T’Challa began his journey way back in July 1966 when he debuted as a comic-strip superhero. Those were rather humble origins, because he appeared in a Fantastic Four comic (no. 52), not in his very own. Of course, he was under Marvel Comics at the time, and has been since. Written into existence by the legendary, though recently sorely misunderstood, Stan Lee, Black Panther almost immediately found a fan base to call his own. In addition to artist Jack Kirby’s exceptional talent, Black Panther relied on a core team of real-life creative geniuses who, in light of recent box office ratings, have apparently ensured a superb future for this superhero.
The 2018 movie directed by Ryan Coogler saw such immense success at the box office that it’s hard to understand why they took this long to make a Black Panther movie. Averaging $1.195 billion in ticket sales worldwide, this character and the roster of support cast don’t look like they are going to go away anytime soon. Chadwick Boseman plays the lead in the movie, with outstanding acting talents like Angela Basset (Ramonda), Michael B. Jordan (Erik Killmonger), Daniel Kaluya (W’Kabi), and Andy Serkis (Ulysses Klaue), to name a few.
In this article, you are going to be let in on a series of goodies, namely data and secrets, about Black Panther’s other powers, which may not have been covered in the movie but were beautifully focused on in the assortment of comic books dedicated or involving the Panther. The filmmakers may definitely be planning to include these powers in future flicks. Most fans of the comic books will be quite familiar with these ‘secrets.' The title has been so named in order to cater to newcomer fans to the realm of the Black Panther. Also, bear in mind that we aim to cover both super-powers AND super-suit powers. It’s technology and magic all the way. So without keeping you waiting any longer, let’s just yell ‘Wakanda Forever!’ and in all awkwardness get started on this ride.
25 Who’s The Fastest Of Them All?
While he cannot hope to beat the Flash, Black Panther is still one of the fastest superheroes on the block. There are other Marvel speedsters, of course, and they can indeed outrace the Panther, but imagine how fast this cat must be to be able to catch arrows mid-flight and dodge bullets. He does this quite often in the comics. We all know how fast Spiderman is, but the cat bagged the bug twice in the comics, each time taking Peter Parker completely off guard. That’s crazy quick if you ask us.
We already seem to have set the tone for this article, so without skipping a comic-beat let’s add how the graphic novel versions of the Black Panther have stated his ability to ‘blur’ and confuse his enemies. His attacks are much like his namesake, lightning-quick. If you don’t believe us, take a gander at Jungle Action #11 where T’Challa's attack reflexes were compared to that of an ordinary man’s. The Panther can strike three times as fast in the same time-frame. He has every reason to be part of the Avengers movies, owing in major fact to his being involved in the Avengers comics. Take The Avengers #53 where T’Challa was spotted using his super-speed to jaw-dropping effect. He caught up with Cyclops who was at a distance and attacked before the man could even raise a hand to his laser-visor.
24 T’Challa, The Mind Reader
This may not have always been T’Challa’s superpower, but there came a time in the graphic novels, aka comics, when he abruptly became clairvoyant, and not in the fun sense. Horrible nightmares, worse visions about the future, you name it, he drowned in a veritable flood of mental mis-moments. It was thanks to this unexpected psychic torment that Black Panther was even able to pinpoint a certain energy vampire by the name of Kiber the Cruel. While there may not be any satisfying explanations as to T’Challa’s sudden increase in clairvoyant capabilities, it is nevertheless held that his almost-constant exposure to the Vibranium Mound could have been responsible for the ‘mutation.’
Of course, he takes up the mantle to hunt Kiber down, fails, and resorts to entering a sort of psychic limbo to figure out the location of Kiber’s lair.
Once that was out of the way, he went full physical, headed over to the spot, took out Kiber’s henchmen and then the energy vampire himself. At first, some readers of the comics assumed that Kiber had something to do with Black Panther’s psychic gains, because the energy-vamp proved to be one himself. But fans know that that was all a big lie, of Wizard of Oz proportions. The discovery of who Kiber really is proved rather nauseating. The Panther turned cruel in his own right, took the last of Kiber’s energy stores and abandoned the villain to his eventual end.
23 Last Long, Really Long
It’s obvious the part endurance plays in any superhero’s repertoire. Without it, a few punches, maybe a couple of kicks, and that hero will be out for the count. Marvel’s villains are not all that forgiving, either. In addition to having some of the densest bones and muscles, T’Challa also has superior genetics working to his advantage. In other words, he doesn’t need to completely rely on his Vibranium suit to keep him safe in a fight. The suit is a mega-tool while his body is armor in its own right. We see this proven in the comics, namely Black Panther Vol. 3 #20. Fans will remember his face off with a gene-boosted Erik Killmonger in that issue.
Erik was powerful enough to take on an enraged elephant, but that didn’t dissuade T’Challa who encountered him at Warrior’s Falls sans his Vibranium suit. Apparently, it’s a matter of clan honor to fight Erik this way. The battle is stretched out over several hours, which brings us to the crux of the matter. The ceremonial tribal challenge is as much a testament to endurance as it is to cunning and strength. Much like wrestling, both Erik and T’Challa are afforded rest-breaks. Thirteen hours later, T’Challa beats Erik only to be distracted by his own buddies, a moment that the sinister Killmonger uses to steal a win.
22 I Can Do This All Day
On a similar note, Stamina is yet another factor that can make or break battles involving superheroes and super-villains. Endurance is how long you can last in a fight, stamina is how intensely you can last during that fight. Black Panther needs to land a strong enough punch after several hours immersed in combat, in keeping with the force behind his initial punches. He also needs to remain agile throughout, or he will end up adding shortcomings to his techniques. This is precisely why learning the fact that his body processes fatigue in an entirely different way to how normal people do so brings a smile to our fan-faces.
There’s proof for his uber-Olympian physique in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Master Edition #9. His physical efforts can progress without waning for several hours, as witnessed in his encounters with Sombre in Jungle Action #14. He was forced to track his nemesis through the desert for three straight days before they met in combat. Sombre used his full strength to re-open T’Challa’s old wounds, rendering him weak or so Sombre assumed. Not only did Black Panther win the bout after a five-day face-off, he also encountered a T-Rex at the end of the comic book issue, and he downed the great lizard without batting a cat-lid. This is off-the-charts stamina!
21 Them Muscles
On another similar note, let’s cover strength and be done with these obvious pointers so we can move on to the juicier bits of this article. Anyone versed in Panther-lore knows that he gets a good dose of strength from a heart-shaped herb that grows exclusively in Wakanda. Just think super-soldier serum meets herbal physiology-booster drug. This herb is not used in ceremonial challenge battles but is bestowed on the victor after the traditional brawl. The winner is anointed with the juiced version of the herb, which floods the host’s muscles with almost superhuman strength. The comics have shown that Black Panther was able to stop a rampaging pachyderm and even body-slam a rhino, once he was under its alien effects.
Comic book lore depicted an event when T’Challa’s sister, Shuri, took up the mantle of Black Panther. Only under the sacred auspices of this post is it permissible to consume the heart-shaped herb. This meant Shuri grew powerful while T’Challa’s strength waned. But T’Challa’s story did not end there. He made a pact with the Panther Goddess (more on this later) Bast, who let him hold on to his powers under a new mantle, namely King of the Deceased (more on this in the next point). The former Black Panther’s strength, therefore, found renewed purpose, and his new ‘nature’ enabled him to tackle powerful villains in the MCU (i.e., Marvel Cinematic Universe, in case you didn’t know). One such instance included his victory over Black Dwarf, an order/cult founded by none other than Thanos.
20 The Departed Rise
In light of what you just learned, we can certainly agree that T’Challa’s necromantic gifts are not superpowers per se, but a divine blessing given to him by Bast, the Panther Goddess. With it, he has shown to raise undead soldiers to fight for justice. T’Challa has also tapped into this ability to speak with the deceased. The comic books are a wealth of knowledge into the life of the Black Panther, as in the case of Secret Wars #7 where fans witnessed T’Challa taking on the God Emperor, aka Doom, by sending a huge zombie army against his forces. These undead are not dumb, staggering creatures but quite sassy and hot-blooded, for deceased things. T’Challa’s speech rouses them into action and an epic battle ensues.
A multi-versal bunch of Thors and Hulks are also involved!
Black Panther does not take a back seat in this war, in fact, T’Challa is actually armed with the Infinity Gauntlet when he takes Doom on. Armed with the intention to dethrone the self-titled God Emperor, this is one more proof that the comic books (much like actual novels) are way better than the movies. We also draw your salivating attention to Black Panther Vol 6 #11, specifically to the part where T’Challa calls forth legions of undead from Necropolis to counter the machinations of a terrorist outfit keen on taking over Wakanda.
19 A Trippy Trip
There are actual villains and there are inter-dimensional ones. These cosmic entities are now the subject of our focus, or rather Black Panther’s. Most of these other-dimension baddies have a ‘natural’ talent termed ‘cosmic awareness,’ which allows them to see deeper into space and time than ordinary creatures like you, me, and a whole slew of superheroes. This definitely makes them wise, for lack of a better word, granting them superior knowledge and a greater sense of the place of things in the universe. Sounds like an unbeatable ‘I will see you coming miles away’ kind of superpower, doesn’t it?
So how does Black Panther counter it? By being exposed to the same power as these villains were, of course. Fans who read the Ultimates 2 comic series may recall T’Challa gaining this ‘higher sense’ ability after he was exposed to the mind of the one and only Galactus. From cages around the multi-verse to good old-fashioned visions of the future, Black Panther had an all-access pass to inter-dimensional secrets. Issue #100 of said graphic novel series pits him against the notorious Logos. As villains go, this feller was bizarre. No wonder, because he was basically a ‘fusion being.’ Teaming up with the Ultimates and Galactus, Black Panther still ends up failing to conquer Logos. However, in the process, he faces off against a manifestation of Human First-Fear (our words), namely the Tiger God, and T’Challa ends up ‘ascending to a greater astral plane.’
18 Where’d He Go?
As promised in the article’s introduction, we come now to an actual suit-based power, namely the Vibranium outfit worn by Black Panther on missions and misadventures. Much like Apple’s incessant need to keep upgrading their iOS devices, T’Challa has been intently developing his suit to ‘suit’ his requirements out in the field. Whether it’s attack or defense, you’ll find several wonderful tech-geeky additions went into Black Panther’s suit over the years. The one in the movie is probably one ‘type’ in a long future list of probable suit designs that will put the ‘G’ in Glory. Anyway, bet some of you did not know that Black Panther could go invisible! And that he can control the suit itself telepathically!
By extension, T’Challla can actually disguise himself in everyday wear; imagine if he wanted to wear Dior Homme, it’s his for the styling. If you are cracking your head as to which comic you read about this ability in, it’s New Avengers Vol.3 #1. Aside from being a stealth-master (he’d better be, or the fact that he’s feline would not sit well with fans), Black Panther can tap into his suit’s invisibility settings to enhance his natural stealth ten-fold, and the advantages are self-explanatory. Unless the opponent, nemesis, or super-villain in question comes prepared in some form or fashion to spot this cat prowling around wearing his invisibility suit, chances are Black Panther will make several fatal face-offs seem like a cakewalk.
17 Get Out!
Since he himself has shown capable of using telepathy, Black Panther must, in turn, be resistant to it or it could fast become a weakness for him if some villain in the MCU decides to wear him down from within his own mind. The Earth-616 storyline (in the comics) gave us a slew of villains capable of an assortment of telepathic abilities. Realizing that he might sooner or later cross inter-dimensional paths with such baddies, T’Challa took it upon himself to grow a sort of immunity to telepathy.
Mental conditioning is the obvious guess, but he nonetheless requires the support of technology to refine his tele-resistance.
Add to this the other known fact of Black Panther possessing some form of psychic power and you have yourself a superhero with a set of skills that can most definitely counter several different varieties of villains. Fans of the comics must have come across Original Sin #4’s Emma Frost, an Omega-class telepath who attempted to breach T’Challa’s mind only to end up defining the destination as, “a bear trap wrapped in barbed wire... that someone set on fire.” And again in Cable #54, we see him silencing his mind to such a fine degree that Cable fails to psychically sense his nearness in the jungle.
16 One Size Fits All
We come once more to another suit-based ability, which reads more like a superpower in its own right. Vibranium is as tough as it is versatile, which certainly means it can adapt to the basic organic shape of its wearer to ‘suit’ (we can’t seem to get over this pun) their physique. We do not mean that the suit can transform from, say, human male to fluffy bunny rabbit. Black Panther’s Vibranium outfit can fit to form! Working on anyone of any shape, height, or size, it molds itself around the body of the one who activates it, unraveling from the claw chain around the host’s neck. One distinct instance of this can be read in the Black Panther graphic novel written by Ta-Nehisi Coates and Brian Stelfreeze. The helm seems to morph around T’Challa’s head instead of remaining as a standard design like, say, Batman’s helm.
Another small instance took place in the movie itself where a small portion of the suit at Black Panther’s chest opened to enable him to use the Hulkbuster machine. The most glaring moment of the suit’s technological shape-fitting ability was seen in Erik Killmonger’s similarly styled outfit. The way both his and T’Challla’s suits morphed around their forms is sufficient proof that we are not guessing about this tech-stat. No tailors needed, folks, the suit’s super-AI knows what it's doing.
15 It’s All Kinetic
This was a significant focal point in the movie, when T’Challa’s suit turned all glitzy and shiny. True fans learned to call it by what it is: Kinetic Energy. The suit is able to shield its wearer not just from close-combat assaults but actual bullets. That’s massive energy being flung at one Panther, meaning it all has to be distributed or re-used somehow lest it impacts on T’Challa and cracks him open like an egg. The suit charges itself from all the kinetic influences it receives when out in the field. Interesting idea to apply to cell-phones so they come ready to cater to the vagaries of angry teenagers; throw phone to charge it, harder the better.
Anyway, several in-suit apps also rely on this kinetic energy to function. Consider it an all-natural force that doubles as fuel for a super-techno suit that everyone, including Black Panther, is sure to love and want. His boots (more on this later) themselves are especially designed for combat. The energy regulators in them also rely on the suit’s kinetic energy accumulations. The purple light show that we saw in the movie is this energy in action, not some Twilight inspired body-glitter made geeky. Any excess energy is stored for later use. The sheer efficiency of this design element never ceases to impress us. It’s almost like magic. But you know what they say, any sufficiently evolved technology seems like magic. Even Iron Man has not figured out the source of this powerful energy source. His own suit relies on an arc reactor-based battery to function.
14 The Goddess Connection
The amount of ceremonial weight and significance placed on the role of Black Panther did not just pop out of the Wakandan ground. There are ancient beliefs rooted in tradition that even gives the receiver of these powers a reason to be who they are and to carry the name ‘Black Panther’ with pride and dignity. In the past, the chieftain of the Wakandan Panther Cult was bestowed the title. This chieftain was burdened with another crown, that of being King, veritably making him Wakanda’s top cat, in a manner of speaking. Even in this ritual, a ceremonial Panther habit was involved and given to the person in question only after they went head to head with a mysterious entity known simply as the Panther Goddess.
In the comics, fans read about T’Challa later accepting his role as chieftain following the demise of his childhood buddy, B’Tumba.
He helped him evade a grave situation. During his ceremony, T’Challa defeated the Black Panther, claimed the heart-shaped herb, and exited the trance to don the mantle of Black Panther. The herb is supposed to connect him to Bast, the Panther Goddess, without whose blessing it would simply overpower or end the consumer’s life. This is precisely why nobody dares use it outside the ceremonial setting, and anyone who tries will only meet with a terrible fate sooner or later. Isn’t it a bit strange that Bast very nearly sounds like Bastet, the cat-headed goddess of fertility in Egyptian lore?
13 Let There Be Light
Simply moving from one place to another generates kinetic energy that Black Panther’s suit then stores or uses, as the case may be. It’s an almost limitless source of energy, come to think of it. And he, therefore, has reason to call upon some of the niftiest tech-innovations this side of Wakanda. Like a hard-light shield, for instance. He manifestly compacts light into a solid shield that he focuses in a direction to deflect just about anything, except perhaps a nuclear warhead (our assumption, fuelled by excitement). For all you hardcore gamers out there, it’s like a life-taker with agility spec is both tanking and healing (more on this later) while flooding the dps meters.
We draw your attention to New Avengers #1, where Black Panther has been seen relying on hard-light shielding to save his life and that of others. The story in that issue included three youngsters solving an ingenious puzzle that helped them successfully traverse an obstacle course only to end up near an unforeseen incursion site where a strike team was busy trying to end anyone who wasn’t wearing their colors. Black Panther admittedly failed to save two of them in time, but he managed to get ahead of the third youngster and brought up that amazing shield. The barrage was strong enough to break the shield, but he’s probably planning a way to enhance hard-light’s strength quotient for future missions. He has found a way to even roll that shield, like he did in the movie.
12 These Boots Are Made For Miracles
Being named after a feline is no small calling, in fact, the hero in question needs to uphold several feline attributes in order to come across as a serious superhero. Black Panther’s key skills reside in footwork, where agility finds fresh definition. To accomplish this, his suit needed special tech-attention to go into his boots. The suit itself covers the rest of him whereas his boots bring their own unique magic to the techno-mix. After all, there must be a sound reason how Black Panther is able to leap from incredible heights and land securely without harming himself. Several physical and gravity-defying feats have been proven Panther-style thanks to T’Challa’s energy-dampening boots.
Vibranium lined soles balance out the energy regulators that went into the boots’ design. Together they work to produce an invisible energy field that softens impacts on his person, if he happens to land directly on his feet, that is. Here’s another brilliant feat: these boots are made for water-walking! Once Black Panther gets enough momentum to go, he can Jesus-run his way over water. On a similar note, he can also climb walls, but only as long as he has gained sufficient momentum, nearing the end of which he will need to find a safe place to land. The movie portrayed this skill to great effect, namely the scene where T’Challa runs along a wall before landing on a car. If done right, his boots can also help him stop objects or steal their incoming momentum.
11 I See You
The helm or helmet is an obviously crucial piece of gear in any superhero costume. If Black Panther’s boots can pack all that tech-gadgetry, then his helm had better display some fine features if it is to be taken seriously. One of the key features we’re referring to are the eyes, or lenses. Their visual advantage quotient is through the roof. Not only can he see as well as any nocturnal feline, even better perhaps, those lenses also cut any and all glare; bet that will come in handy on the road. Several battles against nefarious villains end up taking place in low-light settings or environments. Chances are a bad guy assumes they’re evening the battlefield by turning out the lights.
They probably know very little about big cats.
Anyway, Black Panther can naturally see quite well in the dark, in keeping with his basic instincts. This has much to do with the heart-shaped herb, which originally came to Earth inside a Vibranium meteorite. Interesting side-note, we found that this herb looks a lot like the tropical plant Devil’s Ivy. The herb ensures that Black Panther’s senses perform supernaturally. This is even how T’Challa is able to view infrared and ultraviolet spectrums without the aid of his suit. The suit helps by removing any unwanted light sources, which are ever-prevalent disaster-scenarios where villains are concerned; bad guys do their homework. With undisrupted vision comes unparalleled chances of victory.
10 There’s Plenty More Where That Came From
There are actually enough Panther suits to fill a large wardrobe, and they’re each different! MCU fans will have seen something similar with Iron Man. For one thing, it is always a wise idea to keep backup options, in this case, superhero suits. On the other hand, different situations or scenarios need different types of tools or equipment. Suppose (and this is not entirely far-fetched) Black Panther has an urgent need to perform space travel. He has a Panther suit expressly designed for that requirement. The helmet on that particular suit is brilliantly designed, with a panther-in-mid-roar shape, the mouth area serving as a visor.
Remember Tony Stark’s ingenious Hulkbuster suit? Fans will have seen it in action in Totally Awesome Hulk, specifically the Civil War II story-portion when Stark goes head to head with the Green Giant. Well, T’Challa has a parallel version to that one. Then there’s the suit-piece called simply ‘Heavenly Armor,’ which in addition to being lightweight, packs a distinctly different set of tools and tech-options from his usual superhero selection for the day. The name is apt, because this suit actually enables flight, for which T’Challa still needs to generate enough momentum. Mystical onslaughts will find this specific suit-type hard to disable. Bet Doctor Doom didn’t know what hit him, let alone what could possibly hit Black Panther once he donned Heavenly Armor.
9 The Claws Have It
It’s sometimes easy to overlook the claws in Black Panther’s otherwise intimidating ensemble. A cat’s gotta have claws, after all, so this becomes something of an expected feature in T’Challa’s suit. But fans were given an insightful glimpse into how the claws, namely the ones over his knuckles, actually work, in Captain America: Civil War. The specialized Vibranium that went into their making is capable of cutting through any metal at the molecular level. In other words, Black Panther can slice through metals as easily as he might ribbons, so to speak. What he did to Captain America’s shield is nothing compared to what he may be able to accomplish on comparatively lesser metals.
Remember all that kinetic energy build-up in his suit? His claws tap into those reserves as well, further enhancing their slice-potential. The claws are therefore energy tipped, which T’Challa can also shoot like bullets at an enemy. He only has ten of them, so he needs to be careful how he spends his ‘ammo.’ We could probably see more knuckle-claw action in future films, but one thing cannot be denied. They are as important to Black Panther as the soil is to the roots of a tree.
8 In The Palm Of His Panther-Hands
One of the most prominent expressions from T’Challa’s Panther-suit is when he uses some of that pent-up kinetic energy to unleash a pulse wave at his opponents. It’s all physics, really, a higher more refined kind. The graphic novel by Ta-Nehisi Coates and Brian Stelfreeze contains beautifully illustrated scenes of Black Panther focusing concussive waves of energy at enemies. It’s like his suit is expelling packets of kinetic energy in a tight compacted fashion, enough for the energy to become a force. Whatever the exact science behind it, we’re certain it will leave a big red mottle on the skin of T’Challa’s opponents.
Let’s not be remiss about that car chase scene, when Black Panther finds his way atop an SUV and uses pulse waves to flip the car over to get at his prey.
That’s the energy wave action happening right there. The visuals and CG make it all the more remarkable to see. These are not the only times Black Panther calls upon this particular suit-skill. He used his pulse or energy wave ability in The Totally Awesome Hulk, namely in the tie-in issue concerning Civil War II. Suffice to say, T’Challa’s got power at his claw-tips, and he can use them in varying intensities as long as he has the focus and time (even if it is just a few seconds) to aim the potent offense.
7 Super Ex Machina
The hidden truth about Wakanda is that it’s the most advanced society by way of technology. While this may not be true in the real world, it certainly is in the MCU. Imagining the difference between Silicon Valley and Wakanda leaves us observing a huge chasm, a veritable canyon, between them. There are few better demonstrable options of tech-superiority in Wakanda than the Black Panther suit itself. By this time in the article, you have been let in on a few skills and capabilities concerning T’Challa’s amazing suit. What you might not have known is that it comes with its own PDA.
Now don’t go assuming this is an evolved version of Google Assistant or Cortana. This system, which is often referred to as a Kimoyo Card, is a bona fide super-computer that works on anything and everything T’Challa needs to help him assess, fight, and win while on field missions. The Avengers have something similar, namely Communicards, but the Panther’s is way superior. By staying connected to multiple global positioning satellites, Black Panther gets his information fresh and in real-time. He can learn about events taking place anywhere in the world. Talk about a satellite hack! There was this one time when T’Challa gained access to a jumbo jet’s schematics and with the help of his suit’s supercomputer helped land the plane in a river, all passengers accounted for; Sully must have taken notes.
6 A Dagger In Hand Is Worth…
Captain America: Civil War gave us a strong look at what Black Panther could do with our next set of suit-tech beauties, namely energy daggers. You might assume, why would a Panther whose claws are already energy-tipped need daggers? We return once more to that age-old logic: different tools for different occasions. T’Challa’s daggers became a signature weapon for him during his attempt to find the person who ended his father, T’Chaka’s, life. The comics, on the other hand, have made readers and fans more than familiar with these daggers, because Black Panther has used them quite often in illustration.
Stone or ivory hilts add to its ethnic design element, but the energy is all pro-technology from the evolved labs of Wakandan genius. Black Panther can choose between ending or stunning his opponent; the blades have both interchangeable features. While we would like to assume that our friendly neighborhood Panther-man wouldn’t choose the fatal option, there have been moments when he had no choice but to do so. You know what they say, Nature is red in tooth and claw. While his skills with the daggers are exemplary, he is just as good at using them like darts. Black Panther can fling his energy daggers with near-perfect accuracy. The blades have their own power source, but we’re guessing that it can also tap into the Panther-suit’s kinetic energy stores. This means their regeneration potential is incredibly vast.