Natasha & Marvel are back with a bang.

After eleven years in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, seven appearances in other heroes’ stories, and a fourteen-month COVID-related delay, Black Widow is finally with us – and, honestly, it’s about damn time.

Quite frankly, it’s taken an absolute age for Scarlett Johansson to get her own story in an ever-expanding universe that looked certain to leave her side-lined, and, if we’re honest it’s arrived too late to have the level of impact her character warrants. Yet, despite the long and winding road it’s taken to get here, it’s undeniably satisfying to get one last adventure with Natasha Romanoff before she departs the MCU for good.

In violation of the Sokovia Accords and on the run from the law, Natasha Romanoff’s (Scarlett Johansson) attempts to lay low are scuppered when she’s brought crashing back into a world she thought she’d escaped. Pursued by a force that’ll stop at nothing to take her down and with her estranged sister Yelena (Florence Pugh) re-entering her life, Natasha is forced to confront her dark past and the red in her ledger she can never remove.

Of course, in an ideal world, Black Widow would’ve been with us a long time ago, yet here we are, and it’s precisely because of this wait and the expectation it brings, that Black Widow lands with the force it does. Enigmatic though she may be, Natasha has nonetheless grown to become one of the most well-rounded characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, something that plays brilliantly into the film’s writing, adding the kind of depth you just wouldn’t get with any other character.

Undoubtedly one of its biggest strengths, Black Widow’s script and character work are impeccable, managing to weave in what we already know about Natasha, while growing to become its own thing entirely. While of course this wouldn’t be Marvel without a decent dose of action, it’s the time Black Widow allows its characters to just kick back and chat and the space it affords Natasha to become a fully formed hero that really deliver.

Leaning heavily into the notion of family in a way that Fast & Furious never could, Black Widow offers a group of characters that, on paper, shouldn’t work, yet grows to become an engrossing portrait of an unconventional familial unit. A cobbled together sleeper cell of strangers though they may be, the core group of Natasha, Florence Pugh’s Yelena, David Harbour’s Alexei, and Rachel Weisz’s Melina are so well written that – shaky Russian accents aside – you fully buy their relationship throughout.

In particular, Natasha and Yelena are built up to be the beating heart of the film, and it’s in the wholly authentic approach Eric Pearson’s script takes to this sisterly pairing that really allows Black Widow to land. The duo and their bickering relationship are never less than an absolute delight, and even as the movie expands and the explosions get louder, they remain Black Widow’s emotional anchor.

Naturally, Natasha and Yelena also have a key part to play in Black Widow’s action, something that only works to strengthen their chemistry together. Frequently operating in tandem, the two throw themselves into the bruising combat with gleeful abandon, ensuring that we feel the film’s full impact physically as well as emotionally.

As a blend of big set pieces and brutal hand-to-hand combat, the action on display is up there with some of the finest in the MCU to date, as the film’s first two acts hit some big Bourne and Mission: Impossible notes both in style and brute force. Almost inevitably, the action gets bogged down in CGI as we enter the finale, yet, despite this, Black Widow lands the vast majority of its punches.

With some of the finest combat and stunt work this side of Winter Soldier, director Cate Shortland and her second unit team must take immense credit for the sheer impact Black Widow makes, not only in its action, but in how these huge moments are complemented by a level of heart you rarely get from this size of blockbuster, Marvel or otherwise.

Around the action, the plot hangs together well enough, sticking to its guns as a Bond/Bourne-lite spy thriller, with more than enough twists and intrigue to keep you hooked. While it certainly flirts with formulaic at times, things never dive too deep into cliché, with the core narrative device of the Red Room and the dark themes it brings adding a satisfying depth throughout, even as the plot itself starts to wobble.

More than anything, however – and more than almost any other MCU entry going – Black Widow is there for its characters. With a solid background in character-based drama, Cate Shortland certainly knows how to service her heroes, and it’s through them that the film nudges itself up and into another level entirely.

Apart from the questionable accent, Ray Winston is an incredibly intimidating presence as the film’s antagonist, and while he certainly won’t go down as one of Marvel’s finest villains, his menace, and the pure revulsion Dreykov induces in his limited screen time is quite something. Alongside him, Taskmaster is certainly fun to watch in action and comes with a smart backstory, however, the character’s silence and stoic presence leave them somewhat lacking.

This is a movie, however, that’s all about its protagonists, and it’s in the quartet of Florence Pugh, David Harbour, Rachel Weisz, and Scarlet Johansson that Black Widow truly pops.

As the senior members of the cast, Harbour and Weisz are both in fantastic form, and while they take a back seat for much of the film, they certainly make the most of every minute of screen time. Having seemingly never aged a day since the 90s, Weisz is simultaneously solemn, powerful, and enigmatic as the matriarch of this ramshackle family, while Harbour’s bearded and bedraggled Captain America wannabe is an absolute riot of cringy, self-obsessed dad energy.

Alongside them, Florence Pugh all but steals the show as the sparky Yelena, lighting up the screen whenever she’s on it and building on her already burgeoning reputation with a performance that will surely see her as one of Marvel’s focal points moving forward. For those in the know, Pugh’s star has long been on the ascent, however, after this, there really is no limit to how high she can go.

Without a doubt, Pugh is very much Black Widow’s breakout star, however, as fantastic as she is, this remains the Scarlett show all the way. With an MCU career thus far spent in the shadow of others, its positively liberating to see Scarlett Johansson step out on her own and become the solo hero she’s clearly born to be.

While the looming spectre of Natasha’s endgame brings with it a stinging sense of finitude to the character, there’s no doubting just how much of a ball Johansson is having with her last throw of the dice. She kicks ass and delivers barbed quips in much the same way she has for the past decade, yet everything here hits harder and deeper as Johansson goes all-in on her MCU swansong.

Leading the line and working in perfect tandem with her co-stars, Johansson leaves nothing on the pitch and absolutely no doubt that this is very much her film from start to finish. And as she finally steps back from the role after all these years, Johansson can do so safe in the knowledge that she’s bowing out on a high and leaving the Black Widow keys in safe hands.

Riding high on its intense action but always finding time to service its characters and themes, Black Widow marks another success for Marvel and a fitting curtain call for one of their most enduring heroes. Bolstered by stellar performances, the film’s determination to focus on its core family dynamics and character development offer much to admire, and while plot wobbles and a CGI-heavy finale threaten to derail things, Black Widow offers both a fitting swansong for Scarlett Johansson and a triumphant return for the Marvel cinematic experience.

Black Widow is now available in cinemas and to stream on Disney+ Premium Access now.