How Old T’Challa Was When The Ravagers Took Him From Wakanda

WARNING: Spoilers for What If…? episode 2, “What if…T’Challa Became a Star-Lord?”

How old was T’Challa when he was abducted by Yondu in the timeline of Marvel’s What if…? The second episode of the animated Disney+ series took a dive into an alternate timeline where T’Challa, not Peter Quill, was taken from Earth by the Ravagers and made into a space adventurer.

Much like the show’s first episode and the comic book series Marvel’s What If…? is based on, the Watcher’s tale of T’Challa’s experiences in space amounted to several established MCU characters being set on different paths than what happened to them in the main MCU timeline. Episode 2 reflected just how much potential T’Challa had to impact the universe by showing characters like Yondu, Thanos, Nebula, Drax the Destroyer, and Korath the Pursuer in roles that differed greatly from how they were used in the movies. For the most part, things actually worked out better for them in episode 2’s timeline, with one example being Thanos finding a peaceful way to get what he wanted rather than resorting to genocide. True to the spirit of the concept behind the series, all of these changes were set in motion by one changed event in What If…? episode 2: Yondu’s Ravagers accidentally kidnapping T’Challa from Earth instead of Peter Quill.

Similar to Peter Quill, T’Challa was just a child when he was made a member of the Ravagers, but the episode doesn’t say explicitly how old he was when his MCU destiny was altered. But by looking at the history of events and the timeline established by Black Panther and Guardians of the Galaxy, it’s possible to work out that he must have been around eight years old at the time he was taken by the Ravagers. This would be consistent with his appearance and what’s known about his age in the MCU.

Despite Black Panther actor Chadwick Boseman being in his early 40s, it’s likely that the character himself was actually in his late 30s during his last two MCU outings, which were Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. While it’s fair to wonder if the King of Wakanda was even younger than that, being in his late 30s makes sense considering that he was old enough to have memories of Killmonger’s father prior to his death in 1992. Throwing some real-life science into his story, researchers have determined that kids’ memories become about as good as they are as adults around age 6 or 7 [via Fatherly], so assuming T’Challa was at least that old in 1992 (and likely a bit older), with Infinity War taking place in 2018, that would make him 33 years old at the youngest in that movie.

As stated by the writers of the show, the version of T’Challa featured in Marvel’s What If…? episode 2 being able to live his life as a Ravager hinged on his character being approximately the same age as Star-Lord. Peter Quill was born in 1980, eight years before his mother’s death and meeting Yondu for the first time, so it stands to reason that T’Challa was roughly the same age. This lines up with T’Challa’s main MCU timeline, as well, give or take a handful of years on either side. But while their ages line up perfectly, that’s where their similarities end. How T’Challa endeavored to be the galaxy’s very own Robin Hood and how he impacted so many powerful characters are indicative of how unique his Star-Lord is compared to Peter Quill’s in the main MCU timeline.

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