COMIC BOOK REVIEW: Black Widow #3 – Espionage and Drama Rolled Into One!
Writer: Nathan Edmondson
Artist: Phil Noto
She might be merciless as a master spy, but Natasha proves she’s also capable of emotion as demonstrated in the third salvo of Nathan Edmondson and Phil Noto’s Black Widow run.
Like the previous issues, #3(entitled Foliage) follows an episodic format as it focuses on Romanoff’s extraction of a Latino politician from a heavily guarded Argentinian prison. However, nothing’s what it seems as our Russian Avenger uncovers the pieces of a puzzle regarding her mission.
What I liked about this story is the narrative. Clearly, we are given insights as to what a soul like Natasha thinks every time she undertakes a mission. Edmondson also successfully inserts a very human element into the Black Widow story, which makes her a character we can all relate to, despite her apparent facade as a tough-to-nails assassin. The inclusion of a sub-plot involving her battered neighbor is a plus. It does not affect the storyline at all, but rather, links perfectly with the major plot at hand. However, the problem lies with the episodic format of the series. Not everyone might like this approach(which worked quite well with Hawkeye), but whether this formula would fit the scarlet heroine’s tale remains to be seen.
Phil Noto also demonstrates his affinity with minimalistic art in this issue. His simplistic pencil + watercolor style definitely brings a unique kind of oomph into Black Widow. He is also quite a storyteller I should say: The panels do speak for themselves even without the captions and the lettering.
Clearly, the ship has just set its sail, and we’re yet to see whether the approach that made Hawkeye the award-winning series that it is would work with Black Widow. But I’ve got high hopes for this, and my mojo tells me that we should stick to Natasha’s road of atonement until it reaches its conclusion.
Which I’ll do, because each issue so far is definitely worth your buck.
8/10
We would like to thank Comic Odyssey The Fort for this copy. They are located at the fourth floor of Fully Booked near Bonifacio High Street, BGC.
Yuri Mangahas
