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ianukWarning, strong language and heavy duty spoilers for Age of Ultron and my opinions.
So, there has been lots of upheaval about Avengers: Age of Ultron and Joss Whedon’s treatment of the Black Widow. Yes, things could have been a bit different but 1) Scarlet Johansen was 4-5 mos preggers during the shooting so things may have been limited from her usual kick buttness and them not wanting to CGI her completely and 2) Joss does not control the merchandising of the movie…seriously, he doesn’t, blame Disney and Marvel and 3) Are any of the characters really the same since we first saw them? Character development people! No one is the same after all of the stuff in the MCU…seriously.
So, If you remember back to the last parts of TWS, Nat is going to go “find herself”. She has not been herself in so long or even ever that I’m sure she spends a good chunk of time between TWS and AOU navel gazing pretty hard.
Here is a woman who was brought up in the Red Room, she was the star pupil, she learned to kill, seduce and spy in her way through life. She lived that life after her graduation from the Red Room where they sterilized her. I’m sure that was traumatizing, even if it was as support for their cause and makes sense but as a woman having children seems the norm. When she observed the world outside while working for the Red Room she would have seen normal life. Seen how things she was used to in the closed and I will say abusive treatment of her training were not the same as the outside world.
They brainwashed the girls for Mother Russia etc and the treatment to keep them inline was psychological/chemical/physical. So, imagine she works for a time and at some point she defects to SHIELD and again, is someone who is not her own. She de-programs and becomes what they expect her to be which is a good agent…not a specific personality but an agent with a certain set of skills. Not very human, but alive and making decisions for herself, she thinks, for the good of the world and then she finds out she’s been working for the bad guys. Talk about a mental fuck fest to make you question your sanity etc.
Nat never really got to pick who she wanted to be. Her convo with Steve in the truck in TWS when she asked “Who do you want me to be?” was probably a question she asked Clint, Phil any of the SHIELD higher-ups. She didn’t know who she wanted to be or needed to be. She was really used to others telling her, as she’d been trained to do and for the first time she needed to make that decision herself. Joss had very similar things going on in Dollhouse, which I now want to go back and watch a lot more of even though it only had 1 season.
It takes a while to come to terms with things if you are normal. Lots of scary ass shit has happened in the MCU. 1) ALIENS ARE REAL! 2) The battle of New York 3) HYDRA has always been there under our noses. Imagine if you grew up like her, imagine if everything you felt strongly about was all of a sudden thrown out the window. Realize she’s done this twice. First, rejecting the Red Room and their mission and now realize that you’ve been doing bad things when you thought you were doing good things. Not knowing who to trust since HYDRA is everywhere. Imagine the torture of not know if your few friends are really your friends or not. Give yourself a few years to travel and find yourself, visit friends (the Barton Household) and be a person for yourself, get over the guilt of that red ledger and move forward. Note I said years and probably some therapy in there. Everyone in the MCU has some PTSD that we never talk about, that isn’t mentioned except a bit with Sam and his Veteran’s group and Steve realizing he has similar stories he won’t share. What shrink would want to listen to this? Ironman 3 we see Tony trying and Bruce “I’m not that kind of doctor” Banner is being a good friend but falls asleep during Tony’s revelation and personal psycho analysis. But realize, no one except Sam ever really gets real help with their issues. And realize that time has kept marching forward but how much time?
We probably have at least a year between SHIELD falling and AOU. That is a year for Nat to find herself make some decisions and be, maybe not normal but want truly her own person for the first time. She had time to think and see the happiness that Clint has and to probably ponder the sorrow of not even being able to have that. She realized what she wanted, companionship and love. Is she really going to pick a normal person for this? Someone who does not understand her skill set and background? Who is available? Not Clint, Thor and Tony are taken with Pepper and Jane, Steve is, well, that is completely other posting and then there is Bruce. Geeky Science Bro to Tony and during this time of Navel Gazing she’s gotten to know him well enough to do the night night routine with him. To sing him a lullaby to calm the Hulk. The Hulk likes her, approves of her and is probably smarter than Bruce in many ways regarding Nat. That intimacy to put the Hulk to sleep would probably stir lots of insticts that Nat may have not known she even possessed. Nurture versus Nature. This isn’t just a woman thing…thing is a human thing…to take care of things to nurture them. Even if we are just smart apes (which I know we are not but this is an analogy) we show others affections and love even if they are not our lovers etc. Some people are more touchy feely than others. The touchy feely part she knows how to do but being in control of it versus letting her training drive the bus of her personality is a big difference. So, navel gazing happened and she decided she wanted Bruce, she took her time and was subtle. The making him a drink scene is so cute and epic. Bruce is clueless and she is not chagrinned by it, she takes it in stride because you have to work for the things you want. Bruce is not a mark, he’s a friend and she is being subtle so as not to spook the Hulk or the Brain. I’m sure things would have been even slower if you didn’t have the Ultron thing ruining the party and her very methodical plans.
Its not feminism being bashed for a women realizing that she didn’t get to make a choice about her own body. It’s the exact opposite. The nature nurture thing I spoke about before is still in play. Nat realizes that her choices were never her own. I’d have been angry. I’d have gone on a killing rampage about it if that choice had been made for me and how weird they made it. They could have not even mentioned the sterilization for the girls but they made it part of the programming….to de-womanize them, make them only weapons etc. And that is the sick part. I think Nat went and became human, more human than she ever let herself be her entire life and she thought about how that hadn’t been her choice. The flashbacks in the movie even show how even in her subconscious she knew it was wrong. Maybe the fact that she knew the Red Room was effed was what made her the best they ever had. Maybe this realization helped her throughout lots of things. It’s almost body dysmorphic/horror the way they portrayed it in the flashback and the Scarlet Witch brought forth lots of horrors for everyone. We only saw Widow’s and Steve’s but what did Bruce see? Can you imagine it? Probably a desolate place where he is alone because he killed everyone/thing? Who knows.
Bruce has had lots of navel gazing in the 6 or so years he’s had to contend with the Other Guy…maybe he’s right in his thoughts on how he can act on feelings, maybe he’s wrong but it was disheartening to see him turn off that screen on seeing Nat reaching out to him as a friend and maybe more but again. This post isn’t about him, its about Nat. She showed her hand to Bruce at the Barton’s and he freaked out…they were both feeling the effects of the Scarlet Witch and maybe things could have been phrased differently between them but he took the harsh front. She was not dissuaded. From an outside observer, Clint’s Wife, she could see this as a natural occurrence of things, while it seems the men are clueless. Joss likes smart and observant female characters, Mrs. Barton is no different and she knows Nat probably better than most on the team from proximity. I’d love to be a fly on the wall for some of their conversations (Nat and her). They probably had a few.
What is not to love about a woman who can kick people’s asses, realize her issues and start to work through them while still trying to save the world? She didn’t let it over run her mission to save the world, she could have easily run off with Bruce in Sokovia but she didn’t. She needed “the Other Guy” and helped save the day versus taking what her heart wanted she did things for the greater good. That is admirable and commendable. She’s not going to stop for her caring for Bruce. I think she will bide her time, wait for him to resurface in some back water area and go be with him as a friend and maybe something more eventually but that will take time and she knows it.
Anywho, that is what I have to say on that subject….may have more at some point but people need to see the bigger picture about Nat her her progress through the MCU.
So, there has been lots of upheaval about Avengers: Age of Ultron and Joss Whedon’s treatment of the Black Widow. Yes, things could have been a bit different but 1) Scarlet Johansen was 4-5 mos preggers during the shooting so things may have been limited from her usual kick buttness and them not wanting to CGI her completely and 2) Joss does not control the merchandising of the movie…seriously, he doesn’t, blame Disney and Marvel and 3) Are any of the characters really the same since we first saw them? Character development people! No one is the same after all of the stuff in the MCU…seriously.
So, If you remember back to the last parts of TWS, Nat is going to go “find herself”. She has not been herself in so long or even ever that I’m sure she spends a good chunk of time between TWS and AOU navel gazing pretty hard.
Here is a woman who was brought up in the Red Room, she was the star pupil, she learned to kill, seduce and spy in her way through life. She lived that life after her graduation from the Red Room where they sterilized her. I’m sure that was traumatizing, even if it was as support for their cause and makes sense but as a woman having children seems the norm. When she observed the world outside while working for the Red Room she would have seen normal life. Seen how things she was used to in the closed and I will say abusive treatment of her training were not the same as the outside world.
They brainwashed the girls for Mother Russia etc and the treatment to keep them inline was psychological/chemical/physical. So, imagine she works for a time and at some point she defects to SHIELD and again, is someone who is not her own. She de-programs and becomes what they expect her to be which is a good agent…not a specific personality but an agent with a certain set of skills. Not very human, but alive and making decisions for herself, she thinks, for the good of the world and then she finds out she’s been working for the bad guys. Talk about a mental fuck fest to make you question your sanity etc.
Nat never really got to pick who she wanted to be. Her convo with Steve in the truck in TWS when she asked “Who do you want me to be?” was probably a question she asked Clint, Phil any of the SHIELD higher-ups. She didn’t know who she wanted to be or needed to be. She was really used to others telling her, as she’d been trained to do and for the first time she needed to make that decision herself. Joss had very similar things going on in Dollhouse, which I now want to go back and watch a lot more of even though it only had 1 season.
It takes a while to come to terms with things if you are normal. Lots of scary ass shit has happened in the MCU. 1) ALIENS ARE REAL! 2) The battle of New York 3) HYDRA has always been there under our noses. Imagine if you grew up like her, imagine if everything you felt strongly about was all of a sudden thrown out the window. Realize she’s done this twice. First, rejecting the Red Room and their mission and now realize that you’ve been doing bad things when you thought you were doing good things. Not knowing who to trust since HYDRA is everywhere. Imagine the torture of not know if your few friends are really your friends or not. Give yourself a few years to travel and find yourself, visit friends (the Barton Household) and be a person for yourself, get over the guilt of that red ledger and move forward. Note I said years and probably some therapy in there. Everyone in the MCU has some PTSD that we never talk about, that isn’t mentioned except a bit with Sam and his Veteran’s group and Steve realizing he has similar stories he won’t share. What shrink would want to listen to this? Ironman 3 we see Tony trying and Bruce “I’m not that kind of doctor” Banner is being a good friend but falls asleep during Tony’s revelation and personal psycho analysis. But realize, no one except Sam ever really gets real help with their issues. And realize that time has kept marching forward but how much time?
We probably have at least a year between SHIELD falling and AOU. That is a year for Nat to find herself make some decisions and be, maybe not normal but want truly her own person for the first time. She had time to think and see the happiness that Clint has and to probably ponder the sorrow of not even being able to have that. She realized what she wanted, companionship and love. Is she really going to pick a normal person for this? Someone who does not understand her skill set and background? Who is available? Not Clint, Thor and Tony are taken with Pepper and Jane, Steve is, well, that is completely other posting and then there is Bruce. Geeky Science Bro to Tony and during this time of Navel Gazing she’s gotten to know him well enough to do the night night routine with him. To sing him a lullaby to calm the Hulk. The Hulk likes her, approves of her and is probably smarter than Bruce in many ways regarding Nat. That intimacy to put the Hulk to sleep would probably stir lots of insticts that Nat may have not known she even possessed. Nurture versus Nature. This isn’t just a woman thing…thing is a human thing…to take care of things to nurture them. Even if we are just smart apes (which I know we are not but this is an analogy) we show others affections and love even if they are not our lovers etc. Some people are more touchy feely than others. The touchy feely part she knows how to do but being in control of it versus letting her training drive the bus of her personality is a big difference. So, navel gazing happened and she decided she wanted Bruce, she took her time and was subtle. The making him a drink scene is so cute and epic. Bruce is clueless and she is not chagrinned by it, she takes it in stride because you have to work for the things you want. Bruce is not a mark, he’s a friend and she is being subtle so as not to spook the Hulk or the Brain. I’m sure things would have been even slower if you didn’t have the Ultron thing ruining the party and her very methodical plans.
Its not feminism being bashed for a women realizing that she didn’t get to make a choice about her own body. It’s the exact opposite. The nature nurture thing I spoke about before is still in play. Nat realizes that her choices were never her own. I’d have been angry. I’d have gone on a killing rampage about it if that choice had been made for me and how weird they made it. They could have not even mentioned the sterilization for the girls but they made it part of the programming….to de-womanize them, make them only weapons etc. And that is the sick part. I think Nat went and became human, more human than she ever let herself be her entire life and she thought about how that hadn’t been her choice. The flashbacks in the movie even show how even in her subconscious she knew it was wrong. Maybe the fact that she knew the Red Room was effed was what made her the best they ever had. Maybe this realization helped her throughout lots of things. It’s almost body dysmorphic/horror the way they portrayed it in the flashback and the Scarlet Witch brought forth lots of horrors for everyone. We only saw Widow’s and Steve’s but what did Bruce see? Can you imagine it? Probably a desolate place where he is alone because he killed everyone/thing? Who knows.
Bruce has had lots of navel gazing in the 6 or so years he’s had to contend with the Other Guy…maybe he’s right in his thoughts on how he can act on feelings, maybe he’s wrong but it was disheartening to see him turn off that screen on seeing Nat reaching out to him as a friend and maybe more but again. This post isn’t about him, its about Nat. She showed her hand to Bruce at the Barton’s and he freaked out…they were both feeling the effects of the Scarlet Witch and maybe things could have been phrased differently between them but he took the harsh front. She was not dissuaded. From an outside observer, Clint’s Wife, she could see this as a natural occurrence of things, while it seems the men are clueless. Joss likes smart and observant female characters, Mrs. Barton is no different and she knows Nat probably better than most on the team from proximity. I’d love to be a fly on the wall for some of their conversations (Nat and her). They probably had a few.
What is not to love about a woman who can kick people’s asses, realize her issues and start to work through them while still trying to save the world? She didn’t let it over run her mission to save the world, she could have easily run off with Bruce in Sokovia but she didn’t. She needed “the Other Guy” and helped save the day versus taking what her heart wanted she did things for the greater good. That is admirable and commendable. She’s not going to stop for her caring for Bruce. I think she will bide her time, wait for him to resurface in some back water area and go be with him as a friend and maybe something more eventually but that will take time and she knows it.
Anywho, that is what I have to say on that subject….may have more at some point but people need to see the bigger picture about Nat her her progress through the MCU.
