Scan barcode
A review by littlemonster
Black Widow: The Name of the Rose by Nate Piekos, Marjorie Liu, Daniel Acuña
5.0
My first comic! And a superb one, at that. I’m more into the women of Marvel’s narratives than the men’s, and unfortunately that makes it slightly difficult to find comics that I’m interested in. It seems, though, that there’s (very slowly) a wider field of comics about women beginning to surface, and this pleases me greatly.
Now, onto the actual comic itself. Firstly, the artwork is absolutely breathtaking, and the dialogue and writing is just as beautiful. There’s a ton of great lines in The Name of the Rose. Also, since this is my first time delving into the comics world (excluding films and the odd tidbits here and there), I think it’s a great place to start in Black Widow (or general) comics. I found it fairly easy to follow, and the mystery and intrigue of the superspy’s background was always present. Another difficult thing to find in comics is, well, comics that don’t objectify women. It’s a disgusting but very prevalent theme, not only in comics but in everyday life and media, but it’s definitely really pervasive and gross in comic books. While not exactly perfect in that sense, The Name of the Rose still does a pretty great job of showing us who Natasha is, and allowing her to live by her own rules and to take back the control she’s fought so hard for in her life. As for summarizing the plot, someone attempts to take Natasha out, and nearly succeeds, and this leads Natasha on a dark road to discover who knows such intimate details of her past in Russia so long ago. The plotline isn’t the strongest, and the villain isn’t really interesting, but I think for this particular comic it works out fine, because ultimately it is about Natasha and it’s Natasha’s story.
Also, it has its fair share of charm. Natasha is witty, biting, funny and a fascinating, enigmatic character. Her relationship with her boyfriend Bucky Barnes (the Winter Soldier, serving as Captain America in Steve’s stead) is also lovely. We see that he trusts her and he will do whatever he can to help her, but there’s such respect between them. It’s a really interesting relationship, although I’m fine with the fact that it took the back burner here, because again: this is about Natasha. I also really loved the relationship Natasha had with Black Rose. It was touching and heartwarming, and I loved seeing these two talk and interact, because there was something so…real, I suppose, in their relationship.
My favorite thing about this comic is the realism and the complexity of Natasha. Yes, she’s a superspy; yes, she’s killed; yes, she’s an antihero; but she’s likable, and she’s human. There’s a real connect here between Natasha and the reader – at least, there is for me. Of course I can’t speak for everyone, and I’m well aware that not everyone has such warm feelings towards this comic. But regardless, this comic is enchanting and appealing, and at the end of the day, I’m glad I started out here. And Natasha?
She’s absolutely beyond fantastic.
Now, onto the actual comic itself. Firstly, the artwork is absolutely breathtaking, and the dialogue and writing is just as beautiful. There’s a ton of great lines in The Name of the Rose. Also, since this is my first time delving into the comics world (excluding films and the odd tidbits here and there), I think it’s a great place to start in Black Widow (or general) comics. I found it fairly easy to follow, and the mystery and intrigue of the superspy’s background was always present. Another difficult thing to find in comics is, well, comics that don’t objectify women. It’s a disgusting but very prevalent theme, not only in comics but in everyday life and media, but it’s definitely really pervasive and gross in comic books. While not exactly perfect in that sense, The Name of the Rose still does a pretty great job of showing us who Natasha is, and allowing her to live by her own rules and to take back the control she’s fought so hard for in her life. As for summarizing the plot, someone attempts to take Natasha out, and nearly succeeds, and this leads Natasha on a dark road to discover who knows such intimate details of her past in Russia so long ago. The plotline isn’t the strongest, and the villain isn’t really interesting, but I think for this particular comic it works out fine, because ultimately it is about Natasha and it’s Natasha’s story.
Also, it has its fair share of charm. Natasha is witty, biting, funny and a fascinating, enigmatic character. Her relationship with her boyfriend Bucky Barnes (the Winter Soldier, serving as Captain America in Steve’s stead) is also lovely. We see that he trusts her and he will do whatever he can to help her, but there’s such respect between them. It’s a really interesting relationship, although I’m fine with the fact that it took the back burner here, because again: this is about Natasha. I also really loved the relationship Natasha had with Black Rose. It was touching and heartwarming, and I loved seeing these two talk and interact, because there was something so…real, I suppose, in their relationship.
My favorite thing about this comic is the realism and the complexity of Natasha. Yes, she’s a superspy; yes, she’s killed; yes, she’s an antihero; but she’s likable, and she’s human. There’s a real connect here between Natasha and the reader – at least, there is for me. Of course I can’t speak for everyone, and I’m well aware that not everyone has such warm feelings towards this comic. But regardless, this comic is enchanting and appealing, and at the end of the day, I’m glad I started out here. And Natasha?
She’s absolutely beyond fantastic.