Black Widow (Marvel Comics)

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Black Widow is the name of several fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Most of these versions exist in Marvel's main shared universe, known as the Marvel Universe.

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Claire Voyant

Claire Voyant is the first costumed, superpowered female protagonist in comic books. Created by writer George Kapitan and artist Harry Sahle, she first appeared in Mystic Comics #4 (Aug. 1940). She kills evildoers to deliver their souls to Satan, her master. The character is unrelated to the later Marvel Comics superheroines who took on the codename. [1]

Natasha Romanoff

Natasha Romanoff [2] is the first character to take on the Black Widow codename in the modern mainstream Marvel Comics. She was created by editor and plotter Stan Lee, scripter Don Rico and artist Don Heck, and first appeared in Tales of Suspense #52 (April 1964). The character has been associated with several superhero teams in the Marvel Universe, including the Avengers, the Defenders, the Champions, S.H.I.E.L.D., and the Thunderbolts. She has appeared in many other forms of media, including the major motion pictures Iron Man 2 , The Avengers , Captain America: The Winter Soldier , Avengers: Age of Ultron , Captain America: Civil War , Avengers: Infinity War , Avengers: Endgame and Black Widow , wherein she is portrayed by Scarlett Johansson.

Yelena Belova

Yelena Belova is the second character to take on the Black Widow codename in the modern mainstream comics who debuted briefly in Inhumans #5 (March 1999) and was fully introduced in the 1999 Marvel Knights mini-series Black Widow. A second miniseries, also titled Black Widow and featuring Natasha Romanoff and Daredevil, followed in 2001. The next year, she did a solo turn in her own three-issue miniseries titled Black Widow: Pale Little Spider under the mature-audience Marvel MAX imprint. This June to August 2002 story arc, by writer Greg Rucka and artist Igor Kordey, was a flashback to the story of her being the second modern Black Widow, in events preceding her Inhumans appearance. [3] Florence Pugh portrays Yelena in the MCU film Black Widow [4] and the Disney+ miniseries Hawkeye .

Alternative universe versions

Ultimate Marvel

Besides the Ultimate Marvel version of Natasha Romanoff, there were other characters who went by the name of Black Widow.

Monica Chang

Monica Chang-Fury is the second character to use the Black Widow codename, debuting in Ultimate Comics: Avengers #3. [5]

Jessica Drew

The Ultimate version of Jessica Drew is a female Spider-Clone who uses by the Black Widow alias. [6] [7]

Marvel 2099

Different version of Black Widow were seen in the different Marvel 2099 realities with one of them being the 2099 version of Yelena Belova:

Tania

During the "Secret Wars" storyline, the futuristic 2099 version of Black Widow is an African-American woman named Tania. She operates as part of the Avengers 2099 at the Alchemax corporation's behest in the Battleworld domain of 2099. [8] Like black widow spiders, she literally eats her mates after having sex with them. [9]

Black Widow 2098

On the unified Marvel 2099 reality of Earth-2099, a Black Widow known as Black Widow 2098 was a member of the 2099 version of the Avengers. She was among those who were killed by the 2099 version of the Masters of Evil. Moon Knight 2099 later respawned in her crypt and formed the 2099 version of the New Avengers who defeated the Masters of Evil and remanded them to a prison on the planet Wakanda. [10]

In other media

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Widow (Natasha Romanova)</span> Super-hero character in Marvel Comics

Black Widow is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by editor and plotter Stan Lee, scripter Don Rico, and artist Don Heck, the character debuted in Tales of Suspense #52. The character was introduced as a Russian spy, an antagonist of the superhero Iron Man. She later defected to the United States, becoming an agent of the fictional spy agency S.H.I.E.L.D. and a member of the superhero team the Avengers.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Super-Adaptoid</span> Supervillain in Marvel comics

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iron Maiden (Marvel Comics)</span> Fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Widow (Yelena Belova)</span> Fictional character, a spy in the Marvel Comics Universe

Yelena Belova is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is depicted as a spy and was the second modern-era character to use the Black Widow name. Created by Devin Grayson and J.G. Jones for Marvel Knights: Wave 2 Sketchbook #1, Belova made her first appearance in Inhumans vol. 2 #5 by Paul Jenkins and Jae Lee. She was trained as a spy and assassin in the Red Room. Originally, Yelena was a foe of Natasha Romanova and was sent to kill her, but the two later became allies. She was also a member of S.H.I.E.L.D., Vanguard, and HYDRA; the latter organization changed her into a version of Super-Adaptoid. As Super-Adaptoid, she was one of the members of the High Council of A.I.M. After being freed from her Super-Adaptoid identity, Belova reverted back to her old Black Widow identity before adopting the codename White Widow. She is the first confirmed asexual character in the Marvel Universe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J.A.R.V.I.S.</span> Fictional artificial intelligence appearing in the MCU

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<i>Black Widow</i> (2021 film) Marvel Studios film

Black Widow is a 2021 American superhero film based on Marvel Comics featuring the character of the same name. Produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, it is the 24th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). The film was directed by Cate Shortland from a screenplay by Eric Pearson and stars Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff / Black Widow alongside Florence Pugh, David Harbour, O-T Fagbenle, Olga Kurylenko, William Hurt, Ray Winstone, and Rachel Weisz. Set after the events of Captain America: Civil War (2016), the film sees Romanoff on the run and forced to confront her past as a Russian spy before she became an Avenger.

<i>Age of Ultron</i> Marvel Comics comic book storyline

"Age of Ultron" is a 2013 comic book fictional crossover storyline published by Marvel Comics that involved the conquest of the Earth by the sentient robot tyrant Ultron. The storyline consisted of an eponymous, 10-issue core miniseries, and a number of tie-in books.

Black Widow is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Originating in the Ultimate Marvel universe in 2009 she is depicted as the ex-wife of that universe's Nick Fury. A Earth-616 version later debuted in 2013; this version of Chang is an Asian American devout Muslim.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red Room (comics)</span> Fictional Soviet training facility in Marvel comics

The Red Room is a fictional location appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Soviet training facility was created to produce highly specialized spies, including Black Widows Natasha Romanova and Yelena Belova.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Natasha Romanoff (Marvel Cinematic Universe)</span> Character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Natalia Alianovna Romanova, more commonly known as Natasha Romanoff, is a fictional character primarily portrayed by Scarlett Johansson in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) media franchise—based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name—sometimes known by her alias, Black Widow. Romanoff is depicted as an expert spy and hand-to-hand combatant, trained in the Red Room from childhood to be a KGB assassin. This brought her under S.H.I.E.L.D.'s radar, and Clint Barton is sent to kill her but instead spared her life and recruited her into the organization.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clint Barton (Marvel Cinematic Universe)</span> Character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Clinton Francis Barton is a fictional character portrayed by Jeremy Renner in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) media franchise—based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name—more commonly known by his alias, Hawkeye. Barton is depicted as an expert marksman, archer and hand-to-hand combatant, with his preferred weapon being a recurve bow. Barton, an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., is sent to kill Natasha Romanoff but decides to recruit and befriend her instead.

References

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