Black Panther (vol. 4) #36
Back to Africa, Part 2
Erik Killmonger had been returned to Africa as an American asset in the region. However, he has gone rogue by taking over neighboring Niganda and kidnapping Shuri, the Black Panther (T’Challa)’s sister. In response, the US sends Monica Rambeau to try and take Killmonger in, but she ends up getting captured as well.[1] Trapped in a containment field of some kind, Monica is horrified by how Killmonger is recruiting children. Trying to trick them into thinking she has escaped, Monica turns into an energy form that is invisible to the naked eye. However, Killmonger isn’t so easily fooled and activates a device that painfully forces her back into human form.
In Wakanda, the situation with Killmonger has T’Challa concerned. The force field he is using to contain Monica had to have been supplied to him by someone who has betrayed them. When W’Kabi asks if they can rely on Queen Storm (Ororo Monroe) to help them, the Panther says she is away. He is also annoyed that W’Kabi doesn’t think they can do this without her, and gets an apology.[2]
At the same time, Killmonger addresses the people of Niganda via all forms of communication. He tells them that Monica is an assassin from the United States. He tells them to rally beside him to prevent being invaded by America and Wakanda, promising them wealth and prosperity under his leadership.
Meanwhile, T’Challa has formulated a plan on how to get into Niganda and confront Killmonger. A direct approach isn’t going to work, so he goes into the hanger where mothballed vehicles are being stored. There, they find a drill vehicle that T’Challa once used to oppose the Mole Man when he attempted to steal Wakanda’s Vibranium.[3]
Back in Niganda, Shuri is sleeping in her cell, prompting G’Mal to try and get close and touch her. However, Shuri is sleeping with one eye open and can sense him getting close. She tells him to back off because this isn’t time for romance.[4] This is overheard by Killmonger who has come down to see them. He is amused with this “lovers quarrel” and is invited to enter the cell with them. Killmonger is amused that Shuri thinks he can beat him while wearing chains, when her own brother couldn’t defeat him.[5] Instead, he sends in 6 of his new followers to have their way with her. Erik tells Shuri if she manages to survive this, maybe they’ll have the fight she is spoiling for.
In Wakanda, the Black Panther tries to find out who has been supplying Killmonger. He has reached out to Iron Man (Tony Stark) to find out what SHIELD might know. Stark doesn’t have a clear answer, but figures it might be Doctor Doom, the Mandarin, or the Leader. While T’Challa is cordial, he does trade a few barbs with Stark as things are still tense after recent events.[6]
At that same moment, Shuri is able to hold her own against her attackers, even though she is chained to the wall of her cell. When she is able to wrap her chains around the neck of one of the men and snap it, the brutality of her kill stuns everyone.
Concurrently, the Black Panther is rallying his troops for an invasion of Niganda. Even though his soldiers don’t have very high respect for the country, T’Challa insists that they still have a right to their own humanity. As such, he asks that any casualties be kept at a minimum. He tells them not to worry about Killmonger as he intends to handle him all on his own. Watching from the sidelines, S’Yan and W’Kabi express their concerns about this plan with one another. Overheard by Queen Ramonda, she says that she would skip all the speeches and talk of honor and just annihilate Killmonger with a space laser and be done with it. As he gets into the drill and they begin plotting the course, T’Challa has the soldier with him try to contact his wife, Storm. Unfortunately, she doesn’t answer his call. When asked if they should hold off for now, T’Challa insists on pressing onward without her.
Soon, the invasion begins and at first Wakanda’s army presses in with very little opposition. Suddenly, they are begun being attacked by swarms of mutant alligators and hyper-intelligent apes that were believed to have been all wiped out from the region recently.[7] Worse, the force field technology employed by Killmonger’s mysterious associate shields him from most attacks. That’s when T’Challa comes up from underneath Killmonger in his drill. Seeing his old enemy again, Erik is pleased that it is time for the final battle.
Recurring Characters
Black Panther, Erik Killmonger, Monica Rambeau, W’Kabi, S’Yan, Shuri, “G’Mal”, Ramonda, Iron Man
Continuity Notes
This all happened last issue.
Up to this point, Storm had always been by T’Challa’s side since their wedding in Black Panther (vol. 4) #18. She is not present here because she is involved in trying to rescue the first mutant child born after M-Day. See X-Men: Messiah Complex #1, Uncanny X-Men #492-494, X-Factor (vol. 3) #25-27, New X-Men (vol. 2) #44-46, and X-Men (vol. 2) #205-207.
It is unclear when this clash between T’Challa and the Mole Man happened, presumably early on in his career given how they talk about how old the drill is. However, time of this writing (Feb, 2023), that story has yet to be told.
Last issue, G’Mal claimed that he was in love with Shuri. However, this is all a ruse because this isn’t G’Mal at all. His body has been snatched by the Cannibal, a body thief who has been loose in Wakanda since Black Panther (vol. 4) #5. He took possession of G’Mal in issue #18. However, this won’t be revealed until issue #38.
The claim that the Black Panther never defeated Killmonger in the past is not correct. T’Challa cleaned his clock in Jungle Action (vol. 2) #17.
Here, T’Challa mentions how Doom is likely looking for revenge after he shut down Latveria with an electro-magnetic pulse, that was in Black Panther (vol. 4) #19. Stark says he didn’t know about that, prompting T’Challa to arrogantly say Stark was busy. This is a reference to how Tony was helping the US government enforce the new Super Human Registration Act, as seen in Civil War #1-7.
These mutant animals were the work of a geneticist named Erich Paine, who was operating in the region until the Black Panther and the X-Men shut him down. See X-Men (vol. 2) #175-176 and Black Panther (vol. 4) #8-9. We will discover next issue that Killmonger’s backer is one of these intelligent apes.
Topical References
Of the many things that Killmonger offers the people of Niganda, he promises that they will have flat screen televisions in every home. This was impressive because consumer grade flatscreen televisions were relatively new when this comic was originally published in 2008 and were cost prohibitive to many people. They would have seen that an impossible luxury item to a third world nation like Niganda. Since then, this technology has become cheaper to produce and has also become the standard format for televisions. As such, this should be considered a topical reference.
Likewise we see CRT model televisions in a shop window being sold for $99. This should be considered topical as CRT televisions have since become obsolete. Not sure if inflation would affect the prices at all since Niganda is a fictional nation and it’s unclear if their common currency is called a dollar or if they use the currency of another nation. So your guess is as good as mine.
