Black Widow [Paperback]

Devin Grayson (Author), J.G. Jones (Author)

Book Description

Series: Marvel Knights | Publication Date: September 1, 2001

Natasha Romanov, a.k.a. the Black Widow, has always led an exciting life. First as a Soviet spy, fighting on the Cold War front-line, followed by her defection to the West and eventual work in the Avengers. She has earned a reputation over the years as a consummate professional, coldly efficient and as deadly as her namesake.

Now, her time as Black Widow has come to into doubt. Yelena Belova, the new Russian Black Widow, seeks to reclaim the mantle she feels was stolen from her Motherland. Trained in the arts of espionage and combat and anxious to prove herself and eliminate her namesake, Belova will stop at nothing to achieve her goal. The two will battle on an international stage, from the deserts of the Middle East to the New York`s Upper West Side. When the smoke clears, will either woman be left standing?

This title embodies all the tension and action of traditional espionage novels. From the steps of the Kremlin to the lowest levels of the Pentagon, this is a story of blurred identity in a confused, post-Cold War arena.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Marvel Comics (September 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0785107843
• ISBN-13: 978-0785107842
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 6.6 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #753,530 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Best Comics Trade Paperbacks Ever! Get This!, September 10, 2003

By 

Bryan E. Leed "Jesus says, 'Go and Sin No More!" (Dayton, OH USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Black Widow (Paperback)

This is one of my all-time favorite comics stories. It was originally a mini-series of three monthly issues, collected here, all together, for one price.

The writing by Devin Grayson, with artwork by J.G. Jones are career high points for both creators, in this book. This is also my favorite story concerning both of the Black Widow characters in this book; who have never looked so good, never in a smarter, more intelligent tale than in this book.

This book is about two different, Soviet trained secret agents. The original, old school Black Widow, (who left the Soviet Union a generation ago), is competing with the self-proclaimed new "Black Widow," who just happens to have a chip on her shoulder towards upstaging and outdoing the original Black Widow.

The way that each Black Widow takes care of business is also an analogy of the different viewpoints between comic book stories from the 1960 & 1970's (when heroes were goody-good, and won with little bloodshed, few casualties), versus the comic book story styles of the last decade of the 1990's and later, (when heroes are borderline homicidal maniacs, shooting everything in sight, and get the job done at any cost). With that in mind, we see that each approach has its pros and cons.

The old style Black Widow shows more experience, patience, and is harder to outsmart; while the new style Black Widow gets to the point faster, and is more unpredictable, but often realizes that she may have bit off more than she can chew in various situations.

The story is fast-paced, with lots of surprising twists, and intriguing developments, and the artwork is realistic and beautifully rendered, almost "photo-quality" at times. You can't go wrong with getting this book!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful, January 21, 2002

By 

"blacklodge7" (West Hollywood, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black Widow (Paperback)

Not only is the artwork great, the women gorgeous, the action non-stop and the plot compelling, what distinguished this graphic novel was its human story. It would have been easy for the authors to create a good girl/bad girl scenario. But by making it a good girl/good girl situation, they've doubled the suspense. You want Natasha to win, but you can't help but worry about naive young Yelena. A terrific read.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Female James Bond, April 2, 2005

By 

C. Johnson (Orange County, California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Black Widow (Paperback)

I really enjoyed this one. Check it out!

This book has two complete stories in it:

Part One - "Itsy-Bitsy Spider" - It's the story of two Black Widows duking it out for their right to claim the name, and a great bio-weapon/spy story. The writing has a great forward motion to it, and the artwork is sexy without being crass.

Part Two - "Breakdown" - This is more about the two Black Widows, with a story similar to the movie Face-Off. There's a major stylistic shift in the artwork here, more of a painted look. It works well. Great appearances by Nick Fury and Daredevil too.

This book is a fun read, but definitely not for little kids. Black Widow is a great character, and this book does her justice. I'm looking forward to her next TPB coming out in the spring.