Given how recklessly Marvel movies have dealt with death over the years, this is a franchise that famously killed off half its cast and then revived it.Black Panther:

Wakanda Forever Mourning and Death


In the first scene, we learn that the ruler of the African kingdom of Wakanda, T'Challa, has died of a mysterious illness. This is devastating news, but not a shock to those of us watching.Black Panther


Wakanda Forever is entertainment, elegy, and a blend of tragedy on and off screen.


As such, Wakanda Forever is both entertainment and elegy, blending tragedy on and off screen. It's a moving and sometimes awkward effort, but I admired director Ryan Coogler's decision to acknowledge the reality of loss and honor Boseman's memory as much as possible. What made it happen was the exposure to the real world.Coogler may have given us a vision of a great utopia in Wakanda, an isolated, technologically advanced country that has never been conquered. But he also delved into difficult questions about African and African-American identity, putting Wakanda in dialogue with the larger struggle for racial justice.

As the new film begins, Wakanda grapples with the consequences of his recent decision to join the international community. We are under attack from other lands that are inclined... But the greatest threat comes from elsewhere. It turns out that

is a secret underwater city like Atlantis called Tarokan, which is also powered by Vibranium. The Talokan people may have blue skin and fish-like gills, but they are actually descendants of an ancient Maya civilization that was attacked thousands of years ago and forced to take refuge in the sea.Black Panther


Namor, the bronze-breasted leader of the Tarokans, seeks to join forces with Wakanda to confront potential Vibranium attackers, threatening war if they do not agree. Coogler and his co-author Joe Robert Cole deftly expand the story's cultural landscape, delving into the history of ancient Mesoamerican communities and bringing together Black, Latino, and Indigenous characters.(Black Panther)


At the same time, they bring back many of the characters that made the first film so memorable, with Laetitia Wright returning as T'Challa's brilliant scientist sister, Shuri, and Winston Duke in the roar. It's good to see him return as Mubaku, the old tribal elder.I hope Danai Gurira's formidable warrior Okoye doesn't mysteriously pause in the middle of the game.Also, the great Lupita Nyong'o


Michaela Coel of the HBO series "I May Destroy You" has been busy with Wakanda's As a warrior, there are also some fresh faces in the mix, such as Dominique Thorne as a witty 19-year-old tech genius left to her own devices here. In the future, on the Disney-Marvel-TV show Ironheart.


Coogler is a wonderfully sensitive director, but even he's the series' stereotype. I can't get over some of those beats. The CIA-related parallel subplots painstakingly fall flat. It poses the profane and perhaps silly question: Why did Wakanda Forever have to be a superhero movie in the first place? What if we let stories of , loss and redemption play out naturally?

But for better or worse, it's a superhero movie. So inevitably, someone new (I won't say who) will put on his T'Challa catsuit, become the new Black Panther, and save the day. It's a somewhat hollow result and a reminder of how dull and boring Marvel's stories have become. But I also hope that Black Panther:

Wakanda Forever has found a more imaginative way to move us forward.

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Wakanda Forever’s touching credits scene, explained

The Black Panther sequel says goodbye to Chadwick Boseman.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever has a post-credits scene that looks and feels a little different from other recent Marvel teasers.

Image of a spoiler warning

The Eternals, Madness Multiverse Doctor Strange, Thor:

Love and Thunder - Marvel used post-credits scenes to announce major new castings.Harry Styles, Charlize Theron, Brett Goldstein all had cameos introducing mainstay new characters in their respective franchises (Eros, Claire, and Hercules). And with the introduction of the underwater city of Tarokan, some might think that will happen.

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But Wakanda Forever did something else and used the post-credits scene to advance his one of the film's ongoing plots.

In the

film, Shuri (Letitia Wright) is in great grief after losing her brother T'Challa (the late Chadwick Boseman) to her unexplained illness. In real life, Boseman died in August 2020 at the age of 43 after colon cancer reached Stage 4. Although he kept his illness a secret, his death shocked his fans and peers.In Wakanda Forever, his character dies off-screen.


Shuri is struggling with anger and guilt for not being able to help him. Her mother Ramonda (Angela Bassett) can't stop herself. At the same time, he finds out that his brother's lover, Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o), did not attend T'Challa's funeral. Nakia moved to Haiti after Thanos' snapshot wiped T'Challa and half of Earth's population to dust (T'Challa was brought back in Endgame, but died some time after his resurrection).

(Black Panther)

The post-credits scene is a continuation of this scene. As Shuri grieves, Nakia approaches her with a six-year-old boy and asks if they can grieve with her, Nakia introduces the boy as her son, telling Shuri that his name is Toussaint. Tell. Nakia then explains that Toussaint is the son of T'Challa, after which the boy states his Wakanda name and title as Prince T'Challa, son of the late King T'Challa of Wakanda.(Black Panther)

Nakia tells Shuri that she and T'Challa secretly (and before Thanos' snap) had a child and fled to Haiti because she didn't want her son to grow up under the pressure of the throne. wanted Toussaint to have a normal life, and the scene ends with Nakia and Shuri's newfound nephew asking Shuri to keep her secret. has a son known as Azari T'Challa. However, this kid exists in an alternate universe and his mother is his X-Woman, Storm, who has yet to be introduced in the MCU or Black Panther series. T'Challa and Nakia's child seems like an entirely new character that doesn't need to stick to the original material. And since Prince T'Challa is so young, it doesn't seem likely that he'll be a major recurring character (although I think that could change in about 20 years.) The scene feels like an ongoing homage to Chadwick Boseman and the character he played.Boseman has been a star since playing Jackie Robinson in 2013, but at age 42, he's made his mark as T'Challa. The stint resonated with audiences, Shuri's flashback scene with her brother allows fans to remember and honor the actor, and their moments together are some of the best parts of the first Black Panther movie.

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Young T'Challa soon brings Shuri joy, but also a sense of hope that her brother is still with her. In some ways, this scene also feels like Marvel's farewell. Now, T'Challa faces a whole new world of possibilities, full of surprises and endless possibilities. That's what Boseman meant to so many people, so many fans, and most importantly so many children who loved and were inspired by the characters he played. In, Nakia offers Shuri to live with her in Haiti. In the final scene of the film, Shuri finally visits Nakia and performs a Wakanda ritual, during which she bids farewell to her brother.(Black Panther)