As for why it takes place then, well, Marvel made 20 movies before they made their first standalone centered on a female superhero, and it’s probably not a coincidence that they didn’t get around to making a Black Widow movie until after the character was already dead.
They’re just there to provide a little sentimental callback to the childhood of Natasha is a scientist via the fact that she knows science-y words like bioluminescence.
Their identities were completely constructed and their backstories staged, presumably by Dreykov and the Black Widows organization he ran, in order to create the plausible illusion that they were a family who had recently moved to their town.
When we meet David Harbour’s version of the character here, we’re a few years post-Cold War, so it makes sense he’s not out in the field showing off his hammer and sickle.
One of those people whose moves he copies is Black Widow’s, which means they have mirrored fights similar to those we see in the movie.
This is the first time we see Natasha in Budapest within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but she has mentioned her trip several times before.
But Natasha isn’t one for nostalgia, and although information about the Budapest Operation eventually became public knowledge, the more intimate stuff seems like it will stay between Natasha and Hawkeye forever.
Technically, we were supposed to see her in this movie before we saw her in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, but, the pandemic being what it is, the order of things got a little mixed up.
If you’re one of the two people on Earth who hasn’t seen Endgame, here’s a reminder of how Natasha died: The Avengers split up to collect the Infinity Stones that they need in order to defeat Thanos.
Since only the two of them were there, it does seem easy for someone like Val—as in, a person with a motive—to frame the death as Hawkeye’s fault.
Don’t forget the Skrulls, who might also be hiding among us! It appears that the MCU has had almost as many puppet-masters as it has had world-threatening events, and you’re not wrong to feel confused about this.