Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow
Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) is inherently unpredictable. She is, by virtue of a lifetime of training and experience, a super-spy and assassin, drafted in by S.H.I.E.L.D. to assemble, assist and help manage the larger than life personalities that comprise the superheroes involved with the organization. She has no superpowers of her own, but is more than capable of fighting alongside those that do in the heat of battle. Ultimately, however, her loyalty does not reside solely with one person, or with one side of an argument.
Though she was introduced to the MCU in Iron Man 2, she has been most closely associated with Captain America, thanks to her supporting role in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. That film – her third MCU appearance – gave us, perhaps, our first real insight into her history with S.H.I.E.L.D. and her attitude toward the organization as an authority in the arena of planetary security. Alongside Captain America, she is clearly devastated to learn that the organization has been compromised by Hydra, and is deeply wounded by the loss of her superior, Nick Fury. In many ways, it seems, her work with S.H.I.E.L.D. represents something of a turnaround for her.
This depiction gives us the impression that Black Widow is, essentially, a ‘company woman’ – a foot soldier within a motivated unit, or a cog in a much a bigger machine. The third act of Captain America: The Winter Soldier peels back a deeper layer, however, and we find that senior S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives – albeit corrupted ones – are in possession of a wealth of information about Black Widow and her professional history. There is little doubt, then, that Black Widow is, in fact, simply a contractor for hire, who currently works with the Avengers, and whose actions are guided solely by what her conscience will tolerate.
Working with the Avengers has caused her conscience to have an altered tolerance for morally questionable undertakings, and as such, she remains closely associated not only with Captain America, but with S.H.I.E.L.D., too. As greater oversight of the team’s actions is demanded – in the wake of events from previous movies – it is not entirely clear which side of the conflict Black Widow will fall to, or indeed, if she will stick to one side at all. Being inherently unpredictable, her conscience will be torn between loyalty to Cap, and her role as representing the will of S.H.I.E.L.D. – and, by extension, Iron Man – since they are the ones cutting her pay cheque.
