Marvel Snapshot: Character Spotlight: Black Panther (T'Challa)

Hey everybody, I hope you all are having a great weekend! In this week’s installment of Marvel Snapshot, we’ll be looking at none other than the Black Panther himself. Yeah, I know at the moment T’Challa isn’t wearing his trademarked costume, but trust me, he’ll be back in it soon enough, or haven’t you seen the teasers of Matt Murdoch back in the DD costume yet? Well, I’m fine with T’Challa going back to being the Black Panther anyway. Let us waste no more time with idle chatter, and get right into exploring the history and life of the King of Wakanda!

I think, or better yet, hope, that everyone knows about the origin of T’Challa. Just in case you forgot, though, here we go. He was born into royalty, because his father, T’Chaka, was the King. T’Challa earned his spot as ruler, though, as all the Black Panthers did before him. When you are king of Wakanda, there is one thing that is of the utmost importance. Protecting the Vibranium. It is (was) Wakanda’s most important resource, and people are willing to kill for it. Over the years, T’Challa has been involved with the Fantastic Four, a member of the Avengers, and even recently prowled the rooftops of New York City as Daredevil!
T’Challa has had many different phases in his life. First and foremost is being ruler of Wakanda. That means not only being the leader of the army and protecting the Vibranium, but also being an emissary for Wakanda to other countries. Yes, politics play a big role in Wakandan leadership, and T’Challa excelled for the most part at this. He also made enemies as well. The enemy that is the biggest threat is Dr. Doom by far. He has been the guy that has hurt T’Challa the most over the years. Ulyssess Klaw is another villain that most people recognize. Probably due to the fact that years ago, he killed T’Challa’s father while trying to steal Vibranium.

Recently, T’Challa has been attacked both politically and physically by Dr. Doom. This left him unable to be ruler, so the duties fell on his sister, Shuri. She has proved to be just as able, but more ruthless than he was, too. She has no problem killing to protect Wakanda. T’Challa shocked the world by marrying Storm of the X-Men a few years ago. The wedding was attended by numerous superheroes, but most notably Captain America and Iron Man. That is worth mentioning, because it was during Civil War. Honestly, the biggest accomplishment of the Black Panther definitely has to be the fact that he is the first black character to be in a mainstream comic book. When he appeared in Fantastic Four #52 in July of 1966, there were not any other black characters in a mainstream book. For him to be a great character on Marvel’s flagship team, the Avengers, is definitely the thing that stands out about him, in my opinion. He wasn’t just a character that was on the book because of his race and didn’t do much. He was a great Avenger for sure. His runs in comics of his own have been very good, too. You can catch him currently in Black Panther Man without Fear (Daredevil).
Check my recommended reading list below and some great pics as well, and I’ll see you next week for another great spotlight!
Recommended Reading
Essential Fantastic Four vol. 3 – Tpb
Essential Avengers vol. 3 & 4 – Tpbs
Marvel Masterworks Black Panther vol. 1 – HC
Doomwar – HC
Black Panther #1-4 (1988) LS
Black Panther (1998) Vol. 1 & 2 – Tpbs