BP Sighting: Captain Marvel, vol 9, #4

Black Panther #13 Thoughts and Spoilers

Spoilers... 

- T'challa chats with Storm about the nature of the Gods of Wakanda. Yes, Gods now, not just Bast.

- T'challa has been going around Wakanda, talking to elders and shamans about the new government. Many mention how none of the Gods answered their prayers during the times of destruction.

- One such elder mentions a portal and snake-men coming out. T'challa investigates just to put the people at ease, but finds out it is true. He then whoops their ass. But the door of light was still open.

- Eden and Shuri are in the Royal library who these creatures might be. They eventually decide they are of the deep past, even before Shuri's new found knowledge.

- T'challa calls them to help out with a second snake-men invasion. A brawl ensues between T'challa, Shuri, Eden, the HZ, and shamans. The plan is to round them up near the portal entrance and let the shamans banish them.

- The Shamans do their thing... and they all die. They called on the Wakandan Gods and something else seemingly answered.

Thoughts...

- I like it. And I can say that without any qualifying statements for the first time in a year. It just felt like a super-hero comic for once. Fights, snake-men, Gods, Shamans, ex-wives... it didn't feel like I was reading, "let's use Black Panther for social commentary!" It was a cape comic.

- This seems like a cool way to tackle the mythological side of Wakanda. We get tons of stories about the tech side of Wakanda so let's do the Gods!

- This is what a BP comic should be. T'challa driving the narrative, Shuri in support (with a dash of Eden), seeing the other parts of Wakanda such as the HZ and shamans. And with a little dose from the ex-wife.

- There was more action in this single issue than all of Season One combined outside #11. The goons were treated like goons for once. The action art was solid and a step up from Stelfreeze and Sprous in my opinion. However, it felt.. rushed? sloppy? unrefined at other times and the inking didn't seem to mesh with it well at all. For every dope panel there was another that looked rough. Give and take I suppose.

- Conversation with Storm was odd. Ok, but odd. He was in the Avengers with a Norse God... seems weird asking a pretend Goddess about God stuff lol.

- I really feel like the, "I don't have to hold back now," line was a head nod towards some fans (like me) pissed that he was getting hit by goons in Season 1. T'challa treated goons like goons this time.

- All in all, it accomplished what a #1 (for this story) should accomplish. Teased the bigger threat in an entertaining manner and got my attention. T'challa actually seemed like T'challa, the supporting cast did its job, no chumping involved... my body is ready for more.

Should You Read It?

- Yes. This is actually more new reader friendly than #1. If you skipped Season 1 because you didn't like it, this should at least have you tempted to jump back in and hope for the best.

BP Sighting: All-New Invaders #8

BP Sighting: Agents of SHIELD #1, #2, #8

Agents of SHIELD #1

Agents of SHIELD #2

Agents of SHIELD #8

Black Panther vs Lady Stilt-Man

Story: Villains For Hire #0.1

Background: Misty Knight has a Heroes for Hire thing going on. After a woman version of Stilt-Man steals something and decks Silver Sable, Misty calls T'challa (who was in Hell's Kitchen at the time covering for Daredevil) and "hires" him for the job of tracking her down. T'challa refuses payment of course and tracks her to the subway. 

[Scan Tip: Click to enlarge the images and they are easier to read. You can scroll through them all that was as well. --- Shadow]

T'challa drops that MEAN, choke hold to one-hitter-quitter there.

T'challa then follows a scent (although he shouldn't have his enhanced senses, he was depowered) and runs into a giant monster thing. Luckily, another hero was hired for that job (Hellstorm). 

Did you know Lady Stilt-Man existed? I didn't lol. 

Art: BP vs Doom

BP Sighting: Uncanny Inhumans #12m Uncanny X-Force, vol 2, #10

Uncanny Inhumans #12

Uncanny X-Force, vol 2, #10

Black Panther and the Crew #1 Spoilers and Thoughts...

This won't be like my typical reviews because I only review Black Panther comics here.

Yep, your powers of inference are indeed strong. There is no Black Panther in this book.

There is no Black Panther in Black Panther and the Crew #1.

Not a single word. Not a single panel. Not a single mention.


Basic spoilers go like this...

- Start with a flashback to the original crew. No, not the Priest version, but a new group we haven't seen that predates them.

- Back to the present time (which may predate the Crew's appearance in Black Panther book actually and seemingly predates Captain America: Sam Wilson) and black dude who lead old crew Ezra died in police custody.

- Insert typical riots/corrupt police/shadiness/black community leaders/ect.

- Misty is still on the side of the law but sees something is up.

- Misty and Storm are attacked by Americops. Storm takes them out.


So yeah, Misty Knight solo confirmed? If you like Misty or... "Blue" (Storm, lol) then this may be for you.

But if you are reading for T'challa or Cage... they ain't here.

March 2017 Sales Report

Black Panther #12, featuring the end of A Nation Under Our Feet...

37,612

High 30's seems to be the sweet spot now. Next issue will be interesting... is #13 the chance for a new, faster paced story... or a chance for readers to jump off?


Here is the complete publication history of T'challa's solos...

Ultimates² #5, featuring less talking heads but...

17,975

Oh no, what happened to the faithful cosmic readers? It has finally happened, the slow decline to cancellation. Seventeen issues in and really... what has happened in the grand scheme of the story? Galactus was changed and... heads. Floating heads everywhere. To what end? I don't know because it has been meandering for 17 issues. Oh well.


Black Panther: World of Wakanda #5, one of the worst arcs ever...

15,847

For the Newbs: "I want to read Black Panther, where should I start?"

First off, I hope you have Marvel Unlimited. As it is the easiest way to read back issues as nearly all of Black Panther's publication history is on there. It is extremely cheap and much more affordable than buying TPBs or hunting down floppies.

You can find Marvel Unlimited HERE. If you are savvy, you can find one month free codes online. Like last month it was RAND, the month before that it was Marvel Future Fight related. And if you cancel before it bills you, you can turn around and use another code. But even if you pay, it is the best deal in comics.

Ok, back to Black Panther.

Hudlin's Who is the Black Panther (Black Panther, vol 4, #1-6) is the easiest place to start as it is a self-contained story with no back history needed at all. It easily summarizes who T'challa is, what Wakanda is, and what being "Black Panther" means. It is also easily found in TPB on Amazon, Books-A-Million, Barnes and Noble, and likely your local library as well.

Marvel Unlimited
Amazon
Books-A-Million

And hell, if you actually do not want to read a comic, Who is the Black Panther can also be found in motion comic, cartoon form.

Amazon

Another option is Priest's The Client (Black Panther, vol 3, #1-6). Priest's run is generally considered the best and definitive run of the character. It re-invented T'challa for the modern era and became the general template for Black Panther for future stories. The trade is kinda hard to find but Amazon should have it. It is also part of the Complete Collection Volume 1 if you want to to go all in.

Marvel Unlimited
Amazon
Amazon: Complete Collection Vol 1
Book-A-Million: Complete Collection Vol 1

The third option is See Wakanda and Die (Black Panther, vol 4, #39-41) written by Aaron. This is a tie in to the Secret Wars event but the story is rather self contained. It is a war story and really shows off T'challa's brain, martial arts ability, combat mind, and general bad assery of Black Panther and Wakanda. You might be able to find a trade on Amazon.

Marvel Unlimited
Amazon

If any of the three above peak your interest in the Black Panther, then the next course of action is to jump to Priest's run (Black Panther Volume 3). It is the definitive run of the character and generally is considered the best run by most Black Panther fans. His whole run was finally collected last year and can be found rather easily now on Amazon or Books-A-Million.

One of the gifts and curses about Black Panther is each run of his is very, very different. So, if you do not like Priest's run (volume 3), you can try Hudlin's (volume 4). If you want something very different, you can read Liss's run (Black Panther: Man without Fear and Black Panther: Most Dangerous Man Alive). If you want to go old school, you can read Panther's Rage (Jungle Action #6-18).

Now, I haven't mentioned the current run (volume 6) by Coates at all. And it has nothing to do with the my thoughts on the quality of the book. It has everything to do with the fact it relies heavily on having read Hickman's New Avengers, Time Runs Out, and Secret War. Without that background, many things in the book wouldn't make any sense. The book simply isn't new reader friendly.

And, well, if you wanna just go straight hardcore, here are all of the Black Panther solo books:

• Jungle Action #6-24
• Black Panther, vol 1, #1-15
• Black Panther, vol 2, #1-4
• Marvel Comics Presents #13-37
• Panthers Prey #1-4
• Black Panther, vol 3, #1-62
• Black Panther, vol 4, #1-41
• Black Panther, vol 5, #1-11
• Black Panther: The Man Without Fear #513-524
• Black Panther: The Most Dangerous Man Alive #525-529
• Black Panther, vol 6, #1-12

And well, if you wanna go nuts, check out the complete list of every T'challa appearance ever right over HERE.

Happy reading and welcome to the best character at Marvel.

Black Panther vs Kraven the Hunter (Priest #6-7)

Story: Black Panther, vol 3, #6-7

Background: Kraven the Hunter is hired by Hunter to capture T'challa and deliver him to some gangstas. T'challa does not go quietly. The fight was in typical Priest style of not being in chronological order so I did the best I could to put together the pieces. 

[Scan Tip: Click to enlarge the images and they are easier to read. You can scroll through them all that was as well. --- Shadow]

Kraven takes Black Panther to those that paid him. After T'challa wakes up and eventually escapes, the brawl continues.

The Avengers (yes, that's Iron Man's arm) stop T'challa from killing Kraven right then and there.

Art: Spider-Man: Homecoming Prelude

I am a 616 only kinda guy so we will file this under art instead of BP sightings.

Hmm... maybe this is why we don't see the movie suit depicted in comics too often. Way too busy.

BP Sighting: Captain America: Steve Rogers #4