A Bit Of Sparking Momentum: Reviewing ‘Ultimate Black Panther’ #7

When it comes to games of Gods and Kings, kicking things into a higher gear requires big bold moves. After warring for months, the Black Panther is ready to make them.

Bryan Hill, Stefano Caselli, David Curiel, and Cory Petit begin to move the game pieces across the board in bigger ways with Ultimate Black Panther #7.

There are three words that sum up my overall feelings about this issue: It’s about time!

Now, let me temper any expectations by stating that there is still a lot of ground that needs to be covered with this book for it to become more than fine. What happens here is a good first step, because, gasp, some things actually happen here. After six issues of very minor movement and a lot of characterless spinning wheels, they might be cooking with a bit of gas.

What Hill has been doing here would make the 2000s era decompression brim with envy. Using the every issue equals a month of time (both in and out of universe) gimmick to its maximum to just stretch story beats as far as possible. Reed Richards’ is nodding approvingly at how stretchy things are.

Many of the faults of the previous issues, chiefly a lack of real unique or clear characterization, are still in play here. Yet, we see T’Challa actually fighting back against Moon Knight (the Gods Ra and Khonshu), and after some chats with others he boldly saves lives and declares full war against them. It leaps things forward, only slightly but still movement, and somewhat works to make the universe stand apart from the versions it was mostly mimicking.

Caselli is back on art just in time for the book to do big bold superhero things. Which naturally works for the whimsical but heavy ripe for superhero books style he tends to employ. Panels are well structured to make sure that the focus captures every bit of motion, giving things perfect kinetic energy. Everything has the right type of weight to feel impactful and realistic, in a sense.

As always it pairs quite nicely with Curiel’s bevy of color choices. A palette that slides towards the vibrant and rich, capitalizing on the aforementioned superhero and fantastical elements in play. At the same time much of the landscape, especially outside of Wakanda, sits in a more toned down or tonally neutral space. Giving it that sort of familiar feeling equated to the type of spaces we see around ourselves. Letting the bolder bits stand out far more, but also giving us some firm ground to stand upon in creating a facsimile of “the world outside or window.”

Little by little there are some shades of personality and differing emotional ranges beginning to appear with this cast. Hell, we even get a cast page now that showcases everyone, with little headshots that convey a bit of something. Now that we’re seeing those stirrings, it definitely gives more for Petit to chew on and deliver with the lettering. Not that he wasn’t delivering every issue before, but no doubt it makes the job a bit more ‘fun’ in a sense when one can cut loose a bit.

Ultimate Black Panther #7 is now available from Marvel Comics.