The Black Widow has donned a number of costumes since the character first debuted back Tales of Suspense #52 in 1964 by Stan Lee, Don Rico and Don Heck. She was originally introduced as “the gorgeous new menace,” and slowly became a fan-favorite character who joined The Avengers. In the most recent issue of The Avengers by Jason Aaron and Ed McGuinness, Natasha Romanoff is given another new look in what might be her best costume yet.
In Avengers #27, Captain America recruits Black Widow to join the team in a mission to space. Cap calls her up because of her background taking on any enemy, big or small. When Natasha arrives, she is seen in a sleek new costume.
Unlike the more tactile, traditional costume that Natasha has worn in the recent Black Widow and her espionage-focused The Web of Black Widow series from earlier this year, her new design is sharper than ever.
The new costume is a single-piece suit with a mesh section towards her neck. Instead of the bulkier belt that Natasha used to wear, the bodysuit features smaller gold designs across her waist. Her logo is smaller and gold, while her gauntlets seem to have been made longer and are also more predominantly that color as well. There’s no denying Black Widow’s old suit was definitely awesome. It’s iconic and the first look that comes to mind when you think of the character in the comics. That said, the new suit is a great mix of new and old.
Black Widow’s new costume also compares favorably to her more recent looks. Her white costume that debuted in Black Widow: Deadly Origin is a good look, but a full white ensemble doesn’t really match with the character. Although that suit does look better than the one from her time with the Uncanny X-Men: the all-grey suit is bland with little accents besides a giant spider on her back and the right of her chest. It’s a boring look that feels like it belongs on a Spider-Man character, not the Black Widow.
The mesh at the top of Black Widow’s new costume is a nice homage to the original costume the character wore. While Natasha’s original look had one of the more hilarious looking cape/mask combos (both later abandoned), it does have that classic comic vibe. However, the look would never, ever be worn by her today. It’s a relic of the past and if that particular suit was ever revisited, it would be a huge mistake. It might not be one of the worst superhero costumes of ever, but it definitely deserves consideration.
Black Widow’s 70’s suit has been the standard for the character and remains one of the best Marvel has ever done. It’s immediately recognizable, sleek and fits the character quite well. The same can be said for Black Widow’s new costume. It’s not a significant departure from her iconic look… but it’s a nice change of pace, and one too stylish to really ignore.
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