A super-spy glides through one violent confrontation to find herself immersed in a million fiendishly subtler ones in another cleverly-written issue of the Black Widow mini-series. Jen and Sylvia Soska smartly string together a web of interpersonal conflicts at a large party filled with scum and villainy in an issue drawn by Flaviano with color by Veronica Gandini. Black Widow’s numerous talents cascade through a chapter that mixes intrigue with super-villainy in crisp movement across the panels.

People all over the world are receiving alerts to a surprise broadcast of a “No Restrictions Play” session. In the past, this has meant high-paying clients are allowed to watch live shows of online snuff films. Black Widow and her associates are on the trail of those responsible. Having swiftly defeated Madame Masque, the Widow slides into her outfit to infiltrate a party being held by the NRP organizer. She’s forced to tiptoe around the likes of Baron Zemo, Sabertooth, and Taskmaster while investigating. A wrong move around any of them could blow her cover and make uncovering the NRP operation very, very difficult in a taut, little chapter in the life of the red-headed master of espionage.

Jen and Sylvia Soska have a razor-sharp understanding of tension with a sophisticated ensemble. Each of the villains she encounters in the issue has a particular talent that she must be very deft to try to avoid. Far from being a dull slugfest, this issue isn’t a visually static drama either. The Soskas find a way to move the action along in a visually appealing direction that maximizes the impact of Black Widow’s unique talents. Writers so rarely manage this level of playful sophistication with espionage stories set in a world of superheroes. It’s a refreshing fusion of genres.

Flaviano proves to be almost as versatile as Black Widow herself. The physical action of the altercation with Madam Masque at the beginning of the issue is brought to the page with fast kinetics. Just a few pages later, Flaviano manages a remarkably tense dramatic moment between two wooden figures as the skeletal-faced Taskmaster confronts Black Widow in the golden mask of her fallen foe. Emotions play out over the masks without betraying their rigidity and lack of expression. Flaviano is as good in a one-on-one encounter as he is with the more massive crowd scenes, which have an expansiveness about them even in very narrow panels. Gandini balances garish color against muted, darkened tones in and around the often heavy shadow of Flaviano’s inks. Black Widow’s internal monologue asserts itself in white against the black background of red-bordered caption boxes that give the feeling of calm emotional precision in the face of danger.

There’s no question that the Soskas have a very definite plot for the series with a clear progression. There’s an end coming. It’s undeniable. Too bad it can’t keep going after the end of this story.  The Soskas have a very sophisticated grasp of what makes Black Widow such an interesting character.

Grade: A