Black Widow #3 Review
Reviewer: Craig Reade
Quick Rating: Above Average
Black Widow confronts Elektra, then tries to discover who attacked her and why.
Writer: Marjorie Liu
Art: Daniel Acuña
Letters: Nake Piekos
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Black Widow faces off with Elektra, who wants to know if the rumors about her are true, and if Natasha has indeed gone rogue. The two have a typical ‘tense hero spar,’ after which Elektra decides to give Natasha a little more rope.
OK, that part seemed like fluff – something just to be able to say “Black Widow vs. Elektra!” – but at least it made sense.
The rest of the issue follows Natasha as she tries to recover from her wounds, and track down the source of the mysterious black rose… an item she fully knows the significance of, but has no idea why it has been left. Her investigation leads her to the son of a man she once worked with, and the possible identity of her tormentor – “Sumi” – an obvious pseudonym, but she quickly gets the chance to ask him herself who he is and what he wants. On the whole, this was a surprisingly decent issue. Liu writes a very strong Black Widow – fierce, cocky, independent, and calculating. Too many writers focus on the “hot Russian” and kind of gloss over the elements that would make her an effective agent, but Liu goes after those exclusively. This results in a protagonist that you actually care about a little. You are frustrated by her secrecy, impressed with her gravitas, and concerned for her well being, all at the same time. This issue was a far cry from Liu’s work on the last Dark Wolverine issue – the two are night and day.
Acuña’s art is fantastic. He handles action scenes phenomenally, and each of the characters have very distinct looks. You can tell the difference between the all-out brawl and the end of the issue, and the restrained, testing combat between Elektra and Black Widow at the beginning. Not only do the characters look different, but they appear natural. His work isn’t photo-realistic by any stretch, but the characters look far more believable. They emote, they appear strong or exhausted or nervous as needed, and aren’t just rippling images of perfection standing or moving effortlessly through the entire issue. Good stuff.
Some of Marvel’s greatest books in the past decade or so have centered on character. I am not saying Liu’s Black Widow is there – but it may well be on its way to it. This is the most interesting I have found Black Widow to be in a very long time. That’s a great development.
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