Everyone loves Easter Eggs. These are large orbs of chocolate that are usually filled with fun things, like more chocolate. They’re one of humanity’s favorite ways to celebrate the re-birth of Christ. This is probably because… erm… well… no one actually knows why, but I’m sure most confectionery companies would rather that question remains unasked, on account of all the money they make.
Easter Eggs in films are good too. Like their chocolate siblings, they are sweet delights, left in a film by a lovely director for the audience to uncover. This list is about the latter type of Easter Eggs. Though I’m sure a list debating the former would prove a great read too.
With the recent release of Marvel’s latest entry in the MCU, Black Panther, I thought it an ideal time to uncover all - probably- of the hidden secrets within it. Black Panther is a fantastic film (and it is excellent. It received two thumbs up from me. Which is the highest score I can give in this particular rating system, as I only have the two opposable thumbs). But it’s also a film of genuine cultural importance. A film that has broken boundaries. It’s also a Marvel film. Which means it is literally filled to the credits, and beyond, with references to the films and comics that came before it (and some that will come after it… more on them later).
So, without a further ado, let’s get stuck in. All hail the King.
25 Time Conundrum
For a long time, it was considered that the MCU films take place in the same chronology that they are released. And for Phase 1 this certainly made sense, with Captain America: First Avenger being the exception that proves the rule. However, with the release of Black Panther, this is clearly no longer the case.
The events in the film take place around a week after the conclusion of Captain America: Civil War – which was released in 2016.
This means that everything that happens in Black Panther happens before Doctor Strange, Spider-Man Homecoming, and Thor: Ragnarok. Which were all in cinemas way before Black Panther. Confused yet? How do all these disparate storylines weave together with regards to their chronology? The answer to that probably won’t be entirely confirmed until Avengers: Infinity War is released later this year.
24 Where In The World Is Wakanda?
The introduction of Wakanda and the characters within it has been hinted at for a long time within the MCU. Fans were left salivating for the introduction of the Black Panther to MCU lore when a Holographic map of Wakanda was displayed on a SHIELD monitor. This was way back in Iron Man 2 when Tony Stark met Nick Fury to discuss the Avengers Initiative. Then in Avengers: Age Of Ultron Ulysses Klaue sold what was left of his stash of vibranium to Ultron. Vibranium is kept within the hidden country of Wakanda, though enough of it was available to forge Captain America’s shield during the 2nd World War. Wakanda and the Black Panther made their official debut in the MCU during Captain America: Civil War.
23 Black Panthers
The Black Panther was created in July 1966, two months prior to the forming of the Black Panthers Party. The Black Panthers were part of the civil rights movements, and they felt that the non-violent methods of Martin Luther King had failed. The two founders of the party, Huey Percy Newton and Bobby Seale, spoke of a ‘revolutionary war’.
The history of the party and the cultural and political repercussions of its actions are still discussed today.
Back in 1966, many readers assumed that the party and the hero were linked, and Black Panther was briefly changed to the Black Leopard. The name didn’t stick for long though, as the creators weren’t keen. You can see a poster for the Black Party in the film itself!
22 Is It A Man? No, It’s An Ape
M’Baku is known in the Marvel comics’ as Man-Ape. The visual appearance of the character is as borderline ridiculous as his pseudonym would suggest. Man-Ape’s costume is essentially something that a pimple-faced teenager would wear if employed as a mascot character. M’Baku’s face can even be seen protruding from between the jaws of the ape. Fortunately, the filmmakers decided to go in a different direction with the cinematic version.
The name ‘man-ape’ was rejected because of its derogatory connotations. Instead, a more realistic appearance for the character was utilized. Executive producer Nate Moore told Entertainment Weekly, “Having a black character dress up as an ape, I think there’s a lot of racial implications that don’t sit well, if done wrong.” The final outfit does have links to the original, with fur that hint at the symbolic animal of his tribe.
21 Getting Pumped
If an actor wants to be in a Marvel film, then they had best get in superhero shape. This can lead to some intense workout regimes and utterly insane diets. To be Thor, Chris Hemsworth had to pack on 30 pounds of muscle to his frame before having to shed it all off again over a four-month period to play F1 driver James Hunt in the film Rush. Once filming was complete, he had to build up his muscle mass again to return to the role of Thor.
In Black Panther, it was Angela Basset who had a particularly arduous training regime.
She underwent training with Corey Calliet on a special regime. It was Calliet who created a high-intensity interval training circuit for Bassett to perform. She had to do push-ups, high knees, jump squats, lunges, and mountain climbers in 30-second intervals for up to an hour a time.
20 Everyone Loves Blade Runner
One of the most impressive achievements of Black Panther is to take a fictional country and turn it into a living, breathing entity that truly feels like it could exist. Production designer Hannah Beachler played a huge role in creating this world. As mentioned by ComingSoon, “one of the main rules was the color pallet of the movie, as different sections of Wakanda stick to a strict visual scheme. The River Tribe is green, the Border Tribe is blue, The Jabaris are wood, and the Black Panther and the Royal Palace are black and royal purple.” The cultures of the countries of Ethiopia, Uganda, and Rwanda influenced the architecture of Wakanda, whilst Beachler studied the urban elements of the film Blade Runner to provide inspiration for the more fantastical sci-fi elements of the country.
19 That’ll Leave A Mask
Killmonger is amongst the best (or worst, I suppose) of the villains in the MCU. Most Marvel villains are rather forgettable, and their motives are usually interchangeable. More often than not, their plans are essentially “find this McGuffin and I can create a pillar of light that will enable me to control/destroy the world.”
Thankfully, Killmonger bucks this trend.
He certainly makes an impression in his horned mask during his initial dual with T’Challa. The mask itself is a visual reference to the one Killmonger wore in Reginald Hudlin’s Black Panther comic. It’s also a call back to the mask Mephisto wore in Christopher Priest’s Black Panther comic series. The terrifying visage of the mask certainly suits the formidable nature of Killmonger and the threat he poses to T’Challa and his pals.
18 Hear The Drums
Marvel has, in the past, had criticism leveled against it for lacking any truly iconic or memorable themes. To that argument, I would disagree. I’ve watched The Avengers so many times that its theme of ‘duuuh duuuuh duh duh duh duh duuuuuuuuh’ (you know the one I’m talking about) sometimes haunts my dreams. The above argument also cannot be leveled against Black Panther. Ludwig Göransson utilised two different West African instruments to make clear the rivalry between T’Challa and Killmonger. The talking drum was used for T’Challa. This is an hourglass-shaped drum that can be used to simulate the tone of human speech. Meanwhile, the tambin flute was utilized for Killmonger. Known for its haunting sounds and melodies, it proved to be the ideal accompaniment to the villain.
17 Djalia Dimension
A particularly impressive inclusion within Black Panther was the Djalia Dimension. Any visual representation of something so abstract will always prove a challenge. Within the comics, the Djalia is a formation of the collective memories of the people of Wakanda. These can then be experienced by others visiting the dimension.
However, the term also has a reference to West Africa.
The term originates from ‘djali’, a word used to describe a tribal elder, someone who is responsible for carrying all the knowledge, culture and history of their community. The dimension itself has been a recent revelation within the comic history of the Black Panther, making its first appearance in July 2016. Perhaps this was another case of the MCU informing the direction and content of their comic book cousin.
16 In His Prime
With the events of Black Panther now in the public domain, we have perhaps the first indicators as to how Tony Stark’s Prime Armor will come into being. First introduced within the Marvel comics in 2015, Model-Prime armor (Mark 51) uses nanotechnology to become whatever Stark requires it to be. No longer would he need an underground garage filled with different suits, this one suit, like a swiss knife, contains everything he will ever need. Recent set photos suggest that it is this armor that Stark will don in Avengers: Infinity War. Perhaps, with T’Challa making the decision to reveal Wakanda to the world in the closing moments of Black Panther, their advanced technology will make its way to Stark. This would provide him with the kit that he needs to create this new bleeding edge suit design.
15 The Missing Stone
Weaved throughout the MCU, up until this point, has been the introduction of the infinity stones. If that ‘evil titan who loves to smile’, otherwise known as Thanos, gets his grubby mitts on them, it will surely spell doom for the denizens of the MCU. With one final stone to be introduced, the Soul Stone, it was presumed that it would be discovered in Black Panther. This proved not to be the case.
There seemed to be a natural way to include the stone, however.
Surely it would have been ideal for it to have been within the vibranium meteorite and so have been responsible for imbuing the ore – and the Heart Shaped Herb – with its powers. There’s still time for this to happen, and perhaps it’s the reason that Thanos must make his way to Wakanda to do battle with the combined forces of Earth’s superheroes.
14 Surprise!
During a screening of Black Panther at the Alamo Drafthouse, there was a superb secret surprise awaiting the audience. This was a PSA in which Chadwick Boseman stares straight down the camera and speaks directly to the audience. He warns them not to talk or use their phones during the film. He also warns them that he is always watching. To find the secret bit though, the audience would have to wait until the film ends and watch the credits and the post-credit scenes too. Then, once the screen has gone to black, they would have to wait a few more seconds. At this point there is a sudden quick cut to an extreme closeup of Chadwick Boseman, he then yells at the audience, “I AM STILL WATCHING!” Brilliant.
13 Fant4stic
As previously mentioned, the Black Panther made his first comics appearance in the 52nd issue of Fantastic Four way back in 1966. There’s a neat little reference to this hidden in the film. In one of the sequences, there are Wakandan glyphs that move on translucent walls.
One of these walls was colored in blue and had a ‘4’ written on it.
This is the color and number most representative of the Fantastic Four. With the possibility that we may see the Fantastic Four in the Marvel Cinematic Universe over the next few years (though Kevin Feige is keeping his cards close to his chest on this one) it will be interesting to see the Black Panther and Mr. Fantastic, Sue Storm, the Thing, and the Human Torch on screen all at once. Particularly as the Human Torch will bear an uncanny resemblance to Killmonger.
12 Ouch!
Once Everett Ross, aka Bilbo Baggins, aka Dr. John Watson, aka Martin Freeman ends up getting injured he is taken to Wakanda to be healed. Shuri comments on this, “Great! Another broken white boy for us to fix” which is, of course, a reference to Bucky Barnes, who was given asylum in Wakanda after the events of Captain America: Civil War. During the end credits it is revealed that Bucky has awoken from his cryogenic sleep, perhaps now cured of his brainwashing thanks to the genius of Shuri. He’s hasn’t donned his new vibranium arm. That reveal is no doubt being kept for Avengers: Infinity War. But with Bucky back to being human, there’s still the chance that he can take on the mantle of Captain America, should the unthinkable happen to Rogers this May.
11 The White Wolf
Bucky is back and has now been given the title of the White Wolf. In the comics, it is Hunter who is known as the White Wolf. He is the adopted son of T’Chaka, which makes him the bother of T’Challa. There is a great deal of animosity between the brothers, as Hunter felt like an outsider once T’Challa was born.
He even blamed his sibling for their father’s demise.
Despite these feelings, he hasn’t gone full bad guy and instead serves the Black Panther. Whilst Bucky hasn’t been adopted into T’Challa’s family, he has been accepted and adopted by the Wakandan community, making him an ideal fit for the White Wolf character. Let’s just hope he doesn’t have to put on the Wolf’s dreadful costume. It would definitely be a pain getting stains out of that.
10 Accent Attack
What’s so important about an accent? In some films, actors completely ignore the need to have an accent and speak however they wish, regardless of the period or setting of the movie. In other films I wish they wouldn’t even have bothered with trying the accents, I’m looking at you, Gangs of New York. However, sometimes the inclusion of the correct accent is utterly vital to the audience’s belief in the character. Chadwick Boseman had this to say on the matter of T’Challa’s African accent:
“It’s (Wakanda) supposed to be the most technologically advanced nation on the planet. If it’s supposed to not have been conquered – which means that advancement has happened without colonialism tainting it, poisoning the well of it, without stopping it or disrupting it – then there’s no way he would speak with a European accent.”
9 Rhino Riding
If you’re in a film, and your character must ride a rhino, how on earth do you ensure that this rhino riding looks accurate? Rhinos are not well known for being compatible with a human sat on their back and carefully calling out ‘giddy-up’. That’s never going to end well. Actor Daniel Kaluuya has the answer.
He learned how to ride a horse to practice what it would feel like riding W’Kabi’s armored rhino.
Kaluuya commented on the training, “I did loads of rhino training. I was rolling with the rhinos, don’t worry about it. I’ll put it on my (résumé) now.” I think he might be joking here. As I’m fairly certain rhinos can’t perform forward rolls. Although those armored rhinos look like they can do anything.
8 Real Time Cutting
Director Ryan Coogler wanted to get a Black Panther film right. He told Hey U Guys, “I’m excited. I grew very into pop culture, very into comic books, so it’s something that is just as personal to me as the last couple of films I was able to make. I feel really fortunate to be able to work on something I’m this passionate about again.” His dedication can be seen throughout the film, particularly in the South Korea action sequence. Coogler wanted this set piece to be as seamless as possible. To this end, he had an editor on set cutting the action in real time. It’s a challenging way to shoot and not often done in production, but Coogler felt it was the best way to capture all the components of such a complex sequence from frame to frame.
7 What A Lot Of Scars You Have
Killmonger certainly has a memorable appearance. Along with abs that you could shave your back with, he is also covered in scars. To achieve this look, it meant that Michael B. Jordan had to spend two and a half hours in the makeup chair every single day. Makeup designer Joel Harlow then applied ninety sculpted silicone molds to his body.
Each mold then had to be blended and painted into Jordan’s skin tone to create the final effect.
What I want to know is how they took all those molds off at the end of the day. Harlow gave the answer to The Verge, “Because the prosthetics are basically made out of glue, it would require a couple hours in the sauna at the end of the day, with a few guys and a lot of oil remover, to take them back off.”
6 The Human Torch
There was a time in which an actor could only be one superhero. This is not the case anymore. Ryan Reynolds has now played Hannibal King in Blade Trinity and Hal Jordan in the infamously awful Green Lantern before finally finding redemption with Deadpool. Then there’s the Human Torch from Fantastic Four, who has now been played by two actors who have gone on to further roles within the MCU. First to play Johnny Storm in Tim Story’s distinctly average Fantastic Four films was Chris Evans. Undoubtedly the best thing about these movies, Evans went on to be Steve Rogers and has featured heavily as a cornerstone character within the MCU. Then, Michael B. Jordan became the second actor to portray Johnny Storm in the unconsidered reboot Fant4stic. Ironically, the Black Panther will have now fought both Johnnys in the MCU.
