The first trailer for Black Widow dropped this morning and Marvel fans are going crazy for it. We’ve been waiting for Scarlett Johansson to get her own solo movie as Natasha Romanoff for years and thankfully, our patience looks to have been worth it as the teaser promised an awesome ride come next May. However, there was one element of the production that hasn’t gone down so well: the design of Taskmaster, the film’s main villain.
For those unfamiliar with the character, Taskmaster is one of the most dangerous non-powered villains in the Marvel universe. Thanks to his uncanny knack for copying his opponent’s combat style, he’s nearly impossible to beat in a fight. On top of that, he’s easily recognizable for his distinctive hood and frightening skull mask. Based on the source material, an MCU version should’ve been epic. Unfortunately, though, Marvel has taken a lot of liberties with the foe’s design and for some folks, it’s really spoiling their enjoyment of the trailer.
Here are just a few of the Taskmaster fans who are venting their frustrations on social media.
https://twitter.com/LucidlyJess/status/1201848036412084224
Look how cool things could have been.
What We Wanted vs What We Got#Taskmaster #BlackWidow pic.twitter.com/NWFAnmekLR
— Ryan 'All Day News' Anderson (@Ryans_Ramblings) December 3, 2019
Seeing as last year we had such a brilliantly comic-accurate look for Jake Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio, this comes as a real disappointment.
shit, THAT is Taskmaster?? We've had straight up 1964-ass Ditko Mysterio on screen, but we're getting Taskmaster: Extreme Paintballer https://t.co/A2h2gvoiTb
— rob💾 (@RobertSecundus) December 3, 2019
Some people didn’t even realize it was meant to be Taskmaster at all.
Wait, THAT was TASKMASTER????
— Plexiglass Money Toilet (@Notintheface1) December 3, 2019
Are we sure Marvel didn’t actually draw inspiration from a supervillain from an entirely different franchise instead?
Who wore it better??
Taskmaster or Lord Zedd#BlackWidowTrailer #BlackWidow #MMPR pic.twitter.com/DO913yNbxM
— Mark (@MarkReadsComics) December 3, 2019
Yup, someone in the costume department has definitely been watching a lot of Power Rangers…
Taskmaster looking like the Phantom Ranger pic.twitter.com/YWL1XX1LYu
— .Ryan (@r3pliku) December 3, 2019
To be fair, there are also a lot of fans who approve of this look, feeling that it fits the more grounded tone of the MCU in general and specifically, a spy thriller like Black Widow. Still, it seems that the majority of comic readers are feeling pretty let down, seeing as Marvel has nearly always been reliable when it comes to superhero/villain outfits before.
Maybe Taskmaster will look better in the full movie though, which arrives in cinemas May 1st? We certainly hope so.