As the Black Widow escapes the hospital, her fellow Avengers discover that she may have been selling their secrets.
The Good
Natasha's back to her roots and it's a lot more interesting than her being the "long-reformed villain" we've seen for so long. You really can't tell which side of the line she falls on, now. She's dangerous. A lot of more of an anti-heroine and I'm eager to see how she interacts with the fellow anti-heroine who shows up the end of this issue. Liu does a great job of making the sparse dialogue and captions match the tone of this story, giving you the feel of a lean, mean espionage thriller. The script also plays a lot better to Acuna's strengths this time around, avoiding the acrobatics that he seemed to have trouble with in the first issue. His art's really striking - - at time's its cinematic, almost photographic, and then it just as easily switches to a more painterly style. Actually, style is what should be harped on because his art has a suave, sophisticated air that I appreciated. Oh! And his rendering of Pepper Potts is cute as a button.
The Bad
There's nothing much to fault here. Acuna's rendering of Tony Stark wasn't immediately recognizable?
The Verdict - 4.5/5
This corrected a lot of problems I had with the first issue. I almost wish they'd skipped to this sooner. I know that you don't want to put all your cards on the table right away, but still. If you enjoyed the more dangerous, unpredictable side to Black Widow in the movie, you're going to love this, which captures that while still staying true to the comics' history. And, now, I'm definitely intrigued to see where this "Xavier Files"-style storyline goes. Is this Natasha's return to her wicked ways? Or is she being framed?
