WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Catwoman #32 by Ram V, Evan Cagle, Jordie Bellaire & Tom Napolitano, on sale now
Selina Kyle is one of the most dangerous women in Gotham City, which is saying something considering the pedigree of the criminals in the city. Catwoman has taken down plenty of threats over the years with a mix of street-smarts, sly skills, and a ruthless willingness to go for the throat when she needs to. B
ut DC has been teasing one of the people who truly granted her those skills in the first place -- potentially hinting at a return for Mama Fortuna, the underground crime-lord who once served as Catwoman's mentor.
Catwoman #32 briefly digs into the history of Catwoman from various perspectives -- including Shoes, Selina's newest pupil (and secretly Lian Harper, daughter of Red Arrow and Cheshire). Confronted by the Gotham Police, Shoes ends up revealing a story she'd heard about Selina when she was a child. Living on the streets of Gotham, Selina ended up finding herself as an unexpectedly chief member of a job for Mama Fortuna. With the GCPD trying to bring down Fortuna's Alleytown gang known as the Strays, the group was forced to move merchandise through the sewers under the roads.
When the cops arrive during one job though, half of the gang are arrested. The others are forced into the sewers, without any genuine map to the labyrinth-like maze. Quickly the group bickers between themselves and fights almost break out upon their realization they've become lost. But a scrappy young girl revealed she knew the way. Selina successfully brings the group and their supplies to Mama Fortuna, impressing the woman. Selina even explained how she'd memorized the map and even scouted the tunnels ahead of the job to make sure she wouldn't forget. This further impresses Mama Fortuna, with the story ending with a young Selina sharing her name with the classic crimelord.
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Mama Fortuna hasn't had many appearances but is quietly a crucial figure in the life of Catwoman. In the Post-Crisis DC Universe, Moma Fortuna was introduced in Catwoman #12 by Ed Brubaker and Cameron Stewart. When she was thirteen and living on the streets, Selina was taken in by fellow street thief Sylvia to meet Mama Fortuna. Fortuna taught Selina many of her skills as a thief, but kept much of the funds to herself. Eventually, Selina and Sylvia ran away from her and set out on their own -- eventually drifting apart themselves. Recently, Selina has been becoming a more restrained and kind-hearted answer to Mama Fortuna, turning into the head of the Alleytown Strays but providing them genuine mentorship and assistance.
This could be teasing the return of Mama Fortuna, whose Post-Crisis incarnation was confirmed to have died off-panel. Selina has mentioned Mama Fortuna in the current run, trying to build her own criminal reputation in Alleytown and using Mama Fortuna's lessons to help set up her own empire.