100 Days of Marvel: Road to Infinity War - Day 25: Heroic Analysis of "T'Challa" from Marvel's "Black Panther"

"Now, when we fought, you had that eye of the tiger, man; the edge! And now you gotta get it back, and the way to get it back is to go back to the beginning. You know what I mean?"

There are a lot of beats in Marvel's "Black Panther" that play the same song as the one drummed up in "Rocky III." Both T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) and Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) are heroic characters who have everything they want, but must learn what they really want and / or need by having everything taken away from them. Given that this is a Heroic Analysis of a character in the midst of my "100 Days of Marvel" series, this post will focus more so on T'Challa and a reflection on his journey, with some tied in references and comparisons to Rocky.

And trust me, Marvel's "Black Panther" is a cinematic masterpiece of Black excellence that deserves every recognition it can get. It seriously is that good of a movie, and T'Challa is a perfect character for an heroic analysis.

SEPARATION / DEPARTURE

T'Challa's Call to Adventure occurs once he leaves Wakanda to capture Klaue (Andy Serkis). After the death of his father, T'Chaka, T'Challa must don the mantle of Black Panther and take up the throne as the King of Wakanda. This comes easy to T'Challa, afterall, he has been training for this is whole life. His true, adventure, however, comes with the struggle he faces to hold onto his Kingdom, and do what is right by his people - not unlike Rocky Balboa. This is why his true Call does not occur until Killmonger steals Klaus. Rocky is the current Heavyweight Champion, a metaphorical 'king' in the ring. When Rocky has to fight a new challenge to hold onto his "kingdom" he is in the true depths of his journey - and the connective tissue between T'Challa and Rocky begins.

T'Challa's first real Refusal of the Call comes when Erik Killmonger "rescues" Klaue and he does not run after him. In his hesitation, he allows Klaue to get away and he fails his mission. T'Challa knows that there are things that he doesn't know, and the world that he must cross into is one of secrets and lies that he must uncover, and that is the only way that he would truly be a successful king. The reason this can be considered a Refusal is because we see T'Challa chase down Klaue in South Korea earlier in the film, so there is no reason he allows Klaue to get away. T'Challa shows fear in this moment. In this moment, he makes the decision not pursue a deeper mystery because he is not ready to attempt and solve it. Rocky parallels him again here, because he initially refuses to fight Clubber Lane.

But T'Challa must Accept the Call once Killmonger kills Klaue and travels to Wakanda to take the throne, and when T'Challa accepts his challenge for the Throne, he officially Crosses the First Threshold. It can be difficult to pin point when a heroic character that does not go on a literal journey crosses the first, and in the case T'Challa is already king. Becoming King, however, comes easily for T'Challa. His Ordinary World prepared him to become king, but it did not prepare him for anyone to truly challenge him like how Killmonger does not only physically, but intellectually. You guessed it, this is also the same in Rocky's case. Rocky has been facing tough Enemies, but no one nearly as tough as Clubber Lane.

T'Challa's Supernatural Aid is an easy one to identify, but it is not as easy to identify that for Rocky. He is the Black Panther, and those powers come from a plant grown near the vibranium. This can be science fictionally explained away - something from the vibranium gets into the soil and produces the chemical found in the magical plant that gifts the powers of Black Panther. Rocky is simply left handed.

T'Challa actually has quite a few Mentors, but none more identifiable than Zuri (Forest Whitaker), if we put aside the tutelage he receives from his father, T'Chaka (though father figures can also be mentors). Rocky has a Mentor - Mickey. Both of these mentors take similar actions to "protect" the hero. Mickey lies to Rocky by padding his opponents, so Rocky grows soft and is not ready for Clubber Lane's challenge. Zuri also hides truths from T'Challa, and in both cases honesty could have helped the hero defeat their primary Villains in their respective struggles.

When Killmonger defeats T'Challa in the challenge for the Black Panther mantle and King, he forces T'Challa into his lowest point, his Inmost Cave, his Belly of the Whale, through this experience, this Ordeal. More mirrors to Rocky, because Clubber Lane spanks a thirst-quenched Rocky (get it, cuz Rocky ain't hungry).

INITIATION

T'Challa and Rocky both have a similar Road of Trials. After their defeat, they metaphorically die, and their Tests comes with their not only literal fight for life, but their fight to discover meaning in that life.

We know Rocky has Allies, and they're just like T'Challa's. They each have a love interest, A Goddess, who is integral to their Resurrection. Adrian is to Rocky as Nakia is to T'Challa. They even both have a shady friend who betrays them for selfish reasons or vendettas. W'Kabi (Daniel Kaluuya) is to T'Challa as Mickey Goldmill (Burgess Meredith) is to Rocky. Rocky and T'Challa both have rivals who want their throne. M'Baku (Winston Duke) is to T'Challa what Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) is to Rocky. T'Challa has many more Allies than Rocky does, however. In addition to the aforementioned, T'Challa has a dope sibling, Shuri (Letitia Wright), a general of a King's guard, Okoye (Dunai Gurira), and he even has a white man in his corner. All jokes aside, his cast of Allies is extensive.

Just like Allies, the Enemies of these two heroes parallel nicely. Erik Killmonger is raised with nothing and fights for a cause that is relatable, and many can get behind him, but he is a jerk and his approach is wrong. He has earned his accolades, and feels that the hero, in his case T'Challa, was given everything too easily and is thus entitled. Change the name "Erik Killmonger" to "Clubber Lane" and the lines look almost as if they have been traced.

By now, you get the point. The similarities get right down to even the death of the mentor at a similar point in the heroes struggle. It's real out here. And this is why Black Panther works. It takes a classic journey and translates it into something that is relevant for a different community, all while maintaining relevance to ALL communities and audiences. There is truly nothing new under the sun. But where Black Panther moves the conversation forward is the topical discussion on whether or not Wakanda should literally join the world, and this is a very relevant conversation in the current political climate.

T'Challa's Atonement with the Father is in top form for his story. T'Chaka was not a perfect man, and through his actions, T'Challa's actions, T'Challa is able to rectify his father's mistake and thus atone. He is also able to health the wounds of his uncle, who could also represent a father figure. It is best to look at the previous generations of kings as fathers to T'Challa, and his goals are to work towards healing those wounds created.

RETURN

I always seem to talk about heroes who don't really have a significant return. It really is a tough area to do in films, because movies tend to end just after the climax, and climaxes tend to be when the hero just gets the Boon.

In this case, both T'Challa and Rocky, skip the Refusal of the Call. Once they get all Booned up, they are basically the Master of Two Worlds, but for both heroes their stories are just beginning, and these journeys precede more journeys of continual self-discovery to come. One can never discover their whole self, and so they move onward, equipped by this adventure to face a deeper level of meaning in the next. We know what happens for Rocky, and we are excited to find out what happens with T'Challa in the MCU. For now, however, they have the Freedom to Live.

THE WRAP UP / FINAL THOUGHTS

I have a film review up on my YouTube channel, as well as some thoughts about the movie in a spoiler free review I posted as day 25 of this series. What I will say, that I didn't say in those places, is that the colors in this film are amazing. The purples and gold reflect royalty and they fit the theme of the atmosphere. I welcome the social commentary and what it does to our current conversation on race and politics, and I hope movies continue to push this boundary forward. T'Challa, a Black King, accomplishes something that Rocky, an Italian Southpaw Boxer, cannot do. And though their films were very much the same song, they hit different charts.