Black Widow & Hawkeye #1 is published by Marvel Comics, written by Stephanie Phillips, art by Paolo Villanelli, colors by Mattia Iacono and letters by Joe Sabino. Black Widow hunts for Hawkeye, who is on the run and wanted by multiple assassins and governments.
The initial structure of the comic isn’t easy to follow, with a complicated manipulation of time in the early stages. After the most critical event, Phillips works backwards to clarify what is happening. It takes several pages of moving backwards and forwards to establish this, but the book eventually levels out amid the turbulence. The assassin and the Avenger find themselves back into a world of darkness. The circumstances have dramatically changed, diversifying the situation entirely. It makes the start of the series dramatic and unexpected. That usual world of espionage takes Natasha and Clint to Madripoor, the fictional city that is a hive of criminals and dirty money. But their background as spies has undoubtedly changed after so many years in the Marvel Universe.
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Black Widow & Widow #1 excellently displays how far the characters have come. A Symbiote partner now aids Black Widow. Hawkeye never goes beyond his bow and arrows, but he finds himself on the run and badly injured right from the start. Phillips delves into one of the most longstanding friendships in Marvel Comics. Clint and Natasha are best friends who always manage to find each other in their worst moments. Black Widow is scary with the Symbiote, with an unsettling introduction to her. As for Hawkeye, his sardonic attitude covers up the unimaginable pain he is in.
The art brings out the best of booth protagonists. Black Widow’s beauty and fierce personality come through within the same moments. She has numerous outfits in the first issue, depicting her abilities and Villanelli’s stylistic prowess. There is a sleek cleanliness to her presentation, even when in action. Meanwhile, Hawkeye is scruffy and stumbling his way through life, thrown around from his opening appearance in the comic. The sense of movement in the book is fantastic, and it is crucial when two acrobats are at the forefront of the action. Black Widow gaining the Symbiote is an excellent design full of possibilities and new abilities. Every single location looks fantastic, from the city of Madripoor to the tundras of Siberia.
The colors are sensational. Iacono’s style makes the work look like brushstrokes, especially the sky. It is a gorgeous effect that adds depth to the pages. In Madripoor, the orange glow from the city makes the streets look like they are on fire. The lettering is terrifically clear. Due to the color coding, it is very easy to tell which character the caption boxes belong to.
Black Widow & Hawkeye #1 pushes an old friendship to its limits. This partnership is built out of tension and difficulty. Natasha and Clint will always search for each other in their worst moments, even if they don’t recognise the person they find. The start of the plot is unorthodox and complicated, but when the comic straightens out, it excels. A brief backup story highlights how the duo may repeat the same dance but in different costumes and locations. And yet Phillips, Villanelli, and Iacono utilise new elements to take Black Widow and Hawkeye to new extremes.
Black Widow & Hawkeye #1 is available where comics are sold.
Black Widow & Hawkeye #1
TL;DR
Black Widow & Hawkeye #1 pushes an old friendship to its limits. This partnership is built out of tension and difficulty. Natasha and Clint will always search for each other in their worst moments, even if they don’t recognise the person they find. The start of the plot is unorthodox and complicated, but when the comic straightens out, it excels.
