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Black Widow Epic Collection
Black Widow Epic Collection, Vol. 1: Beware the Black Widow
Collecting the origins of the Black Widow for the very first time! From her debut as a Russian spy in the pages of TALES OF SUSPENSE, Natasha Romanoff was instantly one of Marvel's most iconic characters. This amazing collection takes you through her early days with Hawkeye, into her first adventures with the Avengers -and on to her first solo series! Thrill to a captivating and complex saga as the Black Widow evolves from villain to hero -and defines herself as one of comics' greatest characters. Boasting stories and art by a who's who of Silver Age greats, this Epic Collection is ground zero for every Black Widow fan!
COLLECTING: VOL. 1: TALES OF SUSPENSE (1959) 52-53, 57, 60, 64; AVENGERS (1963) 29-30, 36-37, 43-44; AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (1963) 86; AMAZING ADVENTURES (1970) 1-8; DAREDEVIL (1964) 81; MATERIAL FROM AVENGERS (1963) 16, 32-33, 38-39, 41-42, 45-47, 57, 63-64, 76
COLLECTING: VOL. 1: TALES OF SUSPENSE (1959) 52-53, 57, 60, 64; AVENGERS (1963) 29-30, 36-37, 43-44; AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (1963) 86; AMAZING ADVENTURES (1970) 1-8; DAREDEVIL (1964) 81; MATERIAL FROM AVENGERS (1963) 16, 32-33, 38-39, 41-42, 45-47, 57, 63-64, 76
408 pages, Paperback
First published February 12, 2020
27 people are currently reading
127 people want to read
About the author
Stan Lee
7,564 books2,350 followersStan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber) was an American writer, editor, creator of comic book superheroes, and the former president and chairman of Marvel Comics.
With several artist co-creators, most notably Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, he co-created Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, Thor as a superhero, the X-Men, Iron Man, the Hulk, Daredevil, the Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Scarlet Witch, The Inhumans, and many other characters, introducing complex, naturalistic characters and a thoroughly shared universe into superhero comic books. He subsequently led the expansion of Marvel Comics from a small division of a publishing house to a large multimedia corporation.
With several artist co-creators, most notably Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, he co-created Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, Thor as a superhero, the X-Men, Iron Man, the Hulk, Daredevil, the Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Scarlet Witch, The Inhumans, and many other characters, introducing complex, naturalistic characters and a thoroughly shared universe into superhero comic books. He subsequently led the expansion of Marvel Comics from a small division of a publishing house to a large multimedia corporation.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
March 28, 2023
I absolutely love black widow comics
August 21, 2021
Marvel is flooding the market right now and Marvel Universe is all the rage. So much so that even a nontraditional nonsuperhero comic book lover might want to check it out. And our library has gone mad on Marvel and acquired tons of the titles, even doubles, in a sort of thoughtless uncurated grab.
Up to now my main association with Marvel, outside of the ubiquitous movies, has been nonfiction books about Marvel as a company and its main players.
So I figured I’ll check out a female Marvel character, immortalized on screen by ScarJo, created and recreated by the one and only master of spectacle and alliteration Stan Lee.
Not the finest of experiments, to be honest. Definitely didn’t make me into more of a fan and took too freaking long to get through. This collection only covers 1964 to 1971 and it is only in the 70s that Madame Natasha got rebooted into the tight black skinsuit wearing flamehaired sexbomb we know and love.
Prior to that she was comely brunette in a ridiculously skimpy, although just as revealing of an outfit, who was mostly characterized by her torn (between her Motherland and US/Avengers) loyalties and her torrid love affair with a certain adroit archer.
And the bulk of the book is concentrated on those years. And it get so tired and tiresome after the first few comics. It begins quaintly enough with Black Widow/ Tony Stark flirtations, but then it just stays repetitively similar for ages. And Stark vanishes too, though a bunch of the other Avengers are still there.
Because of how these giant compendiums are structured, you get years worth of the Avengers but only through the comics where Black Widow makes appearance. So it’s a weirdly incomplete journey and makes for a weirdly disjointed read. You have to wait until the reboot, when Natasha gets her own comic, to have proper continuous storylines.
So this book doesn’t really do much in a way of reading for the pure joy of storytelling. The main interest for me here, after the initial novelty of vintage, was a sort of cultural anthropology thing, where it’s just fascinating to behold how the social and cultural mores changed and evolved over the years. And as a comic book fan it was interesting to witness the evolution of comics as a format.
For all of Stan Lee’s admirable qualities, the early comics were just so freaking hokey and silly and cheesy. I’m not sure if they were targeted strictly to kids or to…more simple minded adults, but the overbearing narrative style, the exhaustive text heavy panels, the ridiculously overexplained contents…I am so glad those are largely a thing of the past. It seems people just didn’t realize how much of a visual format comics are meant to be and how much of the talking the art should do. The change even as early as the 70s was staggering.
And then there’s the art, which is actually also just as hokey and silly and cheesy. All those bright unsubtle prime colors, which went on for so long, even Watchmen had them. And all those women drawn exactly the same, save for a different dated ‘do.
Stan Lee knew his business and was a master of self promotion, so apparently that style of comics worked back in the day and for a long time, but, like gender politics of yesteryear, it’s a good thing to have evolve away from.
Overall, on a purely comic fan reading comics level, this was a giant waste of time. It’s entirely possible a more nostalgia driven fan or someone obsessed with Black Widow would get more out of this. For me…I’ll stick with the movies.
This and more at https://advancetheplot.weebly.com/
Up to now my main association with Marvel, outside of the ubiquitous movies, has been nonfiction books about Marvel as a company and its main players.
So I figured I’ll check out a female Marvel character, immortalized on screen by ScarJo, created and recreated by the one and only master of spectacle and alliteration Stan Lee.
Not the finest of experiments, to be honest. Definitely didn’t make me into more of a fan and took too freaking long to get through. This collection only covers 1964 to 1971 and it is only in the 70s that Madame Natasha got rebooted into the tight black skinsuit wearing flamehaired sexbomb we know and love.
Prior to that she was comely brunette in a ridiculously skimpy, although just as revealing of an outfit, who was mostly characterized by her torn (between her Motherland and US/Avengers) loyalties and her torrid love affair with a certain adroit archer.
And the bulk of the book is concentrated on those years. And it get so tired and tiresome after the first few comics. It begins quaintly enough with Black Widow/ Tony Stark flirtations, but then it just stays repetitively similar for ages. And Stark vanishes too, though a bunch of the other Avengers are still there.
Because of how these giant compendiums are structured, you get years worth of the Avengers but only through the comics where Black Widow makes appearance. So it’s a weirdly incomplete journey and makes for a weirdly disjointed read. You have to wait until the reboot, when Natasha gets her own comic, to have proper continuous storylines.
So this book doesn’t really do much in a way of reading for the pure joy of storytelling. The main interest for me here, after the initial novelty of vintage, was a sort of cultural anthropology thing, where it’s just fascinating to behold how the social and cultural mores changed and evolved over the years. And as a comic book fan it was interesting to witness the evolution of comics as a format.
For all of Stan Lee’s admirable qualities, the early comics were just so freaking hokey and silly and cheesy. I’m not sure if they were targeted strictly to kids or to…more simple minded adults, but the overbearing narrative style, the exhaustive text heavy panels, the ridiculously overexplained contents…I am so glad those are largely a thing of the past. It seems people just didn’t realize how much of a visual format comics are meant to be and how much of the talking the art should do. The change even as early as the 70s was staggering.
And then there’s the art, which is actually also just as hokey and silly and cheesy. All those bright unsubtle prime colors, which went on for so long, even Watchmen had them. And all those women drawn exactly the same, save for a different dated ‘do.
Stan Lee knew his business and was a master of self promotion, so apparently that style of comics worked back in the day and for a long time, but, like gender politics of yesteryear, it’s a good thing to have evolve away from.
Overall, on a purely comic fan reading comics level, this was a giant waste of time. It’s entirely possible a more nostalgia driven fan or someone obsessed with Black Widow would get more out of this. For me…I’ll stick with the movies.
This and more at https://advancetheplot.weebly.com/
October 23, 2024
I have previously read all the stories collected in these pages where they are included within other volumes. This volume covers a long span of time, with some very different interpretations of the character. They begin with the first and early appearances of Natasha as a Soviet spy, and a villain for Iron Man, her early romantic relationship with Hawkeye from the pages of Tales of Suspense and her long standing as a supporting member in numerous issues of The Avengers (the collected bits and pieces of issues included here can get a bit frustrating, but it’s nice to have all the Widow’s early appearances in a single volume). Also included here are her reinvention in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man (with a costume inspired by Emma Peel), her solo appearances in Amazing Adventures and the volume closes with her first team-up with Daredevil which would prove to be the beginning of a long-standing partnership (check out Daredevil Epic Collection, Vol. 4: A Woman Called Widow, Daredevil Epic Collection, Vol. 5: Going Out West & Daredevil Epic Collection, Vol. 6: Watch Out for Bullseye for that era of the Black Widow, before she co-founded the Champions, see Champions Classic: The Complete Collection). This is a wonderful collection that provides a long needed go-to-volume for answering those “who is the Black Widow and where did she come from” questions. While the diversity of writers and artists contained herein showcase some real talent of the early days of Marvel, there is also a lack of focus as there is not a single narrative controlling the direction of the story. Basically, every new writer had some course corrections and false starts that worked against making the Black Widow as a real shining star of Marvel’s silver age renaissance. There are even numerous problems with continuity that later authors never bothered to try and explain away when her backstory and origin was ret-conned. There are even some problems with that in this very volume. In any case, there are some fine comics in here. For me the best ones are those featuring art by Gene Colan and those lacking the diarrhea prose of Roy Thomas.
January 27, 2024
This collects most of Black Widow’s early stories from her days as an Iron Man villain to nearly joining the Avengers to her solo stuff that leads to her team-up with Daredevil. It is missing a few Avengers issues that come during her solo adventures and a few in-between that and her Daredevil stuff. It’s a good collection if you don’t plan on getting the early Iron Man or Avengers issues, but want the Black Widow related issues. Overall, it starts bad, but has some real gems near the end, especially for a noir fan like me.
Tales of Suspense #52 ⧫ 2.5 Stars “The Crimson Dynamo Strikes Again!”
This is actually a pretty okay issue for Ivan Vanko, but not a great one for Natasha. She’s introduced as part of a pair with strongman Boris who does most of the heavy lifting and nearly wins through the unsuspecting trust of others, his super strength, and a convenient gun that he loses later. Natasha dates Tony Stark and fakes being a damsel in distress, so Boris can kill him. It’s basic femme fatale stuff. Not an auspicious start for the Widow.
Tales of Suspense #53 ⧫ 1 Stars “The Black Widow Strikes Again!”
This one is pretty bad, Tony invents a levitation ray by accident, so he can’t recreate it. Natasha fakes a change of heart and steals it. Instead of returning to the Soviet Union, she goes on a rampage, allowing Iron Man to beat her. These early Iron Man stories are so rough, not helped by rushed and sketchy Don Heck art. Also, Natasha’s 60s mourning outfit is terrible.
Tales of Suspense #57 ⧫ 2 Stars “Hawkeye, the Marksman!”
Hawkeye and Black Widow have been intertwined since near the start. Unfortunately, this is still rough early Iron Man. I like that Hawkeye becomes a hero out of jealousy. I do not like how all the girls in this are manipulative and love starved. Also, why does Natasha think a marksman can defeat Iron Man. I guess it’s better than the previous issue.
Tales of Suspense #60 ⧫ 1.5 Stars “Suspected of Murder”
Very generic. Iron Man is afraid to remove his armor and accidentally gets Pepper and Happy to think Iron Man murdered Tony Stark. Meanwhile, Natasha convinces Hawkeye to kill Iron Man, so he breaks into his lab, allowing Iron Man to beat him and prove he’s a hero…Oh, and Natasha is captured and sent back to the Soviet Union. It’s just kind of lame all around.
Tales of Suspense #64 ⧫ 2 Stars “Hawkeye and the New Black Widow Strike Again!”
Natasha has gadgets that allow her to mimic Spider-Man’s powers, but she doesn’t use them a ton. She and Hawkeye capture Happy and Pepper to lure Iron Man into a trap, but it fails. Still not great stuff.
There’s a brief flashback inserted here from Avengers #16 to explain why Hawkeye is joining the Avengers without Natasha.
Avengers #29 ⧫ 2 Stars “This Power Unleashed!”
Don Heck’s art is a little better, but the story is still weird. Natasha is hypnotized the entire time and teams up with the Swordsman and the original, dumb, Power Man. They improbably defeat all the Avengers, but Goliath returns and saves the day. It’s a weird issue, and not a particularly good one.
Avengers #30 ⧫ 2.5 Stars “Frenzy in a Far-Off Land!”
The stars are mostly for the Hawkeye/Natasha stuff. I like him going and wrecking Swordsman and Power Man. That Goliath story seems really dumb.
There are some sections from Avengers #32-33 that show Natasha secretly helping the Avengers. I love this, and I wish this idea had more focus.
Avengers #36 ⧫ 3 Stars “The Ultroids Attack!”
Okay, the plot is wonky, and the art gets weird, which works for the alien spaceship, but less when giving the Wasp a literal wasp waist. However, this really shows Natasha’s strengths, and I like it as a proving ground. The fact that the only sensible man is Captain America at the start is a little annoying, though Hank and Clint have never been the most level-headed Avengers. It’s actually a good showcase for Jan too! The Wanda twist here is funny, especially given how her powers often are.
Avengers #37 ⧫ 3 Stars “To Conquer a Colossus!”
Given that the X-Men’s Colossus wouldn’t be created for eight or so years, this is talking about Hank Pym, the worst Avenger… And it seems like Natasha’s work would be forgotten like her fabulous “B” earrings with matching “W” brooch, but that was a feint, and Natatsha proves they need an Avenger to make the hard choices, which is pretty cool, actually.
There are some sections from Avengers #38-39 and 41-42. These issues show why Black Widow didn’t just join the Avengers, which is because she got hired by Nick Fury to be a double agent. It’s mostly showing the best parts of those issues as the rest is not great.
Avengers #43 ⧫ 3.5 Stars “Color Him… The Red Guardian!”
This is a solid issue with Hercules vs. an imagined Hydra, the monster, and Hawkeye beating up a bar to get Natasha’s location. It’s a nice Avengers reassemble story, though I could have used more Black Widow.
Avengers #44 ⧫ 3.5 Stars “The Valiant Also Die!”
There’s a lot of silly fighting in this issue, but the Black Widow, Hawkeye, Red Guardian, and Captain America interactions make it worthwhile. The Widow wins!
There is a part here that shows the remaining Natasha-prominent Avengers issues: #45-47, 57, 63-64, and 76. These start with Natasha in the hospital; then, follow the disintegration of the Hawkeye/Black Widow relationship where Roy Thomas forgets what made Natasha cool and has Clint ignore her until she leaves him. Her getting sidelined is pretty depressing after the last few issues, but I’m glad she leaves Clint; I wish Jan left Hank that quickly.
Amazing Spider-Man #86 ⧫ 4 Stars “Beware...The Black Widow!”
This acts as a pilot for Black Widow’s solo appearances in Amazing Adventures. It’s interesting that Captain Stacey says that Gwen is just emotional, like all women, but the Widow basically doesn’t follow any of that. I’m not sure it was intentional, but I’ll take it. Also, any excuse for Romita Black Widow is fine by me, especially with the debut of her Emma Peel costume that is still iconic!
Amazing Adventures #1 ⧫ 4 Stars “Then Came… The Black Widow!”
This is Black Widow’s transition to teaming with Daredevil on the streets. It is white savior narrative, but it’s way more class conscious than I was expecting from a comic of this era. The series starts with some beautiful Buscema art, a perfect transition from Romita.
Amazing Adventures #2 ⧫ 4 Stars “The Young Warriors!”
Natasha gets more involved with the anti-gentrification group, but comes up against institutional power. She also meets Paul Hamilton, a handsome investigative journalist.
Amazing Adventures #3 ⧫ 4 Stars “The Widow and the Militants!”
Natasha tries to meet up with the Young Warriors as they refuse to vacate their homes, but is waylaid by the mob. I like the continued connection of institutional and illegal power with corporate greed. It remains good stuff, and I really like the change to Gene Colan’s art. It gives it a grittier feel.
Amazing Adventures #4 ⧫ 3.5 Stars “Deadlock”
The art’s still good, but the answer is a little simple, though the series promises a little more at the end.
Amazing Adventures #5 ⧫ 4 Stars “... And to All a Good Night”
Okay, this starts with some fan service, but I really love the overall story of being pushed to the limit while trying and failing to get out of it.
Amazing Adventures #6 ⧫ 3 Stars “Blood Will Tell”
The stories and art definitely get looser in these last three as the class-consciousness slips into a tale of revenge.
Amazing Adventures #7 ⧫ 3 Stars “The Sting of the Widow!”
The widow closes out the astronomer storyline, and it’s pretty decent. Not near the heights of the series, but the revenge angle is cool with Don Heck doing his best impression of Gene Colan’s art style.
Amazing Adventures #8 ⧫ 2.5 Stars “How Shall I Kill Thee? Let Me Count the Ways!”
It’s a rather lackluster one-off with a poorly-conceived Russian villain.
Daredevil #81 ⧫ 4 Stars “And Death is a Woman Called Widow”
Damn, this is like a neo-noir fever dream of longing and regret. This is the type of comic that makes me regret reading it because now, I want to read the rest of the Gene Colan era of Daredevil, which is so much of it: Daredevil volume 1 #20–49, 53–82, 84–100, 110, 112, 116, 124, 153–154, 156–157, 363, 366–368, 370, #-1, Annual #1 (1966–1979, 1997) and Daredevil volume 2 #20 (2001). I’ll at least have to read the Widow stuff eventually.
Other Comics Reviews
Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus #1
Untold Tales of Spider-Man Omnibus
Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus #2
Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus #3
Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus #4
Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus #5
Spectacular Spider-Man Omnibus #1
X-Men Omnibus #1
X-Men Omnibus #2
X-Men Epic Collection Volume 4: It's Always Darkest Before the Dawn
Tales of Suspense #52 ⧫ 2.5 Stars “The Crimson Dynamo Strikes Again!”
This is actually a pretty okay issue for Ivan Vanko, but not a great one for Natasha. She’s introduced as part of a pair with strongman Boris who does most of the heavy lifting and nearly wins through the unsuspecting trust of others, his super strength, and a convenient gun that he loses later. Natasha dates Tony Stark and fakes being a damsel in distress, so Boris can kill him. It’s basic femme fatale stuff. Not an auspicious start for the Widow.
Tales of Suspense #53 ⧫ 1 Stars “The Black Widow Strikes Again!”
This one is pretty bad, Tony invents a levitation ray by accident, so he can’t recreate it. Natasha fakes a change of heart and steals it. Instead of returning to the Soviet Union, she goes on a rampage, allowing Iron Man to beat her. These early Iron Man stories are so rough, not helped by rushed and sketchy Don Heck art. Also, Natasha’s 60s mourning outfit is terrible.
Tales of Suspense #57 ⧫ 2 Stars “Hawkeye, the Marksman!”
Hawkeye and Black Widow have been intertwined since near the start. Unfortunately, this is still rough early Iron Man. I like that Hawkeye becomes a hero out of jealousy. I do not like how all the girls in this are manipulative and love starved. Also, why does Natasha think a marksman can defeat Iron Man. I guess it’s better than the previous issue.
Tales of Suspense #60 ⧫ 1.5 Stars “Suspected of Murder”
Very generic. Iron Man is afraid to remove his armor and accidentally gets Pepper and Happy to think Iron Man murdered Tony Stark. Meanwhile, Natasha convinces Hawkeye to kill Iron Man, so he breaks into his lab, allowing Iron Man to beat him and prove he’s a hero…Oh, and Natasha is captured and sent back to the Soviet Union. It’s just kind of lame all around.
Tales of Suspense #64 ⧫ 2 Stars “Hawkeye and the New Black Widow Strike Again!”
Natasha has gadgets that allow her to mimic Spider-Man’s powers, but she doesn’t use them a ton. She and Hawkeye capture Happy and Pepper to lure Iron Man into a trap, but it fails. Still not great stuff.
There’s a brief flashback inserted here from Avengers #16 to explain why Hawkeye is joining the Avengers without Natasha.
Avengers #29 ⧫ 2 Stars “This Power Unleashed!”
Don Heck’s art is a little better, but the story is still weird. Natasha is hypnotized the entire time and teams up with the Swordsman and the original, dumb, Power Man. They improbably defeat all the Avengers, but Goliath returns and saves the day. It’s a weird issue, and not a particularly good one.
Avengers #30 ⧫ 2.5 Stars “Frenzy in a Far-Off Land!”
The stars are mostly for the Hawkeye/Natasha stuff. I like him going and wrecking Swordsman and Power Man. That Goliath story seems really dumb.
There are some sections from Avengers #32-33 that show Natasha secretly helping the Avengers. I love this, and I wish this idea had more focus.
Avengers #36 ⧫ 3 Stars “The Ultroids Attack!”
Okay, the plot is wonky, and the art gets weird, which works for the alien spaceship, but less when giving the Wasp a literal wasp waist. However, this really shows Natasha’s strengths, and I like it as a proving ground. The fact that the only sensible man is Captain America at the start is a little annoying, though Hank and Clint have never been the most level-headed Avengers. It’s actually a good showcase for Jan too! The Wanda twist here is funny, especially given how her powers often are.
Avengers #37 ⧫ 3 Stars “To Conquer a Colossus!”
Given that the X-Men’s Colossus wouldn’t be created for eight or so years, this is talking about Hank Pym, the worst Avenger… And it seems like Natasha’s work would be forgotten like her fabulous “B” earrings with matching “W” brooch, but that was a feint, and Natatsha proves they need an Avenger to make the hard choices, which is pretty cool, actually.
There are some sections from Avengers #38-39 and 41-42. These issues show why Black Widow didn’t just join the Avengers, which is because she got hired by Nick Fury to be a double agent. It’s mostly showing the best parts of those issues as the rest is not great.
Avengers #43 ⧫ 3.5 Stars “Color Him… The Red Guardian!”
This is a solid issue with Hercules vs. an imagined Hydra, the monster, and Hawkeye beating up a bar to get Natasha’s location. It’s a nice Avengers reassemble story, though I could have used more Black Widow.
Avengers #44 ⧫ 3.5 Stars “The Valiant Also Die!”
There’s a lot of silly fighting in this issue, but the Black Widow, Hawkeye, Red Guardian, and Captain America interactions make it worthwhile. The Widow wins!
There is a part here that shows the remaining Natasha-prominent Avengers issues: #45-47, 57, 63-64, and 76. These start with Natasha in the hospital; then, follow the disintegration of the Hawkeye/Black Widow relationship where Roy Thomas forgets what made Natasha cool and has Clint ignore her until she leaves him. Her getting sidelined is pretty depressing after the last few issues, but I’m glad she leaves Clint; I wish Jan left Hank that quickly.
Amazing Spider-Man #86 ⧫ 4 Stars “Beware...The Black Widow!”
This acts as a pilot for Black Widow’s solo appearances in Amazing Adventures. It’s interesting that Captain Stacey says that Gwen is just emotional, like all women, but the Widow basically doesn’t follow any of that. I’m not sure it was intentional, but I’ll take it. Also, any excuse for Romita Black Widow is fine by me, especially with the debut of her Emma Peel costume that is still iconic!
Amazing Adventures #1 ⧫ 4 Stars “Then Came… The Black Widow!”
This is Black Widow’s transition to teaming with Daredevil on the streets. It is white savior narrative, but it’s way more class conscious than I was expecting from a comic of this era. The series starts with some beautiful Buscema art, a perfect transition from Romita.
Amazing Adventures #2 ⧫ 4 Stars “The Young Warriors!”
Natasha gets more involved with the anti-gentrification group, but comes up against institutional power. She also meets Paul Hamilton, a handsome investigative journalist.
Amazing Adventures #3 ⧫ 4 Stars “The Widow and the Militants!”
Natasha tries to meet up with the Young Warriors as they refuse to vacate their homes, but is waylaid by the mob. I like the continued connection of institutional and illegal power with corporate greed. It remains good stuff, and I really like the change to Gene Colan’s art. It gives it a grittier feel.
Amazing Adventures #4 ⧫ 3.5 Stars “Deadlock”
The art’s still good, but the answer is a little simple, though the series promises a little more at the end.
Amazing Adventures #5 ⧫ 4 Stars “... And to All a Good Night”
Okay, this starts with some fan service, but I really love the overall story of being pushed to the limit while trying and failing to get out of it.
Amazing Adventures #6 ⧫ 3 Stars “Blood Will Tell”
The stories and art definitely get looser in these last three as the class-consciousness slips into a tale of revenge.
Amazing Adventures #7 ⧫ 3 Stars “The Sting of the Widow!”
The widow closes out the astronomer storyline, and it’s pretty decent. Not near the heights of the series, but the revenge angle is cool with Don Heck doing his best impression of Gene Colan’s art style.
Amazing Adventures #8 ⧫ 2.5 Stars “How Shall I Kill Thee? Let Me Count the Ways!”
It’s a rather lackluster one-off with a poorly-conceived Russian villain.
Daredevil #81 ⧫ 4 Stars “And Death is a Woman Called Widow”
Damn, this is like a neo-noir fever dream of longing and regret. This is the type of comic that makes me regret reading it because now, I want to read the rest of the Gene Colan era of Daredevil, which is so much of it: Daredevil volume 1 #20–49, 53–82, 84–100, 110, 112, 116, 124, 153–154, 156–157, 363, 366–368, 370, #-1, Annual #1 (1966–1979, 1997) and Daredevil volume 2 #20 (2001). I’ll at least have to read the Widow stuff eventually.
Other Comics Reviews
Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus #1
Untold Tales of Spider-Man Omnibus
Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus #2
Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus #3
Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus #4
Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus #5
Spectacular Spider-Man Omnibus #1
X-Men Omnibus #1
X-Men Omnibus #2
X-Men Epic Collection Volume 4: It's Always Darkest Before the Dawn
October 11, 2020
This collection of comics provide the origins of the Black Widow. She is one of my favorite Marvel characters & this was a fun collection to see where she got her start. I do feel like I missed parts of the story since this collection gathered from many comics in which Black Widow appeared.
February 15, 2021
This is the first time I have been displeased with the way an Epic Collection has been put together. I'm not sure, but I think they went out of their way to select just about every early appearance for the character. And it some of the oldest material in the collection makes sense. We have her first appearances as a villain and later as an anti-hero in the issues of Tales of Suspense. The bulk of this volume is a lot of Avengers stuff. Some of the entries are just 4 page excerpts. This is the part I have the biggest gripe with as very little of this content features Natasha as any more than an incidental part of the story. Maybe a couple of the issues would have worked, but not hundreds of pages. The last part of the collection is really the best with all the necessary issues of Amazing Adventures and the first issue with the modern Black Widow costume. These are really nice.
March 22, 2020
Solid collection that covers Black Widow from her time as a villainess to becoming a hero. Natasha kicks serious butt in this. There is some period typical sexism, but otherwise this is very enjoyable. It's a great way of covering Natasha's early years as it makes sure to include important one or two page appearances from comics without making you read the full story where the rest is unrelated to her.
November 17, 2020
Like Silver Surfer Epic Collection Vol 1, this collection jumps around on Black Widows early appearance, from her debut in Tales Of Suspense 55 (1964) to her first meeting with Daredevil in issue 81 (1971). Because it jumps around from Random Iron Man to Avengers to Spider-man to her first short run in Amazing Avengers, it is not a great read from start to finish. But it is interesting to see how the character evolved over these early Marvel years.
July 22, 2021
A good sample of Black Widow's early appearances. The piecemeal collection makes this trade paperback a bit uneven, but most of the individual stories are decent. Once the familiar black costume is added, the character's iconic look is established. Her solo series is a bit uneven, but there are some good stories. Good classic art, notably by Colan. To conclude, a nice collection for readers interested in the Black Widow's comic book origins.
July 14, 2021
Acho importante que eu não sou fã da Viúva Negra, acho uma personagem anacrônica, eternamente presa a uma conspiração de espiões da Guerra Fria e as atualizações na origem da personagem feitas pela Marvel nos últimos anos nunca me convenceram muito, mas a Teoria do Vintão é maior que tudo isso.
Essa edição reúne as primeiras aparições da Viúva, começa quando ela era uma espiã soviética comunista tentando sabotar, seduzir, derrotar e espionar o Tony Stark; aqui também temos a primeira aparição do primeiro amor americano da Viúva, Gavião Arqueiro.
Logo depois, já no gibi dos Vingadores, com o Gavião regenerado, é hora da Viúva virar uma heroína. Porém ela acaba virando uma figurante da turma, a namorada do Gavião que foi raptada, sequestrada ou que não contribuiu muito para a solução da história. Também temos controle mental atrás da "cortina de bambu", o Guardião Vermelho revelado como o maridão da Viúva, a primeira aparição do Clint Barton como Golias, tudo isso em histórias dos anos 60, então... é aquela coisa, né?
Depois, numa edição do Homem Aranha, por motivos que eu não consigo entender, ela compra briga com o Amigão da Vizinhança, além de estrear o novo uniforme, e numas edições do "Amazing Adventures", título que ela dividia com os Inumanos, a Viúva enfrenta o maior inimigo do imigrante porto-riquenho, o locatário com contrato leonino; além do Astrólogo, o criminoso do mapa astral.
A vida não é fácil para a combatente do crime em início de carreira, não é mesmo?
Terminamos com o primeiro encontro da Natasha com o Demolidor, salvando-o de um afogamento, e depois enfrentando o Coruja e um outro cara que eu não prestei tanta atenção assim.
Valem como uma curiosidade, apenas isso.
Essa edição reúne as primeiras aparições da Viúva, começa quando ela era uma espiã soviética comunista tentando sabotar, seduzir, derrotar e espionar o Tony Stark; aqui também temos a primeira aparição do primeiro amor americano da Viúva, Gavião Arqueiro.
Logo depois, já no gibi dos Vingadores, com o Gavião regenerado, é hora da Viúva virar uma heroína. Porém ela acaba virando uma figurante da turma, a namorada do Gavião que foi raptada, sequestrada ou que não contribuiu muito para a solução da história. Também temos controle mental atrás da "cortina de bambu", o Guardião Vermelho revelado como o maridão da Viúva, a primeira aparição do Clint Barton como Golias, tudo isso em histórias dos anos 60, então... é aquela coisa, né?
Depois, numa edição do Homem Aranha, por motivos que eu não consigo entender, ela compra briga com o Amigão da Vizinhança, além de estrear o novo uniforme, e numas edições do "Amazing Adventures", título que ela dividia com os Inumanos, a Viúva enfrenta o maior inimigo do imigrante porto-riquenho, o locatário com contrato leonino; além do Astrólogo, o criminoso do mapa astral.
A vida não é fácil para a combatente do crime em início de carreira, não é mesmo?
Terminamos com o primeiro encontro da Natasha com o Demolidor, salvando-o de um afogamento, e depois enfrentando o Coruja e um outro cara que eu não prestei tanta atenção assim.
Valem como uma curiosidade, apenas isso.
September 24, 2023
I’d like to say that this is a great introduction to Black Widow, but it’s really not — it runs the gamut from her earliest appearances as a spy on a mission to steal secrets from Tony Stark (hilariously as a team with a lumpy thug named Boris), later to be teamed with the Crimson Dynamo. Eventually she got a swimsuit, mask, and fishnets costume, got involved with the misunderstood Hawkeye, and had a face-turn…only to get co-opted by (don’t yield, back) S.H.I.E.L.D. Eventually breaking up with Hawkeye she designed a new costume and was mean to Spider-Man, then dove into the socialite life while, with the aid of Ivan, her helper/driver, moonlighting as the Black Widow (by this point the folks at Marvel just turned her into a Russian Modesty Blaise) and eventually hooking up with Daredevil, which is where we leave her.
A large part of the book is speedrunning her association with the Avengers during their 1960s run (she’d be in and out of the team in the decades to come, though not in a formative way as she is in the MCU.) This can be frustrating, as it’s often just 2-4 pages from a bunch of issues, and rarely a complete issue.
There’s a second Epic, but it completely skips over her time in the Daredevil book — perhaps a good thing as that would have been at least a triple dip, and we’d already had that with this book.
The back matter is a variety of art pages — unusually interesting to look at, especially the uncorrected art in a couple of photostats, showing Gene Colan pushing the boundaries with his art (ably aided by Bill Everett.)
A large part of the book is speedrunning her association with the Avengers during their 1960s run (she’d be in and out of the team in the decades to come, though not in a formative way as she is in the MCU.) This can be frustrating, as it’s often just 2-4 pages from a bunch of issues, and rarely a complete issue.
There’s a second Epic, but it completely skips over her time in the Daredevil book — perhaps a good thing as that would have been at least a triple dip, and we’d already had that with this book.
The back matter is a variety of art pages — unusually interesting to look at, especially the uncorrected art in a couple of photostats, showing Gene Colan pushing the boundaries with his art (ably aided by Bill Everett.)
January 1, 2022
I love walking through the old adventures of heroes. Crime was different, less violent. Sillier. There were politics, but often injustice was actually happening on the whole of society, unlike today, where injustice can be simply perceived. And the Commies were obviously villains. Because c’mon, they are obviously the villains.
I start that to say this: I’m usually good to old books and grade them on the curve based on how well they’re collected and not based on the actually story flow, since no one wrote comics like that but Stan Lee, the man-myth-legend. But this collection is based on the appearances of Black Widow, a B-list character for most of her existence, so what we have here is a two-page appearance here or a six-page appearance there, and that’s all we get of that issue. There’s only a small handful of full issues in this book, so its mostly jarring random tidbits in the midst of Avengers soap opera. Imagine taking a coffee break everyday at 12:15-13:30 and watching the same soap every day at that time. Sure, you might follow one character, but you’ll still be confused at all the insanity going on around that character.
I do like, however, seeing WHY Clint and Natasha have a special relationship in the movies. I thought it was neat to find out the Red Guardian was actually the husband of Natasha. There’s still some cool character history here. And I get there’s not much the collectors could do, as those issue pieces are a huge original part of her turning good. But in all, that leaves this volume weaker than it should be. I would like to read vol. 2 and see how this character grows in hopefully a more realized way.
I start that to say this: I’m usually good to old books and grade them on the curve based on how well they’re collected and not based on the actually story flow, since no one wrote comics like that but Stan Lee, the man-myth-legend. But this collection is based on the appearances of Black Widow, a B-list character for most of her existence, so what we have here is a two-page appearance here or a six-page appearance there, and that’s all we get of that issue. There’s only a small handful of full issues in this book, so its mostly jarring random tidbits in the midst of Avengers soap opera. Imagine taking a coffee break everyday at 12:15-13:30 and watching the same soap every day at that time. Sure, you might follow one character, but you’ll still be confused at all the insanity going on around that character.
I do like, however, seeing WHY Clint and Natasha have a special relationship in the movies. I thought it was neat to find out the Red Guardian was actually the husband of Natasha. There’s still some cool character history here. And I get there’s not much the collectors could do, as those issue pieces are a huge original part of her turning good. But in all, that leaves this volume weaker than it should be. I would like to read vol. 2 and see how this character grows in hopefully a more realized way.
August 26, 2024
From Russian Agent to Daredevil Sidekick
This is an early history of the Black Widow from her early appearances in Iron Man and then The Avengers right through to her solo series I’m Amazing Adventures. Some of he story is told in excerpts from these comics and some are full stories but they clearly catalogue her development as a character. The solo stories have some great Gene Colan and Bill Everett artwork and there are some nice examples of the sexier versions of this art before they were toned down for publication.
All in all, a very enjoyable collection, though it is a real shame the solo series did not last longer!
This is an early history of the Black Widow from her early appearances in Iron Man and then The Avengers right through to her solo series I’m Amazing Adventures. Some of he story is told in excerpts from these comics and some are full stories but they clearly catalogue her development as a character. The solo stories have some great Gene Colan and Bill Everett artwork and there are some nice examples of the sexier versions of this art before they were toned down for publication.
All in all, a very enjoyable collection, though it is a real shame the solo series did not last longer!
June 22, 2021
This obsessive collection of Silver and Bronze age stories collect issues from Iron Man, Avengers, Spidey, Daredevil and more to show the reader how the nebulous concept of the Black Widow would appear, reinvent and disappear across these titles. The Black Widow we know and love isn't really here yet (that's the next Epic Collection), but this book is still a great early Marvel time capsule showing how a character builds over time.
Oh, and her relationship with Hawkeye is just toxic and wrong! ;)
Oh, and her relationship with Hawkeye is just toxic and wrong! ;)
July 26, 2025
These early appearances of the Black Widow prove they really had no ida who she was. First she’s a Russian spy who wears a veil, then she’s a crook turned good guy in love with Hawkeye wearing fishnets, and finally she wears the black outfit we’re more familiar with and suddenly has a chauffeur who has known her since she was a child and meets Daredevil (but isn’t in love with him yet). Volume 2 will, I think, be more worthwhile.
August 19, 2023
This was a good collection of issues and excerpts that show how BW started and evolved. It also includes origins and background on Hawkeye, who was in love with BW. Red Guardian was her husband. This collection gets its title from a standout issue of Spider-Man, and she was kind of a wall crawler crime fighter herself early on, as well as very rich, in NYC.
November 11, 2024
This book was interesting because we got to see the character evolve greatly from their first appearance to really finding her own identity later. Mostly guest appearances throughout which leads to a slightly disjointed read, and ultimately I didn't really enjoy a lot of the earliest stuff, but it was cool to see the evolution nonetheless.
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March 7, 2021This wasn’t my favorite Epic Collection. 300 out of the 400 pages featured Black Widow as a supporting character. I expected more solo Black Widow comics or atleast snippets from other comics where she played a larger role.
August 8, 2021
The Amazing Spider-Man 86: Beware the Black Widow
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 26, 2021
old comics are a trip
December 30, 2023
Classic. 🥰
April 10, 2020
The people who edited this collection made quite the effort to put in all the important moments in Black Widow's history, but I mainly bought it for the issues of Amazing Adventures.
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