YIBAMBE! T’Challa: The Black Panther Appreciation 2022

[Toonstrack]

Black female characters have often had it worse when it comes to mainstream comics (but not in mass entertainment going over the last 40 years or so, there’s no Black male equivalent of The Color Purple, Waiting to Exhale, or Scandal, and there’s no concerted effort to really cater to Black males specifically as there is for Black females in everything from movies, television, to books, though comic books are lagging far behind the rest of the entertainment world in that). I don’t believe that you should build up Black males at the expense of Black females, or vice versa. I want to see more Black female superhero/comic book projects. It’s a shame that Marvel has never really pushed hard enough to make Storm a solo headlining character like they have even the female Wolverine, or that they continually underuse Monica Rambeau. I was very disappointed in the stereotypical take on Rambeau I saw in a Spider-Man book a couple months back where she was calling herself “Auntie Monica” for some reason. I could tell that it wasn’t a Black person writing the book.

Regarding Black Panther, I don’t have a problem with grappling with issues of governance. I’m a political science major, so that’s right up my alley. I’ve long been interested in seeing this examination, and some of the things discussed in the Coates-Ridley runs are not too unlike any other comic book that features a ruler as also a main character. Though I do think how it’s done, and how gleeful Coates and Ridley are in lambasting T’Challa, in making him specifically the problem, is different than in how say a Thor, Namor, Aquaman, or Hippolyta have often been handled. The language used to describe and condemn T’Challa comes right out of the Black feminist playbook and is reinforced by anti-Black male depictions across entertainment. The Aquamen miniseries actually has a kind of similar story to Ridley's "The Long Shadow" but it's notable to me that they didn't use that miniseries to castigate Aquaman for his "mistakes". It was more about him solving/resolving them, with the help of Jackson Hyde and Black Manta. (To be fair here, I only read parts of the miniseries. I missed an issue or two, but from what I read they didn't spend time talking about how bad Aquaman was and Mera wasn't holding him "accountable").

I find it dubious that Ridley will build T’Challa back up and is laying out subtle hints when he’s very specific when he has characters insulting T’Challa. He’s very blunt about that, but supposedly-hoped for-subtle when it comes to planting seeds for an eventual redemption? I don’t buy it. Comic books aren’t War and Peace, unless we are talking about Neil Gaiman. It demands a lot of readers to do just about eight issues of tearing a person down on the mere hope that they will be built back up by the end, whenever that might be. With these issues at $4 a pop or more that's really asking a lot of people, I mean that's a gallon of gas versus buying an issue with a meandering story that might eventually get to a satisfying resolution.

I find this kind of current deconstruction-of iconic mostly male characters (regardless of color)-in vogue right now (thinking of the Star Wars sequels and Star Trek: Picard). And after the inevitable pushback, there might be an attempt to “right the ship” that doesn’t feel organic to the story being told and felt tacked on, a compromise that doesn’t please anyone. That was also done in the first season of Star Trek: Discovery, IMO, though the lead character there is a Black female.

And while this current creative affectation doesn’t only affect Black male characters, it has greater weight when it does because there’s not a large or great pool of Black male characters to pick in the mainstream, or Black male depictions even within the MCU. You have Falcon who ditched his identity for that of Steve Rogers’s, and will now be struggling with trying to be as good (it will never be better) than Rogers’s Captain America. I don’t see that as a win. When last we saw Luke Cage he was settling in as the new crime lord of Harlem (wonderful representation there; I guess Marvel felt there just weren't enough Black criminals in mass entertainment). And who knows where War Machine is? It seems like a no-brainer to me that he would be in the Ironheart Disney Plus series, or Wakanda Forever for that matter, but I guess they are saving all his best material for his supposed Disney Plus series that might not happen. And Nick Fury is hanging out in fake beach scenes with the Skrulls after Captain Marvel turned his character into a joke.

I need to reread the new Icon/Rocket series. I would have to check to see if I have all the issues. But Hudlin has been thorough when it comes to trying to depict Black people in heroic lights. I didn’t agree with every decision he made during his Black Panther run, but it was a lot better than just about everything I read that came after.

As much as I dislike Ridley’s take on Black Panther, I think his I Am Batman series is much better and feels like a better fit for him. I do have problems with his Batman series, though, with the most being the character doesn’t need to be called Batman. I would rather he have taken on the Orpheus identity or just become a brand-new Bat character, or taken on another code name. But the character himself I like, and he doesn’t get dumped on anywhere close to what Ridley does when it comes to T’Challa. I also liked Ridley’s Civil Rights era comic The American Way, that also featured a Black male hero. I need to reread the sequel to that though, it didn’t impress much when it came out.

Ridley does have it in him to create a nuanced, even ultimately positive Black male hero, so I do have to wonder how much of what has been done to T’Challa under his pen came directly from him, or from Marvel’s direction? And he became a willing hatchet man perhaps because what Marvel wanted to do aligned with his own conflicted view of Black masculinity.

I dont agree with everything said here but I really love the content of the post and how well written it is. I can def see where you're coming from. I will say I'm much more a fan of Sam being captain america than others might, i don't see it as taking a white man's name so much as taking a good man's mission and continuing it. I like the approach but well see how they do it.

War machine is getting his own series in armor wars. Nick fury is going to still be running things as usual. I dont think him chilling in command of a spaceship is necessarily making him a joke, i think its a big afvance in status for him actually but we have yet to see how that plays out.

Definitely hope tchalla gets stuff more like that down the line. I wasn't sure about reading aquamen but if I do it will only be for the manta stuff lol

[Mantis-Ray]

Definitely hope tchalla gets stuff more like that down the line. I wasn't sure about reading aquamen but if I do it will only be for the manta stuff lol

Oh man I'm reminded of the Manta stuff, **** what a disaster.

You take one of the most high profile black villains, beloved for his cruelty and brutality the same reason Reverse-Flash is so popular, and you try to turn him into a hero.

An overall dull direction, imagine if they did that to Killmonger. Which Hell they might considering the upcoming Wakanda mini-series labels him as a "protector of Wakanda"

[Emperorjones]

I dont agree with everything said here but I really love the content of the post and how well written it is. I can def see where you're coming from. I will say I'm much more a fan of Sam being captain america than others might, i don't see it as taking a white man's name so much as taking a good man's mission and continuing it. I like the approach but well see how they do it.

War machine is getting his own series in armor wars. Nick fury is going to still be running things as usual. I dont think him chilling in command of a spaceship is necessarily making him a joke, i think its a big afvance in status for him actually but we have yet to see how that plays out.

Definitely hope tchalla gets stuff more like that down the line. I wasn't sure about reading aquamen but if I do it will only be for the manta stuff lol

Fair enough. I thought the Captain Marvel movie is what turned Fury into a joke character, not the fake beach scene, though that was perhaps just a cherry on top, one of the times the MCU can't help but insert humor, or what Marvel Studios considers humorous. I'm torn about Wilson as Captain America. I bought a good deal of Nick Spencer's run, and am currently subscribed to the Wilson Captain America comic. Falcon & Winter Soldier was my favorite Disney Plus series (of the ones I've seen thus far), despite its flaws. I like the suit (comics more than live action), I like the potential for political storytelling with the Wilson as Captain America concept. But at the same time it is a sidekick stepping into a larger heroes shoes, and when you throw race into it, this is a time I would rather have a Black character stand on their own and carve more of their own path. He can still continue Steve's mission, but as Falcon.

I'm not endorsing the Aquamen series. I missed like two issues or so of it, so I don't know exactly how the story resolves. I thought what I read was decent though. I don't have a problem with turning Black Manta into an antihero because I see it as DC looking to open up more opportunities for him. That said, I hope he isn't defanged, that he keeps an edge. If you are into Black Manta you might like the six-issue miniseries which was a prequel of sorts to the Aquamen miniseries. I read it out of order, so I can't recommend it either, until I sit down and read it again the way it was intended. But I give them points for doing more with Black Manta.

[Username taken]

To the definitely has. His current arc has him constantly struggling with his past issues, his depression, his addiction, and it took 18 issues for him to even take a first step at solving that stuff. Reed, idk he just kinda stopped being written at all for like 5 years. Thor spent a long time not being thor for his stuff, and arc took years to complete. Heck Peter Parker is going through this now and we don't even know what exactly he did that turned folks against him yet.

Maybe I am optimistic, but I notice a pattern in that these guys are doing longer storylines that run for some time before we see some kinda of redemption. I'm still hopeful and its not like I absolutely hate the setup here so I'm willing to stick with it.

Regarding Thor, I was referring to "The Reigning" during Jurgens run when he got the Odin Force and pretty much took over the world. At the end of that run, he simply undid what he did and moved on to the Ragnarok story arc. He was firm in his convictions until he realized the wrong he did and he corrected it. Aaron did to Thor what Coates/Ridley did to Thor, he created a problem with the character (that largely ignored the character's previous depiction and actions), added retcons into the mix, and then proceeded to "drag the character". So much so that Thor never actually got Mjolnir back from Jane, Thor had to go into the sun himself to re-forge a new hammer because Jane destroyed it at the end. Aaron broke Thor completely and to some extent, Cates is "fixing" Odinson back up (stuff is even conflicting now because Aaron is doing a Phoenix is Thor's mom story while Cates just recently had Thor utilize the power of the Earth via Gaea his mother).

The only consequence Reed Richards suffered from Civil War was Sue Storm temporarily leaving him and even at that, he wasn't on the floor begging for help and crying for Sue not to leave him. I don't think Reed ever publicly admitted he even did wrong in Civil War.

Perhaps Ridley is going for a lengthy run here but IMO it's not off to a good start.

[Nate Grey]

Just in time for the movie





LMAO they couldn't even bother using comic shuri's look during that time plus her name gets top billing. How long until Marvel announces another Shuri series possibly even making her BP again?

Well, still, I'm sure Shuri fans are over the moon talking about it on her thread. Buried on page 4. Last updated January. :/

Not saying it shouldn't be talked about here, just a weird flex its not talked about there too and she's supposed to be leading the franchise now.

[Vanguard]

Well, still, I'm sure Shuri fans are over the moon talking about it on her thread. Buried on page 4. Last updated January. :/

Say it again for the people in the back!

[Nate Grey]

Say it again for the people in the back!

LOL well to be fair, I screwed up, it was CREATED in January, but the last update was actually July 3rd, and still on page 4.

But otherwise...yeah. *shrugs*

[BlackClaw]

Oh man I'm reminded of the Manta stuff, **** what a disaster.

You take one of the most high profile black villains, beloved for his cruelty and brutality the same reason Reverse-Flash is so popular, and you try to turn him into a hero.

An overall dull direction, imagine if they did that to Killmonger. Which Hell they might considering the upcoming Wakanda mini-series labels him as a "protector of Wakanda"

He’s so obviously gonna betray them. Just watch.

[butterflykyss]

at the end of Coates run he united all of wakanda both prime and galatic and was the emperor of the latter.

1 arc into Ridley's run and tchalla is public event number 1 in wakanda and hated by all in his country. so who was worst for tchalla now?

[Mantis-Ray]

He’s so obviously gonna betray them. Just watch.

Amusingly the book may have been canceled before that. As the apparent final issue is a Dark Crisis tie-in so it ends with Aquaman dead.

Which uh Brandom Thomas has announced that he will be no longer writing Aquaman so from the looks of it his tenure is indeed over. Presumably the same is for Chuck Brown which is prolly a good thing as he was the writer of the Black Manta mini and is the overall architect for his anti-hero direction.

Which I feel bad for Brandon Thomas but he really should have went with a more interesting story than Atlantean sleeper agents being activated and this potentially causing another war between Atlantis and the surface world. Like his Aquamen isn't a character assassination piece against Arthur thankfully but its a very dull overall story not helped by Jackson being given an unlikable angsty anger characterization.

A huge shame since both writers are black and their tenure turned into a misfire with bad reception and sales leading to a quick cancellation not even a year in

[BlackClaw]

Amusingly the book may have been canceled before that. As the apparent final issue is a Dark Crisis tie-in so it ends with Aquaman dead.

Which uh Brandom Thomas has announced that he will be no longer writing Aquaman so from the looks of it his tenure is indeed over. Presumably the same is for Chuck Brown which is prolly a good thing as he was the writer of the Black Manta mini and is the overall architect for his anti-hero direction.

Which I feel bad for Brandon Thomas but he really should have went with a more interesting story than Atlantean sleeper agents being activated and this potentially causing another war between Atlantis and the surface world. Like his Aquamen isn't a character assassination piece against Arthur thankfully but its a very dull overall story not helped by Jackson being given an unlikable angsty anger characterization.

A huge shame since both writers are black and their tenure turned into a misfire with bad reception and sales leading to a quick cancellation not even a year in

I was talking about how Killmonger will obviously betray the Wakandans at some point. And they will deserve it.

[Mantis-Ray]

I was talking about how Killmonger will obviously betray the Wakandans at some point. And they will deserve it.

Oh you meant Killmonger, oh yeah he's definitely gonna betray them.

At this point the Wakandans deserve to get their asses wiped by supervillains. For Gods sake someone bring back Achebe so he can become Prime Minister and make a complete joke out of their new government. Hey Tosin you wanna see what a real oppressor looks like, well then here's a biscuit.

[Ezyo1000]

Yeah 1 million BC Black Panther has joined the long list of alternate BPs that sucked. But het, he lifted Mnolnir in a single panel I guess. So much for "he could kill any one of us if he had to".

https://aiptcomics.com/2022/08/12/ma...1000000-b-c-1/

Hey you can't complain, they are doing this in Honor of Chad. His take transcended all other media performances, and as such, T'Challa in all Media must get the same treatment and legacy as Chad, since they did such a great job securing a Long lasting and powerful legacy for him...

[Ezyo1000]

at the end of Coates run he united all of wakanda both prime and galatic and was the emperor of the latter.

1 arc into Ridley's run and tchalla is public event number 1 in wakanda and hated by all in his country. so who was worst for tchalla now?

Coates still. He STARTED all of this and did just as much of not MORE damage in 8 issues as Ridley. Both suck, but Coates is still the undisputed King of completely derailing the franchise

[Frontier]

What some of y'all are saying is right on the money. I mean this panel speaks for itself.



"No bad time to let a guy know he was an ass." The whole point of this book seems to be how bad black men are. T'Challa, Akili, the Hatute Zaraze, all apparently terrible. Except Tosin, I guess.

What gets me is how off Ridley's voice for T'Challa is.

Seriously????

Why?

Could you elaborate on the degree?

The gist of it is:

spoilers:

Bashenga and his brother both basically formed Wakanda, Bashenga being of the Panther Tribe and Bashenga leading the Hyena tribe, but discussion over whether Bashenga's brother should have the throne caused him to use the unrest as an excuse to exile his brother and his people to consolidate power and keep the peace even though his brother hadn't really done anything. T'Challa and Shuri found out about this and basically say they plan to expose this causing him to transform into a giant panther and try to kill them. He redeems himself in the end, but...yeah.

end of spoilers