Patsy Walker is one such character. She has a long history with Marvel - allow me to quote my summary from a review in 2008 (it's rerun season) with some minor updates:
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Patsy started her comic book career as the title character in a teen comic, styled in the vein of of Archie Comics. She and her pal Hedy even made a cameo appearance in Fantastic Four Annual #3, wherein Reed and Sue were married.
She reappeared in, of all places, the short-lived series that starred the newly-furry former X-Man, The Beast. She followed him into The Avengers, where she took ownership of The Cat's costume and renamed herself Hellcat (which seems odd, since she's such a good girl that you wouldn't expect her to say the word "hell." This is the hero who says "Jeepers," after all).
From there she eventually made her way into The Defenders, and after that it all gets kind of fuzzy, but I believe she married the Son of Satan (never a good career move) and was eventually killed. Silly, I know.
Thankfully, Kurt Busiek cashed in some reincarnation chips and Patsy was reborn as her flighty, fun-loving old self. She's made some guest appearances and was featured in a few mini-series over the years, and she guest-starred in other books, including the recent She-Hulk title.
Which brings us (more or less) up to date.
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Now Patsy has her own title, an all-ages book that's - well, the word "different" springs to mind.
She loses her job working as an investigator for She-Hulk's law firm, she makes a new friend, runs into an old friend, makes a shocking discovery and makes a surprising plan for her future.
This is an all-ages comic (though it feels more like a teen comic) - it's very much in the style of DC's Batgirl, with expressive art, lots of humor and an upbeat, fast-paced feel to it.
It's not exactly aimed at a geezer like me, but it's fun and it's great to see a "lighter" title lining up against all the grim competition.
I also like that the series is tying together the character's history and cast. There's a lot of potential here, and I hope this will bring Hellcat into the forefront of the Marvel Universe.
We'll see!
Grade: B
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