Melina Vostokoff is a name that audiences will become much more familiar with in the coming months as she makes her appearance in the upcoming MCU film, Black Widow. But there's a lot that even hardcore fans don't know about her.
Making her debut in 1983, she has been a long-term enemy of Natasha Romanov, and has quite a complicated comic book history. Ahead of her upcoming cinematic appearance, here are 10 things that you may not have known about Melina Vostokoff.
10 ALTER EGO
In the comics, Melina has a much more sinister alter ego. Taking on a metallic mask, she has become known as the Iron Maiden. Her villainous persona is backed up by the crack training she experienced under the Soviet Government.
While it does not appear she will be taking on this role in the film, in the comics she seems to spend more time as the Iron Maiden than she does as Melina. It's an alter ego that has become well known across the Marvel Universe due to her skill and ability to get the job done.
9 JEALOUS ORIGINS
The origins of the character are quite familiar due to many other characters seemingly sharing them. She and Black Widow have a very similar background, coming up as assassins of the Soviet Union. They quickly grew apart, though.
Due to always being in the shadow of the Black Widow, Iron Maiden became very jealous of her former ally and decided enough was enough. She thought she could carve out her own path in the criminal underworld that would rival the heroism of Natasha.
8 CAREER CHANGE AND TARGET
Iron Maiden's new job, therefore, was as an assassin and hired hitwoman. One of the first targets she ever had to face was the Black Widow herself. Ever the professional, Melina tried to get the job done and was even the last woman standing before being defeated.
She has continued on in this world of paid murder, and is actually very good at it. Her elite background and training make her an ideal fighter in these covert operations. All sorts of businessmen and villains have hired her out to complete a high standard of work.
7 FEMIZON
Plenty of comics have seen Natasha and Melina facing off against one another, but another hero she has fought in the past is none other than the star-spangled man himself, Captain America. This was during a period of time where Iron Maiden joined the Femizons.
The Femizons were a group of villainous superpowered women who decided to team up in order to gain an advantage in battle. Lead by Superia, Iron Maiden was one of the few villains to stick with her boss even after they had been defeated by Cap.
6 HUNTED
During the Superhuman Registration Act and Civil War, Iron Maiden thought it was best to flee the country so she could avoid the law. She changed her identity and tried to make her way to Canada so she would be safe from prying eyes.
A problem emerged quite quickly, or rather a series of them. Melina was hunted down by a variation of the Thunderbolts who had been put together by the government to track down criminals. She was taken down by some of the team while others placed bets on her odds.
5 IMPOSTOR
We've actually seen an impostor in the comics who took on the role of the Iron Maiden. Due to her metal face and armor, it's easy for someone else to assume her identity. However, the true person behind the mask might be surprising.
The Soviet government created an Alpha Strike team of villains, one of which included Iron Maiden. However, it was not Vostokoff but simply a robot dressed up as her; it was an enhanced android but one that was defeated swiftly.
4 REMONT 6
Using all her teamwork skills as well as her leadership abilities, Melina has managed to lead an entire group herself. The team is made up of all volunteers, villains who want to see the Soviets rise once more.
Known as the Remont 6, some seriously dangerous individuals have signed up to this patriotic group. They have been known to fight the heroic crew known as the Winter Guard, and have been defeated by them on a number of occasions.
3 ABILITIES
Much like other assassins who gained their training from Russia, Melina doesn't have any superpowers. She hasn't been gifted with any kind of super soldier serum, nor is she a mutant or even an Inhuman.
Instead, she has such severe training that she is almost unstoppable in hand-to-hand combat and when using a weapon. While she's at her best when a gun is in her hand, she's incredibly versatile, as any good assassin should be.
2 SUIT
The suit that Iron Maiden wears allows her to keep up with the superpowered individuals in the community she hangs out with. Not only is the suit heavily armored but it can also increase her strength and durability slightly.
While it's not comparable to the armors belonging to Doctor Doom or Iron Man, it's still quite an interesting piece of body technology that has evolved over time. It appears that she feels safest when she's donned the suit.
1 MCU DEBUT
The upcoming Black Widow movie will see the MCU debut of the character, and there are plenty of fan theories suggesting that she will be making some kind of villainous turn in the film.
She doesn't seem to have her Iron Maiden title as of yet, but the film could obviously change that. She's part of the Black Widow program, and therefore a member of Natasha's "family." Some have even suggested that she could be revealed to be Taskmaster.