“SEVER THE NERVE” … WHACK. 

Best scene in the whole dang movie for me. 

I dunno…this was good. It was fine, I enjoyed it, and I’m struggling to say much else about it if I’m being honest… it just didn’t really have a whole lot of Marvel sparkle for me. (And now I’m realizing “marvel sparkle” are two words that should never be put together.)

I would’ve gone a totally different way with this movie had I been one of the writers. I think Black Widow’s movie could’ve really benefitted from a sort of Queen’s Gambit style. I would’ve loved to see her evolve INTO the person she is today…rather than watch her struggle with her past in the present. There was so much potential there…and yet all we got were whispers of the past among her family. 

I liked the family dynamic. I enjoyed the quips and the bonding and the sister relationship was ON POINT. My own sister and I were laughing so much because we are copycats of them. Yelena (her) & Natasha (me). That being said, I was astounded at how well created Yelena’s character was. She was truly a joy to watch on screen every time. She balanced Natasha’s quiet boldness with a fierce strength that she not only carried with humor (something marvel women don’t seem to excel at) but with humility as well. What an absolute babe!!! So excited to see her character in the future. 

The character development was 10x more interesting to me than the plot here, and again, that’s why I believe Black Widow would’ve benefited from a Queen’s Gambit style. The characters, and consequently the actors portrayal of them, SAVED the story. 

I want to know more about little Natasha and her sister. I wanna see the times in her life where she used what her mom taught her to survive instead of seeing that play out as a conversation later. Imagine how much more impactful that scene would’ve been at Melina’s house had we seen young Natasha struggle beforehand. I wanna SEE little Natasha keep her heart in a world full of chaos and destruction, not have her TELL me about it. 

Sadly, what we get in this movie is a ghost of that struggle, a painful reminder of what we could’ve gotten from Marvel…but didn’t.