Black Widow Theory: Taskmaster Sets Up Yelena's MCU Future

Taskmaster's appearance in Black Widow could set up Yelena Belova's future in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Scarlett Johansson is finally getting the Natasha Romanoff solo movie fans have been asking for since 2010. Set between Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War, the film will explore a period of time in Natasha's life that the MCU hasn't touched. Its prequel status due to Black Widow's death in Avengers: Endgame left many wondering what the movie can do to set up the MCU's future.

Black Widow will introduce a set of brand new characters connected to Natasha's past who can still have futures in the shared universe. The key example of Marvel's plan is Florence Pugh playing Yelena Belova. She's described as Natasha's unofficial younger sister, as both of them trained in the Red Room to become master spies and assassins. They were paired up as children to go undercover as an American family with Alexei Shostakov, a.k.a. Red Guardian (David Harbour), and Melina Vostokoff (Rachel Weisz), but that mission ended with them becoming separated. Yelena and Natasha will reunite for the first time in years during Black Widow and take on the mysterious Taskmaster in the process. The trailers have shown that Yelena and Natasha are near equals when it comes to combat, even if their tactics are quite different.

As the wait for Black Widow's release finally nears its conclusion, people are anxious to see what the movie includes and learn how it sets up future MCU stories. The movie is expected to be the final appearance by Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff, but the Black Widow mantle will live on. It's possible that Yelena will become Black Widow in the future, allowing her to potentially be the lead of Black Widow sequels. However, it could be that Yelena taking on this mantle will be delayed and that her MCU debut will use Taskmaster to set up the title she'll take first.

Yelena Could Become Adaptoid First

Yelena Belova is best known for being another Black Widow in the pages of Marvel Comics, but she also has taken the title of Adaptoid. Yelena eventually began working with rogue S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and was severely injured during an encounter with the Avengers in the Savage Land. Her upper body was burned by Sauron, a human-pteranodon hybrid, and A.I.M. approached her while she was recovering in the hospital. A.I.M. promised Yelena a chance to become more powerful than ever before so she could exact revenge on the Avengers, and Spider-Woman in particular. Yelena accepted their offer to become the organization's latest version of the Super-Adaptoid.

A.I.M. spent years developing its Super-Adaptoid technology prior to giving Yelena the powers, as the Adaptoids originally were revolutionary robots. Their power allows the Adaptoids to mimic the power, appearance, and weapons of anyone nearby. Yelena's time as Adaptoid originally saw her mind transferred to a synthetic body made with the Adaptoid technology. She had the ability to mimic the powers of anyone she touched and seemingly had no limit to how many different abilities she could hold at one time. However, this version of Yelena was destroyed by A.I.M. when she couldn't successfully kill the Avengers. The real Yelena was later revealed to still be alive and made a member of A.I.M.'s High Council.

Theory: Taskmaster Sets Up Yelena's Adaptoid Turn

Taskmaster black widow sets up yelena mcu future

There haven't been any clear signs that Yelena will become Adaptoid in Black Widow, but Marvel Studios could be teasing such a transformation based on the inclusion of Taskmaster. The identity of the person underneath the skull mask is still unknown, but Taskmaster's abilities are confirmed. The villain will somehow be able to mimic the abilities and fighting techniques of anyone he watches or encounters. It is known that Taskmaster will copy Captain America, Black Panther, Spider-Man, and Iron Man in the movie, as well as mirror Black Widow's fighting style. Taskmaster can do this through photographic reflexes in the comics, but the MCU could change the explanation to make it the result of technology in the suit or enhancing the character's body and mind through science, magic, or some other means.

What is interesting about Taskmaster's powers and the character's inclusion in Black Widow is how this could be used to set up the Adaptoids, and Yelena's transformation into one, specifically. Taskmaster could be given these powers by A.I.M., Hydra, or another organization or government. If that is the case, then Yelena theoretically could be given the same abilities to become Adaptoid. The Black Widow trailers show her strapped to a table and fans pointed out that A.I.M. appears to be written on a nearby object. This could be the operation where A.I.M. turns Yelena into Adaptoid, either against her will or after she agrees to do so. Perhaps she's even given a better version of the tech or genetic-altering formula than Taskmaster received, which could give her more powers than just mimicking physical abilities. This would also be a cleaner way for Marvel Studios to pull off Yelena's Adaptoid transformation than trying to adhere to the source material, all while setting up her to be a very different version of Black Widow in the future.

Yelena's Black Widow Can Be More Powerful

Should this Black Widow theory prove to be correct, this can be how Marvel Studios makes Yelena's Black Widow even more powerful than what audiences have seen before. Audiences have watched Natasha's Black Widow do some amazing things without any true superpowers for a decade. Yelena is already an equally skilled fighter and spy as Natasha based on Black Widow's trailers, but Pugh has also said that she's a bit more ruthless than Johansson's character. The trailers have further illustrated how Yelena and Natasha are different. It makes sense for Marvel Studios to continue adding differences between the two to ensure that Yelena doesn't just feel like a new, younger version of a character that fans already know, just now played by a different actress.

Giving Yelena's Black Widow some of the Adaptoid superpowers would be a fun way for her to stand apart from Natasha and make her much more than a former spy. Yelena is going to be part of the MCU for the foreseeable future and has an appearance in Hawkeye already lined up. Crossing paths with Clint Barton and Kate Bishop can be a place where Yelena harnesses sharp-shooting skills. As Yelena continues to meet new MCU heroes and villains, her abilities can continue to grow. If she winds up spending a similar amount of time in the universe as Natasha did, then Yelena could be one of the most skilled fighters in the MCU by the time her story started by Black Widow is complete.

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