Black Panther Appreciation 2019

[DigiCom]

Hickmans era was really the only one you might wanna live somewhere else as Wakanda had a string of bad luck.

Right now Wakanda is fine. Better than fine at the moment.

Despite (if not because of) the leader of the nation being lost in space.

[XPac]

Despite (if not because of) the leader of the nation being lost in space.

In the book Shuri gives all the credit to Wakanda. Either way, point being Wakanda is probably the best of the fictional nations, cracks and all.

[DigiCom]

In the book Shuri gives all the credit to Wakanda. Either way, point being Wakanda is probably the best of the fictional nations, cracks and all.

If memory serves, she actually gives credit to the Orishas. Because, you know, they are SO critical to the story.

[Cville]

How did Wakandan society fall so low? The explanation given by Coates based on his interview with the writer of Rise of the Black Panther was that the attacks of Dr. Doom, Namor and Thanos damaged the psyche of Wakandans.

Except that:

1. The insurgents that Dr. Doom assisted into power encountered civil disobedience from a large section of Wakanda. That does sound like something a broken people will do.

2. After said insurgency was routed and Dr. Doom thwarted T’Challa went on a self-imposed exile to America. Shuri ran Wakanda in his absence and the country was more or less stable. Then when T’Challa returned to Wakanda he coordinated the reconfiguration of the nation’s financial stability and thereby the welfare of its citizens.

3. After Namor’s attack Wakanda destroyed Atlantis and in quick secession stopped an alien invasion. Thanos eventually came to Wakanda but through other events he became a secret prisoner of Wakanda. Wakandans whether they knew it or not got their just due.

4. After Thanos was broken out of prison the United Nations General Assembly sided with him in two ways. They allowed Thanos to set up base in Wakanda and they prevented a fugitive T’Challa through the efforts of SHIELD / Captain Rogers from taking back Wakanda. T’Challa eventually prevailed and restored his nation.

T’Challa did his job of protecting Wakanda in the end which to me meant that the years of deconstruction of the character would be have reached the end of its cycle.

Now with regards of the concept of a ‘punchy story’ or a story that does not have enough punching between bad guys and good guys, comics come from dime fiction/ pulp fiction books/magazines from the 1860s to 1940s thereabout. These pulp books were split into categories of adventure, western, aviation, mystery, scandal etc. So, if you were a writer for an aviation pulp book you would not shoehorn a western story into it.


Superhero comics as a sub genre of comics are generally written with good vs evil characters in whatever shade of grey you want to put them; the villains are so insurmountable that it takes a super human force to stop their nefarious intentions. Coates’ villains are not insurmountable hence a simple punch would be enough to topple them. That is the reason for the delays in action scenes between the main protagonist and the main antagonist which gives the illusion that the story does not need those ‘punchy’ elements. Normally rising tension, plot twists, mind games etc would be used entertain the reader during those intervals where the main characters don’t ‘duke it out’ ala David Liss’ BP run but Coates did not use those techniques in his BP run. Some might not be trouble by the lack of ‘punchy’ elements and might be what the heck.

If that was his reasoning, things shouldn't be back to normal now. Shuri tried to say that the peace now is because Tchalla defeated Klaw and stopped Tetu, but those weren't the reasons for the conditions in the first place. If Tchalla healed the psyche of Wakanda, the heads of Doom, Namor, and Thanos would be lining the palaces' front entrance. He didn't promise not to use Wakanda for a staging ground for Avenger events anymore. He did nothing the fix the problems that lead to the situation.

[Marvell2100]

Ah yes, the "crack in Wakanda" story so beloved by Panther fans that nobody EVER refers to it.

To this day, I find it interesting that of all the "hidden kingdoms" of the Marvel U, only Wakanda needs to be made like "every other civilization".

I've never heard people begging for amphetamines in Attilan or organized crime in Olympia. It's only the African one that needs to reflect the worst parts of the nations around it.

One wonders why....

Krakoa has the good drugs.

[XPac]

If memory serves, she actually gives credit to the Orishas. Because, you know, they are SO critical to the story.

When Tchalla and Shuri talk, she clearly attributes all the recent sucess of Wakanda to what he's done the past 2 seasons. So credit is given to where credit is due.

[Tofali]

Krakoa has the good drugs.

Krakoa peddling Krack to the world.

[Cville]

On a side note, I liked Marauders. Give me a Wakanda issue goodness of someone trying to set up a gate in the country. Not sure if I want Duggan to write it though.

[Ezyo1000]

When Tchalla and Shuri talk, she clearly attributes all the recent sucess of Wakanda to what he's done the past 2 seasons. So credit is given to where credit is due.

Where does she say that? Because in issue 15, Wakandas success, and prosperity isn't by Wakandan ingenuity but because the Orishas ™ have returned.

[XPac]

Where does she say that? Because in issue 15, Wakandas success, and prosperity isn't by Wakandan ingenuity but because the Orishas ™ have returned.

When Shuri and Tchalla talk.

[Cville]

Where does she say that? Because in issue 15, Wakandas success, and prosperity isn't by Wakandan ingenuity but because the Orishas ™ have returned.

Seems to be more opinions than facts.

The guy talking to Storm thinks its because the Orishas and Storm have returned. Shuri tells Tchalla its because of what he did before he left. Which by my earlier post doesn't make a lot of sense. Tchalla was feeling mopey because WK got along great without him(which it should because they've been around for 10 centuries) and in true Coates fashion the women have to soothe the male ego. lol.

[XPac]

Seems to be more opinions than facts.

The guy talking to Storm thinks its because the Orishas and Storm have returned. Shuri tells Tchalla its because of what he did before he left. Which by my earlier post doesn't make a lot of sense. Tchalla was feeling mopey because WK got along great without him(which it should because they've been around for 10 centuries) and in true Coates fashion the women have to soothe the male ego. lol.

Considering how many people made complaints about Wakanda thriving without T'Challa, apparently in this regards egos sometimes do needed to be soothed. I didn't need the scene personally the scene, but for those that did it's there.

[DigiCom]

I just checked what Coates claims brought peace to Wakanda:

1) Appeasing the rebel Dora and bringing democracy.
2) Defeating Klaw. (Again).
3) And "most importantly, making Wakanda remember its deep past".

I'll leave the other folks to decide if that counts as a "feat" or merely Coates trying to make his stories the reason for Wakanda becoming the utopia it was before he ever wrote the book.

[Cville]

Considering how many people made complaints about Wakanda thriving without T'Challa, apparently in this regards egos sometimes do needed to be soothed. I didn't need the scene personally the scene, but for those that did it's there.

We love that WK is excellent without Tchalla. Some of us wouldn't have suggested an anthology book about past BP if we didnt. We suspected Coates was going to use it as a way to take another dig at Tchalla in his "I'm am no King" theme.

[Cville]

I just checked what Coates claims brought peace to Wakanda:

1) Appeasing the rebel Dora and bringing democracy.
2) Defeating Klaw. (Again).
3) And "most importantly, making Wakanda remember its deep past".

I'll leave the other folks to decide if that counts as a "feat" or merely Coates trying to make his stories the reason for Wakanda becoming the utopia it was before he ever wrote the book.

If the story had picked up after the Doras' had broken their spears, than it might be a feat., but they were already back in the fold as seen in WoW and the Ultimates. Coates missed the good exit and settled for gender wars.

When Goldballs and MoonGirl can defeat Klaw it's no longer a feat., its potential for a fun story like Ralph Macchio did in his one shot.

Last one is not even worth mentioning. Lol.