Spider-Woman: Agent of S.W.O.R.D, Part Five

Trying to escape Hydra’s Madripoor headquarters, Jessica Drew made the mistake of leaping off the roof of the building without her Spider-Woman costume and is now hurtling to the ground below. Her instincs kick in and she starts seeing everything in slow motion. Although she doesn’t have her gliders she manages to slow her fall so she can grab a string of paper lanterns and flings herself into a nearby fountain to break her fall. Even though she survives the fall, Jessica blacks out.[1]

She wakes up in a hospital some time later and surrenders to the police. While in custody, the officers are furious because they blame her for Madame Hydra massacring a number of officers the last time she was there. One of the officers hits her from behind, but she allows them to get it out of their system before she is locked in a cell. Soon she is visited by Detective Wang who not only speaks English, but also knows that she didn’t murder the officers because there is security footage from the garage that night. He asks about her connection to Madame Hydra, Jessica says its complicated but knows where Hydra is hiding out and where they might be going now that their cover is blown. The detective then asks her what she is doing in Madripoor.

She knows that he is aware of her mission to track down and eliminate Skrull fugitives and asks for her things, which he has in a box, to be given back to her. She won’t tell him who she is working for and when it looks like he’s not going to be let go without more questioning, Jessica decides that it’s time to leave and uses her venom blasts to break free from her handcuffs. She then begins questioning him, asking if he is a Hydra agent and threatens Detective Wang’s life. However, she remembers that the last detective that questioned her said that they were arranging to have her extradited to the United States and realizes that they’re just stalling for time. She blasts the camera and then orders the detective to tell her who is being sent to collect her. Unable to get any answer and with officers breaking down the door, Jessica grabs her things and escapes through the ventilation shaft.

On the roof of the police station, Jessca puts on her Spider-Woman costume and realizes she’s too late as a jet arrives carrying the Thunderbolts.[2]

Recurring Characters

Spider-Woman, Thunderbolts (Black Widow, Ant-Man, Ghost, Headsman, Paladin)

Continuity Notes

1. Spider-Woman states here that she got her powers when her father altered her DNA while she was still in the womb. This is the origin that was presented in Spider-Woman: Origin #1, however it is in direct contradiction to previously established origins (particularly Spider-Woman #1) wherein it was explained she didn’t develop powers until suffering from radiation poisoning and was injected with a spider formula to save her life. It’s my opinion that the origin given in Spider-Woman: Origin #1 was actually a false memory that was implanted there by Hydra.

2. The Black Widow here appears to be Yelena Belova, but it is actually Natasha Romanoff in disguise. She is posing as Belova to infiltrate and spy on the Thunderbolts on the behalf of Nick Fury as explained in Thunderbolts #134.