“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” released Nov 11, 2022. But I was lucky enough to get to see the movie earlier, on the 10th. While I enjoyed the first “Black Panther” movie, I, like many other people, were interested in how Marvel would deal with the lack of their titular character.

Despite the movie’s almost three-hour runtime, I was pleasantly surprised; the movie was excellent, from the characterizations to details like the set and costume design.

I really enjoyed the characterization of Namor and the Talocans, the major antagonists of the movie. It’s nice to see how his interpretation differs from the comics, with how they adapted Namor’s –lack of a– costume and the armor designs of the siren-esque race. I actually think the Marvel Cinematic Universe version of Namor is better than in the comics, wherein I actually enjoyed the times he was onscreen in the movie as opposed to literally any time he shows up in the comics.

It’s interesting how they adapted Namor’s race and background from being an Atlantean from Atlantis in the comics, which is usually vague and roughly Greek-inspired, to something more mesoamerican inspired, if not explicitly said to be, with the design of their armor, the race of the actors, and the design of their capital city, Talocan. 

The city seems to be mostly Aztec inspired, with lots of sun imagery, even in the underwater setting. The choice to make them indigenous only benefits the narrative, making Namor and the Talocans motives similar to Kilmonger’s from the first movie, with a reflection on colonization and how that destroyed the way of living within central and south america, through conquistadors and the diseases they brought with them.

The set and costume design should be talked about too, with how incredible it is. The first “Black Panther” won an Oscar for its costume design, which is just as good, if not better, in the sequel. From the funeral clothing to the casual clothing worn by the major and background characters, to the armor of the Talocans, the costumes convey all of the characters so well.

In short, I enjoyed the movie quite a bit, considering it to be even better than the first “Black Panther.”