Web of Black Widow #3 // Review

Natasha Romanov is the Black Widow, but she isn’t the only one. Others have been given the name by the top-secret program that developed her skills. If Natasha is going to learn anything, she has to track another widow down to aid in her quest. The shadowy journey continues in the third issue of Web of the Black Widow. Writer Jody Houser walks a delicate path with Natasha in another issue drawn by Stephen Mooney. Color comes to the page courtesy of Triona Farrell. The third issue begins to bring things closer together in a story that’s felt relatively scattered to this point. 

Yelena Belova doesn’t have the same instant name recognition that has been granted Natasha Romanov, but she’s a Black Widow too. They both trained in the sad Red Room program. Romanov contacts Belova to request her aid as she dives into further shadowy mysteries of her past. The project involves breaking into a highly secure facility. There’s going to be some danger. There are going to be assets that will undoubtedly lead to other questions in Natasha’s search for clarity in her past. 

Houser’s decision to place Natasha in contrast to another woman from the same program proves to be a refreshingly interesting one. Natasha is the legendary Avenger who has faced world-threatening adversaries, but what distinguishes her from someone with the exact same skills who hasn’t had the same workload? Answers are revealed in a story which dives into the past of Marvel’s ever-fascinating red-headed super-spy. The actual action and pacing are far from perfect. A longer period of interaction between the two Black Widows prior to the mission would have provided a more significant contextual background for their relationship, which would have made the whole adventure that much more enjoyable. Still, Houser has kind of a lot of ground to cover here, and this issue is but one more piece of a larger puzzle that’s playing through the series.

Mooney’s art is as murky and shadowy as ever. Heavy inking shades over everything as action and drama play out beneath thick layers of ink. It’s appropriately moody, but it lacks the clean precision that would amplify the mysterious superhuman abilities of hyper-efficient super spies rolling into a high-security facility. The action and the drama have a unique power to them, but they lack the kind of punch that a cleaner style would lend the issue. As it is, Farrel’s colors add splashes of vivid visual reality in and around the action, but this is an issue drenched mostly in shadow.

Natasha’s background continues to emerge in an issue the brings her one step closer to her next big resolution. The art and story mix in a pleasant duet that makes for good reading without making an incredibly large effect. Like any god super spy, the issue goes in, does what it sets out to do, and vanishes before any significant impact is felt. This could prove to be an interesting approach if it continues as the series reaches its climax. 

Grade: B

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