I'm intrigued By Tosin and yes imo Tosin story was a mini spoiler and I'm ok with that
I'm intrigued By Tosin and yes imo Tosin story was a mini spoiler and I'm ok with that
spoilers:end of spoilers
Gentle was raised in the palace of Wakanda for a time and was personally saved by T’Challa from a life of complete loneliness and abuse. It would’ve been incredibly out of character for him to be anything other than respectful and open-minded to T’Challa, that’s the closest thing he has to a father. So revealing him as a spy and letting him be someone T’Challa can lean on felt like the right approach. I still don’t care for the character but if Marvel handled Gentle’s background with the nuance it deserves there MIGHT be an interesting story to tell there for T’Challa.
The voice for T’Challa was great mostly outside of the “Yeaah, no” and referring to the X-Men/Krakoa as “the mutants”. If anything I think Ridley did his strongest character writing here, his T’Challa is the perfect mix of “asshole” and “introspective” in that he embraces his Royal duties but it’s painfully apparent the years of lying and isolating himself have worn on him.
He’s not in complete resentment of Wakanda the way Coates was but I also think he’s more vulnerable than Priest, this T’Challa has a greater range of perspective while having a lot more on his plate (intergalactic Wakanda, leading the Avengers, etc.) I like seeing T’Challa wrestle with whether his friends are happy with the lives he builds for them, but I also like seeing him devote himself to the mission with some of the pomp and arrogance that demands.
That Tosin story is definitely a spoiler because I think your theory is right. We’re getting Dora v. HZ, who else would lead the HZ but Hunter lol. If that’s Ridley’s direction I’m interested, showing a military faction chafe at the new democracy and overthrowing it could be interesting. That story is probably how Tosin comes to prominence, he’s the guy that saves the prime minister so the government tries to position him as their new hero. But I also got a hint of malice in that final page, like Tosin may end up going too far. He’s not a political mastermind, but he is a child and insanely driven. Should be interesting to see how T’Challa reacts to him.
Black Panther Discord Server: https://discord.gg/SA3hQerktm
T'challa's Greatest Comic Book Feats: http://blackpanthermarvel.blogspot.c...her-feats.html
Black Panther Discord Server: https://discord.gg/SA3hQerktm
T'challa's Greatest Comic Book Feats: http://blackpanthermarvel.blogspot.c...her-feats.html
spoilers:end of spoilers
Don't get me wrong, I think Akili is ok but there's so much more to explore with Hunter as the big bad. Where's he been all this time, how'd he coordinate his plan while in exile, plus just the general fact he's T'Challa's older, white adopted brother lol.
I'm not even a big Hunter fan but there's a richer history and dynamic to mine with him, so I'd hope if the HZ go bad he's the one leading charge. Akili I think would be better used as a secondary antagonist, the inside man helping Hunter from within Wakanda.
Well, we got a character saving the day in a badass fashion against multiple armed foes.
spoilers:end of spoilers
Pity that it's Tosin
It's instructive to compare the writing in the 1st & 3rd stories:
spoilers:end of spoilers
In the first story, T'Challa is on his back foot still, not even able to take a prisoner, while Omolola, Shuri, and Akili all gripe about his inability to do stuff.
Sure, he gets a decent fight scene, but O-la actually gets the W, and his only recourse is to go running off to bloody Mars.
(I have no strong opinions on the Gentle stuff at all. Other than to note that, unlike every other sleeper, Nezhno gets to stay where he is because the oh-so-wonderful Arakko is perfectly safe, despite the fact that these attackers seem to show up everywhere. Yay mutants!)
Meanwhile, in the third story, Tosin gets to talk about how T'Challa & his philosophy is just as bad as Killmonger, Wakanda sucks, and his way is the only true way. And not ONE panel of the story suggests he might be wrong. And he gets the badass action scene I was talking about with Moon Knight yesterday.
He's basically a younger, hipper, less-pretentious Tetu!
In other words: 3rd verse, same as the others. But I'm sure that Ridley will do a wonderful job showing the grand adventures of spoilers:end of spoilers
Tosin, Protector of the True Wakanda.
I won't be reading them, though.
ooooo i like that last sentence and it would fit too.
Hell i could see...
spoilers:end of spoilers
Akili being the one to contact Hunter.
Hunter coudl almost be a myth or legend in the HZ ranks.
Akili is super concerned about the new government, as we saw in #1 and now #3, and he contacts and finds Hunter in prison (and likely helps break him out) for help/pick is brain/whatever and Hunter may be manipulating Akili here a bit. Hunter can orchestrate **** as we saw in Priest run... akili may have fucked around and got in bed with a master manipulator. Akili may not even know what is happening to T'chalal since T'challa is keeping it close to the vest.
Also, i'll be curious how the mars thing blows up in T'challa's face next issue lol. Well, I guess it would be a plot twist if it DOESNT blow up though.
spoilers:end of spoilers
If the assassins can reach Mars ,then holy **** their reach is LONG
Black Panther Discord Server: https://discord.gg/SA3hQerktm
T'challa's Greatest Comic Book Feats: http://blackpanthermarvel.blogspot.c...her-feats.html
Counterpoint: He's young and stuck in his own propaganda in the Mute Zone.
Think "small town mentality." Country folk hating on all the city folk when the country folk never left their hometown.
The Mute Zone be sitting back going "look at shitty they are, we know everything" during every conflict and disagreement. Monday Morning Quarterback type stuff.
He's a Wakandan Small Town Conservative lol
aka he finally leaves said town, he sees how the world really works, sees who's T'challa really is, and grows as a character. T'challa takes him under his wing to help.
Or he might freaking suck and I hate him and he will disappear from Canon in 6 months unti hte movie comes out and they change his name to Azari lolkol lol. Who knows, too soon to tell.
Black Panther Discord Server: https://discord.gg/SA3hQerktm
T'challa's Greatest Comic Book Feats: http://blackpanthermarvel.blogspot.c...her-feats.html
spoilers:end of spoilers
It definitely looks like that it could be Hunter or Akili or both. It definitely seems like something Hunter would do just like in Enemy of the State I & II.
The Tosin story definitely was a massive spoiler. His tribe sounds like a rebrand Jabari and weren't the Mute Zones from Nendi's mini?
spoilers:end of spoilers
I think that's the better vibe to go with. Hunter just brings a gravity to this story I'm not sure Akili has earned because he doesn't have enough history to make the reveals hit. Just like Jhai, it'd be a wasted opportunity to use him rather than an established character. Having him be the dutiful soldier to the one man he thinks can protect Wakanda from itself could be an interesting take. And like you said, Akili may have gotten more than what he bargained for if he's not entirely in the know about the assassins.
Is it possible this plan has been in place for awhile? When T'Challa disbanded the HZ, maybe the few that were presumably kept around just pretended they were loyal to the crown. Could it be a situation where T'Challa thought he expelled all the bad actors in their ranks when in reality a new militarist conspiracy established themselves under his nose? A decade-long conspiracy by Hunter against T'Challa would be compelling stuff. Kinda retcon-y but definitely a unique type of threat for T'Challa, like Doomwar done right lol.