T'Challa: The Black Panther Appreciation 2021

[Ekie]

Its official

nytimes.com/2021/05/18/arts/marvel-black-panther-john-ridley.html

I'd cry tears of Joy but the past sorrow has already exhausted my ducts

[chief12d]

Its official

nytimes.com/2021/05/18/arts/marvel-black-panther-john-ridley.html

Best news for BP in a good long while lol. Love story with romance and friendship? And Storm is positioned front and center in that (very beautiful) Alex Ross work? Dear Bast I hope he’s not trying to continue that romance. I also think that’s W’Kabi leading the charge at the bottom so hopefully this is Ridley taking the steps to revive him.

[Ekie]

Do we have a better track record now?

*pays respect*

[KingNomarch]

Do we have a better track record now?

Not really

[BlackClaw]

Best news for BP in a good long while lol. Love story with romance and friendship? And Storm is positioned front and center in that (very beautiful) Alex Ross work? Dear Bast I hope he’s not trying to continue that romance. I also think that’s W’Kabi leading the charge at the bottom so hopefully this is Ridley taking the steps to revive him.

Surprised he wasn’t revived sooner, but better late than never I guess. Looks like part of the galactic empire will still be around if the cover is anything to go by, along with appearances of some of T’Challas teammates on the avengers.

[MindofShadow]

Best news for BP in a good long while lol. Love story with romance and friendship? And Storm is positioned front and center in that (very beautiful) Alex Ross work? Dear Bast I hope he’s not trying to continue that romance. I also think that’s W’Kabi leading the charge at the bottom so hopefully this is Ridley taking the steps to revive him.

I'm hoping Ross was just drawing something generic and BP related.

Oh lawd.

[jwatson]

Best news for BP in a good long while lol. Love story with romance and friendship? And Storm is positioned front and center in that (very beautiful) Alex Ross work? Dear Bast I hope he’s not trying to continue that romance. I also think that’s W’Kabi leading the charge at the bottom so hopefully this is Ridley taking the steps to revive him.

If he does i just hope he gets what no other writer seems to. People can be in independent relationships. Storm does not need to be in every BP issue, she doesn't need to be a part of any storyline or tied to wakanda or anything like that. Tchalla can be doing his thing and a com link panel is more than enough or if people want romance how about an annual after a year of story. IMO that is the best way to work romances from different franchises but then i never got the idea why a husband/wife or couple have to be together all the time, especially in super hero comics. The main issue was when it was the only place to get the content in some cases.

[chief12d]

Ridley going in the espionage direction was expected, he’s done enough of that in his past work to demonstrate he’s competent in that genre and centering the story around global adventure much better fits the place that T’Challa is in with regards to the wider MU. Black Panther stories shouldn’t exist in their own universe so hopefully Ridley will take full advantage of the fact his main character is leading the most prominent superhero team on Earth and rules the most powerful nation in the MU.

Lots of globetrotting espionage adventures can be brought out of that. Not sold on this romance thing so early in the relaunch though. While I’m fairly confident T’Challa and Storm are broken up atm I’d hate there to be another drawn out reconciliation and I’m not happy she’s so prominent in that Alex Ross piece. Hopefully it’s not an indicator of her continued involvement in the mythos. But since he seems to emphasize friendship in this story I’m hoping this will revive an old BP friend like W’Kabi or elevate someone new.

Anyways, T’Challa needs his poker face and it’s essential that Ridley explores T’Challa’s moral complexity, which obviously espionage lends itself rather naturally too. We need the master strategist and Wakanda’s greatest warrior back. Don’t care to see the spiritual side explored considering we’ve had 6 years of that, I want high octane Mansa Musa meets James Bond action with a heavy sci-fi twist.

[Dariel81]

Storm will always have a place in BP mythos we Just need to get use to that fact.

[BlackClaw]

Storm will always have a place in BP mythos we Just need to get use to that fact.

But of course this might mean more shade throwing from the X-office. *sighs*

[Will Evans]

Looks like either Malaika is returning or were getting a new MCU-like Nakia.

[BlackClaw]

Looks like either Malaika is returning or were getting a new MCU-like Nakia.

We already had an MCU like Nakia. But she was killed off in Coates run. But since this is comics, a resurrection could happen.

[chief12d]

Surprised he wasn’t revived sooner, but better late than never I guess. Looks like part of the galactic empire will still be around if the cover is anything to go by, along with appearances of some of T’Challas teammates on the avengers.

You could tell how low a priority W’Kabi and Zuri are when Coates went out of his way to introduce space versions of M’Baku and Nakia but not them. They should’ve been brought back and left in the background, not ignored to potentially forcing another writer to find another convoluted way to bring them back. I think you’re right on the space stuff. Maybe T’Challa just repurposes some of the Empire tech to build a modern Wakandan space fleet. Or maybe they’ve been made a part of Wakanda entirely. It’s weird and I hope that space isn’t too big a factor for BP at least for a few arcs.

I'm hoping Ross was just drawing something generic and BP related.

Oh lawd.

Hopefully. If it’s just to show the breadth of the BP mythos that’s fine. But if it’s a teaser of things to come I won’t be happy about that. Storm has put mutantkind above Wakanda and T’Challa several times and he has done the same for his people. They will always be at odds and it’s better if whatever love they have for each other be left in the past. But her being so prominent and the first story being a love story makes me think this might be the beginning of a reunion but it’s obviously way too early to tell until those solicits come out.

If he does i just hope he gets what no other writer seems to. People can be in independent relationships. Storm does not need to be in every BP issue, she doesn't need to be a part of any storyline or tied to wakanda or anything like that. Tchalla can be doing his thing and a com link panel is more than enough or if people want romance how about an annual after a year of story. IMO that is the best way to work romances from different franchises but then i never got the idea why a husband/wife or couple have to be together all the time, especially in super hero comics. The main issue was when it was the only place to get the content in some cases.

What’s the point in being in a romance with Storm if T’Challa won’t be seen with her on a somewhat regular basis?It’s superhero comics, supporting characters, especially those supposed to have a deep connection to the main hero should be a constant presence in the story. It feels like a waste of panel time to have T’Challa and Storm be all romantic every few arcs when Ridley could just bring in Malaika or Monica to be a consistent influence on T’Challa the way virtually every love interest in comics is.

Long distance relationships hardly work out in real life and they tend to be stale and limiting in fiction. Unless they make Storm like his Catwoman (minus being a villain), which I still wouldn’t like because it’s still bringing in a character they don’t have full editorial control over as a major element in the BP narrative.

[chief12d]

I'd cry tears of Joy but the past sorrow has already exhausted my ducts

Seriously. And he’s still not getting the benefit of the doubt till I get a more substantial interview lol. But I do like the stated direction, it’s necessary and logical given T’Challa’s place in the MU. Calling an army of black superheroes with no justification is simply stupid when you’re leading the most prominent collection of heroes on the planet. Hopefully the Avengers play a role, not to much, but it’d be nice to see a reference to T’Challa’s current place in the superhero community. And if it’s espionage I wonder who the rival nations and organizations will end up being. Russia? Atlantis? Volcan Domuyo?

[KingNomarch]

Best news for BP in a good long while lol. Love story with romance and friendship? And Storm is positioned front and center in that (very beautiful) Alex Ross work? Dear Bast I hope he’s not trying to continue that romance. I also think that’s W’Kabi leading the charge at the bottom so hopefully this is Ridley taking the steps to revive him.

I don’t think the cover is supposed to be indicative of what’s to come in the series.