Th3-M4ster

There has been heated arguments that the character of Natasha Romanoff, A.K.A Black Widow, has been weakened and made a cliched stereotype of a damsel/love interest for a man in Marvel's most recent film, Avengers: Age of Ultron. How? Basically three things. 1) Natasha has a romance with mild-mannered Bruce Banner, 2) She reveals that she can't have children which she is sad about and 3) She gets kidnapped by Ultron near the end of the film's second act.

Let's look at each point in turn.

1) Black Widow's romance.

Many fans argue that Natasha didn't need a "forced romance". And to make matters worse, it's with Bruce Banner. Many fans claim that by making Natasha care for a man romantically, this has weakened her from being a strong female character. So is this true?

Let's tackle the last sentence first. Keep in mind that the definition of a strong female character does not mean an uncaring female character. A strong woman should be able to love a man and care for him emotionally, if she wants to. Are people saying that women can't be strong and love men at the same time? Are they saying that all women in romantic relationships are weak? Is Captain America, Tony Stark, and Thor viewed as weak because they have love interests?

Now remember, Natasha actively pursues Banner, not the other way around. She is the one being the rock, reassuring Banner that they are strong enough to overcome any challenges they might face. And why does Natasha like Bruce, of all the other men in her life? She likes who he is as a person, not what he can do physically or how good looking he is.

Now is this an unexpected romance? I can understand why some didn't see it coming. The only other person Natasha spent less screen time with than Banner is Thor, the Norse god himself. That said, I found Bruce and Natasha had great chemistry in the first Avengers film, albeit it wasn't romantic, but I can easily see how they could start falling for each other as the years went by. And yes, people, years have gone by since the first film.

If my opinion isn't obvious by now, I'll come out straight; Natasha isn't weak for having a romantic relationship. She is still a fighter, she still stands alongside her fellow Avengers and we now know that she wants what everyone else wants, a peaceful, fulfilling life with a special person. I want that in my life, am I weak for that reason?

But what do you think?

2) Natasha can't have children

The fact this bothers people slightly upsets me, I'll be honest. Suddenly wanting to have kids makes a character weak??? Come on! COME FREAKIN' ON! Even Bruce laments that he can't enjoy seeing his own children running around a house somewhere on a tropical beach, but no one has claimed he is weak!

Now many will argue that Natasha thinks she's a monster for not being able to have babies. That is not what what was implied. She was making the point that she was so thoroughly trained, had so much of her humanity removed, she was even sterilized to make sure nothing could emotionally hamper her to do her job. AND it worked. She was a killing machine for years and was emotionally detached from what she was doing until she met Hawkeye. Her lack of ability to have children is a constant reminder of what she was; a monster.

3) Ultron kidnaps Natasha

Yes, he did. That's a fact. Can't deny it.

Was she helpless? She made a radio out of scrap and contacted Hawkeye and let all the Avengers know where Ultron was. AND she pushed Bruce over a bottomless pit to decisively make him join the fight as the Hulk. So you tell me if she was "helpless". 

Conclusion

Age of Ultron did not ruin Black Widow. But it does reveal the thoughts of fans; that a quick, biased glance at a scene and story can be misread and spun into something that it isn't.

Now I haven't pulled the Joss Wheadon card up until now. If you are criticizing the guy who nearly wrote the book on how to write a strong female lead single-handed, take a moment to make sure that you aren't jumping to unfounded conclusions.

RWBY OC TEAM: PERL

Greetings all!
Not that I have ever been active on my profile about artwork (working more on finding art I admire and comment about them) I have been working on a special project.
My friend and I have been hard at work for months designing a OC (original characters) team for the imaginative webseries RWBY, created by the late Monty Oum (who's passing I only learned about three days ago).
I shall be releasing the stories, shorts and profiles on this account as well as my fanfiction account. My friend is doing the artwork which I hope many will like (not that I have many followers, but I still want to let you guys know). Expect something within the next several months to trickle in now and then!

Thank you for your support!

I am not tech savvy in the least, so part of me asked what I was doing getting an account on DeviantArt?

To be honest, it's the comments that I can leave behind. I'm a writer, so I realized that I can leave little scrabbles in the comments of those pics that inspire me. Recently one artist asked if they could use my scrabble in their description and I was flattered. Then I thought, "Why not? Just leave little poems and conversations in the comments for the artist to enjoy." I seem to enjoy that a lot.

I then realized I could also post up poems and little scribbles of my own in the art section, usually in tribute or dedication to other artists and franchises.

So now having found my purpose, watch out! The next comment I leave just might be for you!