More importantly than being the first lead superhero the Black Panther is the first character that represent a radical break from the white European superhero archetype. Both War Machine and Falcon, while interesting characters, are members of the US military and are symbols of racial liberalism and US military imperialism. The Black Panther, on the other hand, is not a member of the US military but instead the leader of an anti-colonial African nation that has historically fought to maintain its autonomy......Dittmer in Captain America and the Nationalist Superhero: Metaphor, Narratives, and Geopolitics looks to the Captain America, Captain Britain, Union Jack, Captain Canuck and other nationalist characters as a means of exploring the construction of national identity. His assertion throughout the book is that the nationalist heroes he examines all provide valuable insights into the ways that national myths and meaning are constructed and reinforced. He looks to the ways that national borders are made natural, with the series Excalibur and Alpha Flight, the way that US hegemony is justified through Captain America, and the ways that alternative histories and alien invasions all bolster the perception that the current political/social order is the ideal. This phenomenal book offers a unique lens to examine comics but interestingly does not look to explore the Black Panther as a nationalist character.
By looking at the Black Panther as a nationalist superhero we can gain cultural insight into the meaning of black nationalism and African decolonization from the perspective of US liberalism. For instance, it is important to note that in Wakanda there is a fusion of science, technology, religion, and magic. Unlike the US heroes who gain their power through science or luck, the Black Panther gains his power through a religious ceremony. It is the magic of Wakanda, combined with the technological advancement of this people that makes the Black Panther an Avenger. In this comic the existence of this alternative system of knowledge, one that is regularly viewed as superior to the Western view, highlights the ways that power (in this case colonial power) not only constructs systems of knowledge but also provides some with a universalizing bent. Even though Wakanda is seen as advanced economically and technologically no one but the Wakandans embrace their syncretic form of science/magic and this is because they have not attempted to use their technological and economic power to expand their cultural hegemony. Even though they are not a global power, Wakanda is able to maintain their traditional ways of knowing because of their autonomy from the west. In addition, the Black Panther narrative, inherently ties Black Nationalism and Pan Africanism to anti-imperialist politics. This can be seen through the long historical isolation of Wakanda from European colonizers and by the role that European colonization played in unsettling the political life of Wakanda (it was a Dutch villain that killed TChaka in at attempt to open Wakanda up to European corporations). From that point on, a large number of the Black Panthers have been to protect his nation from foreign invadersAmerican, European, and Alien. Interestingly, one of the central battles that the Black Panther has is fighting against resource colonialism as European powers are constantly trying to gain access to the Vibranium mines of Wakanda.
It is also important to note two unique attributes to the Black Panther that sets him apart from other nationalist superheroes.
First, is the fact that unlike Captain America, Captain Britain, Captain Canuck, or even Sabra (the Israeli nationalist hero), the Black Panther is the only nationalist hero tied to a fictional nation. As Dittmer mentions, one of the primary aspects of the nationalist superhero is to naturalize the concept of nation-states and construct a realist understanding of international foreign policy (where each nation has its leviathan like superhero representing the nation). As such, this critical reading of the Black Panther highlights how to US liberalism Black Nationalism is a utopian project, one that, in order to comprehend needs to be tied to a physical nation. Of course, from the position of the US there is no black nation that represents a hegemonic threat, and as such, the Black Nationalist hero needs to be mapped onto a fictional space. Wakanda serves as an anti-imperialist counter to the US liberalism but one that is simply ideological and nonexistent as a political threat. Secondly, unlike all the other well-known nationalist superheroes, the Black Panther is the only figure that is also the head of state.
