By the time you read this, fellow Spidey fans, the first Marvel Cinematic Universe film in almost two years will have been released! That’s right, I’m talking about “Black Widow” (a film that I’ve been personally waiting to see for years!).
I’ll also be on vacation, hence why I’m writing this early (Don’t worry, I’ll be back; it’s only for a week!).
Funny enough, the last MCU film that came out had ol’ Web-Head himself as the main feature (it was 2019’s “Spider-Man: Far from Home”, just in case you had forgotten). This line of thinking reminded me how the Widow probably owes a good deal of her popularity to Spider-Man, himself. How so, you ask? Allow me to fill you in!
In order to understand how this all happened, allow me to fill you in on a little Black Widow history first. The Black Widow was originally introduced in “Tales of Suspense” #52 as a Communist Iron Man villainess. In her first appearance, Natasha Romanoff didn’t even wear an actual costume.
The Black Widow wouldn’t get a costume until “Tales of Suspense” #64, and, as you can see, it’s certainly not one we’re accustomed to seeing her in.
It is, however, a costume (and hairstyle, for that matter) that she stuck with for a few years.
Finally, in “The Amazing Spider-Man” #86, the Black Widow was ready for a change.
It was a change made possible by legendary Spider-Man artist, John Romita, Sr.
By the start of the issue, Natasha finally has her trademarked red hair. The new costume was one of her own design; it set the standard for every costume she would later wear.
In fact, she seemed to inevitably return to this one after any time she decided to change things up a little. Romita is commonly believed by many to have been influenced by such spy favorites of the time like Emma Peel of “The Avengers” (no, not those Avengers!).
In actuality, Romita had been influenced by the Golden Age heroine, Miss Fury (no relation to Nick!).
The Black Widow’s reason for the costume change? She wants to forget her past and start over. So where does Spider-Man fit in to all of this? The Black Widow plans to find Spider-Man in hopes of figuring out his powers so that she may add them to her own. It’s a little bit of a stretch, but not totally unbelievable.
Spider-Man, meanwhile, has problems of his own. Following his battle with the Kingpin and the Schemer, Spider-Man isn’t feeling himself. He’s feeling weaker and prone to dizziness. That Kingpin really packs a punch, no?
The passing Spider-Man is ambushed by a Widow’s Bite from Natasha’s upgraded wrist device; his Spider-Sense warned him, but in his current condition, he just wasn’t able to get out of the way in time.
Black Widow, firmly committed to her role as a heroine, uses a line from one of her wrist devices to save Spider-Man, who decides to play possum until he can learn more about who’s attacking him. Without warning, Spidey suddenly knocks Widow from her line. He discovers that the attacking redhead is the same Black Widow that spent some time with the Avengers (she hadn’t officially joined them by this point), albeit with a new costume.
Their battle soon resumes, and Widow easily ensnares our hero in another line fired from her wrist (keep in mind, Spidey still isn’t feeling himself). Despite his reputation, the Black Widow remains unimpressed with Spider-Man. Upon hearing that she had wanted to discover the secret of his powers, Spidey snaps free, startling the Widow as he told her that he wasn’t going to let her swipe his style, and that there was only enough room in town for one Spider-Man (Oh Spidey, if only you knew what was to come…)! Spidey jams the Widow’s wrist devices with his webbing, and thus she makes a hasty retreat, deciding to pursue her destiny with nothing but her gadgets and the skills she’d acquired through training.
The following month, Black Widow went on to star as a co-feature in “Amazing Adventures” #1 alongside the Inhumans.
While her co-feature only lasted eight issues, she would later go on to join the Avengers, enjoy a lengthy time of fighting crime with Daredevil in his book, co-found the Champions, and star in several more solo titles.
I’m willing to bet that her enduring popularity was, in part, thanks to her John Romita, Sr. redesign. Her striking red hair combined with the all black costume is not something easily forgotten. I’d also wager that that’s why the live action films decided to base her costume on this captivating design, as you can see below.
Is the Romita Sr. design your favorite Black Widow costume, or is it something else? Have you seen the “Black Widow” movie yet, and if so, was it in a theater, drive-in, or did you purchase it on Disney+? Tell me everything in the comments below!
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Bill – Awesome column! I confess to be rather ignorant of much of Black Widow’s history and did not realize that Romita was the source of that outfit (though, it doesn’t surprise me – he is the top Marvel artist in my book and I pretty much compare everyone’s art to his style). It would also be interesting to keep track of how many people go up against Spider-Man, get pretty cocky, and then get the realization that he must have been toying with them!
I saw the movie on Disney+. Had enough people in my family that it came out cheaper to pay the $30 than to go to the theater for it. I enjoyed it. There were some definite steps away from 616 canon, but I tend to be able to enjoy the MCU as its own universe easier than some others. If you like the Marvel movies, you’ll enjoy this one. Hope you enjoyed your vacation!
I thought I heard that soon after this appearance Natasha stopped referring to herself as “a female version of Spider-Man”. This comparison was created by Stan here to hype up the character, since Spidey was Marvel’s most popular character, and having her appear here was to promote her to Spidey fans whom Stan hoped would follow her over to Amazing Adventures.
The comparison doesn’t really make sense. She swings on a grappling hook/line, but Daredevil and other heroes/villains swing around like this too, and they’re not called “a version of Spider-Man” because of it. And while I haven’t read any Black Widow stories where she’s the main character, I thought I heard that the whole “suction cups on her hands so she can climb walls” thing was eventually dropped once Marvel realized that promoting her as “a female copy of Spider-Man” wasn’t working (or didn’t make any sense). Or is this still an ability of her costume that never went away and she still uses?
Spidey’s weakness in this story is explained in the next issue as “just the flu”. Maybe he should have gone to see a doctor *before* in a haze he told all his friends that he was Spider-Man. Whoops.