Black Widow Review: 5 Ups & 5 Downs

3. The Refreshingly Low Stakes

As much as some might complain that a Black Widow movie is low on stakes because we know what happens to Natasha, the flip-side is that the film isn't tirelessly concerned with tethering itself to the ongoing narrative machinations of the MCU.

Of course, there are implications as to what the future may hold for the movie's surviving characters, but for the most part the film is just content to tell its story without getting down in the universal weeds and over-encumbering itself with franchise concerns.

In much the same way that Ant-Man and the Wasp was a welcome palate cleanser between the last two Avengers movies, Black Widow feels like a safe return the big screen for the series after two years away.

Understandably, though, fans might hope for more adventurous storytelling from upcoming MCU movies.