Marvel Studios, Black Widow, is a hit. It brought in an estimated $80 million in its opening weekend. It also made $60 million globally via the Disney Plus premier access function. Fans have been asking for this since Natasha Romanoff first appeared on screen way back in 2010. (spoilers ahead). In the film the Black Widow’s arch-antagonist, Dreykov. As the Russian general behind the Red Room, Dreykov is the creator of Romanoff’s suffering. At the right hand is the Taskmaster.
I’ve always judged the quality of a “hero”-type film by the strength of the villain(s). And, when you think about it, almost all of the greatest movies that fit that narrative have equally, if not more, captivating villains than they do heroes. I think where the MCU gets tripped up is having to deal with balancing following too closely with the comic books and alienating the general audience who might not be familiar with the comic books, or going too far away from the comic books and having a confusing, jumbled mess of a movie by trying to please everyone. Weak villains have been a criticism of the MCU forever.
Let’s talk about the baddies of these films. You’ve got two movies with Loki before he stops being a “real” villain, two with Thanos, one Killmonger, Vulture and Mysterio probably make the cut as intriguing evildoers. So, even if you include the Disney+ shows that only add Agatha and He Who Remains so far, it brings the total to just seven(?) Out of twenty something entries. They’re getting better at the balance, but it’s clearly a choice: they cast interesting actors and hope they can chew enough scenery to make an impression, but the films (and now shows) remain focused squarely on the heroes.
And I get it.
The Taskmaster isn’t anyone to the movie going public at large.
Yeah, sure. The character on the screen using the name Taskmaster worked within the confines of the script that was written. She’s not particularly interesting as antagonists go, but y’know, she’s the lancer for the real big bad. That’s fine. Her ending was earned within the story being told. To be clear, I have zero issues with the twist. I think Taskmaster being the adult version of that scarred little girl could have been fantastic. I think Scarlett Johansen is a talented dramatic actress and, had they written this character to be another foil for both her and the general, it would have been an incredibly interesting dynamic. I also think the director has proven her own directorial chops when it comes to dramas.
I guess my question is, could literally any other character be subbed in and it would have made zero difference to the story as written?
Could the character have been called “The Henchperson” and would it have had zero impact on the story being told? In my opinion, yeah. It wasn’t adding anything to the character fans know, and it wasn’t commenting on the character that fans know. It didn’t need to be Taskmaster. At least the Mandarin fake-out in Iron Man 3 was trying to say something about the character that was being adapted. This film could have used a really, really committed lancer for the main villain. Someone who wholeheartedly believes what the Red Room represents, and probably doesn’t even need any mental conditioning to get them onboard. That sort of zealotry would have added an extra layer of contrast toward Natasha, and would have been way more interesting. If they were gonna do the character this dirty they really should have just let it be some random goon. A strong goon, but a goon nonetheless.
-Dagobot
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