S P O I L E R S -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The King has returned, all hail the King! Enjoyable revisionist ode to a more recognizable T'Challa/Black Panther! Loved the homage to CJP Panther as BP felled the symbiote rhino! Loved the homage to oral histories and the value of the storytelling tradition! Good seeing T'Challa the plotter, the commander, the visionary. I did feel his tone was a little uneven, unduly curt/harsh with his warriors while a tad overly accommodating of Shuri and Okoye's second guessing (likewise, Shuri's admonishment of Okoye's touch seemed a little much) but if not pitch-perfect, Redjack Panther rings true and satisfying like classic Al Jarreau, Chaka Kahn or Marvin Gaye. In the hands of a respectful, talented fan, the creator undoubtedly smiles.
My Two Cents!
Peace,
Mont
I largely second the above sentiment! I only differ regarding the "second guessing" aspects and the issue with Shuri's response to Okoye touching her. In my opinion? RJ Okoye is a true down to the dregs of her soul WARRIOR. She literally has no quit or surrender in her, and RJ Okoye sees Wakanda as every bit as unyielding and warrior oriented as Okoye herself is...and probably moreso. This Okoye could not countenance any form of actual surrender or even subscribing to the notion of being overwhelmed by any outside force for any reason. So this Okoye...if I'm right, and of course only RJ would know if I'm even within a UNIVERSE's reach of the character of Okoye as he sees her...would never think of either herself or any Royal Wakandan ever even seriously uttering any word that presents Wakanda to be inferior to any foe. In any way. For any reason.
I could easily see this Okoye actually reaching out and touching Shuri, given Shuri's direct statement that retreat in the face of this enemy is the only option that she...Shuri...sees available for Wakanda.
I could also see RJ Shuri immediately telling Okoye to remove her hand from Shuri's royal flesh. Why is that?
Remember over a decade ago [ it's CRAZY to write that ] when our own R to the H was traumatizing people with his ultra hard Black Nationalist BP? Remember when Shuri became BP? Remember when I said that I thought that Shuri should be more oriented toward tech+magic in distinct ways. Her hypertheoretical tech imo should be a blend of something that we could expect from the daughter of Seshat, and her magic? Should operate on the lines of a blend of Brother [ not DOCTOR ] Voodoo and say...Dr. Druid. Whereas T'Challa would be less showy, far more stealthy and imo overall more effective. T'Challa would be using AkiliKaTech [ MindSpirit/Life Energy Tech/PsiKaTech ].
Back to Shuri...
imo RJ Shuri would start out as the precocious Shuri we saw in MCU BP, become the FEROCIOUS Shuri we saw with RHBP, and after spiritually maturing into and beyond the Djalia as The Ancient Future [ I must give Coates props on both that dope name AND that dope concept ]? That Shuri would most definitely tell Okoye to take her hand off of her royal flesh. Of course, this same Shuri would have already known that Okoye was going to reach out toward her in the first place, before Okoye herself knew she would...
...I also didn't see either of these ladies second guessing T'Challa. Okoye was being true to her heart mind and soul. She's a warrior through and through. YIBAMBE! She will hold her ground vs all threats. PHAMBILI! She will then meet them and defeat them in battle. This kind of character? Would most definitely say what she said to T'Challa.
Shuri? Didn't imo second guess T'Challa. In fact, RJShuri would not only tell T'Challa her thoughts in direct fashion [ well established by RH BP'S SHURI when she skated right on the very edge of violating royal respect protocol by saucily "requesting" that T'Challa give her a team "of actual experts" that implied that T'Challa gave her garbage before ] before her third appearance in the very first issue introducing her existence. Giving T'Challa a dose of them verbals is a character trait established for Shuri by her creator, our own R to the H. We have both 616 [ RH Shuri ] and MCU canon for Shuri to say exactly the kind of thing RJShuri did.
In fact, RJShuri figured out T'Challa's plan to "sacrifice" her and RJ Shuri went along with the plan in order to give T'Challa the time he needed to save Wakanda. This is a new facet of Shuri that I have never seen before. This is distinct to RJShuri as General Okoye's "born protector of Wakanda" personality trait is specific to RJOkoye.
RJBP is suuuuch a MAGNIFICENT [ yet distinct and particular to RJ ] return to form for BP. In fact? We might surmise that we haven't seen a BP this formidable in any iteration save the Hickman's Infinity Gauntlet BP who faced down and outsmarted God Doom...
...but RJBP was MORE SATISFYING because RJBP enjoyed an unambiguous. Clear. ON PANEL. Total victory against the latest Big Bad of the MCU, the mighty Symbiote God Knull. RJBP showed how a BLACK MALE FAN WHO'S ALSO A GIFTED WRITER is NOT afraid or hesitant to show BP utterly dominant against the most ferocious, unstoppable of foes.
RJBP is what HICKMAN BP wasn't bold and Afrakan enough to be. Jason Aaron writes BP as King Batman..an incredibly formidable hero king who could be any color. RJBP is Afrikan King+Doc Savage
