Marvel Studios has officially released its latest MCU Phase 4 theatrical offering – Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. So far, fans have had mixed emotional reactions to Marvel’s offer. All of the Phase 4 films except Shang Chi and No Way Home received a controversial and mixed response from fans. Critics also lamented that the MCU is slowly losing its charm by focusing more on quantity than quality of content. Amidst all of this, however, Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is beloved the world over. So what went well? Let’s see.
Spoilers ahead for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
strong orientation
When the original Black Panther came out, it was a cultural phenomenon. Who knew a superhero movie could unite a specific community so much? He even won an Oscar. All thanks to the performance of Chadwick Boseman and the direction of Ryan Coogler. So when talks were locked on a sequel, expectations automatically skyrocketed. However, the production of the film encountered many challenges – the death of its lead actor – Chadwick Boseman, the Covid-19 pandemic and the injury of Letitia Wright (Shuri). Despite all of this, however, when audiences saw the final product, they were overwhelmed.
It was the most fitting tribute to the late actor’s memory and boasted some very strong performances from its cast. The steering was strong and the performance was on point. Even the background music and music was triumphant. It had just the right mix of action, drama, thrill and humor. Neither too much nor too less. Coogler has indeed done a fantastic job of honoring Boseman’s legacy, both in real life and on screen.
Reintroduce the tone of the beloved story
As said above, the movie had a good mix of almost everything. Fans were disappointed with the type of content Marvel was releasing these few months. Some are too comedic – Thor 4, She-Hulk while others are too dramatic – Moon Knight, Eternals. Marvel’s projects struggled with their identity in the vastness of the convoluted universe in which they themselves were defined. However, Wakanda Forever begins and ends on a high note. Along with the death of Chadwick Boseman, characters in the film also mourn the death of his character T’Challa. Boseman died in August 2020 of colon cancer at age 43.
It opens with a big loss and ends with new hope. T’Challa dies early on, Shuri accepts the Black Panther mantle to save Wakanda from Namor, and finally, T’Challa’s son is introduced at the end of the film to continue his legacy. It followed Marvel’s great mix of humor and action. Climax felt heavy and well deserved. An audience instantly connected to the world and its emotions. Even Talocan, Namor’s underwater kingdom, was fresh and amazing.
No franchise establishment burden
Wakanda Forever freed itself from the burden of establishing a larger cinematic universe – multiverse, multiple dimensions, timelines, etc., etc. He stood alone. And he was standing. It featured a self-contained plot and stuck to it and tried everything it could to do it justice. Instead of establishing a cinematic universe, it instead expanded on its own world. A new underwater kingdom of Talocan has been introduced. The Talocanians had exciting new abilities and were an important plot element in the film.
Above all, he successfully introduced Namor – a completely new mutant, which the audience loved. He introduced another new character – Ironheart aka Riri Williams, and the audience loved him too. Coogler was able to handle it all perfectly because he didn’t allow any strings or baggage from a cinematic universe to affect his work. He just focused on making a good movie, a fitting tribute to his late friend, and left the world with new hope for things to come.
Strong female characters
Wakanda Forever featured strong female leaders taking over the protection of Wakanda, after the death of their king T’Challa. The women and men of Wakanda fight to protect their kingdom from intervening world powers, including Namor’s undersea kingdom, Talocan.
T’Challa surrounded himself with powerful women. We see these women in this film move together to another level of leadership. – Letitia Wright (Shuri)
The women in wakanda forever are exceptionally intelligent and powerful, and badass. Danai Gurira (Okoye), Letitia Wright (Shuri), Lupita Nyong’o (Nakia), Dominique Thorne (Ironheart) and Angela Bassett (Ramonda), all delivered outstanding performances. They formed the backbone of the story and shone in every scene they were in.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever plays in theaters.