Into the Longbox

I'm going to save my usual pre-amble nonsense and just jump into my review of the movie while it's fresh in my mind. Did I love the movie? Yes! Was it better than the first one? Well, no, but that's not a bad thing. It's different. I would give it a 9/10 if we want to put numbers on things. That first movie was fueled by the unmistakable charisma of the late Chadwick Boseman. We are at a unique moment right now. I've never recalled an actor being so closely tied to a character that his actual death was tied into a movie that felt like a loving eulogy. Chadwick Boseman is clearly missed and this movie does not shy away from it. There is such a palpable sadness in the beginning of this movie that is really a gut punch. There is a long moment of silence for when the Marvel logo pops up and I want you to pay attention to it because it is different.  Let this be a warning to you, there is a lot of emotional, gut punches in this movie. Did I cry a bit? I would be lying if...

Y'all know I'm a die hard Black Panther fan. I own almost 90% of his solo stuff that's ever been released. I've read some great stories and some not so great stories. Through it all, I never felt the way I do now. A few months ago I shared my thoughts on the first issue of this new run. Has it gotten better? No. Instead of giving this blanket statement, let me share my reasons why. Over the past year or two, they've transformed Wakanda into a democracy. A modern take on an old comic book mythos is okay. I don't mind this. I've been reading comics for a while and something is going to happen where this is going to revert back. It's just the nature of the beast, so I don't sweat changes like this. Where I have a problem is with the writing. I get that Marvel wants synergy between the comics and the movies. Black Panther was a C List character at best about fifteen years ago. Now he's become more prominent and is among the A-Listers. To try and bui...