It was no small feat for black panther 2 to tell a masterpiece with so many moving parts involved – one of them being the newly introduced anti-hero, Namor the Submarine. Even though the main identity of the oceanic character is intertwined with that of his DC counterpart, Aquaman, in the comic world, Namor had come long before Arthur Curry. The origin of the Marvel anti-hero dates back to the earliest days of comic book history when the mighty mutant was introduced in the 1929 issue of Timely Comics titled Marvel Comics #1.
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As the cinematic universe takes off, popularizing Jason Momoa’s Aquaman in the wider pop culture media before Namor’s entry, the latter struggles to gain a foothold with an identity inherently separate from the Atlantic Prince of the DC Universe.
Ryan Coogler brings Namor to life in black panther 2
The most powerful anti-hero in the entire Marvel Universe has been on the sidelines for far too long. Given his brute strength, shrewd politics, combat skills in the skies, under water and on land, armed with powerful weapons, ancient knowledge and the authority to rule an entire nation, Namor easily rises to the status of one of the best comic characters introduced to the cinematic universe in a long time. The character uses his split-screen time to grab the attention of all of the fandom and becomes an unforgettable presence overall. black panther 2 bow.
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The casting of Tenoch Huerta was celebrated with much joy while being the subject of controversy after early featurettes downplayed the mutant’s potential in the Phase Four film. But that of Ryan Coogler Black Panther: Wakanda Forever successfully uses its extensive history to pit Namor and his underwater nation Talokan against Wakanda, bringing the sub’s eclipsing presence into play in the MCU while giving Wakanda and Shuri a chance to prove their mettle in the aftermath of the absence of Chadwick Boseman and T’Challa. go out.
What separates MCU’s Namor from DCU’s Aquaman?
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While there were many aspects of the character at play, some of the most troubling were separating Namor’s identity from the similarities that tie Aquaman to the Marvel mutant. For one, the civilization that was originally called Atlantis was transformed into a Mesoamerican nation called Talokan. But beyond the superficial changes are a host of traits that have helped establish the anti-hero in his place without falling victim to his DC counterpart’s shadow. Ryan Coogler reveals in an interview with Uproxx that Aquaman’s already established identity essentially contributed to the MCU’s characterization of Namor:
“I think having Aquaman in the world, in film language and being successful in the marketplace, I think that was a great indirect direction for us to look at the things that made Namor different from Aquaman… It was our job, obviously, to put our heads down and put on blinders and make our film, but also to get a sense of what the market might want to respond to and who might be interested.
I think giving people something different, if you can give someone something good, that’s also unique, I think that’s always better. We wanted to look at the things that make these two characters different from each other as they have a lot of other similarities in the edit.
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Speaking of the characteristic traits that have been highlighted to help distinguish Namor, says Coogler,
“For us, it was like, ‘Yo, you have to wear the green boxer shorts. He has to have his winged ankles. He has to be relatively cocky. He has to live a long time. He has to be a child of two worlds, not fitting in not really into either. He has to be very confident and very dangerous. In the comics, Namor can always back up what he says.
Even like Black Panther: Wakanda Forever triumphs in healing the underlying grief that has plagued the Marvel Family for 2 years, it also succeeds in establishing Letitia Wright as a worthy successor to Chadwick Boseman’s T’Challa, presenting Namor and Ironheart as powerful elements to watch, while giving ample space to let the action and politics unfold, effectively ending the entire narrative of the sequel as well as the MCU’s fourth chapter.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is currently playing in theaters.
Source: Uproxx
