Jungle Action (vol. 2) #16
And All Our Past Decades Have Seen Revolutions!
After his return to Central Wakanda, the Black Panther has taken time to heal the wounds he suffered in battle. He then spends some much needed R&R time with Monica Lynne. After swimming with some giant turtles, T’Challa discusses how Wakanda has changed since his father’s rule and how he has tried to maintain the a balance between the nation’s tribal roots and keeping pace with the advancement of technology. This leads to talk about their future together and their hopes of starting a family. However, the looming specter Erik Killmonger’s insurrection puts that future in jeopardy. Reaffirming their love for one another, T’Challa and Monica then watch the sun set together.
Meanwhile, in the palace dungeon, Taku meets again with Venomm to talk. He continues trying to forge a bond of trust between the two of them, a foreign concept to Venomm — aka Horatio Walters — as he has been shunned his entire life.[1] Their conversation is interrupted by W’Kabi, Wakanda’s chief of security and T’Challa’s right-hand man. W’Kabi demands to know how Horatio, a white man, managed to smuggle himself into Wakanda without anybody noticing. Venomm decides to indulge this request and reminds them how he had befriended Erik Killmonger during the time he was stranded in America.[2] When the Black Panther became a member of the Avengers, Killmonger met with T’Challa and asked to be brought back home. While T’Challa was pre-occupied helping Erik pack his things, Horatio stowed away on the craft the Panther used to fly Erik back home.
While Taku and W’Kabi are listening to this explanation they let their guards down. This allows Horatio to grab Taku’s knife and hold it to his throad. Although W’Kabi draws his gun, he realizes that he cannot bring himself to pull the trigger with Taku’s life on the line. When ordered, W’Kabi slides his gun over to Venomm, who then knocks the two men out so he can finally make his escape. A half-hour later, the two men are found by the Black Panther and Monica Lynne who are told about Venomm’s daring escape. Taking a sonar-craft, T’Challa searches for Venomm as his own as the escapee returns to the ruins of N’Jadaka Village to recover his pet snakes.[3]
By this time, the Black Panther has begun following Venomm’s trail on foot. Along the way he finds Kantu, a young boy whose father was murdered by Killmonger’s men.[4] The boy is consumed with rage over the loss and vows to kill Erik Killmonger himself. Seeing how troubled the boy is, T’Challa tries to comfort him the best he can before continuing his search for Venomm. In the nearby jungle, the Panther is ambushed by his quarry and his army of snakes. A boa constrictor lands on T’Challa and begins coiling around his body in an effort to squeeze the life out of him. Struggling to get free, the Black Panther bashes the snake’s head until it is dead. However, the ordeal has been exhausting and T’Challa begins blacking out.
Luckily, Taku has arrived on the scene and tries to reason with Horatio by pointing out that revolutions like Killmongers claim the lives of those who follow them. Horatio counters this by pointing out that sometimes revolutions succeed and leaves to rejoin who he believes the winning team.
Recurring Characters
Black Panther, Venomm, Monica Lynn, W’Kabi, Taku, Mendinao, Kantu, Erik Killmonger (flashback)
Continuity Notes
Venomm was captured after being defeated by the Black Panther in Jungle Action (vol. 2) #7. Issue #8 reveals that Horatio’s mistrust of others came after he was doused in the face with acid as a child by a bully in school.
As explained in issue #7, Erik Killmonger was among a group of Wakandan’s that were kidnapped by Ulysses Klaw when he sought to gain access to the country’s Vibranium supply when T’Challa was still a child, as depicted in a flashback from Fantastic Four #53. Killmonger found himself trapped in America and was only able to get back to his homeland after T’Challa joined the Avengers. Per the Black Panther’s chronology, this happened after the events of Captain America #114.
N’Jadaka was the village where Erik Killmonger grew up and it is named after his birthname. It was destroyed in an attack by the Black Panther and his army in Jungle Action (vol. 2) #11.
Kantu’s father was murdered by Baron Macabre in Jungle Action (vol. 2) #9.
Topical References
This story states that it has been about a year has passed since Erik Killmonger began his insurrection. This is more or less an accurate measurement of time. I explain this measurement in more detail in my summary for Jungle Action (vol. 2) #14.
