Birth of a Nation: A Look Back at Black Panther

There's a reason that I wait so long to write about these movies. You know... a reason aside from having an adult job and being generally lazy. I like to give myself a minute to sit with a movie and allow some of my initial emotional reactions to temper a bit. I know me; the initial viewing experience dramatically influences how I see the movie (which is why Avengers still ranks so high). If I had written about Ant-Man right after I saw it, I would have been much kinder. If I had written about Doctor Strange after watching the midnight screening with a crying two-year-old standing next to me, I probably would have been much harsher. Giving myself some distance allows me to strip away some of the mystique I associate with my comic book films; it gives me time to listen to commentaries, watch interviews, and otherwise become an expert on the movie all before my first keystroke. All of this to say that I'm still at the point where watching Black Panther makes me cry, so this may turn out to be more of a literary dick-sucking than some of my other posts have been.

The king accepts your terms, step forward.

Honestly, can any of you out there blame me? I mean, I had hoped that Black Panther would be good, but I never thought in my wildest dreams that it would be this good. Director Ryan Coogler and the folks at Marvel were able to craft a film that's beyond astonishing, inspirational, and basically any other adjective that I've used to describe Marvel films in the past. Black Panther takes everything that Marvel does to a higher level, and has quickly become one of the best superhero films of all time. Yeah I said it.

Strap in folks. It's gonna get messy.

What Works

I am T’Challa; I am Killmonger

You’d think that with a name like ‘Killmonger,’ it would be easy to single out Michael B. Jordan’s character as the villain of the movie. Yet here I am; struggling to figure out what makes Killmonger 'evil' besides his really dumb name. The difficulty in classifying him as ‘da bad guy’ is that the motives of himself and T’Challa are only separated by the thinnest of margins. Both have claim to the throne, both want to aid their people, both look great shirtless.

You're welcome.

So why is one the villain and one the hero? Well, it really comes down to their avenues of pursuing change. Killmonger wants to ship weapons across the globe in order to liberate his people; T’Challa eventually believes in a more diplomatic approach to outreach. While it may be easy to point fingers at Killmonger and say that he’s cruel and twisted for wanting to create a global genocide, don’t forget that most of the movies we pay to see end with our heroes punching their way to freedom in the most violent ways possible. Seems a bit hypocritical to proclaim ‘violence isn’t the answer’ and then watch Cap snap Bucky’s good arm…

Seriously though, if they don't make-out in Infinity War
I'm asking for my money back.

Like many folks out there, I found myself agreeing with a lot of what Killmonger said, specifically when asking ‘Where was Wakanda?’ while the rest of the world suffers. I mean, look at the U.S. We have access to all of the tools, knowledge, and resources we could ever ask for, but what are we doing with it? We’re clearly not helping the homeless, not investing in mental health, not investing in the future of our children, and generally not doing anything to make any meaningful impact on the world. Instead, we sit here playing videogames and writing about movies while we watch our own people struggle to survive. Killmonger is fueled by injustice and driven by anger towards the country that took everything away from him, leaving him alone and abandoned. While I don’t necessarily agree with his ‘and kill their children!’ part of the plan, it’s devastatingly simple to relate to Killmonger, and isn’t that the hallmark of a good villain?

T'Challa: "Staring contest for the throne, go!"
Killmonger: "I fucking hate you so much right now."

Then we have T’Challa; the other side of the coin. T’Challa spends the film trying to figure out how to best serve Wakanda: to be the hero or the king, to help the world or hold true to the traditions that made the country great. When T’Challa visits the ancestral plane for the second time, he comes to the realization that holding steadfastly to tradition can be more dangerous than allowing thoughts and ideals to evolve. After the revelation that his father is directly responsible for the creation of Killmonger, T’Challa stands up to his ghost dad and decides that he is going to be a different king; a king that will hold himself accountable for the decisions of the past. In this moment, T’Challa truly begins to exemplify the statement Shuri made at the beginning of the flick: “Just because something works doesn’t mean it can’t be improved.”

She's just the best.

So how do we reconcile these ideals? Put Killmonger in a Panther suit and let them fight it out, obviously! I’ve read a few reviews that complain that this fight essentially devolves into the classic Marvel ‘two dudes in similar suits squaring up’ battle that we’ve come to know and expect from the genre, and I would tend to agree if one were to completely ignore everything I just discussed. At this point, both of the characters hold the mantle of Black Panther, and the battle is literally for the soul of Wakanda. This weighty and philosophical discrepancy is what makes the fight between the two emotionally impactful. In the end, Killmonger chooses to end his life instead of spending it in bondage (like a total fucking badass), and T’Challa uses his money and resources to create outreach programs throughout the world; to offer help to those who need it. More than the costumes or the powers, Black Panther is about the people that inhabit this planet, and how we can best lift them up. I’m sad to see Killmonger go, but I’m happy that T’Challa is a hero worthy of admiring.

And where do I get that coat?!

People You Trust

If you’ve been following along, you know that I am a HUGE fan of what Marvel has done with building up the supporting characters. From Luis to Ned, from Korg to Kraglin, nearly every character has been given their own moments to shine and become whole. Having said that, the character work in Black Panther makes the supporting casts of previous MCU films look like they’re getting the ‘Jimmy Olsen’ treatment. Each character has an easily traceable arc, and every character is three-dimensional, all without falling into the stereotypical pitfalls that are associated with their archetypes. I love that Shuri is the smartest person on the planet without being socially awkward or an arrogant prick. I love that Nakia is genuinely shaken by what she’s seen as a spy and acts as the ‘we should be doing more to help’ voice without being the nagging, bleeding heart. I like that this is in direct contrast to Okoye, who puts her duty and her country above her personal emotions without being written as a cold-hearted bitch. I love that all of the people I have talked about so far are women; that’s pretty neat!

I want this hanging in my house.

As I’ve said before, investing the time and resources into characters help the world feel complete, but with Panther, there’s an extra layer of depth. When T’Challa visits the ancestral plane the first time, he asks his father how to be a great king. T’Chaka replies: “You’re going to struggle, so you’ll need to surround yourself with people you trust.” If Coogler had not taken the time to develop the characters, this statement would have lost all meaning, as T’Challa would have aligned himself with cardboard cutouts. This character development helps the audience understand why T'Challa chooses these people, and why these people are following their specific courses of action. N’jobu betrays his country to help the rest of the world. W’Kabi’s frustration with the crown leads to him ultimately following Killmonger. M’Baku’s honor stops him from simply taking the heart-shaped herb himself but doesn’t stop him from trolling the fuck out of our heroes. 

How I feel when people ask me for LITERALLY ANYTHING.

Black Panther has accomplished the rare feat of filling the film with remarkable characters. Let’s see if the rest of Hollywood can get on Wakanda’s level.

Wakanda Forever

Speaking of Wakanda’s level, nothing would make me buy a Disneyland Annual Pass faster than if Disney announced that they were beginning construction on Wakanda Land: Inspired by the film Black Panther. Everything about Wakanda portrays this culture as a futuristic civilization rooted firmly in the rituals of their ancestors. Something as simple as the traditional garb of the Boarder Tribe becoming holographic shields in battle, the pristine façade of the throne room is undercut by the patch of red earth directly in the center; maybe to bring them closer to nature, maybe to keep them ‘grounded’ (GET IT?!?) when making their decisions. Even their structures are able to present a sense of familiarity with the ‘grass hut’ look we tend to associate with Africa, while not sacrificing the sleekness of modern architecture. Wakanda looks like it was meticulously thought about, planned out, and developed as a traditional city would be. Everything in the country appears to have a purpose, which adds an extra layer of immersion and helps the audience believe that this is a real place, and a place that we would really like to visit.

Or, you know... live.

It’s fascinating to wonder what a nation untouched by colonizers would look like; a nation that didn’t have their language and customs beaten out of them by a bunch of pasty white folk aiming to spread misery across the globe, a nation that was able to keep their spirituality, musicality, and resources more or less intact. I love that we got a glimpse of what that world might have looked like, but I’m disheartened to think that this world will only ever exist in works of fiction.

The Wise Build Bridges

From casual viewers to die-hard fans, nearly everyone I’ve talked to about Black Panther seems to agree that this movie ‘feels different’ from the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Maybe it’s because it’s the first comic book film in a long time to feature a mostly Black cast and spends the first act of the movie celebrating African culture. Maybe it’s because the women are badasses without being highly sexualized. Maybe it’s because the villain is relatable and sexy as hell. For me, Panther feels different because it’s a big budget movie with a point-of-view that it doesn’t shy away from. So often in tent-pole blockbusters, the film is boiled down to the lowest common denominator in order to appeal to the widest audience possible. It’s good business, and why films like the Fast and Furious and Transformers franchises never go out on a limb to say anything meaningful. It’s mostly just ‘hey, look at this dumb thing we’re going to do’ like a million-dollar episode of jackass.

"I'm Johnny Knoxville, and this is 'Wrecking Balls.'"

Even my superhero films that I love and adore so much are lacking in the ‘socially woke’ department. A lot of the Marvel films are solely popcorn flicks to help us forget how fucking terrible the outside world is, and those that do dabble in ‘message’ filmmaking tend to focus on family, fitting in, and other introspective mumbo jumbo. Black Panther seems to be the first film in the MCU that is able to entertain, while also reflecting on the current state of the world without being preachy. The entire theme of the movie can be boiled down to isolationism. I mean, you strip away all of the great character moments and comedic beats, the movie really is about a king deciding whether or not to help the rest of the world, which is a direct reflection of what’s happening today. We are having the same arguments in this country: should we take in refugees, should we be kicking people out, who really deserves our help? Black Panther isn’t afraid of having any of these conversations, and is kinda staring down the barrel at us in a ‘whatchu gonna do?’ sorta way.

"Pull the trigger, bitch!" - T'Challa, probably

Look no further than the mid credits tag. T’Challa, having decided to make Wakanda’s knowledge and resources known to the world, stands in front of the U.N. and says: “In times of crisis, the wise build bridges while the foolish build barriers. We must find a way to look after one another as if we were one single tribe.”

"You listening, you bloated orange Cabbage Patch Kid?!" - Okoye, probably.

During nearly every interview I’ve watched with Coogler, this particular line is brought up in reference to what the U.S.A. is going through, and each time, Coogler deflects the question by saying that this line is an African proverb and was in the script when Obama was still president; he maintains that it was not necessarily meant to relate to the real world. But let’s examine that for a moment, shall we? Even if the movie was being developed at a time when we were still ruled by someone who could go a whole day without bribing a pornstar, this scene would be an easy cut. This scene isn’t necessary to set anything up, and is more or less a rehash of how the movie ends anyway. So why include it if not to say something? They could have released the clip on YouTube, added it as a bonus feature on the Blu-Ray, or just sacrificed it to the Editing Gods altogether. Yet at some point, a conscious decision was made to put the scene in the theatrical cut of the film, knowing full well that it could alienate a very specific, very vocal group of inbred hicks. Maybe they included it for political purposes, maybe for artistic integrity; who’s to say? Either way, this scene serves to show the Panther isn’t afraid to take a stance, and has truly raised the bar for what we can and should expect from movies like this.

What Doesn’t

The CGI and Action

Let me start by saying this: the emotionality and character development tied to the action is what makes the action work as well as it does. Watching Okoye throw her ‘ridiculous’ wig at Klaw’s guards, watching Nakia take off her high heel (a symbol of patriarchy) and stab a dude in the neck with it, and watching Killmonger and T’Challa Phantom Menace it up on opposite sides of a hover train are what make the action interesting to watch. Having said that, I never once thought that I would feel bored watching a man in a cat-suit take down an armor-clad battle rhino with his bare hands, but here we are.

This seems ill-advised...

Like the previous two movies I wrote about, I don’t think that there’s anything bad about the action. It’s just kinda… there. Like, I would be much happier if the action in this movie was replaced with lectures regarding Wakandan infrastructure and what sort of arts programs they provide in their public schools. That seems infinitely more fascinating to me than watching two CGI body-doubles falling in front of a CGI backdrop.

And hey, SPEAKING OF THE CGI, what a mess. It didn’t detract from the movie as much as the CGI rush-job in Ragnarok, but it bums me out that the CGI in 2008’s Iron Man looked more realistic than most of the third act battle in Panther. Come on Marvel, spend the cash.

… And that’s it. That’s literally the only bad thing that I can say about this movie. Shit, I even started out this section singing the movie’s praises. *Sigh* Black Panther really is just that good folks.

Final Thoughts

The energy of the theater on opening night was absolutely electric; I don't remember seeing theater-goers that excited for a movie since... The last Harry Potter flick maybe? I knew then that the movie was going to be huge, but it wasn't until the next day that I realized just how huge. My wife and I went to Target and as anybody who has ever been to Target knows, one cannot simply go in for a single item; you do a lap and allow Target to tell you what you need. We found ourselves back by the toys and noticed that nearly all of the Black Panther merchandise was sold out. There was a single Okoye action figure and a single Nakia action figure. That's it. LEGOS were sold out, the album was sold out, the other action figures, POP figures, playsets were all sold out. After surveying the consumer carnage, I understood that this movie wouldn't just be huge; it would become a cultural phenomenon. Two months later, the movie has grossed more money than your poultry gods and has shattered nearly every box office record. The craziest thing? I work with people who have never seen a comic book movie in their life; they wouldn’t be able to pick Batman or Spider-Man out of a line-up. These same people are walking around the office proclaiming ‘Wakanda Forever!’ and rocking their Black Panther t-shirts. This film has been able to reach out and speak to those that have no desire to be a part of this world and make them see what we've been seeing all along: that these films have something worthwhile to offer. Seemingly overnight, Black Panther became a cultural touchstone, and I for one can’t wait to tell my grandkids what it was like lining up to see a good man become a king.

So where does Black Panther rank on my list of Marvel Films?

  1. Black Panther

  2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier

  3. The Avengers

  4. Thor: Ragnarok

  5. Captain America: Civil War

  6. Iron Man 3

  7. Iron Man

  8. Spider-Man: Homecoming

  9. Guardians of the Galaxy

10. Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2

11. Captain America: The First Avenger

12. Avengers: Age of Ultron

13. Thor

14. Thor: The Dark World

15. Doctor Strange

16. Ant-Man

17. Iron Man 2

18. The Incredible Hulk

END

Well that’s it… I’m done! I hope you enjoyed reading them at least a third as much as I enjoyed writing them. If you did, please like, comment, and share these lil’ guys. They love to be read! My plan for the coming weeks is to go back and fix some of my older posts before moving onto my next writing project so stay tuned for that! I’m pretty excited as to where I’m going next… I’m on the tweeties @TheJamesBrock and on Instagram… also thejamesbrock. Still no idea how these things work and I’ll probably die never truly knowing what it means to share a story.

Ladies and gentlemen, every once in a while, you have the pleasure of meeting someone truly spectacular; spectacular because their heart, mind, body, and soul are so in-sync that they are only capable of doing good in this world. My friend Kono is one such person. He is trying to participate in the AIDS Lifecycle: a 545 mile bike ride over seven days from Northern to Southern California in order to raise money and awareness for the fight against AIDS and HIV. Sadly, my friend is still about $1500 away from his goal. This is where you come in. Should you have the money and the inclination, please click here to read his bio and donate. If you can’t donate, please share his page and pass the message along.

Until next time...

Be kind to each other.

-James