Monday, February 6, 2023

On PPV: Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)

 Apparently, there is no Atlantis in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

In order to introduce Prince Namor, aka the Sub-Mariner (though not referred by that monicker), in "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever", Ryan Coogler and company decided to reboot Marvel's first mutant as having some Mayan background linked to the Serpent God, which contrasts some of Namor's adventures in the 60's & 70's where he fought villains who used and/or coveted a Serpent Crown.

But Namor is not the only new face in the movie. A more recently introduced hero, Ironheart, aka teenage genius Riri Williams, makes her debut here, too, and is central to the plot, which links together Wakanda and Talokan, the MCU substitute for Atlantis, the better not to confuse casual fans who might not understand that Atlantis exists in Marvel Comics as well as DC Comics.

Anyway, Coogler notes the passing of Chadwick Boseman, the star of "Black Panther", who passed away in 2020, two years after the first film, by officially killing off King T'Challa, whose sister, Shuri (Letitia Wright). herself a genius, tried to save his life. With Wakanda under attack from Talokan, and framed for an attack on some government troops, Shuri makes a career choice that big brother would've approved....!

Michael B. Jordan appears briefly, reprising as Killmonger. You'd be hard pressed to find Lake Bell (Harley Quinn) in a brief part.

Following is a teaser video from last summer:


For Phase 5, Marvel/Disney would be well served to put more focus on the next generation of heroes, including Shuri and Riri.

Rating: A-.

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