Shuri Appreciation: Princess of Wakanda (2018)

[Realdealholy]

I'm sorry realdeal.. that was... Painful to read. I really hate this direction that is being pushed on Shuri. This deaged woe is me attitude doesn't fit. M'Baku said it best on challenge day...

Yea, that was not a good look. The last time I was this blindsided by a comic was the human trafficking camps in BP #2. I expected Shuri to say no. Never expected everything else.

RIP Comics Shuri. She, as a concept and symbol, just died in a few preview pages.

[4sake Baned]

I have a lot to say about this preview, but the long and short: I think it’s time for me to drop this book.

Full thoughts coming soon.

I feel ya pain...

[Ezyo1000]

Yea, that was not a good look. The last time I was this blindsided by a comic was the human trafficking camps in BP #2. I expected Shuri to say no. Never expected everything else.

RIP Comics Shuri. She, as a concept and symbol, just died in a few preview pages.

If the last 2.5+ years have told us anything.. this is why you DON'T let a bunch of neophyte writer's come in with a self serving agenda and no love for the character or franchise and give them free and full reign to do whatever the hell they please

[butterflykyss]

Yea, that was not a good look. The last time I was this blindsided by a comic was the human trafficking camps in BP #2. I expected Shuri to say no. Never expected everything else.

RIP Comics Shuri. She, as a concept and symbol, just died in a few preview pages.

what is it that u did not like about preview pages?

[Cville]

what is it that u did not like about preview pages?

The death of Comic version Shuri. Lol.

[butterflykyss]

The death of Comic version Shuri. Lol.

how so boo?

[Yaw]

Rise of the Black Panther and the Cartoon have done a better job merging MCU and comic shuri together (even if cartoon did it on accident)

This is an extremely late response but w/e. The Cartoon Shuri seems like "Who is the Black Panther" Shuri which MCU Shuri is not far from either. Essentially the original Shuri was a sassy little sister who was smart with some fighting skills but still a bit innocent. Hudlin evolved her overtime to become more stoic and ruthless as she needed to be as a future Black Panther. However, she still had a competitive streak with T'Challa, was smart (PhD in nuclear physics and investigated the power plant; although she was not shown to be a techie/inventor type), and was used for comic relief. I always loved the panel where she kills Radioactive man with the sword and she tears up. To me that always seemed to me that she was a young innocent girl who played with fighting but had never gotten serious enough to kill someone.

I think MCU Shuri can be seen as an extension of Hudlins early Shuri with more of an obvious movie adapting to make her more useful and unique for mass audiences. However they played up to comic relief by having her make jokes as opposed to just being in comedic situations (like when the big dude fell on top of her when she was trying to get in the ring in Hudlin's run).

[Cville]

how so boo?

They regressed her. Yaws' post above shows the transition.

[Realdealholy]

what is it that u did not like about preview pages?

Had time to reread the preview page. My full thoughts:

1. Why hasn’t Shuri done anything about T’Challa, her brother, being missing in a wormhole for two weeks? It is not only unacceptable; this is completely out of character. Comics Shuri would’ve been on the job within days. She did so days after T’Challa was brought back from limbo in BP Vol. 5: searched for T’Challa’s attacker soon after Morlun was defeated.

2. Shuri being a Black Panther wasn’t a good fit? Why? No explanation was given. Furthermore, T’Challa is the one known to rule differently than his predecessors. Shuri ruled more or less like the previous panthers.

3. Died wearing the BP suit? That’s part of the job. BPs know they could possibly die in the line of duty because they put their lives on the line for Wakanda. T’Chaka died in battle. S’Yan died in battle (post retirement). T’Challa nearly died in battle. Shuri died in battle too. Why is Shuri rejecting her duty, which is extremely contradictory to her previous history?

Hell, her being concerned about dying due to the BP suit directly contradicts her words from the Coates run in issue 12:





These panels are barely a year old. What happened between then and now?

4. In her brother’s shadow? The Wakandan-Atlantean war greatly contradicts that. She had the support of the military, the government, the Hatut Zeraze, the Dora Milaje and the Wakandan people. She left her brother’s shadow a long time ago. Upon her return to the living, Akili addressed by her former title of queen, the same way Wakandans addressed T’Challa as King when he wasn’t: as a sign of respect. Ayo said Shuri dying was a factor in her breaking away from the crown with Aneka. She and Aneka addressed her as “Queen” as well.

5. Confused on the “Wakanda wanted my brother” line. T’Challa just dealt with an insurrection. Every ruler deals with it, Shuri included. Doesn’t mean that Shuri is a better leader. It means that Wakandans are, ultimately, a highly critical bunch and a very tough people to please. T’Challa took a lot of flack from them. So did Shuri. I’m sure T’Chaka and S’Yan got their fair share of criticism (T’Chaka in particular for marrying an outsider in Ramonda). This is nothing new. That “Wakanda wanted my brother” line, in its proper context, feels very hollow.

6. Wakanda standing on its own without a protector? Did she forget that she’s known as the Aja-Adanna? The Keeper of Wakandan Lore? She is a symbol by default. Furthermore, she’s a former BP and former ruler that came back from the dead. Doesn’t get any more symbolic than that. Again, why is she rejecting her duty? Why is she downplaying the Black Panther line to just symbolism and just a protector? The Black Panther line has been a major institution of Wakanda, and it worked!

As a ruler, Shuri took Wakandan traditions very seriously. She continued to do so after returning to the living. You could argue that, in key moments, she took them too seriously. When did this change? Why the change? Again, no explanation and its highly contradictory from previous (and recent) iteration of the character.

7. “Let’s show the world who we are”? Not sure what that means. I do know that she’s the Princess of Wakanda, the second-in-line to the throne, a former Black Panther, and a former head of state. Did she forget who she is?

8. Modern African democracy is the future? The monarchy is the reason why Wakanda is ahead of the pack. Wakanda is the future. Said “democracy” is still relying on the Black Panther mantle as recently as season 2 of the Coates BP run.

9. Worship T’Challa? Is this about Shuri or T’Challa? Would said character be okay with Shuri ruling? Why the shade on T’Challa? Why not go at the monarchy instead of him in particular? Who said anything about worshiping T’Challa?

Also, the T’Challa shade has to stop. Season 1 of Coates’ BP was more than enough. Many will argue that it went too far. We get it, some Wakandans don’t like T’Challa, for various reasons. We had twelve issues about that. Time to move on. Enough is enough.

10. The exchange with Ramonda make sense if one didn’t know Shuri’s comic book history. Comics Shuri, in this particular scenario, would’ve accepted the mantle or—at the least—say no, but insisted on finding out exactly what happened to T’Challa first before doing a mantle transfer. Shuri didn’t shy away from her responsibilities for her people and nation. Again, why is she rejecting her duties all the sudden? She might as well abdicate from her position as Princess if she’s going to act in such a fashion.

11. Shuri crying in this particular situation? Just like T’Challa didn't get any sympathy from me when the whole incursion stuff went down, neither will she. At least when T’Challa cried, the existence of Wakanda and another Earth was on the line, and he ended up being disowned by T’Chaka because of his choice.

12. Shuri needs “a little time” to find T’Challa. She had two weeks, what was she waiting for?

=====

Coates had some poorly executed concepts (the “I’m not worthy of being a King” thing, for example) and some outright bad ideas that were badly done (the camps, stating that Wakandans warred with the Originals for the land known as Wakanda with no follow up on that plotline, the "meeting" of issue 5) that dragged down the main BP book. The one thing I gave him credit for was Shuri’s portrayal. I felt that overall—and I understand if folks disagree with me on this—his portrayal of Shuri was solid and was mostly consistent with previous iterations, especially Hickman’s.

This Shuri though? For this portrayal to work, I would have to know nothing about Shuri’s previous history. Said history—as recently as the Coates run—outright contradicts that entire conversation in the preview page.

Comics Shuri would’ve started looking for T’Challa long before this meeting. Comics Shuri would’ve accepted the mantle, or at the least insisted that they should find out what happened to T’Challa first. Comics Shuri never ignored or rejected her duties. She was a leader in her own right, and a respected one towards the end of her reign and onward.

This Shuri in the preview pages? She’s no leader. She cowers from her duties. Hides when things get tough. Claims to want to not be under T’Challa’s shadow, but then runs when it’s time to step up.

This is supposed to be the same character that helped defeat Morlun? Eliminated the Desturi? Went toe-to-toe with Namor? Declared war on Atlantis? Had the support of the Hatut Zeraze (AKA the War Dogs, AKA the goons of Wakanda) the Dora Milaje, and the Wakandan military? Fought Proxima Midnight to the death? Got the Doras back in line upon her return? Earned the hard-fought respect of her people?

This goes beyond acting like MCU Shuri. MCU Shuri, on top of being a scientific genius, is also brave and decisive. I can’t say the same about this version of Shuri.

I was one of those that embraced the announcement of the book with open arms. I made sure to read the book with an open mind. Despite my criticisms of issue 1, I was determined to give the book a shot till at least issue 3.

After those preview pages though? I can't cosign this. If one likes the book and wants to continue reading it, that fine. However, I'll have to fall back on this one.

[butterflykyss]

They regressed her. Yaws' post above shows the transition.

Had time to reread the preview page. My full thoughts:

1. Why hasn’t Shuri done anything about T’Challa, her brother, being missing in a wormhole for two weeks? It is not only unacceptable; this is completely out of character. Comics Shuri would’ve been on the job within days. She did so days after T’Challa was brought back from limbo in BP Vol. 5: searched for T’Challa’s attacker soon after Morlun was defeated.

2. Shuri being a Black Panther wasn’t a good fit? Why? No explanation was given. Furthermore, T’Challa is the one known to rule differently than his predecessors. Shuri ruled more or less like the previous panthers.

3. Died wearing the BP suit? That’s part of the job. BPs know they could possibly die in the line of duty because they put their lives on the line for Wakanda. T’Chaka died in battle. S’Yan died in battle (post retirement). T’Challa nearly died in battle. Shuri died in battle too. Why is Shuri rejecting her duty, which is extremely contradictory to her previous history?

Hell, her being concerned about dying due to the BP suit directly contradicts her words from the Coates run in issue 12:





These panels are barely a year old. What happened between then and now?

4. In her brother’s shadow? The Wakandan-Atlantean war greatly contradicts that. She had the support of the military, the government, the Hatut Zeraze, the Dora Milaje and the Wakandan people. She left her brother’s shadow a long time ago. Upon her return to the living, Akili addressed by her former title of queen, the same way Wakandans addressed T’Challa as King when he wasn’t: as a sign of respect. Ayo said Shuri dying was a factor in her breaking away from the crown with Aneka. She and Aneka addressed her as “Queen” as well.

5. Confused on the “Wakanda wanted my brother” line. T’Challa just dealt with an insurrection. Every ruler deals with it, Shuri included. Doesn’t mean that Shuri is a better leader. It means that Wakandans are, ultimately, a highly critical bunch and a very tough people to please. T’Challa took a lot of flack from them. So did Shuri. I’m sure T’Chaka and S’Yan got their fair share of criticism (T’Chaka in particular for marrying an outsider in Ramonda). This is nothing new. That “Wakanda wanted my brother” line, in its proper context, feels very hollow.

6. Wakanda standing on its own without a protector? Did she forget that she’s known as the Aja-Adanna? The Keeper of Wakandan Lore? She is a symbol by default. Furthermore, she’s a former BP and former ruler that came back from the dead. Doesn’t get any more symbolic than that. Again, why is she rejecting her duty? Why is she downplaying the Black Panther line to just symbolism and just a protector? The Black Panther line has been a major institution of Wakanda, and it worked!

As a ruler, Shuri took Wakandan traditions very seriously. She continued to do so after returning to the living. You could argue that, in key moments, she took them too seriously. When did this change? Why the change? Again, no explanation and its highly contradictory from previous (and recent) iteration of the character.

7. “Let’s show the world who we are”? Not sure what that means. I do know that she’s the Princess of Wakanda, the second-in-line to the throne, a former Black Panther, and a former head of state. Did she forget who she is?

8. Modern African democracy is the future? The monarchy is the reason why Wakanda is ahead of the pack. Wakanda is the future. Said “democracy” is still relying on the Black Panther mantle as recently as season 2 of the Coates BP run.

9. Worship T’Challa? Is this about Shuri or T’Challa? Would said character be okay with Shuri ruling? Why the shade on T’Challa? Why not go at the monarchy instead of him in particular? Who said anything about worshiping T’Challa?

Also, the T’Challa shade has to stop. Season 1 of Coates’ BP was more than enough. Many will argue that it went too far. We get it, some Wakandans don’t like T’Challa, for various reasons. We had twelve issues about that. Time to move on. Enough is enough.

10. The exchange with Ramonda make sense if one didn’t know Shuri’s comic book history. Comics Shuri, in this particular scenario, would’ve accepted the mantle or—at the least—say no, but insisted on finding out exactly what happened to T’Challa first before doing a mantle transfer. Shuri didn’t shy away from her responsibilities for her people and nation. Again, why is she rejecting her duties all the sudden? She might as well abdicate from her position as Princess if she’s going to act in such a fashion.

11. Shuri crying in this particular situation? Just like T’Challa didn't get any sympathy from me when the whole incursion stuff went down, neither will she. At least when T’Challa cried, the existence of Wakanda and another Earth was on the line, and he ended up being disowned by T’Chaka because of his choice.

12. Shuri needs “a little time” to find T’Challa. She had two weeks, what was she waiting for?

=====

Coates had some poorly executed concepts (the “I’m not worthy of being a King” thing, for example) and some outright bad ideas that were badly done (the camps, stating that Wakandans warred with the Originals for the land known as Wakanda with no follow up on that plotline, the "meeting" of issue 5) that dragged down the main BP book. The one thing I gave him credit for was Shuri’s portrayal. I felt that overall—and I understand if folks disagree with me on this—his portrayal of Shuri was solid and was mostly consistent with previous iterations, especially Hickman’s.

This Shuri though? For this portrayal to work, I would have to know nothing about Shuri’s previous history. Said history—as recently as the Coates run—outright contradicts that entire conversation in the preview page.

Comics Shuri would’ve started looking for T’Challa long before this meeting. Comics Shuri would’ve accepted the mantle, or at the least insisted that they should find out what happened to T’Challa first. Comics Shuri never ignored or rejected her duties. She was a leader in her own right, and a respected one towards the end of her reign and onward.

This Shuri in the preview pages? She’s no leader. She cowers from her duties. Hides when things get tough. Claims to want to not be under T’Challa’s shadow, but then runs when it’s time to step up.

This is supposed to be the same character that helped defeat Morlun? Eliminated the Desturi? Went toe-to-toe with Namor? Declared war on Atlantis? Had the support of the Hatut Zeraze (AKA the War Dogs, AKA the goons of Wakanda) the Dora Milaje, and the Wakandan military? Fought Proxima Midnight to the death? Got the Doras back in line upon her return? Earned the hard-fought respect of her people?

This goes beyond acting like MCU Shuri. MCU Shuri, on top of being a scientific genius, is also brave and decisive. I can’t say the same about this version of Shuri.

I was one of those that embraced the announcement of the book with open arms. I made sure to read the book with an open mind. Despite my criticisms of issue 1, I was determined to give the book a shot till at least issue 3.

After those preview pages though? I can't cosign this. If one likes the book and wants to continue reading it, that fine. However, I'll have to fall back on this one.

thanks for your thoughts on this. I know this is your favorite character so I hate she isnt being written how she has been in canon. I know the feeling.

[Realdealholy]

thanks for your thoughts on this. I know this is your favorite character so I hate she isnt being written how she has been in canon. I know the feeling.

Tied for first place with T’Challa, actually. I know I glossed over it in my wall of a post, but the comments on T’Challa in the preview actually irked me this time. In isolation it’s not a big deal, but this has been going on for over 2 years now.

When one of the two is written well, I read it. When both are well done in a book, I hype it up. If neither is well written, I drop the book. Did so during Hickman’s run when Shuri was confirmed dead as I wasn’t a fan of T’Challa’s portrayal at the time. Dropping this book as Shuri’s portrayal isn’t my cup of tea and T’Challa isn’t there.

[skyvolt2000]

alienating comic shuri fans was in no way worth it unless the trade utterly blows up on Amazon lol

That trade was at one point in the top 20 of super hero trades. So ti doing well in trades is a given like the other two.

The moment BP WOW got ax-it spiked up on Amazon. It didn't get below 300 in rankings until September. Same with the Crew.

[butterflykyss]

Tied for first place with T’Challa, actually. I know I glossed over it in my wall of a post, but the comments on T’Challa in the preview actually irked me this time. In isolation it’s not a big deal, but this has been going on for over 2 years now.

When one of the two is written well, I read it. When both are well done in a book, I hype it up. If neither is well written, I drop the book. Did so during Hickman’s run when Shuri was confirmed dead as I wasn’t a fan of T’Challa’s portrayal at the time. Dropping this book as Shuri’s portrayal isn’t my cup of tea and T’Challa isn’t there.

that's a fair enough. though I have thoroughly enjoyed coates vision for wakanda I understand everyone is not in that ship.

[Daniel22]

Thing is, Shuri needs all the help she can get as far as comic book sales are concerned.

Again, the MCU doesn’t guarantee high sales for comic books. Meaning that relying mostly on the MCU crowd, rather than the comic fans who actually buy the books, is a mistake. Most MCU fans simply don’t buy comic books. They are all about the movies. Falcon (as Cap), Black Widow and Vision (which had great reviews) had books after MCU appearances. Their sales tanked very quickly and their books ended up canceled. Widow and Vision in particular lasted only 12 issues.

This is why I was hoping that Shuri’s portrayal would be a blend of both the comics and the MCU: enough MCU elements to draw in new fans, but also the core essence of the comics version to keep comic fans interested. It’s currently very one-sided towards the MCU crowd, who, again, doesn’t buy comics like that.

As far how many fans Shuri had prior to the film...one objective way to come to a conclusion, imho, is to look as the last time she lead a book: when she became a Black Panther 9 years ago. Her persona in said book was obviously very different from the current Shuri book (MCU barely started and 9 years before the BP film). Below are her sales figures from BP # 7-12, via Comic Chron (she is the official Black Panther in BP 7).

BP #7: 27,590
BP #8: 23,001
BP #9: 20,334
BP #10: 19,138
BP #11: 17,989
BP #12: 17,881

Key factors about these number:

-Shuri became the BP in the seventh issue. Not the first, second, or third. The previous issues featured T’Challa and Ororo a whole lot more than after she became a BP.

-Shuri was still a relatively new character at the time (only 4 years old) and was a virtual unknown outside of BP fandom.

-Shuri wasn’t that well-liked by a lot of BP fandom at the time, because they felt she took a spot that solely belonged to T’Challa. Similar to the hate Riri Williams got for being Iron Man.

-The “Black Panther” brand was nowhere close to being as big as it is today. Still a virtually unknown franchise outside of comic fandom. A BP book dropping below 20k wasn’t uncommon at the time.

-Black Panther Vol. 5 (in which Shuri becomes a BP), came immediately after 3 straight years of Black Panther Vol. 4, written by Hudlin. Vol. 5 (also initially written by Hudlin, before Maberry stepped in) is a direction continuation of that run.

Despite all this, the BP books with her as the lead character not only found its footing but had a somewhat consistent readership overall. No major drop off.

Does Shuri have as many comics fans as T’Challa, for example? Of course not. But she has shown that she can sell a book without much promo and/or fan awareness and not have sales dropping off the cliff outright.

The current Shuri book has far more advantages than the previous Shuri-lead book: not only is MCU Shuri well-known via a billion dollar film, Comics Shuri has far more recognition than before via her appearance in Hickman’s New Avengers and Coates BP run. She’s been around for 13 years now, instead of just four. The Shuri book also got a lot of mainstream promo, unlike its predecessor.

On paper, this Shuri book should do better sales wise than the Shuri-led BP book. Will it? After seeing the numbers for Shuri #1, I’m not too sure that it will and that, in and of itself, is a problem.

Thanks for the thoughtful response! I found it really interesting and well laid out. I'm not going to respond too much because I don't want to derail the thread with sales talk and I'll go on forever about this stuff. I don't agree with all of your points (her last solo went from solid mid tier sales to cancellation numbers in six issues... the drops were gradual but six months isn't that long) but I do see why you make them. Anyway I'm not trying to cherry pick things and then not continue, I hope I don't come across that way...
I'm usually in the sales threads if you want to continue there! Thanks.

[Ezyo1000]

Had time to reread the preview page. My full thoughts:

1. Why hasn’t Shuri done anything about T’Challa, her brother, being missing in a wormhole for two weeks? It is not only unacceptable; this is completely out of character. Comics Shuri would’ve been on the job within days. She did so days after T’Challa was brought back from limbo in BP Vol. 5: searched for T’Challa’s attacker soon after Morlun was defeated.

2. Shuri being a Black Panther wasn’t a good fit? Why? No explanation was given. Furthermore, T’Challa is the one known to rule differently than his predecessors. Shuri ruled more or less like the previous panthers.

3. Died wearing the BP suit? That’s part of the job. BPs know they could possibly die in the line of duty because they put their lives on the line for Wakanda. T’Chaka died in battle. S’Yan died in battle (post retirement). T’Challa nearly died in battle. Shuri died in battle too. Why is Shuri rejecting her duty, which is extremely contradictory to her previous history?

Hell, her being concerned about dying due to the BP suit directly contradicts her words from the Coates run in issue 12:





These panels are barely a year old. What happened between then and now?

4. In her brother’s shadow? The Wakandan-Atlantean war greatly contradicts that. She had the support of the military, the government, the Hatut Zeraze, the Dora Milaje and the Wakandan people. She left her brother’s shadow a long time ago. Upon her return to the living, Akili addressed by her former title of queen, the same way Wakandans addressed T’Challa as King when he wasn’t: as a sign of respect. Ayo said Shuri dying was a factor in her breaking away from the crown with Aneka. She and Aneka addressed her as “Queen” as well.

5. Confused on the “Wakanda wanted my brother” line. T’Challa just dealt with an insurrection. Every ruler deals with it, Shuri included. Doesn’t mean that Shuri is a better leader. It means that Wakandans are, ultimately, a highly critical bunch and a very tough people to please. T’Challa took a lot of flack from them. So did Shuri. I’m sure T’Chaka and S’Yan got their fair share of criticism (T’Chaka in particular for marrying an outsider in Ramonda). This is nothing new. That “Wakanda wanted my brother” line, in its proper context, feels very hollow.

6. Wakanda standing on its own without a protector? Did she forget that she’s known as the Aja-Adanna? The Keeper of Wakandan Lore? She is a symbol by default. Furthermore, she’s a former BP and former ruler that came back from the dead. Doesn’t get any more symbolic than that. Again, why is she rejecting her duty? Why is she downplaying the Black Panther line to just symbolism and just a protector? The Black Panther line has been a major institution of Wakanda, and it worked!

As a ruler, Shuri took Wakandan traditions very seriously. She continued to do so after returning to the living. You could argue that, in key moments, she took them too seriously. When did this change? Why the change? Again, no explanation and its highly contradictory from previous (and recent) iteration of the character.

7. “Let’s show the world who we are”? Not sure what that means. I do know that she’s the Princess of Wakanda, the second-in-line to the throne, a former Black Panther, and a former head of state. Did she forget who she is?

8. Modern African democracy is the future? The monarchy is the reason why Wakanda is ahead of the pack. Wakanda is the future. Said “democracy” is still relying on the Black Panther mantle as recently as season 2 of the Coates BP run.

9. Worship T’Challa? Is this about Shuri or T’Challa? Would said character be okay with Shuri ruling? Why the shade on T’Challa? Why not go at the monarchy instead of him in particular? Who said anything about worshiping T’Challa?

Also, the T’Challa shade has to stop. Season 1 of Coates’ BP was more than enough. Many will argue that it went too far. We get it, some Wakandans don’t like T’Challa, for various reasons. We had twelve issues about that. Time to move on. Enough is enough.

10. The exchange with Ramonda make sense if one didn’t know Shuri’s comic book history. Comics Shuri, in this particular scenario, would’ve accepted the mantle or—at the least—say no, but insisted on finding out exactly what happened to T’Challa first before doing a mantle transfer. Shuri didn’t shy away from her responsibilities for her people and nation. Again, why is she rejecting her duties all the sudden? She might as well abdicate from her position as Princess if she’s going to act in such a fashion.

11. Shuri crying in this particular situation? Just like T’Challa didn't get any sympathy from me when the whole incursion stuff went down, neither will she. At least when T’Challa cried, the existence of Wakanda and another Earth was on the line, and he ended up being disowned by T’Chaka because of his choice.

12. Shuri needs “a little time” to find T’Challa. She had two weeks, what was she waiting for?

=====

Coates had some poorly executed concepts (the “I’m not worthy of being a King” thing, for example) and some outright bad ideas that were badly done (the camps, stating that Wakandans warred with the Originals for the land known as Wakanda with no follow up on that plotline, the "meeting" of issue 5) that dragged down the main BP book. The one thing I gave him credit for was Shuri’s portrayal. I felt that overall—and I understand if folks disagree with me on this—his portrayal of Shuri was solid and was mostly consistent with previous iterations, especially Hickman’s.

This Shuri though? For this portrayal to work, I would have to know nothing about Shuri’s previous history. Said history—as recently as the Coates run—outright contradicts that entire conversation in the preview page.

Comics Shuri would’ve started looking for T’Challa long before this meeting. Comics Shuri would’ve accepted the mantle, or at the least insisted that they should find out what happened to T’Challa first. Comics Shuri never ignored or rejected her duties. She was a leader in her own right, and a respected one towards the end of her reign and onward.

This Shuri in the preview pages? She’s no leader. She cowers from her duties. Hides when things get tough. Claims to want to not be under T’Challa’s shadow, but then runs when it’s time to step up.

This is supposed to be the same character that helped defeat Morlun? Eliminated the Desturi? Went toe-to-toe with Namor? Declared war on Atlantis? Had the support of the Hatut Zeraze (AKA the War Dogs, AKA the goons of Wakanda) the Dora Milaje, and the Wakandan military? Fought Proxima Midnight to the death? Got the Doras back in line upon her return? Earned the hard-fought respect of her people?

This goes beyond acting like MCU Shuri. MCU Shuri, on top of being a scientific genius, is also brave and decisive. I can’t say the same about this version of Shuri.

I was one of those that embraced the announcement of the book with open arms. I made sure to read the book with an open mind. Despite my criticisms of issue 1, I was determined to give the book a shot till at least issue 3.

After those preview pages though? I can't cosign this. If one likes the book and wants to continue reading it, that fine. However, I'll have to fall back on this one.

Daaaaam realdeal with a mic drop.. spot on here. Especially when broken down this way. There is no continuity, all these hacks came in and chopped up the mythos without a Care about what they were doing, more concerned about their agenda that they contradict the ongoing stories that happened recently or were ongoing. This is why you don't hire neophytes to try and "uplift" a franchise, and especially why you let then go unchecked like they have been