONS OF CATWOMAN HAVE FEATURED HER WITH INFRARED GOGGLES. THESE ALLOW HER TO BE EXTRA STEALTHY WHEN STALKING HER ENEMIES BY NIGHT.
![How Nine Different Catwoman Costumes Compare [Infographic]](https://cdn.confessionsoftheprofessions.com/infographics/catwoman-costume-comparison-infographic.jpg)
