Fuck Yeah, Black Widow

You might have heard— Marvel is doing a gigantanormous 700 issue free digital bonanza and this means for the first time I get to do a masterpost for some of my favorite Black Widow comics!!

Black Widow v6 #1 (url)
The kickoff to the 2010 ongoing is still my preferred intro point, because this is a kickass run of comics that mixes grade-A character study with the context of the wider Marvel universe. Again, this is the Natasha story I think everyone should read. This story arc continues with #2-5 of the same series.
Words by Marjorie Liu, art by Daniel Acuña

Black Widow v1 #1 (url)
The 1999 mini introduces Yelena Belova, a second Black Widow and mixes glossy international espionage with themes of identity and individuality. I still love this one, and it was my go-to rec before the 2010 ongoing came out. Continues in #2-3 of the same series.
Words by Devin Grayson, art by J.G. Jones

Black Widow v2 #1 (url)
This is a spiritual sequel to the first Grayson mini, and is a mean, twisty mindfuck of a story. I like this because it shows Natasha at her worst, and also shows what drives her there. Continues in #2-3 of the same series.
Words by Devin Grayson & Greg Rucka, art by Scott Hampton

Enter the Heroic Age #1 & CA and the Secret Avengers #1 (url & url)
Two linked one-shots by Kelly Sue DeConnick, involving copious ladysnark, over the top Bond-villainy, and an assortment of cute coats and puppies. Read Enter the Heroic Age, then the SA issue.
Words by Kelly Sue DeConnick, art by Jamie McKelvie and Greg Tocchini

Fear Itself: the Black Widow (url)
This takes place during the Fear Itself megacrossover but you don’t need to read the big crossover to understand what’s going on. I like how this one explores Natasha’s ruthlessness in the context of her vulnerability, and the art is lithe and elegant.
Words by Cullen Bunn, art by Peter Nguyen

These are all #1 issues, so they were written as starting points and should be easy for anyone to download and digest.

ETA: the demand on comixology’s servers caused them to pause the promotion, but fill out this form and they’ll let you know when you can get your free comics.

Fury: And Yelena goes back to Moscow. Back to the Red Room. Maybe now she knows it’s not a game. Maybe she’s grown up.
Answering Machine: Yelena, it’s your mother. Where have you been? We’ve been worried about you… why haven’t you called your Aunt Olga? She says Dmitri is dying to meet a girl like you… he says you sould like the woman he’s been looking for.

This is one of the most interesting pages about Yelena— the voiceover of Fury’s expectations and the reality Yelena returned to, all dialogue disembodied, Yelena herself silent. Natasha spends most of this storyline embodying Yelena, a person she has never been but thinks she understands. To Natasha, Yelena is a reckless adventurer, and escapist, and someone who brings too much passion, too much excitability to the game of espionage. But I don’t know if she considers why Yelena is all these things. It’s too foreign for her to consider.

Natasha was thrown out of a burning building as an infant and her whole life has been on fire since then. But Yelena has a family, a mother, an Aunt Olga trying to set her up with a boy named Dmitri. A season of cloudy skies. An ordinary, boring life to escape.

She wanted to be a spy, to be the best of them.

From Black Widow: Breakdown #3, by Devin Grayson, Greg Rucka and Scott Hampton.

“No. Only me.  You will survive.”

Fury: Give it up, Black Widow!
Yelena: No!

From Black Widow: Breakdown #2, by Devin Grayson, Greg Rucka and Scott Hampton.

Black Widow: Whatever it is, I’m sure SHIELD wouldn’t approve. Which is why I’ve taken care of that problem for you. Fury and his dogs are so busy chasing their rogue agent Romanov they don’t even know you’re here.
Stelyenko: Interesting. And you orchestrated this by yourself? Framing Romanov for your murder?
Black Widow: Why are you surprised? I’d hardly be worthy of the name Black Widow if I couldn’t do such a thing, General.

A look inside the premiere hardcover I’m giving away for that contest I am shamelessly plugging.

From Black Widow: Breakdown #2, by Devin Grayson, Greg Rucka, and Scott Hampton.

So, shortly after reaching 1,000 posts, I’ve reached 500 followers. And that means I’m doing a giveaway.

Exhibit A!! The Black Widow: Itsy-bitsy Spider hardcover edition. Check out those creative teams, featuring Devin Grayson and M. Greg Rucka, with art by then-future superstar J.G. Jones and painterly Scott Hampton. This Bechdel-tastic volume could possibly be yours, and possibly I will pay for it, if you give me your rebloggings. Your mission, should you choose to accept it:

Reblog this post. (You don’t have to be a follower of this blog to enter.)
After one (1) week I will randomly select a winner amongst the rebloggers.
I will then get Amazon.com to preorder this lovely hardcover for the winner. If Amazon.com will not ship very easily to the winner’s location, I will conceive of some other way to get it to them, but it will take longer.

That’s all! Thanks to everyone for following!!