about black panter
You know Black Panther. I know Black Panther. But at this point, the average person out there in the world doesn't know Black Panther, even following actor Chadwick Boseman's brief live-action debut in the role in the recently released "Captain America: Civil War" trailer, which as of publication of this article has been viewed more than 40 million times on YouTube alone.
So landing on the cover of "Entertainment Weekly" -- which even in the waning days of print
media reported a 1.8 million circulation in 2013, along with a robust
online presence -- is a big deal for the hero. This week's EW cover,
released online today, features Boseman, in costume between Chris Evans
as Captain America and Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man (they're both
unmasked, Boseman is not) promoting a cover story on "Civil War," which
will introduce Black Panther to the Marvel Cinematic Universe before he
goes on to star in a solo film set for 2018; the first Marvel film of
the post-"Iron Man" era to star a Black superhero.
It all sounds pretty good until you take a closer look at the cover
-- Black Panther has a "Meow" dialogue prompt above his head (Cap and
Iron Man remain diaogue-free). This is the copy EW went with when
introducing the first Black superhero in mainstream American comics to
the world at large: "The biggest Marvel movie yet introduces Black
Panther. He's tall, powerful -- and has claws that a Real Housewife
would envy."
Yes, one of the most historically significant characters in comic
book history has been reduced to a joke -- twice! -- on the magazine
cover where potentially millions of people (don't forget
the multitudes who will see this cover in our nation's grocery stores
and doctor's offices) will see said character for the first time. It's
not fair to Boseman, an acclaimed actor set for the highest-profile role
of a career that's already included some rather major roles (playing
Jackie Robinson in "42," playing James Brown in "Get On Up"). It's not
fair to the comics fans to whom Black Panther means a great deal in
terms of progress and representation. It's not fair to comics in
general, as it's yet another reminder that for a large part of the
population, the medium is and will remain something to not take seriously at all costs. (And do panthers even meow?)
Sure, Marvel has a lot of characters that invite having fun.
"Guardians of the Galaxy," "Ant-Man" and even "The Avengers" have some
inherent absurdity in their concepts, and the films reflect that. But
specifically, Black Panther is a serious character -- he doesn't really
crack jokes, and he's the super-smart, super-capable king of an African
nation. As CBR columnist Joseph Illidge put it just this week in THE MISSION,
"Black Panther exists in a unique category of heroes. That of the
intellectual, wealthy ruler. He is a symbol of the Black male heritage,
accomplishments, and aspirations. The Black Panther is the antithesis of
the demonization of the American Black man, perpetuated by various
parties in media and government institutions." Both jokes in EW's cover
copy emasculate a character that represents Black success; the end
result is problematic and oddly tone-deaf.
Jokey cover copy is a trademark of "Entertainment Weekly" -- I'm a subscriber and have been a reader since I was in elementary
school. I don't think there was any negative intent on the magazine's
part, and I'm sure the actual article pays the character due respect.
But there's also a responsibility, here. This is the first Black
superhero in American comics, and the first Black superhero to headline a
film in the massively popular Marvel Cinematic Universe and this is the
way that likely millions of people will see the character for the first
time. Maybe save the jokes for the sequel?
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