5 Reasons Aquaman & Black Panther Would Make Great Partners (& 5 Reasons They Would Hate Each Other)

King T’Challa, ruler of the hidden city of Wakanda and Avenger, Black Panther, burst onto the scene in Captain America: Civil War and was the subject of the Academy award-winning movie, Black Panther.  He was thrown into the fire as ruler and protector of Wakanda after his father was killed in a terrorist attack and he worked towards being a good ruler and was responsible for opening Wakanda to the world for the first time ever.

Arthur Curry/Aquaman lived a normal life as a human until he discovered his true Atlantean heritage and took his place as the ruler of Atlantis and one of the founders of the Justice League. The two heroes, each splitting time between saving the world and ruling their kingdom, have been good teammates to their respective team but if their worlds ever collided, how would they do working together? Here are five reasons they would make great teammates, and five reasons they wouldn’t.

10 HATE: Aquaman Has A Hard Time Playing With Others

When it came to recruiting a team of heroes to fight against the threats on the world, just about every hero agreed to join and didn’t need much convincing…all except Arthur Curry. Instead of choosing to mock Bruce Wayne for his suit and jumping back into the water to go about his day. It wasn’t until Atlantis got attacked that he decided to join the team and take on the intruders.

Although T’Challa shares the same reluctance to help the Avengers, he doesn’t hesitate to help Cap and the rest of the Avengers when Thanos threatened the world. He put his differences aside and agreed to help.

9 GREAT: They Are Both Young, Inexperienced Rulers

Arthur Curry lived a normal life with his biological father until Mera came and dropped the bombshell that he was the true king of Atlantis and the fate of the mysterious, hidden city is in his hands. He was reluctant to be King because he knew how inexperienced he was and he didn’t think he could handle the pressure of thousands of lives being in his hands. Luckily, he was able to find his confidence and he became a good ruler with a lot of potentials.

T’Challa, unlike Arthur, was born in his mysterious, hidden city and was being groomed to take over his father’s throne before his father’s untimely death. He was forced to take the throne despite his youth and inexperience and he proved a great leader when he defeated both men who threatened his kingdom.

8 HATE: Different Power Set

Arthur Curry is technically a Demi-God, with water-based powers and increased strength, invulnerability, and ability to communicate with sea life. In both his live-action portrayals, he has been nearly unstoppable and has been a much-needed addition to the Justice League, with him only rivaling the Man of Steel and Wonder Woman in brute strength.

T’Challa inherited the abilities and experiences of past Black Panther warriors and also has increased strength, speed, and invulnerability, along with his vibranium suit that makes him nearly unstoppable. Although he is a worthy opponent for MCU villains, his power set is small ball compared to Arthur’s God-like powers.

7 GREAT: Both Progressive Leaders

Arthur may be a hard guy to get along with and he may be a little bit of a jerk, but he is nonetheless an understanding leader who quickly gained love for Atlanteans and stayed loyal to his dad. He values both his human and Atlantean heritage and works towards establishing a relationship between the land-dwellers and Atlanteans.

At first, T’Challa is reluctant to share Wakanda with the rest of the world because of his fear that the rest of the world wouldn’t except the country and would in turn start a war against them. After being horrified by his father’s actions that led to Kilmonger’s hatred for Wakanda, he decides the world needs Wakanda and opens the country up fo the first time, giving the rest of the world access to advanced technology that it has never seen.

6 HATE: T’Challa’s Relationship With Namor

In both the comics and slightly mentioned in the MCU, T’Challa has a bad relationship with Marvel’s King of Atlantis, Namor. The two have been at war, they have fought against each other and they have refused to work together on several occasions.

Although Namor is more of an antihero and different than Aquaman, T’Challa could have a hard time trusting another King of Atlantis.

5 GREAT: Both Love Their People

Part of the reason Arthur finally decided to take his rightful place as king was because he saw the city for the first time and fell in love with the people and culture of Atlantis. He quickly decided that he was willing to risk his life for his people and did everything he could to save them from Manta.

T’Challa grew up in Wakandan culture and grew up to take pride in his country and his people. When he became King, his goals were to protect his people and do anything he could to keep the city hidden and protected. Later on, he did everything he could to continue to protect his country after he opened the gates.

4 HATE: Power Struggle

When two kings that are used to dishing out the commands and rules are put together, they are bound to butt heads. With Arthur already proving hard to work with when T’Challa starts giving order, it would most likely lead to some arguments and conflict between the two.

Likewise, T’Challa has lived his entire life being treated like a prince and then the king and has most likely never been in a position where he has to take orders.

3 GREAT: Both Are Great, Unrelenting Warriors

Something both these kings share is their unrelenting warrior mentality. In Aquaman, Arthur was pretty new to his powers and still managed to take on the bad guys with his stubbornness and refusal to back down from anyone.

T’Challa was nearly killed by Killmonger and used his willpower to come back stronger than ever and ready to defeat the man that threatened Wakanda.

2 HATE: Both Are Reckless

As Kings and the leaders, the last thing you should be doing is taking on superpowered villains and running into a warzone in which you might not come back from. However, these two have jumped into the face of danger and left their thrones vulnerable when they take risky moves.

Given they are young leaders who don’t mind getting their hands dirty it’s only natural they don’t see it as a risk, but to the rest of their kingdoms, it might be seen as recklessness.

1 GREAT: Both Enjoy A Balanced Lifestyle

Arthur takes pride in his Atlantean heritage and wants to be the best king, but he also enjoys his life as a land-dweller and helping people from the earth. Although it’s relatively unheard of that Kings leave Atlantis, he sees it as a way to connect with both worlds.

Similarly, T’Challa opens up his home despite the reluctance of his people. He helps the rest of the world as a hero and greatly cares for them, while also trying to help Wakanda grow.

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