White Widow: Yelena Belova Teams With Wolverine in New Marvel Preview

A preview of White Widow #2 pairs Yelena Belova up with the X-Men’s Wolverine.

December 11, 2023, 9:57am

A new preview of Yelena Belova’s new Marvel series pairs her up with the X-Men’s resident Canuck, Wolverine. The White Widow has taken on many different roles in the Marvel Universe, from a superspy to an aspiring hero. But her new limited series turns Yelena into a consultant for an assassin organization. Fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe have witnessed Florence Pugh’s take on Yelena Belova in Black Widow and Hawkeye, and will soon see her return to the big screen in Thunderbolts. While we wait for Wolverine and the X-Men to officially debut in the MCU, we’ll have to settle for seeing him side-by-side with White Widow in the comics.

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Marvel released a preview of White Widow #2 by Sarah Gailey (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Eat the Rich), Alessandro Miracolo (Obi-Wan, Yoda), Matt Milla, and VC’s Travis Lanham. The story so far is Yelena has relocated to a suburban town called Idyllhaven, where she’s working as a consultant for an assassin guild. However, a company called Armament has come into town and started strongarming its residents. To make matters worse, some of White Widow’s former mentees appear to be employed by Armament. So now Yelena is stepping up to protect her neighbors.

As far as Yelena’s team-up with Wolverine, the preview shows them together at some point in the past, with White Widow and Wolverine pinned down by an assassin inside a diner. Yelena’s quick thinking takes out their attacker with a trip wire, rendering her nearly unconscious. She then begins a rather humorous interrogation, and you can almost hear Florence Pugh’s voice while reading. Wolverine ends the preview by asking White Widow if she’s ever considered a career change to teacher, which sets up the rest of the comic’s story.

White Widow takes a starring role in the MCU

The MCU is in a period of transition following Avengers: Endgame. Much of the old guard either sacrificed themselves to stop Thanos (Iron Man, Black Widow) or retired (Steve Rogers), with new characters stepping up to take their place. One of those characters is Florence Pugh’s White Widow, who will lead the Thunderbolts when the film debuts next year.

With White Widow taking on a bigger role in the MCU, it only makes sense for Marvel to release a comic starring her. “I am beyond exhilarated to launch White Widow into her own series!” writer Sarah Gailey told The Mary Sue. “Yelena Belova is an incredible character who deserves independence, community, and the opportunity to kill on her own terms. Getting the chance to work with this team at Marvel is a thrill. I can’t wait for the world to see what Alessandro and I have in store!”

The preview of White Widow #2 is below. The issue goes on sale Wednesday, December 13th.