Why Marvel's The Black Panther Is Such a Big Deal

Why Marvel’s The Black Panther Is Such a Big Deal

Before you read any further, there are spoilers! If you haven’t seen the movie, stop. Go see the movie and then come back and read this. But if you have seen it, keep reading.

Now back to the matter at hand…

I’ve seen the movie. I’ve seen opinions far left, right and middle of the road posted on social media. And the bottom line is that there are some very strong opinions about this movie. But I want a chance to explain why – in my opinion – Marvel’s the Black Panther is such a big deal.

1: It’s rife with love stories:

The most obvious is the love between T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman) Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o), who have broken up due to differences of value and opinion, yet find themselves meeting again when T’Challa saves Nakia. In the middle of his rescue, he “freezes” (after being told by Okoye NOT to freeze) just to say “Hi”. I LOVE IT! Throughout the movie he keeps trying to get her to come back home, but she won’t because she knows she will be unfulfilled as her calling involves people outside of Wakanda. And Wakanda has been a separatist nation for quite some time. The second love story is between Okoye (Danai Gurira) and W’Kabi (Daniel Kaluuya). Okoye is loyal to the throne while we find out later in the film that unfortunately W’Kabi is loyal to leaders who agree with his viewpoint to wage war on certain countries. This difference comes to a head on the battle field when W’Kabi realizes that Okoye would have killed him because he stood in opposition to what she believed firmly in. At the end of the day, no love story is the same. And some love stories require coming back to an ex or standing firm in what you believe – even if it means possibly losing the one you love. But these love stories inspired me to be more open in the future regarding love and to not limit myself to how I think it should happen. For example, I had a strict no revisiting exes rule. But I realized many women like Nakia revisit them and win at love.

2: The women are FIERCE:

AND they are beautiful as they stand firm in Afro-centric beauty standards. Their hair is cropped close to their heads with almost no hair. They don tribal designs even in uniform. And they walk tall. And on top of that, they held their own in any battle field with any man. And Shuri (Letitia Wright) stole my heart. She was like the African version of Abby from NCIS…smart, sweet, intelligent, fiesty and allowed to be herself.

3: The portrayal of culture on the continent of Africa is actually refreshing:

I lived in Africa for a year. I only got to see Djibouti, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. But I saw how diverse just the few countries were. Each country on the continent of Africa is unique with it’s own language, culture, laws and even currency. This is why it’s such a shame when you only see certain depictions of the continent that are racist, limited or ill researched. Although we know Wakanda is fictional, I can attest that it is very similar to certain parts of the actual continent of Africa – beautiful and rich with culture.

4: A truly good man saves the day:

Even to his own peril, T’Challa takes Kill Monger up on his challenge for the throne. Once he ultimately defeats Kill Monger, he still tries to redeem him. And although T’Challa practically worshipped his father, he went against his father because his father had done wrong by Kill Monger. T’Challa found his footing and his place in a role that was traditional. He went against the grain. And because he did, he won back Nakia’s heart and wound up saving his country.

There were so many different opinions about this movie. But this movie won my heart. Because IT had a lot of heart. As a Christian, yes, I recognize there were elements of the culture that are in direct opposition to my beliefs. But I know Whose I am. And I know this movie helped changed my outlook on love.

Have you seen the movie? If so, tell me what you think below…