Hellcat: Devil On My Shoulder

Hellcat (2023) #1-5

by Christopher Cantwell, Alex Lins (Illustrator)

Hellcat is back! Patsy is living in San Francisco - in a house haunted by the ghost of her mother. But when someone close to her best frenemy Hedy is murdered, Hellcat is the prime suspect! Patsy must prove her innocence while evading both the police and the supernatural Sleepwalkers. But how does her demonic ex, Daimon Hellstrom, figure into all of this?! As Patsy's investigation continues, she uncovers even more bizarre layers to the crime - and a far greater evil than she could have ever imagined lurking in the shadows! Things are about to go from bad to hellish for Hellcat - literally! With her very humanity at stake, can Patsy overcome the powers of darkness that have been unleashed? Collecting IRON MAN/HELLCAT ANNUAL #1 and HELLCAT (2023) #1-5.

Genres: Comics, Marvel, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Comics

160 pages, Paperback

Published October 24, 2023

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 1 out of 5]

"Oooookay, is there a fast-forward button on this thing?" -- Rick Sheridan, a.k.a. Sleepwalker, inadvertently providing my review quote

After the enjoyable two-volume Patsy Walker, A.K.A. Hellcat! series - which did not take itself seriously at all, as it was meant to be (and often was) upbeat and breezy fun - as well as cameo appearances with best friend She-Hulk on her titles, this latest incarnation of the devilishly feline super-heroine swiftly turned out to be one hell of an ugly and confusing mishmash. While the brief opening adventure and its accompanying illustrations were okay - notably, it was from a separate Iron Man / Hellcat team-up - things quickly went to hell in a hand basket (yes, I couldn't wait to use that phrase) resulting in a talky mess of a violently gloomy plot. Where the devil is the fun in THAT?

[Robert · Rating 2 out of 5]

I guess this intersects to an extent with the same writer's Iron Man comics*?

In any case, I am no fan of when Marvel goes all fire and brimstone with ludicrous characters like Daimon Hellstrom, Blackheart and their ilk so this one really wasn't for me in the end. The only positive note I've got is that I like that the artist and editorial stuck with Patsy having heavy facial bandaging following her violent altercations, it was (perhaps the only) welcome touch of realism throughout.

* Which I also did not care for one jot, to be honest.

[London Heady · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved most of it. I feel like the last issue could have definitely been expanded upon, and I do think it's another case of a great concept with diminishing returns. But, it has Sleepwalker in it, so five billion bonus points.

Really interested in more Hellcat, so a decent introduction as well. Mysterious, strange, and relatively compelling throughout the whole run. Just wish Marvel would stop doing five issue runs for things that need more.

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I only really know Patsy Walker from when she crossed over into the Iron Man series, so this collection of deep cuts from her past caught me off guard at first. But Christopher Cantwell does a good job of introducing Patsy's weird history, then playing with it in an intriguing way that doesn't require me to recall some single issue from 1996.

Devil on My Shoulder is ostensibly a murder mystery, but it's also a character deconstruction of Patsy Walker/Hellcat as she figures out what makes her tick (dead mom? past boyfriends? leftover demonic juices?). The mystery bits tug the plot along and require Patsy to interact with numerous other C-list heroes and villains, particularly of Hell-based flavor. Not a part of the Marvel universe I'm familiar with, so it was neat to get a glimpse of all that.

The art is kind of clunky, but mostly fits the DIY vibes of the story. Devil on My Shoulder is a one-and-done, but I wouldn't mind reading more about Hellcat in the future, particularly if it's ambitious like this volume.

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hellcat is a character that I've been rooting for for the past forty years or so. She got her costume from an earlier character who is a sentimental favorite of mine, and she was a longtime member of the Defenders, Marvel's "offbeat" superhero group. She's mostly been poorly defined, pulled one way and another by various writers. Nowadays she's mainly a lighthearted sidekick for She-Hulk, which... it's fine. Christopher Cantwell is bringing a more serious, supernatural take to the character, while still honoring her history and keeping some of the wacky details the Defenders were known for. It's a great idea, but it doesn't work at all.

[Craig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Surprised by some of the negative comments here. I thought this was excellent all-around (well, maybe some of the art could use a second glance). Cantwell follows Patsy Walker after her time in his Iron-Man arc and we get to see some more of what makes her her. Story jumps around in time and has visitations from some of Marvel's demonic characters, like Blackheart and Daimon Hellstrom, as it takes a look at what might really be hiding, deep down, underneath the façade of America's favorite high school sweetheart (apparently, Patsy's mother made a fortune telling fictionalized accounts of her daughter's escapades). This is structured as a murder mystery, but it's really more of a character deconstruction and it really works well. I can't really say Patsy Walker, aka Hellcat, has ever really been on my radar before, other than her presence in the Jessica Jones series on Netflix and her presence as a love interest in Cantwell's Iron Man run. But Cantwell does an excellent job of creating a three-dimensional character here that it's easy to care about. Hopefully, she won't just disappear into the background of other series/characters. The art is unique, a bit messy but certainly distinctive. I wish it was a little less sketchy, but that's really my only criticism.

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chris Cantwell finishes off his Hellcat character study that began as part of his Iron Man run, throwing poor Patsy into a supernatural murder mystery that brings in her oldest enemies (Hedy Wolfe, you evil cow), and some of her best friends (Hedy Wolfe, you evil cow).

Cantwell's very good at deconstructing characters and building them back up, and he does that in spades here for poor Patsy, literally dragging her mind and body to Hell and back, which isn't a new experience for her, but it's definitely a new one for the reader. The murder mystery almost becomes inconsequential by the time the book concludes, because it's Patsy's revelations that are far more interesting than who killed Potential Boyfriend #424.

Alex Lins handles the art, and it's solid, though I wouldn't say it's anything to write home about overall. I do think his contributions to other books like New Mutants felt more distinctive though.

If you followed Cantwell's Iron Man, you'll find the resolution to Patsy's story here, as well as the beginning of a new one.

[Bryan Grob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hellcat is a fascinating character who swings wildly from light camp to grim darkness depending on who is telling the tale. Having fallen in love with Patsy Walker AKA Hellcat, I found her appearance in Iron Man confusing.

Having read her back catalogue and this run it makes far more sense to me. This series puts her wild swings as part of her character. She's a light character haunted by trauma. The theme of this story is that she'll always be both because that's always been her life.

Cantwell said in interviews he wanted to make the "Definitive" take, and I'm not sure he managed it except perhaps to say that she'll never be completely nailed down.

[Subham · Rating 1 out of 5]

This comic was absolute garbage, I am not even kidding don't even read it and I don't usually give negative reviews and this is such a rarity but man its so bad.. The story bounces between being a murder mystery to horror based and connecting to Patsy's weird past of demons but also switches to the man being murdered being her recent love interest and something with her other friend while she was adolescence and all.. its all over the place.. the writer wants to think he is smart, he isn't. This comic was an absolute travesty and a waste of time, please skip it for your own sanity.

[Danielle Zimmerman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Justice for Patsy Walker. Truly. I don’t understand why she’s subject to such constant torture porn. Cantwell had such interesting storylines for her in his Iron Man run and a fascinating starting point in the Iron Man/Hellcat annual, and then THIS is what he comes up with?

I think there are some ideas in here that are really intriguing. But there’s more to Patsy than this. Her solo series back in ~2015 is proof. This? This is just torture porn once again.

Patsy Walker is one of my favorite Marvel characters and she just continues to get done dirty, both on page and on screen.

2.5 ⭐️

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Solid, if typical, mini-series. Our heroine has a crisis that she needs to overcome and ends up slightly different but less interesting. Essentially what Marvel do to a lot of b, c and d list characters. This story is told well enough, Cantwell leans heavily on Hellcat's past and has clearly done his research on the character. The art matches the story well enough.

The reason I bought this - Sleepwalker is in it. He is one of Marvel's coolest looking character's with an interesting and different enough powerset and 'mission'.

[Erik J · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've always loved Hellcat. She has a great look, a fun blend of the old romance comics brought into the superhero world, interesting connections to various characters, and a certain whimsy that's missing in a lot of other characters.

That being said ... this title was dark. It was great seeing how her entire continuity was addressed in some unique ways.

Overall - 4/5

[Dean · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can tell Cantwell really likes these characters nthe passion is there in the writing.
The story wasn't for me, but the characters are great. Only one of the few times I've read Sleepwalker and I don't care for them.
Art was nice.

[Sem · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not Cantwell's best due to a pretty non-compelling mystery, but I really love the continuous exploration of who Patsy really is and how she can be her own person when there is a much more famous version of her that never really existed.

[Rahul Nadella · Rating 1 out of 5]

Disappointing, despite a fairly good plot, the constant time jumps and the not so great artwork ruined it. If there is another series, can we have a return to the happy-go-lucky Hellcat and some decent artwork.

[Cameron H · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good! The art is fantastic, the story is cool, and then you add in Sleepwalker? C’mon!

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

drags in places wheres the backstory with sleepwalker come from

[Christine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring with erratic storytelling.

[Brett · Rating 3 out of 5]

After the fun of Patsy Walker A.K.A. Hellcat, this one is a bit of a come-down. However, I do still have a soft spot for the character from her Avengers/Defenders years.

[Eris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good, Bad Who's to say ?
I Love HELLCAT.
Periodddddd !!!!

[Kenny Stevenson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading for research

[David Guimont · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was quite good, an interesting character study that played around with Patsy's comic book past and relatable meditations on goodness and how people can be more than one thing.