Black Panther (vol. 3) #57
Coming to America, Part 1: Out of Africa
One Year Ago[1]
Taku contacts King T’Challa, the Black Panther, to warn him that rebels are storming the royal palace. When he asks if he should deploy reinforcements, T’Challa tells Taku that he’s rarely interested in things going on in kingdoms other than his own.
The next day, in New York City, Everett Ross has been dispatched on behalf of the State Department to be the guide of a visiting African King. The Wakandan consulate is waiting for him, but he’s unfortunately stuck in traffic. When he finally arrives at the private landing strip at JFK International Airport, he suddenly feels a sense of deja vu.[2] However, this time, Everett is greeting King Akaje the ruler of the African nation of Dakenia. He has arrived with his wife, Queen Najita as well as their unimpressed teenage son, Prince Jamal.
Soon, a Wakandan limousine picks up the royals and they are on their way in the hotel. Everett follows behind in his car and, along the way he gets a call about how Dakenia has fallen victim to a military coup while the royals are away. Unsure if the King is aware of the situation back home, Everett has everyone brought into the hotel through the back door. They are moved quickly through the kitchen and up a private elevator to their floor. Everett then goes into the room first to sweep it before Akaje and his family enter. However, Ross doesn’t have to do much as, once inside he finds the Black Panther has already caught a would-be assassin-in-wait. Even though T’Challa is subduing the intruder, he still extends the correct decorum when greeting Akaje and his family. With the assassin in the hands of security, T’Challa and Akaje go into another room for private conversation.
This annoys Prince Jamal who, at fifteen years old, has become more interested in the affairs of state and is annoyed that his father is not including him in this conversation. Everett then offers his apologies to the Queen, but Najita is already used to attempts on the life of her husband. When Jamal turns on the TV to watch cartoons, he catches a news report about the coup that has started up back home.
In the other room, T’Challa and Akaje are talking discussing the situation. The Panther offers him a place to stay in Wakanda, which Akaje politely declines, saying that he has been invited to stay in the United States as long as he likes. That’s when Jamal comes barging in and demand that they return home immediately to deal with the conflict. Akaje tells the boy that they are remaining in America where it is safe, saying that he has the situation under control. Jamal scoffs at this as he has issue with the way the King runs the country. He also brings up the fact that Queen Najita was previously his brother’s wife — revealing that Jamal isn’t Akaje’s son, but his nephew. Najita enters the room and scolds her son, telling him to show the King proper respect. Akaje then tells everyone to rest up as they have a museum exhibit to visit in the morning. This causes Jamal to storm out of the room in anger. When Najita raises her concerns over their safety, Akaje tells his wife that he doesn’t want to appear as a coward during the crisis back home. With that T’Challa pays his leave, saying that he and Ross will make sure the building is secure.
Later, at the Wakandan Embassy, T’Challa updates Everett Ross on the recent developments. The military general in charge of the coup d’etat has just secured support of the Dakenian Parliment and he plots to cement his leadership by assassinating King Akaje. Ross wasn’t expecting this to happen on what was supposed to be a friendly state visit and doesn’t have the time or the resources to properly screen security at the museum in time. T’Challa tells his friend not to worry as he will assist in these matters.
The following morning, the Dakenian royals arrive at the Museum of African Culture where throngs of reports are waiting to get shots and comments from the visiting King. T’Challa emerges from the limo in his Black Panther costume. His presence sending out a message to any would be assassins that might be observing their arrival. Once the royal family is inside, the Black Panther stands guard at the front doors.
By this time, Everett Ross has read up on the dynamics of the royal family. He discovered that Jamal’s father was poisoned in a probably assassination attempt. As Jamal was too young to assume the throne, the King’s brother Akaje was chosen to rule until Jamal grew up. He tries talking with the boy, but he is more interested in the royal robe on display. Ross is impressed to learn that it is 100 years old, something Jamal already knows as it is destined to be his. Feeling awkward about the exchange, Ross decides to snack on some passing hors d'oeuvres instead.
Meanwhile, T’Challa has entered the building and is conferring with King Akaje. He tells the Panther that, after being tipped off of the mounting coup, he had all of the royal artifacts shipped out of the country to be put on display in New York to prevent them from being destroyed. When he refers to Dakenia as his kingdom, T’Challa corrects him by saying the nation actually belongs to Jamal. Annoyed by this, Akaje reminds him that everything he is doing to preserve the royal throne until Jamal comes of age.
That’s when Everett Ross notices some reporters have somehow gotten into the museum. Since it is an invitational event, he tries kicking them out. However, Akaje stops him saying that the reporters are here on his behalf. As introductions are being made and gifts handed out, Everett recounts that Akaje had brought back the regional elephant hunts even though the animals are endangered. The King has also grabbed the attention of human rights organizations due to his abuses, torture, and executions of Dakenian citizens who have been labelled dissidents, not to mention the concubines he has at his beck and call. Suddenly, having reporters on the scene to boost his public relations make sense.
One of the reporters, Alex Benedict is given a box full of dried flowers and roots unique to Dakenia. She says that a small amount in mixed with wine to become a powerful aphrodisiac, but warns her that too much contains enough poison to kill an elephant. Hearing this draws the Black Panther’s attention.
Soon the guests start arriving and looking at the exhibits, which include what appear to be taxidermied animals. However, when one of the lions on display blinks, people quickly realize that these are actually live animals. As the beasts begin to run wild, the Black Panther orders Ross to get the royals out while he deals with this problem. When T’Challa races to stop the lion, he ends up running into the path of a charging elephant!
Recurring Characters
Black Panther, Everett Ross, King Akaje, Queen Najita, Prince Jamal, Taku, Alex Benedict
Continuity Notes
According to Official Index to the Marvel Universe: Avengers this story takes place between the events of Black Panther (vol. 3) #30 and 31. The passage of time here should be considered more or less factual (see below).
Everett feels some deja vu because him driving to the airport to pick up an African royal is exactly the situation that played out in Black Panther (vol. 3) #1.
Topical References
This story states that it takes place one year prior to the previous story arc that wrapped up last issue. Per the Avengers Index, this story takes place between the events of Black Panther (vol. 3) #30, which was published in May 2001 while this story was published in June of 2003. Per the Sliding Timescale, this story would take place in the 4th quarter of “Year 10” of the Modern Age, while the publication of last issue falls in the middle of “Year Eleven”. As such, this should be considered a factual resident in that this flashback happened in the previous year, not that an entire calendar year has passed.
Numerous references made or depicted in this story should be considered topical. They are:
Real world brands: Lexus
Pop-Culture: “Jungle Boogie” by Kool and the Gang,
Obsolete technology: flip-phones with visible antennas, CRT televisions
Real world news media: NPR, CNN, The New York Times
Real world sports teams: the New York Mets, the New York Yankees
