Ultimate Black Panther got off to a solid start with Bryan Hill and Stefano Caselli having a clean slate with the franchise. With that we got a revamp of Black Panther’s origin story that combined his classic origin and MCU origin with some new elements thrown in. That all led to a start that you expect from an origin story. Now that the foundation has been set with Ultimate Moon Knight positioned as the big bad its time to see where the series goes from here. Let’s find out with Ultimate Black Panther #2.
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Bryan Hill
Artist: Stefano Caselli
Colorist: David Curiel
Letterer: Cory Petit
SOLICITATION
“WAKANDA BANGS THE DRUMS OF WAR! After Moon Knight’s forces attack the stronghold of Wakanda, T’Challa can no longer resist Shuri and the Dora Milaje’s calls to action. Grieving and enraged, Black Panther demands to know who has been leaking information about Wakanda to their enemy…and the source shocks him to his core. And a prophecy about T’Challa threatens to upend the war and all of Wakandan life!” – Marvel Comics
REVIEW
The first issue of Ultimate Black Panther did follow the traditional route for the origin story of T’Challa. That was not at all a bad thing as Bryan Hill and Stefano Caselli showed their understanding of the franchise. But now with Ultimate Black Panther #2 Hill and Caselli were able to dig into what makes their version of this world unique.
The focus on what it means for T’Challa fully taking his place as King of Wakanda after his father’s death is felt throughout Ultimate Black Panther #2. Hill and Caselli do not shy away from showing what weight that T’Challa feels at all times. Even though he was raised to sit on the throne no amount of preparation could get him fully ready for the moment. Especially with the moment coming after an assassin infiltrated Wakanda and used a bomb to kill T’Chaka.
Through this Hill and Caselli dive into how Wakanda’s mythology has a strong influence on how things work. With how he became King so suddenly we see T’Challa does cling to his counsels words even more. This is particularly true with the conflicting advice T’Challa gets from Okoye and the Vodu-Khan.
From Okoye we see that she does her best to push T’Challa to become a King that the people of Wakanda need. Meanwhile, from the Vodu-Khan we see T’Challa being advised to strictly stick to tradition. Sticking to tradition seems to mean a different person to be T’Challa’s soulmate. Which does certainly create more internal conflict with T’Challa.
This adds to how we see T’Challa’s dynamic with his supporting cast plays out. Hill and Caselli do a great job at making sure T’Challa always speaks with authority when in large groups. But then when in one-on-one conversations with Okoye and Shuri, individually, we see a more vulnerable T’Challa. The weight of being King and Black Panther is felt. This gives greater depth to T’Challa’s character
While T’Challa is certainly shaken by what the Vodu-Khan tell him we at least see that he is focused on stopping the Moon Knight twins. This second issue does a good job at further pushing the Lord Khonshu and Lord Ra to be full opportunist. The absence of The Maker gave them the opportunity for them to claim the power they been biding their time to claim. Wakanda being the final hurdle to gain that power creates a sense of urgency to this story.
The addition of a mysterious third-party helping Moon Knight to take down T’Challa’s reign just as it starts builds a solid mystery to build. It creates another wild card to this story on top of Killmonger and Storm. Whoever this mysterious person is they do appear to be built as a long-term villain while Moon Knight is the public force.
Storm’s appearance at the end of Ultimate Black Panther #2 does create a lot of questions. Based on the prophecy Storm is certainly presented as the soulmate for T’Challa that the Vodu-Khan spoke about. T’Challa was certainly mesmorized by Storm’s presence. What happens after this reaction is what will tell us a lot of the direction for T’Challa, Okoye, Storm, and Killmonger.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Ultimate Black Panther #2 moves at a good pace that strengthens the foundation of this series. Bryan Hill and Stefano Caselli take more chances with the characters and setting of Wakanda to provide further depth to the Ultimate Universe. There are major character-focused developments that have multiple paths they can each go depending on the decisions made. That leaves for greater interest on the overall direction of Ultimate Black Panther.
Story Rating: 7 Night Girls out of 10
Art Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10
Overall Rating: 7.5 Night Girls out of 10
