12 Strongest Versions of Black Widow (Ranked)
The Black Widow character in Marvel Comics is one of the most popular female characters of all time because she can distinguish herself as an incredible character even though she doesn’t have the godlike abilities that some of the other Marvel characters have. Of course, who doesn’t like an elite assassin capable of bringing down some of the most powerful people and organizations on the planet?
While we often look at Black Widow as Natasha Romanoff, the thing is that there are a lot of versions of this character in the history of Marvel Comics. In that regard, Black Widow is like any other character in Marvel because she has alternate versions that exist in the same universe or entirely different. So, with that said, let’s look at the strongest versions of Black Widow.
12. Yelena Belova
Fans of Black Widow are already familiar with Yelena Belova. Of course, she was first introduced into the MCU in the solo Black Widow film as Natasha Romanoff’s fake sister when they were both assigned in America. She is the second character in the comics to carry the Black Widow name as she debuted in 1999. Of course, her story in the comics is quite similar to the one in the MCU.
In the comics, she is also the sister of Natasha but is a fake one. She was sent by the Red Room to capture her older sister, but things ended up like the movie. Natasha has a soft spot for her fake younger sister, even though Yelena tends to be more brash and headstrong compared to her. After Natasha’s apparent death in the Secret Empire storyline, Yelena decided to carry the Black Widow name.
11. Claire Voyant
Suppose we are talking about the chronology of the Marvel Comics universe and the real world. In that case, Claire Voyant is the first character to carry the Black Widow mantle because she appeared in the 1940s during the Golden Age of comics. That means she was around before Natasha was created and when Marvel was still known as Timely Comics. And Claire’s story is quite different.
True to her name, Claire Voyant is a medium that ended up dying but returning to the world to hunt down sinners using her magical powers and psychic abilities. In that regard, she isn’t the same kind of Black Widow that the other Black Widows on this list are, but she still carries the name. In 2005, she returned to a mini-series in the Marvel universe as one of the most powerful magicians.
10. Black Widow 2099
One of the things that we know about the comics is that there are a lot of different dark timelines that exist. Of course, in the MCU, we know this is true when Loki opened up the multiverse from the sacred timeline during the events of the Loki series. In the comics, one of the darkest timelines is the 2099 future, which features its version of the Black Widow character.
Black Widow 2099 is named Tania, an Avengers member from that timeline. She may be a hero, just like most other Black Widows, but she is a hazardous person that fits the dark timeline of 2099. On top of that, she paid homage to her name by wearing a mask with numerous red eyes to make herself look like an actual black widow spider.
9. House of M
We know that Scarlet Witch altered reality to such an extreme level during the House of M storyline in the comics. Of course, while Wanda mainly affected humans, Black Widow was also involved in the House of M storyline as she changed. In this storyline, she became the leader of the Soviet Super Soldiers, the Russian counterparts of the Avengers.
Of course, we know that this team exists in the Marvel Comics storyline as this very same lineup includes the Red Guardian, who we know is the Russian version of Captain America. This House of M version of Black Widow also leads other powerful characters, including Crimson Dynamo and Ursa Major. Of course, both of these characters had also been referenced in the Black Widow movie.
8. MCU Natasha Romanoff
The Black Widow that most fans are familiar with is the MCU version of Natasha Romanoff, as this character was the one that introduced movie fans to the world of Black Widow in the comics. Played by the stunning Scarlett Johansson, the MCU Natasha Romanoff may be an outlier among the Avengers due to her apparent lack of powers. But she was always one of the characters that pushed past her human limits.
Natasha became one of the biggest heroes among the Avengers when she sacrificed herself in Avengers: Endgame so that the Avengers could acquire the Soul Stone, which required a sacrifice. As such, while her story may have already ended in the MCU, she remains a massive part of the history of the MCU due to her impact on the events that transpired in the movies.
7. Ava Orlova
Ava Orlova isn’t a Black Widow but a Red Widow in the comics. However, there is a good reason to believe that she was part of the Black Widow program that produced all of the other Widows. That’s why she is on this list, as even Natasha refers to her as a sister, just like how she refers to Yelena and the other Widows as sisters. Natasha rescued her from the Russian mob when she was just a child.
However, Ava ended up becoming a vigilante after Natasha rescued her. In that regard, she became more aggressive than most of the other Widows as she never had the same kind of formal training that Natasha and the others received. She isn’t as disciplined as they are, but she is excellent at using electric-based weapons.
6. Monica Chang
Monica Chang is a character from Ultimate Comics and is the second character in that comic book line to carry the Black Widow name. She ended up taking on the persona of Black Widow after joining the Ultimates team. This happened just after Natasha Romanoff died, as Monica continued the legacy of the fallen Widow.
In the universe of Ultimate Comics, Monica Chang is Nick Fury’s ex-wife and has a rather complicated relationship with him. Nevertheless, they still work together well enough when it comes to essential matters. Of course, Monica also worked as a member of SHIELD during her time as the Black Widow of the Ultimate Comics storyline.
5. 616 Natasha Romanoff
The most popular comic book version of Black Widow is Natasha Romanoff. While she isn’t necessarily the strongest Black Widow, she has shown the ability to match the prowess of superpowered characters due to her training, experience, and discipline as a fighter. Of course, she was also regarded as the best Widow to come out of the Red Room.
Natasha in Earth-616 has a story that mirrors the MCU version of Black Widow. After all, MCU Natasha Romanoff was patterned after the 616 version that exists in the comics. Of course, there are slight deviations in their storylines, but they are very similar in many different aspects, especially regarding their prowess as assassins.
4. Age Of Ultron
While we have a movie entitled Age of Ultron, the thing is that this is a dark timeline in the comics where Ultron is the one in charge of everything. Of course, the Avengers have something to say about that because they still oppose the tyrannical robot. In that regard, Age of Ultron has a Natasha Romanofn.
In this storyline, Natasha is back to her old self as a spy and assassin on the run. But the problem is that she no longer has the support that she had before the events of the Ultron takeover. However, she eventually teamed up with Moon Knight in an attempt to fight Ultron, as most of the Avengers had already died in a nuclear attack on New York.
3. Black Cat
One of the characters that we can say is one of the best and most unique versions of Black Widow is Black Cat, an alternate version of Black Cal. Her story is unique as she exists in the reality of Symbiote Spider-Man, where Natasha became a jewel thief instead of a super spy. Of course, she called herself Black Cat, as she has some similarities with DC’s Catwoman.
This version of Black Widow coincides with the 1985 version of Secret Wars, where Peter Parker had just become a symbiote. And the Black Widow that exists in this world is incredibly strange yet still as strong or even stronger than the actual Natasha, as Peter quickly noticed that things weren’t exactly every day when he got home to his reality.
2. Ultimate Black Widow
As mentioned, we have an Ultimate Comics storyline that exists in Earth-1610. While we already talked about one Black Widow in that timeline, another version of Black Widow in this universe is Jessica Drew, Peter Parker’s clone. That means that Black Widow is not only Black Widow but also Spider-Woman.
Yes, you got that right. Ultimate Black Widowcombinesf Black Widow and Spider-Man, as she is Spider-Woman in this timeline. She is the third version of the Black Widow character after she inherited the mantle from Monica Chang. And the fact that she has the powers of Spider-Man makes her an incredibly lethal and formidable fighter on the side of the Ultimates.
1. Worthy Black Widow
A lot of characters have been called worthy, and being called worthy in Marvel means being able to wield Mjolnir and gain the powers of Thor. That is what happened to Black Widow in Earth-23223 when she became worthy of Mjolnir and obtained the powers of the God of Thunder.
In this story, Natashapicksd up Mjolnir and becomes worthy of Thor’s powers as she uses the hammer to defeat an invading force of Frost Giants and a horde of Ultron drones from a different universe. In that regard, she is the strongest version of Black Widow because she has all of Natasha’s standard assassin skills but has the strength and power of the God of Thunder himself.
