Photo Courtesy of Wired

Warning: Spoilers Ahead!

The first “Black Panther” movie, released back in 2018, undoubtedly left its mark on the superhero movie industry, claiming many firsts, such as being a big-budget superhero movie with a Black hero, director and a majority Black cast. Its sequel, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” opened this past weekend and drove many to the theaters. The movie took in a record-breaking $180 million at North American cinemas, ending one of the worst box office droughts on record.

As far as Marvel sequels typically go, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” had big shoes to fill – and had to fill those shoes without the first film’s lead star, Chadwick Boseman, who died in 2020 from colon cancer.

Ryan Coogler, director of both films, recently revealed that the script for the sequel had been finished prior to the star’s untimely passing. With the loss of Boseman, many turned to the internet to speculate what this would mean for the franchise. While the easiest option was to recast for a new Black Panther, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige “felt like it was much too soon” to recast the late actor’s role. 

“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” took on many challenges. With the opening scene of a ceremonious funeral with a broken, yet strong Wakanda, viewers were brought to tears in what was an impactful art-imitating-life moment. 

In Marvel’s phase four, which featured all of the Marvel Studios productions set to be released from 2021 through 2022, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” is the finale and follows a similar theme seen in other releases. Dealing with the repercussions of losing their king, main characters Shuri (Letitia Wright) and Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett) give Oscar-worthy performances as their characters stare in the face of grief while continuing to lead a nation. 

While “Black Panther” had a huge cultural impact with its diverse representation, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” was able to take it one step further with female leads and characters throughout. With a new queen (Bassett), and a new Black Panther (Wright), these female characters shifted from supporting roles to the stars of the movie. They showcase a beautiful balance that accurately displays their strength without taking away from their depicted emotions of uncertainty, grief and vengeance that many female superheroes do not get the opportunity to show enough of.

Alongside the leads, there is a gifted supporting female cast with the return of Okoye (Danai Gurira), Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o) and Aneka (Michaela Coel), back to play even larger roles than what was previously given to their characters in the first “Black Panther.” 

They each display their own version of charisma as they navigate a Wakanda under war without their most powerful form of defense, never failing to understand their own strengths as a team.

The lead male characters, which includes Winston Duke returning as M’Baku, never step on any toes under the female leadership and serve to support their decisions while also providing much-needed comedic relief. Duke helps the film breathe from its often intense and somber tone and has that playful tough love personality that made him a fan favorite back in 2018. 

When it comes to new additions, Dominique Thorne makes her debut as Riri Williams, who goes under the alias of IronHeart, another example of strong, Black female representation. She adds a youthful and colorful personality to the cast, complementing everyone’s high stakes attitudes with levity and a nonchalant attitude. 

Making his debut into the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the antagonist of the film, Namor, who is played by Tenoch Huerta, has an intense backstory that investigates the harsh effects colonization had on his people, a heavy theme in the film. While his actions become unforgivable with the cruel killing of Shuri’s mother, he plays into Shuri’s internal battle with herself and whether she wants to achieve vengeance (as debated with the surprise appearance of Michael B. Jordan, returning once again as Killmonger, the original franchise’s villain), or be a noble leader, like her brother. 

 “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” has managed to hurdle over the major challenges it had to overcome in its approach and has come out as yet another Marvel film that leaves fans feeling accurately represented.