Creative Staff:
Story: Nathan Edmondson
Art: Phil Noto
What They Say:
She’s the kind of woman you call when you need to escape from a South American prison. Don’t miss the book everyone is talking about (and it isn’t even out yet!)
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Starting off the series with some standalone tales that takes us through the kinds of jobs Natasha does on her own time in order to pay for various things has been a mixed move, though one for the best in the end I think. Each installment has show us different locations and types of jobs and how she deals with the knowns and unknowns along the way. It’s also served to get us into her head a bit without any other name characters around outside of Isaiah, and that’s helped to reinforce it as her book, her story and who she is. But at the same time, it’s given us a very bleak and almost lifeless and empty character that’s not truly living, or at least admitting that she could live. She notes at one point in this issue that there are other spies who have had families and lives outside the job, but they rarely live long. So her path is understandable.
This installment has Natasha heading off to Argentina where she’s been tasked with the job of breaking out a man named Angelo, who has been imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit. The prison break aspect is good because we see how she does it without killing anyone since that’s not always her modus operandi, and especially because Angelo hadn’t killed anyone. The escape into the jungle is well handled as is dealing with those that follow them, making for a simple but effective chase sequence with her narration about how she handles things and the approach in general. Naturally, there’s a twist that comes into play with what she has to deal with, since the clients that are paying her to get him out lied about who he was. And with her intent on not adding more violence and mayhem to the world, that means she has another job that goes south on her, but leaves her (and Isaiah) feeling right about what they do.
As much fun as it is, I do like that some of the narrative and bookend aspects to this issue involves Natasha’s lack of a real home, since she’s of the mind that wherever she is, that’s home. The apartment, the jungle, the helicopter, all of it is home for the moment that she’s there. But we also know that she has to put down some roots somewhere, and that comes up at her apartment a bit, first with the cat we’ve had since the start, and in dealing with her neighbor who has an abusive husband. That’s a moment of her doing right, but also getting a bit territorial about what happens where she lives and what she tolerates. It’s a decent bit, especially since it involves her taking a short detour before her next mission that comes up towards the end here as Director Hill from SHIELD is ready to bring her in for some work again.
In Summary:
Black Widow has another solid issue here that further establishes who Natasha is at this stage while also starting to open her up a little more to actually living. That’s critical to making her an engaging character because without her being a bit more accessible, it’s hard to really connect with her and want to know more of her. The action component to the book is solid, both in the narration and the artwork that gives it a distinct feeling separate from traditional superhero books, and the more human side is fleshing things out slowly but surely, making me want more. While it may not be totally in character, there’s the desire to have Natasha really make some good friends and have one of those hanging out nights as an entire issue just to see her with her hair completely down.
Grade: B
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Marvel Comics via ComiXology
Release Date: February 5th, 2014
MSRP: $3.99