20 Fun Facts About Marvel's Black Panther

We first met Marvel Cinema's version of Prince T'Challa in Captain America: Civil War and watched as tragedy turned him into the king of Wakanda and yes, into the superhero The Black Panther.

But there is so much more to this character, both in the comics as well as in the movie releasing in 2018. As the Black Panther arrives in theaters across the globe this week, bolstered by huge critical applause from reviewers who got to see it first, it is time to up your Marvel General Knowledge about Marvel's first black superhero.

1. 'Black Panther' refers to a title here and not just one person, passing from protector to protector of the fictional African country, Wakanda.

2. While it remains isolated from the outside world which considers it a stereotypical rural nation, Wakanda in the comics is one of the most technologically advanced countries, blending science with tradition. Remember the Quinjet planes you've seen the Avengers fly around in all those movies? Ya, well, in the comics, the technology and build is courtesy T'Challa.

3. The rare element 'Vibranium' which formed Captain America's shield is available only in Wakanda and is the material the Black Panther suit in the movie is made up of. In the comics, this source comes from a meteorite that crashed in Wakanda.

4. The Black Panther's comicbook debut was way back in 1966 as a character in the more popular 'Fantastic Four' comic book series (Issue #52).

5. He was the first lead Black superhero in comic books.

6. The Dora Milaje - The Adored Ones - are the female warriors (identifiable by their shaved heads and major weapons-and-martial arts skills) trained to protect the King. You had a glimpse of them in Captain America: Civil War.

7. Where you associate Iron Man with 'playboy tech genius billionaire' and Captain America with 'loyal boy scout', the term you want to think of when one talks of the Black Panther is 'regal'. Even in the comics, he is considered one of the most intelligent of all Marvel superheroes.

8. In the comic books, Black Panther is married to a super heroine you have seen on-screen since the year 2000! Any guesses? Yes, it is the X-Men alumni Storm (played by Halle Berry in the first series of movies) - she who can manipulate weather. Sadly the marriage was annulled in the comic books as he had to choose his duty for his country over his own family life.

9. Think of any Marvel Superhero team and the Black Panther has been a part of it - the Avengers, yup. The Fantastic Four? Yes, he and Storm took over for awhile when Reed and Sue were missing. Defenders in Hells Kitchen? Yes, again. Oh, and since his wife is Storm, he has been a honorary member of the X-Men too.

10. The Black Panther shares many similarities with Batman from the DC comics - no super powers, prefers to work alone, rich, uses technology, prefers to use darkness and shadows as an ally and advanced fighting skills and a tendency to think many steps ahead.

11. The Black Panther (at least in the comic books) does get super strength, stamina and abilities from a particular heart shaped herb found in Wakanda.

12. The movie marks the first time you have a black Marvel superhero (technically, I guess Blade counts as a vampire superhero!) with a nearly all-black star cast and a black director as well. Every indication from early reviews seems to suggest they have done a brilliant job showcasing their culture and pride.

13. Actor Chadwick Boseman who plays the Black Panther insisted on using an authentic African accent to showcase how since Wakanda had never been colonized, the people within this country would not have a European accent.

14. In 1966, there was an actual 'Black Panther' movement among African-Americans with violent tendencies en route to their demands for freedom. Though Marvel comics had used the title first, Marvel had changed the hero's name to Black Leopard for a brief period to avoid association with this group.   

15. In the comics, the Black Panther has fought and beaten up the real-life white supremacy terrorist group, the Ku Klux Klan. (I don't know why but that just makes me feel so happy.)

16. Who created the original comic book character? Well, the answer remains the same for most Marvel comic characters - Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.

17. Kirby and Lee are not invincible, of course. Their first draft of the Black Panther had him without a mask and with a silly name called Coal Tiger. 

Not their best work!

18. The first talk of a Black Panther movie dates all the way back to 1992! Actor Wesley Snipes pushed a lot for it to happen. Sadly, it took 26 years from that time for the King to get his own movie.

19. His sister Shuri (you will meet her in the movie, played by actress Letitia Wright) has taken over the role of Black Panther as well in brief stints when he was injured / comatose.

20. We met one of Black Panther's most iconic villains way back in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Ulysses Klaw who lost a hand in that movie while trying to negotiate a deal for vibranium with Ultron, is in the comic books, a physicist with extra-human abilities including 'a prosthetic sonic emitter device' for a wrist.

The main villain in the movie though appears to be Erik Killmonger (played by Micheal B Jordan in a role that has got rave reviews), an exiled Wakandan out to dethrone the Black Panther.

So that is it from my side. You are now ready to go watch The Black Panther movie. I hope you learned something new from this post. Have a great day! And remember...

#BlackPanther

All Hail the King!

Bonus trivia:
If you remember, I had talked about the 6 powerful Infinity stones that Thanos - the main villain of this whole Marvel Cinematic series - is searching for. The Soul Stone is the only one left to appear from the six we discussed and based on the scenes in the Avengers: Infinity War trailer, it is likely that the Stone is in Wakanda (There is no other reason for Thanos and his army to bother launching a fight there as shown in the trailer)

So, let us keep an eye out for that too in this movie, eh?