The Good
Natasha Romanova debuted not only winning the Most Russian Name contest handily, but as a villain cashing in on Cold War fears of America at the time. As the years went on and the character resurfaced as a recurring villain, fans seemed to take a shine to her and she turned over a new leaf, eventually becoming an Avenger and a hero in her own right. But that doesn’t erase all the bad she did nor does it take out what she was and still is: a spy. Or, as this issue points out, a spy who is also a soldier. Nathan Edmonson drops Black Widow in the middle of a kidnapping in Somalia accompanied by the new Howling Commandos (no dapper hats nor mustaches here) and she actually, oddly, seems to be having a fair amount of fun. As much as can be had on a mission like this one, anyway. What she doesn’t know is that Anderson Cooper is running an expose on the Black Widow’s activities away from the Avengers (it doesn’t feel any less weird to type than it likely is to read) and her team is now fully aware of what’s been going on. And S.H.I.E.L.D. now knows that THEY know and on and on. Edmonson started this series off incredibly and has scarcely let up, developing a Romanova who has more life and personality than she’s had in a very, very long time. She has moods, she gets happy, she gets angry, she gets ready to go to work, we’ve seen more of her inner life than perhaps ever before, and it’s turned her into this fleshed-out, real character, and that doesn’t let up here. Seeing her interacting with, and working with, a professional group of soldiers with a sly grin on her face makes perfect sense and is actually kind of amazing to see.
Phil Noto’s output continues to astound as he handles both linework and colors on this issue, as he has for almost all prior ones, and they look fantastic. I always love when he draws a desert environment as his washed-out, beautiful palette perfectly captures the scorching heat and blasting sand perfectly. The way he draws characters faces leaves an absolute ton of space for nuance and subtlety as well, both requirements for a book about a spy whether she be doing spycraft or taking the more direct approach.
The Bad
The backlash to it being revealed that Nat has killed while NOT actively representing or on assignment from the Avengers is a bit puzzling. Wolverine and Steve Rogers have both racked up some pretty impressive body counts over the years, and while Cap was engaged in an active war, and Wolverine’s just killed people, war or no. And they’re not the only ones, the list of Avengers who have taken lives at one point or another might not be terribly long, but it’s not exactly a lonely party to be at. It's understandable on a certain level, but some of them seem to be overreacting as well.
Nat's enjoyment in her work this issue is interesting to see, but it also seems a little disingenuous. Throughout the series, we've seen a lot of her ins-and-outs, we've gotten into her head and under her skin but it's never seemed like she particularly enjoyed killing. Here she grins, she quips, she revels in the violence and it actually makes her a little bit less sympathetic. I get that she's going after "bad" people, but she of all characters should recognize the gray that the world actually exists in.
The Verdict
The end of this issue presents us with quite the cliffhanger and it’s going to turn into another thing that Widow’s going to have to deal with in the wake of being further and further scrutinized by her peers, which is just the WORST timing, isn’t it? As for this issue, the internal consistency might not be 100% there, but it’s still an interesting question to bring up, and the rest of the issue, the part that’s all Natasha all the time, is great as it is, both in terms of building character and establishing the next story arc.