Black Panther (vol. 3) #13
The End
Wakanda has just been liberated from the tyranny of Achebe.[1] While there is now peace across the land, there are still unsettled business that needs to be done.
Nakia, one of T’Challa’s Dora Milaje, awakens from dreams about being romanced by the king to discover the Black Panther stooped over on the edge of her bed.[2] The king demands to know what happened to Monica Lynn, his former fiancée, during the final battle with Achebe. Nakia once again insists that Monica died but the Black Panther knows that she is lying about her involvement.[3] He tells Nakia to pack her things and go as she has disgraced herself and her tribe.
When T’Challa leaves her room, Nakia flees the palace on an air-cycle and flies it out until it runs out of power. This causes her to crash land in one of the outlying villages. There she is found by Achebe, who is now posing as a priest after escaping the battle. Seeing Nakia makes the mad man smile and he drags her off into the nearby church.
Monica Lynn is not dead, but lost somewhere in the jungles of Wakanda. She thinks back to when her life took a turn. It was during a trip to Wakanda and she saved T’Challa’s life. The king had nearly drowned after losing a battle with Erik Killmonger and ever since then, Monica’s life has always been put in peril by foes of the black Panther.[4] Now confronted by a spotted panther she resigns to her fate and goes to sleep. However, rather than being attacked, the panther curls up next to her and goes to sleep as well.
Elsewhere, T’Challa is overseeing the reconstruction and recovery of Wakanda following Achebe’s devastating attack. He is joined by his American liaison Everett Ross. T’Challa tells Ross that he intends to return to America and straighten things out now that Achebe’s coup d’etat has failed.[5] He needs someone to remain in Wakanda and with Ramonda still recovering from her injuries, he has decided to nominate Everett as temporary regent as the next qualified person.[6]
Meanwhile, at JFK International Airport, a water truck has pulled up to refill the supply aboard a commercial airliner. Little does anyone suspect that the water-based super-villain is using it as a means of smuggling aboard the plane.[7]
In Chicago, a political activist named Chanté Giovanni Brown, aka Queen Divine Justice, cusses out an ice cream truck driver for preying on children in her neighborhood. She gives a long winded rant about how the establishment is responsible for all manner of inequities to Black people both domestically and abroad. As she is blocking the road, the police are called in to try and diffuse the situation. When one of the officers — who knows all about Queen Divine Justice — tries to remove her from the roadway, she slaps the cop across the face.
Back in New York, a plane takes off from JFK carrying Russian mobster Dzhokhar Gapon, who is being deported to Europe for his crimes after getting busted by the Black Panther.[8] As the plane takes to the air, Hydro-Man makes his move. Flooding the cockpit, he drowns the pilot and his crew, then soaks into their bodies in order to take control of the plane. He manages to pull this off without the flight attendants noticing.
On the ground, T’Challa arrives at Avengers Mansion only to discover that the only member of the team present is Justice.[9] Not recognizing T’Challa out of costume, Vance invites him in since he has Avengers credentials and gives him access to the monitoring room. It’s here that T’Challa learns that the plane sending Dzhokhar Gapon back to Europe is losing altitude and not responding to air traffic control. Seeing this as a message to him, T’Challa changes into the Black Panther and heads out, telling Vance that he’ll explain everything on the way.
Back in Wakanda, Achebe has ravaged the village that he has been hiding out in. He also savagely beat Nakia and left her suspended from a tree. There she is found by Erik Killmonger.
While in Chicago, Queen Divine Justice has found herself tossed in jail for striking a police officer. There she is visited by a delegate from Wakanda who has come to take her to New York to fulfil the duty of her tribe as one of the Dora Milaje![10]
Recurring Characters
Black Panther, Erik Killmonger, Hydro-Man, Monica Lynn, Everett Ross, Justice, Dzhokhar Gapon
Continuity Notes
Achebe’s conquest of Wakanda ran for Black Panther (vol. 3) #1-12. Where were you?
Nakia has been obsessed about T’Challa and mistakenly believed that he loved her after Mephisto tricked him into making out with her in Black Panther (vol. 3) #3.
Monica Lynn was ejected out of Nakia’s attack craft during the final battle with Achebe in Black Panther (vol. 3) #12.
Monica saved T’Challa following his first defeat at the hands of Killmonger. See Jungle Action (vol. 2) #6-7.
Specifically, T’Challa discovered that people within the United States government supported Achebe’s coup leading to T’Challa declaring it an act of war. See Black Panther (vol. 3) #9-10.
Ramonda pretended to side with Achebe in Black Panther (vol. 3) #5 in order to feed intel back to T’Challa. However, during her masquerade, Achebe seriously beat her with a stone bust in issue #10. Her double-agent status was revealed in issue #12.
In his narration, Everett Ross recounts how, during a fight with Spider-Man, Morrie Bench was knocked into the ocean with an experimental generator that was being tested, causing him to become Hydro-Man. See Amazing Spider-Man #212.
As seen in Black Panther (vol. 3) #9, Gapon was one of the men hired to conspire against T’Challa and his rule of Wakanda.
Justice is depicted wearing a cast on his leg in this story, although its not explained. Astrovik suffered the injury during the Avengers recent battle with the Doomsday Man. See Avengers (vol. 3) #16-18.
As revealed in Black Panther (vol. 3) #34-35, Chanté is actually Ce’Athanua Asira Davin. She was born among Wakanda’s Jabari tribe. When her parents were killed in a dispute with the Panther Clan, she was sent to America to be raised by a woman she was led to believe was her grandmother.
Topical References
Queen Divine Justice makes a lot of references in her long speech. These should all be considered topical references as they were things that were relevant and or happening at the time when this story was originally published in 1999. They include:
The Space Shuttle: QDJ wonders when a Black woman will get the right to fly on one of NASA’s space shuttles. However, there already was one, Mae Jemison, who made history in 1992. That said, NASA’s Space Shuttles were retired in 2011.
People dying in Kosovo: This is in reference to the war in Kosovo that ran from February 1998 to June 1999.
Michael Jordan sneakers: QDJ is referring to Air Jordans, a brand of sneaker produced by Nike since 1985 that are officially endorsed by former NBA star Michael Jordan. She also mentions how they are made in sweat shops. This was a massive problem when the issue was brought to light in 1991. Since then, clothing manufacturers have been forced to ensure that proper labor practices are being conducted. However, this is been an on going issue.
Spirte: Is a soft drink produced by the Coca-Cola company. This is topical as it is a real world brand.
John Wayne: An American actor best known for his roles in westerns in the 1950s and 60s. For the longest time he was considered what real red blooded Americans look like. Wayne died in 1979.
Montel Williams: QDJ tells one of the cops not to go all “Montel Williams” on her. Williams is a Black television host and motivational speaker. He hosted the Montel Williams Show from 1991 to 2008.
Crest Kid: Crest is a brand of toothpaste that also has a brand of their product geared toward children. They once had an advertising campaign that featured the “Crest Kids” which were really lame superheroes that were all about brushing your teeth.