Black Cat

Publication history

In 1979, creator Marv Wolfman was looking for a female foil for Spider-Woman. He decided to base a character on a Tex Avery cartoon, "Bad Luck Blackie", in which a black cat brought misfortune to anyone in close proximity. The Black Cat's costume and appearance were designed by Dave Cockrum.

When Wolfman changed writing assignments within Marvel Comics to The Amazing Spider-Man, he brought his character with him. He and Cockrum made considerable changes to the character and her appearance over this time; the Black Cat intended to debut in Spider-Woman had only her name and powers in common with the one who finally appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man. On the bottom of the letters page of The Amazing Spider-Man #194 (July 1979), a thumbnail of the intended cover for Spider-Woman #9 (December 1978) appears along with a rejected cover for The Amazing Spider-Man #194. Wolfman said in an interview:I didn't plan Black Cat to be in Spidey. I created her for Spider-Woman (look at the letter column of the first B.C. story and you'll see). I then decided to leave Spider-Woman and moved her over. So, I never even thought of Catwoman when I did her. I got the idea for her from a Tex Avery cartoon, Bad Luck Blackie". Black Cat's first comic book appearance was drawn by Amazing Spider-Man's (at that time) regular penciller Keith Pollard. For her first couple decades the Black Cat was primarily a supporting character, but she starred in the 8-page story "The Crown Jewel Caper" in Marvel Comics Presents #57 (August 1990), written by Dwight Jon Zimmerman and pencilled by Mike Harris. According to Zimmerman, the story did not appear in the issue it was originally scheduled for, and when he asked why it had not been published yet, Marvel Comics Presents's editor Terry Kavanaugh told him that the inker had murdered his wife, in the process spilling blood on the pages he was inking, and consequently the artwork for the story was being held as state's evidence for the murder trial. As was his habit, Zimmerman had saved full-size photocopies of the pencilled pages, so the story was re-inked by Josef Rubenstein and published.

Writer/director Kevin Smith began writing the Spider-Man/Black Cat: The Evil That Men Do miniseries in 2002. After the third issue the series went on a hiatus until 2005, when Smith revealed he had finally finished writing the scripts. Smith has stated, "While I have zero defense for my lateness (particularly when folks like [Brian Michael] Bendis turn out great stories in multiple books on a monthly basis), I will say this: it's a much better story now than it would've been had I completed it back in '02."

Characterization

Fictional character biography

Felicia Hardy grew up believing that her father, world-famous cat burglar Walter Hardy, had died in a plane crash; in truth, her mother, Lydia, concealed from her that he had been imprisoned. As a freshman at Empire State University, Felicia was date raped by her boyfriend, Ryan, and channeled the trauma into martial arts and acrobatics training with the intent of killing him, but he died in a drunk driving accident before she could act on her revenge. Turning to crime in her father's image, Felicia adopted the costumed identity of the Black Cat and broke into a police precinct to plan a jailbreak, freeing the terminally ill Walter so that he could die at home rather than in prison; Walter died shortly afterward, despite Spider-Man's attempts to stop the escape.

Continuing her career as a cat burglar, Felicia developed a fixation on Spider-Man, amassing a collection of romance-themed stolen objects and building a shrine to him in her apartment. When Spider-Man tracked her down, she initially allowed him to believe she was psychologically unstable so that he would have her committed to a mental hospital rather than jail, later revealing the breakdown had been a ruse to facilitate her escape. A romance between the two developed after the Black Cat was critically injured by Doctor Octopus; while she recovered, Spider-Man unmasked himself to her, but Felicia reacted with dismay, telling him to put his mask back on, as she preferred the mystery of Spider-Man to the ordinariness of Peter Parker.

Feeling that her lack of superhuman abilities made her a liability to Spider-Man, Felicia sought out powers of her own and was granted a "bad luck" ability by a mysterious benefactor who turned out to be the Kingpin. When the power began to endanger Spider-Man as well as her enemies, and Felicia proved unwilling to disclose its source, Spider-Man ended their relationship. Doctor Strange later removed the lingering effects from Spider-Man, inadvertently transforming Felicia's bad-luck power into heightened feline physical abilities, including claws and enhanced agility. She subsequently allied with, and then betrayed, the assassin the Foreigner in a scheme against Spider-Man, fleeing to Europe afterward.

Upon returning to New York, Felicia was devastated to learn that Peter had married Mary Jane Watson in her absence. Seeking to make him jealous, she began dating his friend Flash Thompson, only to develop genuine feelings for him; Flash ultimately ended their relationship, revealing that he had known her secret identity all along. During the Civil War, Felicia registered under the Superhuman Registration Act and joined Misty Knight's Heroes for Hire, later aiding the Fearless Defenders. After the Superior Spider-Man treated her as a common criminal, Felicia became the leader of a criminal organization, regaining enhanced bad-luck powers through her association with Mr. Negative before eventually returning to vigilantism.

Powers and abilities

Initially, the Black Cat had no superhuman abilities. Later, a test induced by the Kingpin gave her the psionic ability to affect probability fields; essentially, she could produce "bad luck" for her enemies. The "bad luck" power entails that under stress she is subconsciously able to cause anyone in her immediate vicinity that she perceives as a threat to be susceptible to freak accidents, like guns jamming and exploding, or tripping on objects. This ability also had the side effect of eventually causing problems for anyone spending long periods of time around her.

Doctor Strange eventually tampered with her powers that briefly removed her bad luck abilities, along with the unwanted side effect. However, this magical tampering temporarily endowed her with cat-like abilities, giving her night vision, retractable talons in her fingertips, superhuman speed, strength, agility and endurance, proportionate to a cat. Her psionic "bad luck" powers and former temporary abilities were eventually restored by Doctor Tramma through the use of cybernetics.

The Black Cat has reflexes, agility, and stamina of an Olympic level acrobat. She is physically very strong and athletic and has great physical endurance. She is an excellent street fighter capable of taking on several armed assailants and incapacitating them without being injured herself. She is trained in several martial arts styles, including Judo and Goju Ryu Karate. Hardy is a talented photographer; while dating Spider-Man she takes pictures of the hero that he admits are better than his own work.

Equipment

The Black Cat has also acquired several devices from the Tinkerer that increase her agility and heighten her strength. She wears earrings that interact with the balance centers of her brain to grant her enhanced agility. She has contact lenses that let her see in various ranges of the electromagnetic spectrum, such as infrared and ultraviolet. Her costume contains micro-servos that enhance her strength above normal human levels. The gloves of her costume contain steel micro-filaments, which form retractable claws at the fingertips when she flexes her fingers (triggering a magnetic surge which condenses the filaments into polarized talons) which enable her to tear through most surfaces and easily scale walls. Using this equipment, the Black Cat has been able to beat enemies who have superhuman abilities.

The Black Cat has a miniature grappling hook device hidden in the "fur" of each glove, designed by her father Walter Hardy which enables her to swing from buildings in a manner similar to Spider-Man, though not quite as fast. She can also use the cable from this device as a tightrope, wall scaling device, swing line, or as a weapon in combat.

Cultural impact and legacy

Critical response

Liam McGuire of Screen Rant referred to Black Cat as a "fan-favorite figure in the comics", writing, "The character has become an A-list character in the comics, as her costume, personality, and playfulness - all displayed in the piece - have captured the attention of readers and turned Black Cat into an antihero they are thrilled to see pop up in stories." Elliot Swan of Comic Book Resources called Black Cat "interesting and complex", saying, "She has proven herself as a hero worthy of the chance to develop outside the web of Spider-Man and has developed beyond being a footnote in the life of Marvel's iconic web-slinger. [...] Jed Mackay has been instrumental in igniting a new era of passionate fanfare for Black Cat, and she is very deserving of the acclaim. Felicia Hardy has not only been loyal to Spider-Man, but she continues to be an exciting three-dimensional heroine who shines outside the shadows of her male counterparts." Joseph Baxter of Den of Geek described Black Cat as an "A-list Spider-Man character", stating, "Felicia initially arrived as a formidable-fighter of a thief in the web-thwipping crosshairs of Spidey, having learned the trade from her legendary thief of a father. However, she eventually proved that she possesses a moral fiber, which resulted in Felicia becoming an ally against evil and on-again-off-again romantic interest for Spidey (in a dynamic that one could argue too closely mirrors DC's Batman and Catwoman). Regardless, the character has remained a staple in Spidey's comic book universe." Peyton Hinckle of ComicsVerse referred to Black Cat as "the shining example in comics of an independent woman who can find happiness outside of relationships," asserting, "Thankfully, we somehow, against the odds, have Black Cat, who completely defies those norms. She's a bluntly sexual character who is also hilarious. She doesn't have to be a man to crack a joke about body parts or to banter with Spider-Man about the Green Goblin's latest hair cut. Her willingness to be sexually appealing doesn't mean she can't snort when she laughs. She can be smart, sexy, funny, and creative and still be the same woman."

Deirdre Kaye of Scary Mommy called Black Cat a "role model" and a "truly heroic" female character. Eric Diaz of Nerdist wrote, "Although initially created as a Catwoman-like, sexy cat burglar villain for Spider-Man to fight back in 1979, much like her DC counterpart, Felicia Hardy had a soft spot for the hero she battled the most. Eventually, Felicia got romantically involved with Spidey, and she learned his true identity long before his main squeeze Mary Jane ever did. Over the years, she has had several stories which focused on her and developed her backstory, making her way more than just Marvel's Catwoman." Dana Forsythe of Syfy stated, "Beloved as one of the Marvel Universe's best burglars and foil to the amazing Spider-Man, Felicia Hardy has walked the fine line of anti-hero and villain since she made her debut in Amazing Spider-Man #194." Susana Polo of Polygon stated, "Catwoman predates Black Cat by several decades, and they're both infamous female cat burglars who wear black, skintight costumes. They both have "cat" in their name. And they both enjoy a will-they-won't-they relationship with an urban male superhero — Batman and Spider-Man, respectively — who feels conflicted about dating them because of their illegal activities. But the unlikely truth is that all of those similarities are pure coincidence — or maybe just Felicia Hardy's bad luck to be created second [...] Stories of deliberate ripoffs and open inspiration are so common in the comics world that nobody could be faulted for thinking there was some funny business going on in Black Cat's creation. But what actually happened is even more interesting. Black Cat and Catwoman are a rare, genuine example of convergent evolution."

Literary reception

Volumes

According to Diamond Comic Distributors, Spider-Man/Black Cat: The Evil That Men Do #1 was the 2nd best selling comic book in June 2002. Spider-Man/Black Cat: The Evil That Men Do #1 was the 14th best selling comic book in 2002.

Shawn S. Lealos of Screen Rant ranked the Spider-Man/Black Cat: The Evil That Men Do comic book series 1st in their "10 Must-Read Comics Written By Clerks Creator Kevin Smith" list, writing, "One of the most controversial comic book storylines Kevin Smith ever wrote came with Marvel Comics' series Spider-Man/Black Cat: The Evil That Men Do. The controversy here was part of the Women in Fridges concept, as Smith had someone sexually assault Black Cat as a kickoff for the story. The series attempted to look at how this assault turned Felicia into the woman she became, but the problem is that this was not a series that fans liked reading at the time because it took Smith four years to finish it. The first issue hit in 2002, and he didn't release the sixth and final issue until 2006. Now, fans can pick up the entire series and read it all the way through for one of Smith's more thoughtful comic book stories." Spider-Man and Black Cat find themselves begrudgingly working together again when their cases overlap. But things take a dark turn when Felicia is arrested for the murder of rapist, Garrison Klum: A crime she didn't commit. Facing the death penalty, Peter hires Matt Murdock to act as her lawyer, with the pair dedicated to saving their feline friend. It's not a series for the faint-hearted, as Smith tackles some difficult and disturbing subject matter, revealing the tragic past of not one but two infamous Spider-rogues."

According to Diamond Comic Distributors, Claws #1 was the 60th best selling comic book in August 2006. Claws #2 was the 69th best selling comic book in September 2006. Claws #3 was the 71st best selling comic book in October 2006.

Craig Lines of Den of Geek stated, "The tone of Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray's script, although quite violent, is very much classic romantic adventure, with Wolverine and Black Cat trading flirtatious banter and saucy body language as they splat bad dudes. It's the sort of naughty comedy-action romp that Kevin Smith started and should've finished with his failed The Evil That Men Do mini-series (as opposed to the jumbled, misogynistic angst-fest it became). Whilst not exactly challenging, there are some good laughs and even a touch of suspense. In addition to zippy writing, the artwork is also consistently nice. I liked Joe Linsner's interpretation of the Black Cat costume and, having seen her drawn so atrociously in recent years (come on down, Clayton Crain), Claws scores points on that front alone. On the down side, the mini-series is maybe an issue too short and I personally felt it lost its pace a little in Issue Three with an extended (and utterly unnecessary) flashback sequence, but otherwise, Claws is a sharp little critter and well worth getting your paws on." Kirsten Murray of Comic Book Resources ranked the Claws comic book series 5th in their "10 Greatest Black Cat Stories Ever" list, saying, "An unlikely duo teamed up in three-part miniseries, Claws. Wolverine and the Black Cat find themselves held captive in cages on a mysterious island, confronted by a group of hunters led by someone claiming to be Kraven the Hunter. If the pair make it to a boat waiting to take them to their rescue on the other side of the island, they can go free. However, they have to evade the huntsmen. An action-packed adventure ensues, with Wolverine and Black Cat working together effectively as they dodge bullets, rockets, and even killer robots. Their sharp back-and-forth and willingness to get their hands dirty made this series so popular, it spawned a sequel."

Other versions

Age of Revelation

A possible future version of Black Cat appears in "Age of Revelation". This version was mutated into a cat-like form by the X-Virus, a mutagenic virus created by Revelation.

Earth-194

An alternate universe version of Felicia Hardy from Earth-194 appears in End of the Spider-Verse. This version is a spider-powered heroine called Night-Spider whose abilities are derived from a Delvadian spider idol statue.

House of M

An alternate universe version of Felicia Hardy from Earth-58163 appears in House of M. This version is an assassin who works for the Kingpin before eventually becoming a double agent for the Avengers.

Marvel Adventures Spider-Man

An alternate universe version of Felicia Hardy from Earth-20051 appears in Marvel Adventures Spider-Man, romancing Peter before later joining the Blonde Phantom Detective Agency with Peter's new girlfriend Sophia "Chat" Sanduval.

Marvel Mangaverse

An alternate universe version of Felicia Hardy from Earth-2301 appears in the Marvel Mangaverse continuity. This version is a cyborg who was transformed by the Kingpin, who implanted a failsafe mechanism to kill her if she attempted to leave him.

Marvel Noir

An alternate version of Felicia Hardy appears in the Marvel Noir continuity. This version is the primary love interest of Spider-Man Noir and the owner of "The Black Cat", a speakeasy that caters to the most powerful and corrupt in New York City, who later becomes the White Widow.

Marvel Zombies

A zombified alternate universe version of Felicia Hardy from Earth-2149 appears in Marvel Zombies. Unlike the main continuity version, this Felicia Hardy is depicted as an identical twin, with her sister Felicity Hardy having operated as the costumed adventurer Night Cat (in an identical costume of Felicia's) before the zombie apocalypse begun, surviving the apocalypse and joining Nick Fury's resistance.

MC2

An alternate universe version of Felicia Hardy from Earth-2149 appears in MC2. This version is a detective who was formerly married to Flash Thompson, whose daughter Felicity Hardy (who suspects Spider-Man to be her real father, and in-turn Spider-Girl to be her half-sister) becomes the Scarlet Spider.

Next Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow

An alternate universe version of Felicia Hardy appears in the continuation of the Next Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow continuity featured in Brian Michael Bendis's and John Romita Jr.'s Avengers (vol. 4). This version is Spider-Man's primary love interest, and the mother of their daughter Felicity Hardy / Spider-Girl, who inherited her father's spider-powers and her mother's white hair (cut short), helping the Next Avengers survive Ultron's rule along with Iron Man and Maestro after her parents' deaths, across the split timelines Earth-10943 and Earth-10071.

Secret Wars (2015)

The Cat Lady, a funny animal-themed alternate universe version of Felicia Hardy from Earth-82081, appears in Secret Wars.

Spider-Gwen

An alternate version of Felicia Hardy from Earth-65 appears in Spider-Gwen. This version is a French musician.

Spider-Man: Fairy Tales

An alternate universe version of Felicia appears in Spider-Man: Fairy Tales. This version is a normal cat and Mary Jane Watson's pet.

Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane

An alternate universe version of Felicia Hardy appears in Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane.

Superman/Spider-Man

An alternate universe version of Felicia Hardy from a 1960s-era universe inhabited by the heroes of both the Marvel and DC Universes appears in Superman/Spider-Man. This version is dating Peter Parker at the same time as Mary Jane Watson, with the trio going out on a date together.

Supernaturals

An alternate universe version of Felicia Hardy appears in Supernaturals. This version is a member of a team led by Brother Voodoo with enchanted vocal abilities that allow her to alter the outcomes of events by speaking certain phrases aloud.

Ultimate Marvel

An alternate universe version of Felicia Hardy from Earth-1610 appears in the Ultimate Marvel imprint. This version seeks revenge against Wilson Fisk / Kingpin for killing her father. Additionally, she has brown hair and wears a white wig as part of her costume.

Ultimate Universe

An alternate universe version of Felicia Hardy from Earth-6160 appears in Ultimate Spider-Man (vol. 3). This version is Felicia Hardy Jr., a teenager who possesses black wavy hair. After her father Walter Hardy / Black Cat is injured while fighting the Green Goblin and Spider-Man, he passes the mantle of Black Cat and his place in Wilson Fisk's Sinister Six to her. Felicia would later attempt to seek revenge on Spider-Man for her father, only to encounter and bond with Spider-Man's son Richard Parker, with whom she forms a romance.

What If?

Alternate timeline versions of Felicia Hardy appear in What If?:

In "What if... The Alien Costume had Possessed Spider-Man?", Felicia discovers an alien symbiote that feeds on adrenaline permanently bonded to Spider-Man before killing him to bond with the Hulk. Amidst her efforts to kill him, she receives help from the Kingpin to develop a weapon capable of killing the symbiote in exchange for her working under him. After several heroes defeat the symbiote, Felicia kills it.

In "What If... The Amazing Spider-Man Had Not Married Mary Jane?" and "What If... Spider-Man Married the Black Cat?", Peter Parker rekindles his relationship with Felicia after Mary Jane Watson is injured. However, the pair are unable to live together due to his desire to protect his secret identity. Felicia later inadvertently reveals his identity to an informant and becomes jealous of Parker's continued friendship with Mary Jane before Felicia is killed by Paladin.

In other media

Television

Felicia Hardy / Black Cat appears in the Spider-Man (1981) episode "Curiosity Killed the Spider-Man", voiced by Morgan Lofting.

Felicia Hardy / Black Cat appears in Spider-Man: The Animated Series, voiced by Jennifer Hale. This version was Peter Parker's first love interest before he met Mary Jane Watson, leading to Felicia dating Michael Morbius and later Jason Phillips. Additionally, Felicia comes from a wealthy background as her mother is the head of the lucrative Hardy Foundation while her father, John Hardesky, was tricked by the Nazis into sneaking into an American lab during World War II to memorize the super-soldier formula that created Captain America and report back to the Red Skull. At the last moment, Hardesky realized the deception and ran away to a life of crime. In the present, he was held in a S.H.I.E.L.D. prison before the Kingpin breaks him out. On the Kingpin's behalf, Doctor Octopus kidnaps Felicia as leverage and to use her as a guinea pig for an improved super-soldier formula and introduce her to the father that she never knew. The formula proves a success, enhancing her overall physical prowess and granting her the ability to transform between her normal blonde form and her empowered white haired form at will. Using her new power, she recruits Spider-Man to help her rescue Hardesky and destroy the super-soldier formula. After Morbius turns himself into a vampiric entity, Felicia grapples with her feelings for him while trying to stop him. Along the way, she joins forces with him, Spider-Man, and Blade to stop the Vampire Queen from creating an army of vampires. Following this, Felicia leaves New York to work with Blade and Morbius, though she returns to help Spider-Man defeat Hydro-Man, attend Spider-Man and Watson's wedding, and help him and a group of superheroes combat a group of supervillains assembled by the Beyonder.

A planned TV series based on the character was supposed to be made in 2001 by Marvel Studios and Tribune Entertainment, but never came to fruition.

Felicia Hardy / Black Cat appears in The Spectacular Spider-Man, voiced by Tricia Helfer. This version does not have superpowers. She frequently flirts with Spider-Man until she tries and fails to break her father Walter Hardy out of prison, souring her relationship with Spider-Man.

Felicia Hardy / Black Cat appears in Spider-Man (2017), voiced by Grey DeLisle.

Film

Felicia Hardy / Black Cat appeared in early scripts for Spider-Man 2 as part of a subplot in which she tries to convince Spider-Man to give up being Peter Parker. This idea was to contrast with the other subplot of Peter giving up being Spider-Man. Though she was removed in later scripts, the Black Cat and her subplot are used in the film's tie-in video game. Felicia Hardy was then supposed to appear in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 4 as a secondary love interest of Parker's, though she would not have transformed into the Black Cat, as in the comics. Instead, Raimi's Felicia was expected to become a new super-powered figure called the Vulturess. In March 2013, Raimi stated that Anne Hathaway would have played Black Cat if Spider-Man 4 had been made.

Felicia Hardy appears in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, portrayed by Felicity Jones. This version works for Oscorp as a secretary; after Harry Osborn takes control of the company, he promotes Felicia over members of Norman Osborn's former inner circle. The character was not conceived as a counterpart to any character from the comics, and is not even named Felicia in the film's script; Sony Pictures studio heads had her renamed to Felicia, with the intent of having her become the Black Cat in ultimately unmade sequels.

In March 2017, it was officially reported that Sony Pictures was developing a Black Cat and Silver Sable-centered film with writer Christopher Yost, a project previously revealed following the Sony Pictures hack in 2014. It was intended to be a part of a shared universe called Sony's Spider-Man Universe, which is centered on characters from the Spider-Man mythology and began with the live-action film Venom in 2018. The films were to be more adult-oriented and despite taking place in the "same reality" as the Marvel Cinematic Universe, would not crossover with each other. In May 2017, it was announced that Gina Prince-Bythewood would direct the film, now titled Silver & Black. Production was supposed to begin in March 2018, but has since been delayed "indefinitely". Prince-Bythewood said the cause of the delay was script issues. While the film was initially scheduled to be released on February 8, 2019, Sony removed the release date from their schedule. Production was now slated to begin in 2019. In August 2018, Sony announced that Silver & Black was canceled in favor of having both characters starring in their own feature films. Black Cat was reportedly a re-worked version of the Silver & Black script while the studio were searching for screenwriters for Silver Sable. Prince-Bythewood would have served as a producer on both projects, before both were again cancelled by April 2020.

Video games

Felicia Hardy / Black Cat appears as a playable character in Spider-Man: The Video Game.

Felicia Hardy / Black Cat appears as an assist character in Spider-Man and Venom: Maximum Carnage.

Felicia Hardy / Black Cat appears in Spider-Man (2000), voiced by Jennifer Hale.

Felicia Hardy / Black Cat appears in Spider-Man 2 (2004), voiced by Holly Fields.

Felicia Hardy / Black Cat appears as a playable character in Spider-Man: Friend or Foe, voiced by Audrey Wasilewski. She joins S.H.I.E.L.D. to help stop the P.H.A.N.T.O.M. invasion shortly before Spider-Man was sent to investigate the P.H.A.N.T.O.M.s' presence in Tokyo. There, Spider-Man encounters Black Cat trying to break into Doctor Octopus' lab and persuades her to join his team.

Felicia Hardy / Black Cat appears as a boss and assist character in Spider-Man: Web of Shadows, voiced again by Tricia Helfer in the Microsoft, PlayStation, Wii, and Xbox versions and by Valerie Arem in the Nintendo DS version. After Spider-Man sees her leaving Fisk Tower, he assumes she is working for the Kingpin and gives chase. Following her defeat, Black Cat reveals that she is actually a double agent trying to thwart the Kingpin's illegal activities in an attempt to impress Spider-Man, for whom she still has feelings. The player is then presented with the choice of rejecting or returning her feelings. If the latter choice is made, Spider-Man will work with Black Cat against the Kingpin. Regardless of the choice made, Black Cat will become an ally. Later in the game, amidst a symbiote invasion, Black Cat is infected by one of the creatures and attacks Spider-Man, who defeats her with Mary Jane Watson's help. However, Black Cat is left grievously wounded, forcing Spider-Man to choose between leaving her in Watson's care or infecting her with another symbiote to heal her. If the latter choice is made, Black Cat will become Spider-Man's "queen" in one of the game's two black suit endings, in which he takes over the symbiote army.

In the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable versions of the game, Black Cat is placed under mind control by Spencer Smythe before Spider-Man defeats her and is faced with the choice of either destroying the mind-control device to free her or allowing it to kill her so he can claim the device for himself.

Merchandise

In 2018, Diamond Select Toys released a Felicia Hardy / Black Cat figurine.

In 2022, Hasbro released a Felicia Hardy / Black Cat action figure as part of the Marvel Legends action figure line.

Miscellaneous

Felicia Hardy / Black Cat appears in Spider-Man: The Darkest Hours, by Jim Butcher.

Felicia Hardy / Black Cat appears in the novel Spider-Man and The Incredible Hulk: Rampage, by Danny Fingeroth and Eric Fein.

Felicia Hardy / Black Cat appears in Marvel Universe Live! as a member of the Sinister Six.