I Saw 'Black Panther: Wakanda Forever' & It Was Like Losing Chadwick Boseman All Over Again

The views expressed in this Opinion article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Narcity Media.

Yeah, I got misty-eyed at Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

That or the folks at Disney/Marvel were pumping some sort of Wakandan teargas into the theatre. But I will say this: if you’re still raw from the sudden death of Chadwick Boseman two years ago, you’ll be rolling tears early and often in this fantastic return to Wakanda.

Black Panther became a cultural phenomenon when it hit theatres in 2018, thanks in large part to Boseman’s regal turn as King T’Challa, the noble leader who refused the more revenge-fuelled ways of his rival for the throne, Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan).

Four years and one tragic death later, director Ryan Coogler pulls off the incredible task of delivering a worthy sequel without its main character.

But that’s not to say this movie doesn’t have its heroes.

T’Challa’s genius sister Shuri (Letitia Wright) steps in to fill his shoes as our main hero in Wakanda Forever, and she’s absolutely torn up that she couldn’t find a way to save him from the secret illness that kills him off-screen in the opening minutes.

Marvel Studios’ Black Panther: Wakanda Forever | Official Traileryoutu.be

The film never really reveals what it was that took T’Challa down, but it’s hard to miss just how closely this story sticks to Boseman’s real-life death.

And make no mistake: Boseman casts a large shadow over this movie. Marvel doesn’t use any old footage or CGI trickery to bring him back.

Instead, you feel the loss of Boseman/T’Challa over and over again through characters like his sister Shuri, mom Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett), ex Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o) and ally Okoye (Danai Gurira). Even his frenemy M’Baku (Winston Duke) seems changed from knowing the guy.

But with T’Challa gone, Wakanda Forever pits Shuri and crew against another hidden high-tech nation in Talokan, an Aztec-inspired underwater civilization. Talokan is ruled by its god-king Namor (Tenoch Huerta), a mutant “fish man” who is basically Marvel's answer to Aquaman (except he's got little wings on his ankles).

The Talokans are cool and Namor is a nuanced semi-bad guy, but he simply doesn’t compare to Michael B. Jordan’s charismatic Killmonger in the first film.

Still, he provides the right push for Shuri to figure out how to deal with her brother’s death and what she needs to do next. And if you're into soaking-wet dudes in green underwear, he might be your jam.

If the film stumbles anywhere it’s when everyone starts chasing after the classic Thing That Everyone Wants In The Movie, which in this case is a person. That person is a brilliant young MIT student named Riri Williams, whose built her own knock-off Iron Man suit and who needs to die for… reasons?

Honestly, Riri feels like she was jammed into this story to set up her future Ironheart series on Disney+, and I could've done without everything that happens in the U.S. in this movie. However, Riri (Dominique Thorne) does fit in nicely with fellow scientist Shuri, and fortunately the film doesn't try to cram in too many other Marvel references.

The movie thankfully doesn't fall too deep into the jokey tone that you see in so many Marvel properties these days. Instead, it's more reserved and on-point for the subject matter.

Gurira, Duke and Nyong’o also get their moments to shine as they help Shuri find her path, and Bassett is particularly fierce as the grieving Queen Ramonda of Wakanda.

Black Panther 2 is a worthy follow-up to the original and a perfect tribute to Boseman, right down to the inevitable end-credit sequence that puts a beautiful bow on everything.

It wrecked me emotionally, so just be prepared and enjoy the ride!

4/5