Widow Week - Rec List
I'm cross-posting this from Tumblr because Tumblr is a terrible place to archive anything, and it is sometimes easier to make a theme readable/accessible on Dreamwidth or LJ than when visiting someone else's Tumblr. Original post here, and if you're confused see this explanation of Widow Week.
There exist many fabulous recommended reading lists for people interested Natasha Romanova as the Black Widow. You can find a more complete list of appearances at Comicvine, CBDB, or these lists. However, for the third day of Widow Week I’d like to rec you some comics done in my favorite style: the ‘done-in-one’, a story that is complete and fulfilling in less than 25 pages.
When selecting for this rec list I screened for a variety of factors, including Natasha’s role, the dialogue/text, the story itself, the characterization, the things the artist chose to show, and the quality of the art as a craft. The deciding factor was always how much agency the story gave her- which eliminated some otherwise excellent comics, and brought in a few, too.
- Secret Avengers vol. 1 (2010) - #20 - “Encircle” - Written by Warren Ellis, with art by Alex Maleev and colors by Nick Filardi.
The Secret Avengers get into trouble. Natasha uses a time travel device to help, but time travel has Issues and Consequences. Natasha has to be very, very sneaky- which is to say, she has to do everything she’s best at.
There is a good reason why this is one of the most highly recommended Black Widow issues out there. It is gorgeous- Maleev’s work here is interesting and stunning. We see Natasha as both a hero and a person. The story is compelling if complex, the dialogue is snarky, and both are smart. Natasha’s characterization is spot on
It is also just about as accessible for longtime readers and new-to-Marvel fans, because most of the page-space is given not to the Secret Avengers but rather to some one-off characters Natasha encounters. The convoluted plot and non-linear storytelling may require a little extra work from the reader, but it is worth it.
Find it collected in Secret Avengers, Vol. 4: Run the Mission, Don’t Get Seen, Save the World, or at Comixology, or onMarvel Unlimited.
- Marvel Adventures: Super Heroes vol. 2 (2010) - #17 - “Tell No Secrets” - Written by Paul Tobin, art team including Ronan Cliquet, Marcio Takara, Amilcar Pinna and Amilton Santos, colors by Sotocolor (Chris Sotomayer).
Nick Fury needs the Black Widow to bodyguard someone, but won’t say any more. There's humor, adventure, danger, spies, a stubborn damsel, a surprise ending, Black Widow being deadly, Black Widow being smart, Black Widow being snarky, and Black Widow taking crap from nobody- least of all Fury.
This series was one of Marvel’s ‘all-ages’ lines that printed two stories per issue. I'm amazed at what they cram into nine pages, and what they manage to avoid. Natasha is zipped up and never presented sexually- her desirability and sexuality are irrelevant- and she gets to do pretty much everything. Visually, this comic is more ‘unremarkable’ than ‘inspired’, but it works. The story is told clearly and the other characters are identifiable. However, if you are considering this for a kid, be aware that while much of the fighting is classic ‘comic book violence’, the dialogue glosses over some pretty fatal-looking panels, too.
As part of the ‘Marvel Adventures’ line this is outside primary Marvel continuity. The characters are supposed to be slightly more simplified versions of their 616 selves, which makes it an excellent comic for a new reader.
Find it in Marvel Adventures Avengers: United, or on Marvel Unlimited. Also reprinted in Marvel Super-Heroes Magazine #4 (2012).
- Avengers Assemble (2012) - #14.AU - “Age of Ultron” - Written by Al Ewing, pencils by Butch Guice, inks by Tom Palmer Jr., colors by Frank G. D’Armata.
Natasha is visiting San Francisco when Ultron attacks, ending life as we know it, and Natasha is forced to protect and survive.
Natasha is strongly characterized as a 'protector' here, since the story revolves around how she handles (emotionally and practically) the literal end of the world. That involves taking Natasha and about isolating her from everything. There is no snark or humor. There is, however, some really incredible spirit shown on Natasha's part.
Butch Guice has been doing a stunning job drawing the Black Widow for the last twenty-five years. He continues to do so here, but the art is overshadowed (sometimes literally) by the text. Ewing does a powerful internal monologue that hits some oft-forgotten points of Natasha’s core self. (One bit of writing in particular stands out- click here for spoilery spoilers.)
As an Age of Ultron tie-in, this story is every bit as depressing as it sounds, but it does not require any knowledge of the main story, and the ending is satisfying. Natasha’s history in California is referenced but not required reading. Also, to avoid confusion: the events of this story don’t affect later 616-canon after the event.
Find it in the Age of Ultron mega-compendium-thing, or at Comixology, or on Marvel Unlimited.
All the remaining comics come with a few more caveats and disclaimers.
- Avengers: United They Stand (2000) - #5 - ”Taking AIM” - Written by Ty, pencils by Derek, inks by Walden, colored by Joe.
Hawkeye has grown very close with Black Widow, but when something during a fight upsets her she vanishes without a trace. He tracks her down, but sometimes getting what you want isn’t what you hope for.
This rec comes with a lot of qualifiers: The art is very nineties, in a 'watered down for kids' way. The visual content is middling. In reality this is a Hawkeye comic, focusing on him and told from his point of view. Some threads are left dangling. And yet... I really enjoyed this story.
It carefully lampshades a number of tropes and assumptions (women make Hawkeye crazy- lampshaded as everything makes Hawkeye crazy, etc.) It reconciles classic characterization of Natasha with later character development. She gets to be a person, not a prop. Yes, she's a femme fatale, but she has motivations, a heart and reason. She doesn't save the day, but she also orchestrates everything so that in the end, the power was always hers- once she was aware that she had need for it. She's hardly flawless, but she is, perhaps, blameless.
While this story rewards readers who are familiar with various Avengers, being an ‘all-ages’ comic in the Marvel Animated Universe it requires very little prior knowledge. There are some interesting kid-friendly conceits used for drama. Basically, this is the issue I liked despite itself. Maybe it will work for you, too!
All of that, and all I can say about finding it is ‘good luck’. No digital, no trade, and it isn’t really a collectors item, either.
- A + X (2012) - #10 - “Black Widow + Fantomex” - Written by B. Clay Moore, prettified by Kris Anka with James Campbell coloring.
Black Widow is forced to team up with Fantomex in order to save the McGuffin from various characters based on old antagonists.
A + X is a modern 616 ongoing that exists solely to see what happens when you stick two characters together (answer: usually explosions.) So this is a cute little story about the Black Widow fighting to control a thing, and then winning by being tougher/meaner/smarter/badder than everyone else.
Kris Anka’s art here is really on fire. It is modern without being difficult to understand. The visuals make sense, including Natasha being zipped up because she is riding a motorcycle-equivalent through Russia.* It is arty, it is pretty, it is framed to tell a story about superpeople punching each other. Unfortunately I had a harder time with the writing- the bad-guys, who reference a part of Natasha’s past I’m less familiar with, seemed indistinct, and this story definitely didn’t leave her in control of the situation as much as I’d like to see.
Comixology! Also collected in trade as A + X = Amazing (Volume 2).
- Solo Avengers (1987) - #7 - “The Token” - Written by Jackson Guice & Bob Layton Sr., pencils by Jackson Guice, inks by Bob Layton Sr., colors by Paul Beckton.
Natasha tries to return a token to the woman who gave it to her.
This story has been pretty much retconn'ed to be inconsistent with later continuity which has replaced her ballet history. So what? Natasha is fighting, not doing what she's told, and generally acting with cold intellect but from a place of great passion. The entire point of this story is her relationship with a female mentor, and do you know how many of those Natasha has? (Ahem. Not many.) This is Natasha against people, because of people, and not worrying about super-villians.
Jackson Guice’s early work doesn’t entirely resemble his more recent comics, but it is amazing, elegant and strong. He has always had a pretty respectful approach to drawing Natasha, which apparently carried over to co-writing. The simple story belies a meaningful theme.
There’s comic-book violence and a bit of sexism and condescension, but not much else provocative. Solo Avengers was a two-story book, so this is another short story (a quick read!)
Find it collected in Avengers: Solo Avengers Classic volume 1.
And finally, two for the price of one:
- Amazing Adventures vol. 2 (1970)
#1 - “Then Came ... the Black Widow!” - Written by Gary Friedlich, pencils by John Buscema, inks by John Verpoorten.
Madame Natasha grows bored with her life of leisure and decides to help those in need- starting with people she sees everyday.
#5 - “And To All a Good Night” - Written by Roy Thomas, pencils by Gene Colan, inks by Bill Everett.
At Christmas, Ivan brings home a boy with nothing else left in his life. Natasha has to find a way to help when things are more complicated than they appear.
Neither of these are technically ‘one-and-done’, since each starts a four-issue arc, but both stand alone reasonably well. The first does a nice summary of Natasha’s transition into the ‘wealthy costumed adventurer’ type of life. The second is the famous teen suicide Christmas issue. (Yep.) When FuckYeahBlackWidow talks about Natasha’s past as a political character, these and other similar stories are what she’s often referencing. (Actually, for more about these issues you should probably just go read the stuff in her Amazing Adventures tag.)
These have some elements that are handled indelicately, at times, but they also have a lot of heart, and a very independant, emotionally invested Natasha. If anything, they play on the same character points that Avengers Assemble #14.AU and Marvel Adventures Super Heroes #17 play on: The idea that Natasha understands she can’t save everyone, but that’s not going to stop her from saving someone, no matter how hard it may be.
Find them collected in the (possibly out-of-print) Black Widow: The Sting of the Widow
This list is dramatically incomplete, partly because I’m not very widely read, partly because I dismissed a number of stories (Bizarre Adventures #25, Uncanny X-Men #268, Amazing Spider-Man #86, and many others are all good comics featuring the Black Widow- they just didn’t have what I was looking for here), partly because I deliberately avoided comics with ‘Black Widow’ in the title, and partly because of caprice.
Enjoy, and have a happy Black Widow #1 day tomorrow!
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