I first discovered the Black Panther in this issue of the Fantastic Four. Issue #119 in 1972. I was 11 and The Fantastic Four was my favorite comic series. In this issue, in a story that touched upon apartheid and segregation, for a white suburban kid it left quite an impression on me. It taught me a lot. 

Maybe it’s because as a black hero, he was different, or maybe it’s because he had a cool costume, I wanted to read more stories featuring him. In any event, months later when I saw that he had his own book, albeit in a bimonthly title called Jungle Action, I bought it. In this series was a 13 issue, 200 page saga titled “Panther’s Rage” (it took two years to tell)

This story pitted the Panther against all odds. It’s as if each issue featured the Panther getting the hell beat out of him, only to build up to a fantastic conclusion with the Panther coming out triumphant! I was hoping this film would have a similar feel. While yes, the movie is good, but because they shoehorned so many other characters in the story it was if the Black Panther never gets the chance to show what he can do.