Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s Original Black Panther Ideas Were Atrocious

Black Panther is one of the most popular superheroes in the world, but early decisions by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby almost irreparably damaged the character before he even made his comics debut. Early versions of superheroes often have minute differences in powers and appearances, and King T’Challa is no exception. T’Challa has certainly changed over the years – especially his tone – but the most important changes happened before the Black Panther’s first appearance even went to print.

Even before the success of Marvel Studios’ Black Panther film in 2018, Black Panther was very well-known among comic book enthusiasts. One of the first major black superheroes in comics at the time, T’Challa wasn’t a member of a dysfunctional family or an irresponsible teenager – he was a king. T’Challa ruled the fictional nation of Wakanda, a country famous for repelling every invading army throughout history – an impressive feat considering the British Empire’s historic predilection for colonizing Africa. Black Panther made his debut in Fantastic Four #52, in which he demonstrated his superior fighting skills against every member of the team – but in the early planning stages of the issue, he wasn’t named the Black Panther at all.

Jack Kirby, upon hearing about Stan Lee’s desire to create an African-American superhero, drew up a preliminary sketch of T’Challa wearing a brightly-colored costume with vertical yellow stripes and a short red cape. Stan Lee initially wanted to name the hero the Coal Tiger; the name was shorthand for post-colonial African nations. But eventually Lee and Kirby thought it over and renamed the character to Black Panther. The most radical departure from the final design is T’Challa’s exposed face – apparently a point of contention among the staff, since Kirby continued to submit designs with a mask that exposed the character’s mouth…and crucially, his skin. Eventually the decision was made to conceal T’Challa’s face completely.

In addition to the Black Panther, Wakanda as a whole underwent large changes. Stan Lee originally envisioned Wakanda as a massive underground society, to better hide from prying eyes. “In order not to be discovered by the rest of the world, ’cause [T’Challa] doesn’t want his nation contaminated by today’s civilization, it’s hidden underground,” said Lee in a 2005 interview with Alterego Magazine. “And up above it looks like just thatched villages where nobody would ever suspect what’s really below.” This too was largely abandoned in favor of various tree canopies and other concealing elements; perhaps Marvel eventually realized that an African nation literally hiding underground would have certain negative connotations.

A brightly-colored T’Challa and a subterranean Wakanda would certainly not be the only deciding factors in a character’s popularity, but their removal was overall a step in the right direction. T’Challa’s all-black panther suit was quite intimidating (especially contrasting against the Fantastic Four’s all-blue uniforms), and Wakanda deserves to stand proud aboveground. Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s edits to their original Black Panther plan prove that writers rarely get it right the first time.

Source: Thegeektwins.com