Black Widow Stand-Alone: 10 Things Marvel Must Do
2. Don't Give Natasha A Lame Romantic Subplot
Avengers: Age of Ultron had many sticking points with fans, but perhaps the most cringeworthy was Natasha's shoehorned romance with Bruce Banner. An admirable, if misguided, attempt by Joss Whedon to inject some pathos into the mostly cold, tumbling mess of a narrative saw Johansson and Ruffalo's characters embarking upon a Beauty & the Beast-style romance (and even riffing on that isn't new for Joss).
Unfortunately, the MCU doesn't do believable romances well enough for this to work, and the Black Widow/Hulk partnership felt forced, sexless and fatally without chemistry. It was also completely unnecessary, and arguably undermined both characters.
I'm not saying erase Natasha's sexuality; if done right, a romantic partner can illuminate just as much about a hero as a good villain. But Marvel shouldn't fall into the trap of thinking that a female-led superhero picture needs a romance subplot just because she's a woman or, god forbid, to attract an audience.
People simply aren't watching Marvel movies for the love stories, because they're rubbish at them. Believe me, no-one went to see Civil War because Steve Rogers kissed Sharon Carter.