Pretty significant issue. First, we have to make sure readers know who Black Widow is…
Then, it’s the big costume change…
It’s the first appearance of Black Widow’s skin-tight leathers, which she self-describes as a “modern image.” But it’s not just leather. It’s chains, too. This would be her signature look until Frank Miller redesigned her in the 1980s.
(I wonder what a “powerlet” is?)
It wasn’t until I started re-reading old Spider-Man and Daredevil comics that I realized what a major player Black Widow was in the Marvel Universe. She’d already been an Avenger by this time, and soon after this she got a regular gig on Daredevil (the title of the comic even changed to “Daredevil and Black Widow” for about a year). Marvel was really trying to make her as important as their (male) flagship characters…
…Or at least that she was their equal!
She adopts the new costume after she sees Spidey swinging across the city. She wants to be more like Spider-Man–hence the “web line.” But that’s really the only thing she does to make herself like Spider-Man.
Then she goes out to lure Spidey, fight him, and prove she’s better than him.
Yeah, it’s kind of a dumb plot but it’s always fun to see heroes fight.
“Woody Allen could take you” is a pretty good line.
There’s also a good “history of the Black Widow” sequence for those of you who haven’t been paying attention until this point. We close with a hype box promoting her coming solo stories in Amazing Adventures.
