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Cat Claw (comics)
Encyclopedia
Cat Claw is a fictional
comic book
superhero
co-created by Serbia
n artist Branislav Kerac
and writer Svetozar Obradović.
and Svetozar Obradović responded. Their suggestions included Gea, a Red Sonja
-type character, Cyborg, a Terminator
-type character (even though that character did not appear until 1984), and Cat Claw, a female version of Spider-Man
. Kerac pencilled several pages and they were shopped around the Belgrade
inkers, but none accepted the position. Kerac ended up performing both duties. He was busy with his Kobra
comic book, so one of the characters had to be dropped. Bane chose to retain Cat Claw, which allowed him to emulate the work of one of his idols, John Romita
.
The first episode, "Bane Claws", written by Obradović, was very much in the Marvel Comics
style. It even included a cameo
appearance of Peter Parker (on a bench in the park). Carol Connor, an introverted university biology student, was scratched by a cat
which had been used in an experiment. Later that same evening, when she attempted to shut down an experiment in Dr. Baker's lab she was exposed to "Sigma radiation." As a result, Carol found she had developed a cat's agility and claw-like fingernails. She was also superhumanly strong and could see in the dark almost as well as during the day.
At first, Carol just used her powers for her own amusement. However, when she heard her roommate Jenny Jones being attacked outside their apartment building, she (literally) jumped to her defense and drove the attackers off. Carol enjoyed the experience and decided to create a costumed identity. Carol "borrowed" some special fabric, woven from metal, to create her mask
, gloves, and boots from the Gray's Institute. There was insufficient fabric to create a complete costume, so Carol used a black bikini
Jenny had given her (but she had never dared to wear) and fishnet pantyhose
. (The ordinary fabric of the bikini and hose got torn up and had to be replaced after every fight. Later, Carol adopted a black leotard
and black leather
jacket
to replace the bikini.) Kerac stated in a 1991 interview: "I tried to imagine what the wet dream of every male pig would look like, and Cat Claw was the answer."
Cat Claw went on to battle ordinary criminals and her own Rogues Gallery
: Xtremity (aka Renate Roseblood), Berthold Schwartenberger (aka Catminator and, later, Grgur the monster), Dr. Sigismund Morse (Grgur's creator), Dr. Bruce Baker (who also turns into a monster), Ninja Deathbringer, and the Helloweeners.
In the late 1980s, Malibu Comics
's imprint Eternity Comics
republished 9 issues of Cat Claw's adventures. Cat Claw was also translated and published in France
, Netherlands
, Sweden
, Norway
, Turkey
and some other countries.
In 2006 Cat Claw was published in hardcover albums as "Cat Claw Ultimate Collection".
heavy metal
band GeroMetal
in which Kerac played the drums. Cover art was designed by Kerac and featured Cat Claw.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
co-created by Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
n artist Branislav Kerac
Branislav Kerac
Branislav "Bane" Kerac is a popular Serbian comic book creator, known best for his series Cat Claw. He was a drummer for the heavy metal bandGeroMetal.-External links:**...
and writer Svetozar Obradović.
History
The publisher Dečje Novine and editor Sibin Slavković, called for comic strips that would resemble American superheroes for their magazine YU Strip. Of the creators solicited, only Branislav KeracBranislav Kerac
Branislav "Bane" Kerac is a popular Serbian comic book creator, known best for his series Cat Claw. He was a drummer for the heavy metal bandGeroMetal.-External links:**...
and Svetozar Obradović responded. Their suggestions included Gea, a Red Sonja
Red Sonja
Red Sonja, the She-Devil with a Sword, is a fictional character, a high fantasy sword and sorcery heroine created by Roy Thomas and Barry Windsor-Smith, and loosely based on Red Sonya of Rogatino in Robert E. Howard's 1934 short story "The Shadow of the Vulture"...
-type character, Cyborg, a Terminator
Terminator (character concept)
In the Terminator film series, a terminator is an autonomous robot, typically humanoid, originally conceived as a virtually indestructible soldier and assassin, as well as an infiltrator....
-type character (even though that character did not appear until 1984), and Cat Claw, a female version of Spider-Man
Spider-Man
Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...
. Kerac pencilled several pages and they were shopped around the Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
inkers, but none accepted the position. Kerac ended up performing both duties. He was busy with his Kobra
Kobra (comic book)
Kobra was a Serbian comic book series from 1979, about a young stunt man who possessed extraordinary martial arts abilities, and his adventures around the world. The comic was created by Branislav Kerac....
comic book, so one of the characters had to be dropped. Bane chose to retain Cat Claw, which allowed him to emulate the work of one of his idols, John Romita
John Romita
John Romita may refer to:*John Romita, Sr., comic book artist best known for his art on The Amazing Spider-Man for Marvel Comics in the 1960s...
.
The first episode, "Bane Claws", written by Obradović, was very much in the Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
style. It even included a cameo
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
appearance of Peter Parker (on a bench in the park). Carol Connor, an introverted university biology student, was scratched by a cat
Cat
The cat , also known as the domestic cat or housecat to distinguish it from other felids and felines, is a small, usually furry, domesticated, carnivorous mammal that is valued by humans for its companionship and for its ability to hunt vermin and household pests...
which had been used in an experiment. Later that same evening, when she attempted to shut down an experiment in Dr. Baker's lab she was exposed to "Sigma radiation." As a result, Carol found she had developed a cat's agility and claw-like fingernails. She was also superhumanly strong and could see in the dark almost as well as during the day.
At first, Carol just used her powers for her own amusement. However, when she heard her roommate Jenny Jones being attacked outside their apartment building, she (literally) jumped to her defense and drove the attackers off. Carol enjoyed the experience and decided to create a costumed identity. Carol "borrowed" some special fabric, woven from metal, to create her mask
Mask
A mask is an article normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance or entertainment. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and practical purposes...
, gloves, and boots from the Gray's Institute. There was insufficient fabric to create a complete costume, so Carol used a black bikini
Bikini
The bikini is typically a women's two-piece swimsuit. One part of the attire covers the breasts and the other part covers the crotch and part of or the entire buttocks, leaving an uncovered area between the two. Merriam–Webster describes the bikini as "a woman's scanty two-piece bathing suit" or "a...
Jenny had given her (but she had never dared to wear) and fishnet pantyhose
Pantyhose
Pantyhose are sheer, close-fitting legwear, covering the wearer's body from the waist to the feet. Mostly considered to be a woman's and girl's garment, pantyhose appeared in the 1960s, and they provided a convenient alternative to stockings...
. (The ordinary fabric of the bikini and hose got torn up and had to be replaced after every fight. Later, Carol adopted a black leotard
Leotard
A leotard is a skin-tight one-piece garment that covers the torso but leaves the legs free. It was made famous by the French acrobatic performer Jules Léotard ....
and black leather
Leather
Leather is a durable and flexible material created via the tanning of putrescible animal rawhide and skin, primarily cattlehide. It can be produced through different manufacturing processes, ranging from cottage industry to heavy industry.-Forms:...
jacket
Jacket
A jacket is a hip- or waist-length garment for the upper body. A jacket typically has sleeves, and fastens in the front. A jacket is generally lighter, tighter-fitting, and less insulating than a coat, which is outerwear...
to replace the bikini.) Kerac stated in a 1991 interview: "I tried to imagine what the wet dream of every male pig would look like, and Cat Claw was the answer."
Cat Claw went on to battle ordinary criminals and her own Rogues Gallery
Rogues gallery
A rogues gallery is a police collection of pictures or photographs of criminals and suspects kept for identification purposes...
: Xtremity (aka Renate Roseblood), Berthold Schwartenberger (aka Catminator and, later, Grgur the monster), Dr. Sigismund Morse (Grgur's creator), Dr. Bruce Baker (who also turns into a monster), Ninja Deathbringer, and the Helloweeners.
In the late 1980s, Malibu Comics
Malibu Comics
Malibu Comics was an American comic book publisher active in the late 1980s and early 1990s, best known for its Ultraverse line of superhero titles. The company's headquarters was in Calabasas, California. Malibu imprints included Aircel Comics and Eternity Comics...
's imprint Eternity Comics
Eternity Comics
Eternity Comics was a California-based comic book publisher active from 1986 to 1994, first as an independent publisher, then as an imprint of Malibu Comics. Eternity published creator-owned comics of an offbeat, independent flavor, as well as some licensed properties...
republished 9 issues of Cat Claw's adventures. Cat Claw was also translated and published in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
and some other countries.
In 2006 Cat Claw was published in hardcover albums as "Cat Claw Ultimate Collection".
TV Movie
As part of a TV program about Bane Kerac in 1991, a live-action movie of Cat Claw, City Cat, starred actress Danielle Peyich as Carol and Bane himself as policeman Cameron Hill.Other media
Cat Claw was a name of a 1996 album by Novi SadNovi Sad
Novi Sad is the capital of the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, and the administrative centre of the South Bačka District. The city is located in the southern part of Pannonian Plain on the Danube river....
heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
band GeroMetal
GeroMetal
GeroMetal was a Serbian heavy metal band from Novi Sad.-Band history:The band was formed by a former Griva member Josip Sabo and a well-known comic book artist Bane Kerac . The band started their activity in 1992, when Sabo and Kerac were joined by a former Albatorosi member Predrag "Peđa" Moldvaji...
in which Kerac played the drums. Cover art was designed by Kerac and featured Cat Claw.