Predator vs. Black Panther #2 doesn’t waste much time in picking up where the series’ debut issue left off, immediately pitting the Black Panther and the forces of Wakanda against Yajuta invaders. But little does T’Challa know is that he’s become the main target, as the Yajuta who launched the invasion wants his Vibranium costume – and the whole of Wakanda’s vibranium!
Benjamin Percy keeps the same mythic approach to the narration, unfurling the tale as though he’s telling it around a campfire. This is a bit of a double edged sword; on the one hand, it makes the fight feel truly epic – the Black Panther is a mantle heavy with history and myth, so the same approach taken toward his fights underlines that, especially when the Yajuta begin to learn how formidable T’Challa is.
On the other hand, it keeps the audience at a distance, especially when a look into T’Challa’s head wouldn’t hurt. When Percy was scripting Predator vs. Wolverine, he put the reader right in the middle of Logan’s thoughts as he fought the Yajuta. This approach made the story feel more personal. Here, I don’t have a sense of T’Challa’s feelings, and given that his nation and more importantly his sister are in danger, that interiority would be welcome.
Marvel
Sean Damian Hill is still an artist to keep an eye out for, especially with his juxtaposition between the Wakandans and the Yajuta. The Yajuta are all muscle, save for the various pieces of armor and helmets they wear, and the shimmer of air when they go into their camoflauge mode. In contrast, the people of Wakanda vary in age and position but their humanity is never more evident – and Hill finds a horrific way to blend the two when a Wakandan elder has a grim portent of the future. His robes twist and furl, taking the hideously familiar visage of a Yajuta…a grim portent of things to come.
Erick Arciniega tops the whole thing off with a collection of colors that give Wakanda life, even amid a night of horrors. The Dora Milaje are instantly visible due to their blood red robes; so is the Panther with his midnight-black costume and cape. And since there’s a comic with a Predator, plenty of blood is split – dark red when it’s human, bright green when it’s Yajuta.
Predator vs. Black Panther #2 is a fine prelude to the fight to come, but it does feel a bit lacking in certain areas – particularly the Panther’s inner thoughts. With two more issues to go, I hope the creative team gives us a fight worth reading.
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