Micronauts 1st Appearances & Key Comics Part 1

This was requested by Ace. I'm not specin' here. I was not a fan of these comics prior, and I think I have a few and zero of the IDW series.

Just "talking" about these comics. 2015 news has Hasbro and Paramount working on a movie-verse that contains the world of Micronauts, G.I. Joe, Visionaries: Knights of the Magical Light, M.A.S.K. and Rom. Transformers and G.I. Joe cross-over film is already highly anticipated.

With that out of the way, I'm attempting a key issues list of Micronaut comics starting with the Marvel verse because it was requested. Definitely no expert at all, so I have to do quite a bit of reading to familiarize myself with this world and then the more recent stuff.

Even after "reading", I do not claim to be an authority on Micronauts. Actually, I've never claimed to be an "authority" nor wanted to be. So, just writing about comics here.

Take it however you want it. You will anyway. Buy, don't buy, purely up to you as I've said quite a few times. Let's get this on!

MICRONAUTS #1

1st appearance of Micronauts &amp Microverse
1st appearance of Baron Karza
1st appearance of Prince Shaitan & Prince Argon
1st Time Traveler

The Micronauts Marvel Comics series was obviously based off the toys. However, the actual comics is a bit different.

Bill Mantlo wrote the series and word is that he got inspiration to do it when his son received a Micronaut as a gift one Christmas. Pretty cool. Originally, this series was not supposed to be part of Marvel's mainstream universe, but as we all know now, that changed.

So the Microns? They are the main cast of the series, doing good deeds and fighting dark forces in the Microverse that's much like our universe but drastically smaller.

I will get to the Microverse in the outro of this keys series, but I'll just concentrate on the characters for now or this listing will be super long.

Space Glider

First up is Commander Arcturus Rann and the character was based off the Mego Space Glider toy. He is the son of Lord Dallan Rann and Lady Sepsis, ancient rulers of Homeworld.

He was tasked with a 1000 year mission of exploration within the Microverse. When he returns back to Homeworld in his ship the Endeaor, he quickly learns that Baron Karza and his evil forces had taken over and rule Homeworld with a tyrannical and iron fist. Thus, the story and adventure of the Micronauts begins for Marvel Comics.

Biotron is Arcturus Rann's robot who serves as his personal assistant. Faithful and loyal, this character was based on the Mego toy of the same name. Artist Michael Golden kept the design pretty faithful to the toy, and Biotron did accompany Arcturus Rann on his 1000 year exploration.

Mari is a princess of Homeworld and known as Marionette. She is the sister of Argon and the two are the only survivors of the royal family who were slaughtered by Karza.

Mari was sent to the Pleasure Pits but escaped and joined the Micronauts in their goal to defeat Karza. She, too, has a faithful robot companion named Microtron. I think Mari is an original character not based on the toy line and was created by Bill Mantlo and Michael Golden.

Megos Biotron and Microtron

Acroyear is the former king of Spartak and is the brother of Shaitan, who became a traitor and mind controlled his people to serve under Karza. Prince Shaitan is based off the Acroyear II Mego toy and even thought the name was changed, I'm not sure if Marvel own the rights to character since he kind of resembles the toy.

In the comics, he debuts along side Baron Karza as shown below. Baron Karza is based of the toy of the same name and Hasbro does own the character rights. If a movie happens, Baron Karza most definitely will be in it.

Prince Acroyear was captured by his brother and sold into slavery. He was freed by the Micronauts and is based on the Mego toy Acroyear. 

Bug is a Micronaut that was speculated on a while back but things about rights or toy rights was thrown out there. Supposedly a few speculated that Bug would join Guardians of the Galaxy since he did so in the later comics.

Well, before that, Bug was a Micronaut and based off the Galactic Warrior toy. Supposedly his name was changed to Bug in the 4th issue so they could go around ownership rights since the character in the comics looked nothing like the toy.

So Bug is an Insectivorid and from the homeworld of Kaliklak. He is good friends with Acroyear and both he and Acroyear were sent to fight in the gladiatorial games in this first issue. The Pleasure Pits is where they first meet Commander Arcturus Rann as shown in the panels above.

When it comes to the actual toys, Bill Mantlo did not follow the toy's story line for Acroyear, who is a classic enemy of the good Micronauts. Instead, Mantlo made Acroyear a good guy in the comics and gave him a deeper back ground. 

Megos Acroyear & Galactic Warrior

I guess these short character bios might be good to throw in here for further knowledge. Just in case I didn't explain them too well. More information the better, right?

Marvel/Disney's version of the Microverse is apparently called the Quantum Realm as seen in the Ant-Man flick, so they have touched upon the subject. I will touch upon the Microverse more in the outro of Part 1 of this series.

I am not all that sure about direct market editions concerning this comic. 1978/79 was when direct market was just taking off.

There are the Whitman 3 packs that contained issues #1-3 and have a completely blank UPC. They are considered direct market and some of them are starting to be verified as 1st prints.

For reference, I will include an image of the Micronauts Whitman 3 pack. Micronauts #1 to the first comic series based on the toy line has the cover date of January, 1979.

MICRONAUTS #2

2nd appearance of Micronauts
2nd appearance of Baron Karza
1st Steve Coffin & visit to Earth

If I don't put this one in I'll be slammed. If I do put this one in I'll be slammed.

Oh, well. Just how it rolls.

So, 2nd appearance of the Micronauts and 2nd appearance of the series big bad, Baron Karza, in comics. Pretty much a bunch of 2nd appearances here and one first appearance of Steve Coffin.

Well, Steve does become Captain Universe and he's the son of the original Captain Universe, Ray Coffin. Other than that, Steve doesn't have that many appearances over-all in Marvel Comics, but he is a friend to the Micronauts and from Earth.

So this issue has the first time the Microns or Micronauts leave the Microverse and visit Earth. Suppose that's important since they do end up becoming part of Marvel's mainstream continuity.

This series is shaping up to be a pretty decent read so far. February, 1979 is the cover date for Micronauts #2.

MICRONAUTS #3

3rd appearance of Micronauts
3rd appearance of Baron Karza
1st Duchess Belladonna
2nd Steve Coffinn & 1st Ray Coffin

Aside from this issue holding the 3rd appearance of the Micronauts and their big bad, Baron Karza, this issue also holds two more 1st appearances. The first is Ray Coffin, and as mentioned before, he is Steve Coffin's father.

Ray Coffin is a somewhat an important character as he does become the first Captain Universe in another issue within this very comic series. We shall get to that soon enough.

The 2nd character to debut in this comic is Duchess Belladonna. She is pretty much an aristocrat - rich and ruthless. She prolonged her life in Karza's Body Banks and helps to keep the aristocrats loyal to Barza.

The Duchess shows up from time to time in the series, but really isn't a major player. She is not based of a Micronauts toy as far as I know.

Aside from Micronauts #3 also having the 2nd appearance of Steve Coffin, this comic has the cover date of March, 1979.

MICRONAUTS #4

4th appearance of Microns & Baron Karza
1st cameos Philip Prometheus & Lady Slug
3rd Steve Coffin

Philip Prometheus is a strange character. I don't think he was based on a Micronaut toy and was created by Bill Mantlo and Michael Golden.

Prometheus is a former NASA scientist and astronaut. He was involved in an accident and rebuilt into a cyborg.

He eventfully built a gateway to the Microverse called the Prometheus Pit. Somehow he ended up in the Microverse and his mind merged with Baron Karza's mind.

Philip pretty much seeks to capture the Microns for experimental study. Yeah, he's one of those villains.

Lady Slug, as described by a Dog Soldier, "ex-Royalist these lower class trash call Slug", and she is a renegade leader on the side of the good guys. Dog Soldiers are Karza's army of evil minions who enforce and protect his tyrannical rule.

Definitely a supporting character of note, Lady Slug ended up becoming a romantic interest to Prince Argon, but also ended up dying. That to be explained in another listing obviously. 

I didn't note this but this is the first time we see Argon grafted onto his horse Oberon, punishment dealt by Baron Karza. Forget to mention this earlier, but Prince Argon is also known as Force Commander, and Force Commander is a Micronaut toy. So is Oberon his trusty steed.

Cover-dated April, 1979, Micronauts #4 is still under the radar at the time of this writing, and this is supposedly the issue where they changed the name to Bug from Galactic Warrior. I am assuming that happened with 1st prints.

MICRONAUTS #5

5th appearance of Micronauts
5th Baron Karza
1st full Philip Prometheus & Slug
4th Steve Coffin
Origin of Prometheus

Both Philip Prometheus and Slug definitely show up more. Slug shows up in 7 panels on 4 pages, but quite a few panels are of her at a distance. Even though you know she's suppose to be in the scene, one panel has her at an unrecognizable distance.

This issue does have the origin of Prometheus and his Prometheus Pit. Guess I'll show how goes down in these panels below.

Of course, this is the 5th appearance of the main Micronauts such as Arcturus Rann, Mari, Bug, and Acroyear. Blah, blah, blah. 

I suppose I should at least mention that issue #7 has Man-Thing, and that should officially bring the Micronauts into Marvel's Mainstream continuity. Just going to mention that issue though.

With May, 1979 as the cover date of Micronauts #5, this comic also has the 3rd appearance of Steve Coffin.

MICRONAUTS #8

1st appearance of Captain Universe
Origin of Homeworld

Well, when you got a Prometheus Pit that acts like a gateway between Earth and Microverse, you can assume it's only a matter of time before the bad guys find a way through it. That's exactly what happened and Baron Karza is now in our world and human-size.

Think he's gonna cause some mayhem? You bet he does.

This issue saw a little heat way back in 2014 due to a revival of the character of Captain Universe. I suppose that happened in some Avengers comics or something.

In this issue, Ray becomes the first Captain Universe or rather the Uni-Power that emanates from the Enigma Force possesses him. It does not dominate so the host still retains his or her own consciousness and will. 

Steve Coffin would become Captain Universe as well (not in the Micronauts comics) but would end up losing the Uni-Power. This entity has taken on several hosts since. Captain Universe has been a member of the Avengers and the Guardians of the Galaxy.

Captain Universe is not based on any Mego toy and was created by Bill Mantlo and Michael Golden. The character's creation was due to the desire of bridging the gap between Marvel's super-hero world and the Micronauts. 

Apparently, Mantlo was for it, but Golden objected and believed the character would harm the Micronaut stories more than add to them. Despite their disagreement, it ended up happening and this issue also tells the origin of Homeworld and how it came under the rule of Baron Karza.

Other than the debut of Captain Universe, this issue is important to Marvel's version of the Micronauts since it details the origin of Homeworld. Micronauts #8 has the cover date of August, 1979.

MICRONAUTS #9

1st appearance of Cilicia
1st appearance of Spartak

This issue ventures to Acroyear's homeworld of Spartak. Of course, we also see the first appearance of Acroyear's wife, Cilicia.

I am not sure if the planet of Spartak is actually taken from the toy's story line or not. I think it should be in order for IDW to use the character and planet.

So this issue might hold the first appearance of Spartak, the homeworld of the Acroyears and of Acroyear. Much like the Spartans, this race of people are a warrior dominated society and Spartak is a harsh planet fitting of such a race.

In this issue, the Micronauts help the planet of Spartak battle with Baron Karza, and they would eventually  win their freedom from him. Cilicia would join the Micronauts on quite a few adventures.

Cover date for Micronauts #9 is September, 1979.

MICRONAUTS ANNUAL #1

Prelude to issue #1
1st chronological appearance of Micronauts
1st appearance of Galactic Defender

What happened before the events of Micronauts #1? What were Bug and Acroyear doing prior to meeting Arcturus? What was their story?

The first Micronauts Annual was a prelude that contained three stories or chapters detailing the events prior to the comic series' first issue. I really enjoyed reading this issue.

Well, there is a first appearance in this issue and it's of Galactic Defender. I don't think this character shows up often in this comic series at all.

He is the defender of Paradise III as shown and told in his debut panels. Arcturus and Biotron meet him prior to ending their 1,000 year exploration and returning to Homeworld and meeting their fellow Micronauts.

Yep, Galactic Defender was based on the Mego toy of the same name. This is the character's first appearance in comics and I believe IDW uses a version of the character also.

In the 2nd story of "Coup", we see how Karza tried to bribe for the royal family's royalty in exchange for immortality. When the royal elitists refuse, Mari and Argon's parents are eventually slaughtered by Baron Karza.

The story also sees how Prince Argon and Mari escape and are hunted down prior to when we see them in Micronauts #1. Like Arcturus and Biotron, this issue also has the 1st chronological appearance of Mari and Prince Argon, but this story could be considered the first origin for both Mari and Argon.

Finally, we have the story, "Arena of Death" and this tells us how Bug and Acroyear meet. Being political prisoners, they are herded into the Yard of the Gladiators in order to practice for the gladiatorial games.

Prior to meeting Arcturus in Micronauts #1, Bug and Acroyear fight in the games. They survive and when they see Mari, she gives them a thumbs up, letting them know she is with the resistance. 

Micronauts Annual #1 was on sale around September 18th back in 1979.

A LITTLE MORE ABOUT MARVEL'S MICROVERSE

Alright, let's talk a bit about the Microverse here, and it is a universe much like ours but on a smaller scale. Done! Just kidding.

The Microverse has been associated with Sub-Atomica in the comics, and the Micronauts comics series references Sub-Atomica plenty of times. Sub-Atomica is supposedly located within the Microverse and the movie Ant-Man did say that Pym's wife went Sub-Atomic.

Could just be a coincidence. However, and I'm not sure why this is, but the Quantum Realm is said to be the cinematic version of the Microverse. Not sure why that is because I'm not sure if the "Microverse" is owned by Marvel or Hasbro or whatever.

In the comics, the Microverse can supposedly be reached from Earth by using Pym particles as first shown in the comics in Fantastic Four #16 back in the Silver Age of comics. Ant-Man lends the Fantastic Four some Pym Particles, they shrink down, and find that Doctor Doom is in this micro-world as well.

So that may be the first published appearance of Sub-Atomica in Fantastic Four #16. Some sources say they are two different Sub-Atomicas, and I have no idea about that since I have not seen any comics that link the Sub-Atomica in Micronauts to the Sub-Atomica seen earlier in Fantastic Four #16.

Ant-Man did enter Sub-Atomica in that issue of FF #16 to help rescue the Fantastic Four, and the Fantastic Four shared an adventure in the Micronauts comic series within issues #14 through #17. Marvel's 1st family made no direct mention being in Sub-Atomica prior or the same one in FF #16 in any of those issues.

They do mention facing Psycho-Man prior in the Microverse (Fantastic Four Annual #5), but no connection of the Doom adventure in Micro-World.

Once again, not hyping up. Just talking about the comics in relation or maybe in relation to the Micronauts. There is more to the Microverse, but that will be explained in later parts to this series.

We will get into that more for sure. Happy Huntin' or dumpin' and see ya at PART 2.

 << MORE KEY COMICS | PART 2 >>

Black Panther Trailer: From Panel to Screen!

Man, that's an odd thing to call it "From Panel to Screen" for a trailer. Hasn't hit the big screen yet, but you know semantics.

So The Black Panther trailer has finally hit the net a few days ago. You probably already seen it before, but if you haven't or you liked it so much, here it is again below for ya.

Pretty cool. Looks like it will be a fun ride for sure! What do I think? I think it's a pretty standard comic book trailer for sure but it's still good. 

What else more can I say? I suppose I could continue with all the generic praise, but I'll be blunt: My interest level went up a notch.

So what and who we see from panel to screen? Lots of stuff from the actual comics.

Ok, here's the thing: I'm not droppin' specs, not pumpin' or "talking up" comics. I'm just talking about comics and how they inspired or connect to Black Panther's cinematic world that we know of so far from this trailer.

Most of the comics I've already talked about in the Black Panther keys list and some I haven't or have but missed on some characters. Hell, not like I don't need a refresher sometimes too.

Also, here's where a disclaimer comes in: If you don't care to know about the comics or a little back history of these characters because it might spoil the movie for you, stop reading. I don't want to spoil anything for anyone.

THE WORLD OF WAKANDA!

We're finally going to be exploring the mysterious world of Wakanda in the film, and it's going to be a nice world building process that we get to witness. Klaue even links this nation as having hidden the real El Dorado.

The visuals do impress. All the costumes and looks of this Wakandan world and culture have me intrigued for sure. 

For now, the trailer doesn't reveal too much. It does reveal that Wakanda is shrouded in mystery and that the misconception of it being an underdeveloped country is false and a front. 

I'm gonna guess that this is the bad ass and futuristic capital city of Birnin Zana where the royal palace resides and Wakanda has been hidin' from the rest of the world. Probably for good reason too.



Fantastic Four #52 holds the first appearance of Wakanda and Black Panther also. Here's the first look at Wakanda in that comic, and how readers first see T'Challa.

In the comics, it's established early that Wakanda is a mix of the "old and new", as Reed Richards points out to Sue in Fantastic Four #53. This concept even bewilders Reed in Fantastic Four #52 when this Wakandan emissary reveals to have some pretty impressive tech.

Looks like we'll be getting a large taste of this "old and new" concept in the film too. Not really sure when the capital city of Birnin Zana first debuted in comics. Might just be Fantastic Four #52, but not quite sure about that.

I'm guessin' that T'Challa will return to Wakanda to find his nation in a bit of trouble after the death of his father. He is now king but there are those out there in the nation moving to challenge that. Pretty much a no-brainer.

THE VILLAINS

We knew early on that Andy Serkis would return to the role of Ulysses Klaue in this film. We've already seen him in Avengers: Age of Ultron and it may look like him and Erik Killmonger might be teaming up to spread chaos for T'Challa and the country of Wakanda.

Okay with that out of the way, we all know that Ulysses Klaeu is a baddie that is tied to Black Panther and Wakanda from the trailer. He's the only one to have supposedly seen this isolated nation.

In the origin of Black Panther in Fantastic Four #53, we do learn that Ulysses Klaw is tied to the origin of the Black Panther and the baddie did travel to Wakanda. In the pages of this comic, he was there to steal Vibranium, and I'm guessing he may be trying to do the same in the cinematic world also. 

Although he didn't create any Batman-style revenge plots in the movies, Klaw ends being responsible for the death of T'Challa's pops in the ole comics. Ulysses Klaw is purely in his civvies in that issue. He's not suited up in his iconic costume.

He does not suit up until his 2nd appearance in Fantastic Four #56, but whether that happens in a future movie is beyond me. So far he doesn't even have his iconic sonic convertor/blaster yet, but I have a feeling they are building up to it. 

Michael B. Jordan has a great career ahead of him, and I think he's gonna be one of the greats. This will be the first time that I see him play a heavy, and Erik Killmonger is no joke when it comes to the history and rivalry he shares with T'Challa.

The trailer clearly shows that Wakanda is in danger, and I think Killmonger is behind the coup. What's his deal with Klaue though?

We clearly see that Killmonger is the one who busts Klaue out. For what, I am wondering? I might have a good idea what Klaue wants, but what does he have that's useful to Killmonger?

Okay, enough of that. So Erik Killmonger is a nemesis of Black Panther in the comics and was created by Don McGregor and Rich Buckler.

1st debuting in Jungle Action #6, Killmonger is N'Jadaka and a native of Wakanda. Klaw and his mercenaries pressed N'Jadaka's father into helping them in that raid that ultimately took the life of T'Challa's father.

N'Jadaka's father also died in the raid, and he and his family were captured by Klaw's men (I think Klaw's men) to be used as slaves. N'Jadka would escape and develop a deep rooted hatred for both T'Challa and Klaw. 

Since Seth Carr is listed as playing a young Killmonger on IMBd and Atandwa Kani is playing a young T'Challa, the movie most likely will shed some light on the back history of these two. Maybe or maybe it won't be exactly the same as in the comics since T'Chaka's death isn't connected to Klaw's raid on Wakanda in the movie-verse.

So Killmonger's very first origin is told in Jungle Action #7. In the comics, he usually tries to take control over Wakanda, so I'm sure he's trying to do that in this film. Of course, being a king of an entire nation, Killmonger isn't the only powerful force in the land seeking the throne and threatening T'Challa.

Man-Ape! Looks like he may just have his crew the White Gorilla Cult with him too in that scene. I have yet to talk about this character on here and it's a key I admittedly long missed.

Man-Ape is M'Baku, and this fellow Wakandan was created by Roy Thomas and John Buscema. Wait! Stop, you're "talking up" this one too much already!

Pretty obvious that Killmonger isn't the only one in this movie plotting to usurp T'Challa as king of Wakanda, but comic fans know this and most of the general audience probably could care less. Whether all three villains are working together, the trailer doesn't overly reveal, but given Man-Ape's reputation in comic books, we all can safely assume he seeks the throne also.

In the comics, M'Baku is a ruthless warrior, and in some comics and to some writers, he is considered the 2nd greatest warrior in all of Wakanda.

With the help of the White Gorilla Cult, an outlawed rival cult from Wakanda, M'Baku also tried a coup to gain the throne.  Winston Duke as the Man-Ape was just confirmed that he will be in Infinity War, so this villain will hang around for awhile. 

I hope Killmonger hangs around in the franchise for a while as well. No, not because I own Jungle Action #6. I don't own that comic, but because he is a great Black Panther villain and I like Michael B. Jordan as an actor for sure.

Here's the panels of M'Baku in his debut comic and immediately shows his desire to covet the throne. If did say I'd spoil some things if you had no clue about Black Panther. Then again, if you've read this far, I can safely assume, you're not worried about spoilers.

Man, the king sure has a lot of enemies. Man-Ape debuted in Avengers #62. It also has the debut of N'Gamo, Man-Ape's aide, but I do not see him credited at IMBd. May be an unnamed henchmen until the DVD or blu-ray credits him.

DORA MILAJE & ZURI

We've already seen the Dora Milaje in Civil War, and in case you forgot or didn't know, they are the personal guard to the kings of Wakanda. In Wakanda, not just any woman is deserving of a king, and these warrior women have to be able to kick ass.

One of the Dora Milaje had a brief and rude encounter with Black Widow in Civil War and told Widow, “Move. Or you will be moved." While the Dora Milaje characters went unnamed in Captain America Civil War, there will be some specific characters of T'Challa's personal guard in this flick.

So we get the first named Dora Milaje seen in this trailer played by Danai Gurira. Her character is Oyoke, and in the comics, she is a Dora Milaje and one of the "wives in training".

Apparently, it seems that she is the leader of the Dora Milaje in this flick and will have a pretty substantial part in the film. Well, at least, we'll finally get to see how badass these Wakandan warrior women are finally, and the trailer does have them in action.

Lupita Nyong'o is playing the character of Nakia from the pages of the Black Panther comics. Don't remember if I ever mentioned this character either. 

Nakia was a former member of T'Challa's personal guard and wives in training. T'Challa had no real interest in her on that level and even told her that her role was purely "ceremonial." Well, least he didn't string her along.

In the comics, she was close friends with Oyoke, but even though T'Challa had no interest, Nakia was obsessed with desire to marry the king. Nakia eventually abandoned the Dora Milaje and became the villain known as Malice and an ally to Killmonger.

She looks to be a Dora Milaje instead of an ally of Killmonger in this film, so she may not have turned yet. She might not either. Just throwing that out there for the hell of it because the character goes that route in the comics. 

Not entirely sure about the cinematic universe just yet. I think her debuts as Malice are in Black Panther #23 (cameo panel at end) and a full in Black Panther #24.

Both Oyoke, Nakia, and Zuri first debuted in the first issue of the Black Panther 1998 comic series. 

Zuri? Forrest Whitaker is playing the character of this trusted Wakandan warrior and confidant to T'Challa. I surely hope this is not a bit part since I do like Forrrest Whitaker as an actor and have admired his talent since The Color of Money, and he played a small role in the film. Made an impression though.

As if T'Challa didn't have enough warriors hanging around him, Zuri is a Wakandan war veteran and a respected companion and attendant to both T'Chaka and later T'Challa. Like Oyoke and Nakia, Zuri was created by Christopher Priest and Mark Texeria.

Not quite sure how significant Zuri's role will be in this movie. In the comics, he did end up befriending Thor. He also admired Monica Rambeau and told T'Challa that he should have married her instead of Storm.

EVERETT ROSS

The first scene in this trailer also has the character of Everett K. Ross played by Martin Freeman, and we already saw him in Captain America: Civil War. I don't think I've talked about this character comic-wise or at all.

Alright, so Everett Ross debuted in Ka-Zar #17 from the series that started in 1997. He works for the U.S. State Department and was tasked to escort foreign diplomats.

This character is tied to the Black Panther comics and played a pretty big supporting role in the Black Panther series written by Christopher Priest back in 1998. Then again, he was also co-created by Priest with Kenny Martinez. However, he was also a supporting character in the 2005 Black Panther comic series as well.

That 1998 series does see how he meets T'Challa and is submerged into the strange world of Wakanda culture and crazy Black Panther super-heroics from Everett's perspective. At least, the series starts off from his perspective and it's quite humorous. 

Everett Ross debut in Ka-Zar #17

In the Marvel/Disney world, however, he is a CIA operative and the Deputy Task Force Commander of the Joint Counter Terrorist Centre as seen in Captain America: Civil War. I haven't a clue about what his role is or what he's there to do in this Black Panther flick just yet. 

THE ROYAL FAMILY!

Love Angela Basset ever since seeing her in Strange Days. Anyone remember that movie?

Anyway, Angela is playing Romanda, former queen of Wakanda and T'Challa's adoptive mother. T'Challa's mother died during childbirth and his father remarried this lovely gal.

I doubt the movie or movies will go the route of the comics that Romanda went through. It might, but it's pretty dark and really wouldn't make sense.

So in the comics she was abducted by white supremacist Anton Pretorius and sexually abused in his mansion for years. See what I mean?

Of course, T'Challa did find this out 'cause he's driven, and after finding and freeing her from Anton Pretorius, he invited his stepmother back to Wakanda with the honorary title of Queen Mother. She did accept his offer.

She is the biological mother of Shuri, and in the comics, T'Challa really doesn't remember her. As told in the Panther's Quest story line which ran from issue #13 to issue #37 in Marvel Comics Presents series, T'Challa has little recollection of her and sets off on a journey to seek her out. Later comics reveal that N'Yami is T'Challa's real mother.

She had cameos in Marvel Comics Presents #13 and #14 and may have fully appeared in present time in an actual story in Marvel Comics Presents #37. She shows up in #36 as well and in present time in two panels looking out a window and from a distance.

Shuri is T'Challa's half-sister and a bad ass herself. She is played by Letitia Wright. Those panther like gauntlets? Thundercats, ho!

In the comics, she even took on the mantle of the Black Panther. Most likely won't happen in this movie and definitely didn't happen in the trailer, so I'm getting ahead of myself here. T'Challa's sister, Shuri, first appeared in the 2nd issue of the 2005 Black Panther comic series.

The comic character of Shuri was created by Reginald Hudlin and John Romita, Jr. In the comics she supposedly the youngest child of T'Chaka and the only daughter.

So this is basically a refresher or for those who want to learn a bit more about these characters. I am not sure if W'Kabi was in the trailer or not. He is a character in the movie and credited in IMBd.

Daniel Kaluuya is the actor who will be playing W'Kabi, and this guy is the second-in-command to T'Challa. W'Kabi also debuted in Avengers #62 in the comics.

Once again, just talking about comics in relation to what's seen on trailer. Looks like T'Challa returning home and finding his nation in disarray may largely be taken from the Jungle Action comics. 

Directed by east bay area's own native son Ryan Coogler, this trailer is sure getting some media buzz. What did you guys think of the Black Panther movie trailer?

BLACK PANTHER KEYS >>