I could go on and on about this book. This was everything I wanted in a BLACK WIDOW comic. Nathan Edmondson comes out of the gate running. He has a great take on Natasha and reading this issue will immediately make you want more. Phil Noto's art is insanely good. He creates a fantastic mood full of energy and makes Natasha look great without over sexualizing her. This is a comic anyone can easily dive into. Buy an extra copy or two and give them to your friends or loved ones. This is the book Black Widow and comic fans deserve. How many days until issue two? Read Full Review

And also, YAY FOR FOREIGN FEMALE PROTAGONISTS! Read Full Review

This comic will pull you in with the first page and it will not let go until the final panel. Edmondson and Noto have crafted a really special comic in Black Widow #1 that sets the framework for what could be one of the strongest series of 2014. The cohesion between the script and art is as tight as I have ever seen and the story these two creators have crafted is simply brilliant. This is the strongest version of the character I have ever read and I can't wait to get my hands on #2. Do yourself a favour and try this one out as fast as you can, the shops won't have copies for long. Read Full Review

Black Widow #1 is just a fantastic start to a brand new series that should be read. It fully fleshed out and realized its main character with beautiful artwork and an enjoyable one-shot. If you are looking for a new series to try, there is no better one out there at this moment from any company than this. Read Full Review

Overall, Black Widow #1 is a stellar effort from Edmondson and Noto that's sure to please even the most diehard fans. The story focuses on character development, and the creative team has nailed Natasha Romanov's voice perfectly. Read Full Review

Overall, Natasha has seen a great outing with this issue and I'm definitley around for a few more. The second issue is supposed to shit out in 2 weeks, which means that the title is going to double-ship this month just as with some of the other new launches from Marvel, so not long to wait! Read Full Review

I really appreciate what Edmondson and Noto has done with Black Widow #1. It's with the familiar theme of atonement and looking back at her past sins, but as of the moment it feels like a fresher take. No doubt the series will focus not on the action and the sexiness and bad-assery the assassin-agent-Avenger does, but rather emphasize her history and character development. Now that is something I'd follow and look forward to! Read Full Review

Black Widow #1 is not perfect though. The action is there and the tone is right but it feels a little like I've heard this story before. I don't think this will become a problem because there's a lot of good here but I do worry about predictability. There is clear influence here of Ed Brubaker's crime work. However, despite the feeling of familiarity, this was an excellent read and has a very bright future. Read Full Review

From start to finish, Black Widow #1 is a strong introduction to the series. I highly recommend this book, whether you're a longtime fan or new to the character. This is a great title and I look forward to reading more in the coming year. Read Full Review

As Scarlett Johansson has demonstrated in her film appearances, the Widow has tremendous potential (her confrontation with Loki in the film is an amazing scene). This comic is a good first step in bringing that character into the comics. Read Full Review

This was a terrific opening issue to Black Widow's new solo series and probably one of the best that she's ever had. I for one look forward to reading more from this series and hope that Edmondson does just as good a job in the upcoming Punisher series. Highly recommended. Read Full Review

The third issue is already out, but I wanted to start with the first to give those a chance who missed it last month to start from the beginning. Like Hawkeye, grounded and imperfect characters are becoming the norm in the Marvel universe, especially ones that readers can relate to. While most of us aren't soviet assassins turned Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Natasha lives in a small apartment, craves a glass of wine at the end of the day, and befriends a neighborhood cat. If any of that is you, or you just want to see someone with a dark past turn on the light, then pick this up. Read Full Review

Peppered with noir overtones and subtle humorous moments, "Black Widow" #1 has impressive depth and complexity. Edmondson and Noto's brilliant debut issue does Natasha Romanoff great justice by showcasing her diverse skill set and all-around badassery while weaving in some genuine character moments. "Black Widow" is a wild ride for new and old readers alike. Read Full Review

I decided to have a little fun with this weeks pick and give you the four things I love about Black Widow #1: Read Full Review

This is not an amazing story yet, but it could very well be the start of a strong run. While there is a focus on who Black Widow is, the action moves at a snappy pace. Again, the artwork pops off the page, making every frame and every page worth hanging on the wall. Its great to see Marvel pushing its female characters into the spotlight again, and I hope it is something that continues. The quality of this issueis a good sign for Marvel comics in 2014. Read Full Review

All in all, one of the better mainstream comics in a while. To me this and Hawkeye show that smaller adventures with smaller scale can be fantastic if told by a great creative team. Read Full Review

It's a solid looking issue that in some places may take itself a little too seriously, but it certainly has potential. Read Full Review

Black Widowgave me vibes of the soloHawkeyebook. Both follow the adventures ofAvengersaway from the team. While Clint Barton finds himself in trouble by accident, Natasha Romanoff goes looking for it. With the creative team on board, this could be a surprise hit for All-New Marvel NOW! Read Full Review

This issue is a unique take on Natasha. We get to see the powerful Black Widow as an emotional human being (in a good way). For anyone who is a fan of the Black Widow, this is a must-read. Read Full Review

The first issue did a good job of setting up the idea of what the book is about, Natasha is trying to clear her guilty conscious of all her terrible deeds. The real basic concept is similar to Fraction and Aja's Hawkeye, where this is what the character is doing while they're not out saving the world. The big different here is where Hawkeye is very much Clint just trying to be normal and enjoy his every day life. Black Widow has Natasha hoping around the world taking contracts to help people and setting up trusts and charities with the profits. Read Full Review

Black Widow #1 is a solid start. Let's hope they can find a way to give a supporting cast to a woman who makes a point of supporting herself and no one else. Read Full Review

This issue opens up a lot of question about the character and hopefully as the series continues we will begin to get some answers. The good thing is this issue has enough content to draw readers in, Natasha is intriguing and the art by Phil Noto is great. All this leads me to the conclusion that I will be back for Issue 2. Read Full Review

Edmondson has captured Black Widow's essence in this first issue. Emotional and action packed. Noto is the perfect complement to Edmondson's writing. The art was elegant and smooth. This book is fun and entertaining! This is definitely my “Hawkeye” series. Pick this up and you won't be disappointed. Read Full Review

Black Widow'sfirst issue begins what is hopefully a very long look at a character who deserves more individual time outside of her Avengers capacity. With Edmondson and Noto at the helm, it looks to be a very good year for Black Widow and her fans. Read Full Review

This is a beautifully drawn and colored book focused on a vital yet deeply flawed, female character that is more concerned with the nuances of her quest for redemption than the contours of her figure. Quite a refreshing contribution and worthy of your hard earned dollars. Read Full Review

If this book had any issues, they would pretty much all be found in the art. This isn't so much the fault of Phil Noto, but more the fault of the inker. The inks look a little heavy at times, and this makes some panels look like they consist of a bunch of paper cutouts glued on to a background. This ends up making the book look downright sloppy at times. It's different, yes, but it isn't necessarily the good, interesting type of different. It's the type of different that weakens what otherwise was a strong start for one of Marvel's newest series. Read Full Review

This initial Black Widow story is undoubtedly worth the read, but could be so much better if a few risks were taken. It will take some work to bring the infamously impassive Natasha into a world where she has complex emotions and a connection to her supporting cast, but with a few more issues under their belts, it's possible that Edmondson and Noto can take this great character to exciting new places. Read Full Review

The art by Noto is equally effective, with a uniquely painted/drawn style that manages to blend realistic pencils with a faded, outside-the-lines coloring. It looks great, and it works perfectly for the Black Widow. Read Full Review

Black Widow #1 provides a nice look into what a Natasha Romanov solo series can be about. Writer Nathan Edmundson clearly has a lot of great ideas for balancing Widow's personal life with the one of high-risk super-spy excitement. I hope the fans support this book and keep it on the stands. Personally, I want to read more about that cat. Read Full Review

Of course, this is only the first issue, and any and all of my complaints could be taken care of in an issue or three, so I'm inclined to give this book a little bit of leeway (especially given that I love the character, Scarlett Johansson and the idea of solo female comic book stories), especially given that the parts that don't quite work are still skillfully done. All in all, Black Widow #1 comes out of the gate pretty strong, even with an idiosyncratic art style and some familiarity to the lone-assassin-tough-character tropes, delivering an interesting start to Natasha's renewed solo career and earning 3.5 out of 5 stars overall. I'm willing to give this one at least four issues to get its feet underneath it, based on the strengths of this issue… Read Full Review

Natasha would never let that happen to her. But what happens when she meets a foe who can match her skill, or gets caught in a trap she can't escape? This issue doesn't tell us. I'm looking for higher stakes on this title, and also more dramatic art. Noto's painted work is well-drafted and composed, but the red of her hair and even the black of her suit are muted. His pastel world has a sense of realism, but it doesn't really capture the excitement the character lives by, or make for excessively clear fight scenes. Natasha shouldn't live in a gray or brown world; she should be going to extremes. Read Full Review

The good news then is that, as a writer with no fixed agenda regarding Agent Romanoff, I'm happy to say that this issue sells me at the very least on this version of the character: while Scarlett Johansson's performance is basically my only frame of reference for her, this goes a long way to fitting her into my understanding of the post-NOW!/Disney takeover version of Marvel " still linked mysteriously to the Cold War but very much at home in the Modern Warfare era of terrorists and black ops wet-workers. Read Full Review

At the end of the day, “Black Widow” is a Marvel 616 comic, which generally means that it's going to play safe with the character. That's not inherently a bad thing. This comic is entertaining enough, but it feels like the Black Widow comic that you were destined to get with a character that Marvel wants to be prominent and popular moving forward with their motion picture line. It's great that we have another female hero series to look forward to, and a visually compelling one at that, but it's at the expense of a character that feels like she should be more complex than this. Marvel is telling us she's complex, but until we see some truly tough and unique decisions being made in her quest for personal peace, we'll just have another solid and professional spy comic from Edmondson. Read Full Review

The first issue is a good start to the series. I look for more complicated plots from a spy book but it seems that those will come down the road. The aspect of the book that is made clear is that the reader and the titled character's interfaces don't know the Black Widow character at all. I'm hopeful that this is true and we will see this in the coming issues. This is worth checking out. Read Full Review

Edmondson's first Black Widow story is called "Raison D'Etre," which is fitting since that seems to be all it's willing to establish for its main character. As a pilot, this issue works to establish Black Widow's function and her modus operandi, but there's nothing on the page to make readers anxiously await what happens next. In fact, there don't seem to be many long term seeds sown at all. Undoubtedly, this issue will have its supporters in spite of its flaws, and ultimately, that may be a good thing. Nathan Edmondson and Phil Noto clearly have a grasp on the surface elements that make Black Widow a fan favorite character, so it's hopeful that with time, they'll be able to better pry back the veneer of the aloof super-spy and find the compelling character inside. Read Full Review

The artwork is fantastic and the writing is solid, it's great to see Black Widow get such an interesting, compelling book. The only thing is, I would have liked something to make me buy issue #2, but the story seemed to be over with the last page, and it felt more like a one-shot than an ongoing title.

Good story and a good setup for the series. Looking forward to some multi-issue story arcs.

A very pretty nothing-issue.