Namor and Black Panther Are Teaming Up in Marvel Comics

Warning: spoilers for Fantastic Four #33!

The king of Atlantis, Namor, and the king of Wakanda, the Black Panther are teaming up to stop Doctor Doom. In Fantastic Four #33, a bombshell revelation sends Doom’s wedding off the rails, forcing the two monarchs into action to help save the Fantastic Four. The issue is on sale now in print and digital.

In the previous issue, Doctor Doom announced he was going to marry Victorious, his herald, though it was later revealed the marriage would be purely ceremonial. Unfortunately, Victorious and Johnny Storm slept together after fighting off a group of terrorists, with Doom none the wiser, setting up a ticking time bomb for the villainous couple. In an odd turn of events, Doom asked Reed Richards to be the Latverian equivalent of his best man, promising to forgive the Fantastic Four’s trespasses against him should they attend. The date was set, and the guest list made out, with both Namor and Black Panther invited. But while having three kings in the same place at the same time, including the volatile Namor, might seem like a bad idea, it may ultimately be the Fantastic Four’s saving grace.

Doctor Doom’s wedding is a lavish affair, with various royalty and other heads of state in attendance. As Black Panther makes an entrance, Namor approaches him, teasing him over a potential non-aggression pact between Wakanda and Latveria. When Black Panther turns the question back on Namor, he informs Black Panther that he has no need for an alliance with Doom, and he is here “out of curiosity,” to see who is trying to curry favor with Doom. After Victorious tells the assembled crowd she slept with Johnny Storm, Doom snaps and prepares to unleash his wrath. The Fantastic Four, Namor and Black Panther leap into action, but Doom uses a mass hypnosis machine to stop them from fighting back, leaving them at the mercy of an army of Doombots.

While rumors swirl of Namor appearing in Black Panther 2: Wakanda Forever, fans can see the two in action in Fantastic Four #33, from Dan Slott, R.B. Silva, Luca Maresca, Jesus Aburtov and Joe Caramanga. Both are formidable fighters, and both have vast resources behind them. Yet this scenario could potentially lead to a huge conflict, as Doom is primed to see Namor and Black Panther’s actions as acts of war on behalf of Wakanda and Atlantis. A conflict between any of these three nations could prove catastrophic for Earth.

Black Panther is a hero, so his willingness to risk the potential fallout of confronting Doom makes sense. Namor is a more interesting case; despite recent attacks on the surface world and a more militant attitude to nations whose pollution harms the world’s oceans, he leaps into action with no hesitation, suggesting a more heroic side than most give him credit for, and more affection for the Fantastic Four as a team than he would ever admit.

Namor and T’Challa have clashed in the past, with Namor drowning Wakanda under the influence of the Phoenix, and Black Panther taking murderous revenge, but when it comes to a villain like Doctor Doom, the two are thankfully on the same side, and will hopefully find a solution to Doom’s hypnosis when Fantastic Four #34 hits retailers July 28.

About The Author

Shaun Corley
(1377 Articles Published)

Shaun Corley is a pop culture enthusiast living in the Pacific Northwest. After stints in both customer service and academia, he’s turned his attention to writing about comic books–his lifelong passion. He is a graduate of Radford University, with a degree in English. When not reading comics, he enjoys spending time with his fiance and their dog.

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