Black Widow #10 // Review
Natasha is on the trail of a guy named Apogee. Given that Natasha is a super-spy, one might guess that Apogee is a codename of some sort. Actually, it’s the name of someone looking to becomes some kind of messiah in San Francisco. These things tend to end badly as Apogee is about to find out in Black Widow #10. Writer Kelly Thompson finds a pleasantly new spin on an old superhero conflict in a story brought to the page by artists Elena Casagrande and Rafael De Latorre, and inker Elisabetta D’Amicoa. Once again, colorist Jordie Bellaire’s work comes across with a casual genius that adds to the issue immeasurably. The new direction for Natasha is kind of fun, but the end of the four-part opening story fails to capitalize on the unique nature of Natasha and what she’s capable of.
It’s bad enough when religious leaders take advantage of their followers. It’s even worse when they give them superpowers. And if they truly believe in the nonsense that they’re trying to sell to their followers? THAT is only going to make matters worse. Thankfully, Natasha has had the funds to take-in a few of the cast-offs from the sinister Apogee and has even managed to hire a brilliant, young chemist to make an antidote to the compound that’s turning everyone into supervillains. There’s going to be a solution by the end of the issue, but it’s going to cost much more than mere money.
Money funds the creation of superpowers that grow beyond anyone’s ability to control them. It’s a concept that’s echoed a lot through the Marvel Universe over the course of the past fifty years or more. Thomspon does a pretty good job of giving it a new spin while giving Natasha her own operation in San Francisco that firmly establishes a whole new direction for the character. Still, by the end of the issue, it becomes apparent that the four-part series has been more than a bit rushed. This is a pity. Thompson’s idea for Black Widow in San Francisco is actually really, really cool. If Thompson had spent just a little bit more time establishing it before Apogee got thrown in, things would feel just a bit more grounded.
The art team has done solid work on constructing visuals for the issue that somehow manage to balance remarkably compelling action and drama in the foreground against solidly atmospheric backgrounds that feel so precise in places that they could have almost been done using a CAD program. It’s a really, really good look for Natasha. Bellaire is given some really fun opportunities to bathe the action in color, from the glowing reds and yellows of a temple in flames to the thoughtful black of a cat on a grey lab table next to a microscope.
With the first big adventure in San Francisco well and fully worked-out, Thompson and company can spend a little more time establishing Natasha’s world. Throwing action at her right away IS a good choice. Still, it’s challenging to get a solid focus on the conflict without having the extended ensemble of friends and associates established just a little bit more prior to the conclusion of the four-part story that ends in Black Widow #10.
