Black Panther
GenreAction
Adventure
Science fiction
Superhero
Based on
Black Panther
by
Developed byReginald Hudlin
Written byReginald Hudlin
Directed byMark Brooks
Jon Schnepp
Voices ofDjimon Hounsou
Stan Lee
Kerry Washington
Alfre Woodard
David Busch
Stephen Stanton
Jill Scott
Theme music composerStephen James Taylor
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes6
Production
Executive producersReginald Hudlin
Eric S. Rollman
Aaron Parry
Sidney Clifton
ProducerCort Lane
Running time20 minutes
Production companiesMarvel Knights Animation
Hudlin Entertainment
Titmouse, Inc.
BET
Original release
NetworkABC3 (Australia)
BET (U.S.)
ReleaseJanuary 16 (2010-01-16) –
January 30, 2010 (2010-01-30)

Black Panther is an American motion comic[1][2][3][4][5] and television series by Marvel Knights Animation, based on the Marvel Comics superhero of the same name. It was the first animated television series produced by BET since Hey Monie!. Each of the six episodes of the series was 20 minutes in length.

The series was broadcast on the Australian children's channel ABC Me (formerly ABC3) in January 2010[6] and in the United States on BET in November 2011.[7]

Plot

Upon becoming the new Black Panther after the assassination of his father T'Chaka, T'Challa deals with the jealousy in the Wakandan royal court while looking for the man who killed his father. Unbeknownst to Black Panther, Klaw (the man who assassinated T'Chaka) has assembled a group of villains consisting of Batroc the Leaper, Juggernaut, the Vatican Black Knight, and the Russian Radioactive Man to help him take over Wakanda.

Cast

Additional voices

Production

At a presentation held in New York City in April 2008, BET announced that it had signed a deal with Marvel Comics to turn Black Panther into a primetime half-hour animated series. In July 2008 at the San Diego Comic-Con International, the first footage of the series was shown publicly, indicating that the series was essentially just motion comic versions of the mini-series released by Marvel Comics.[10]

The show was supervised by Reginald Hudlin (President of Entertainment at BET), Eric S. Rollman (President of Marvel Animation) and John Romita, Jr., writer and artist, respectively, of the story arc of the Black Panther comic entitled "Who is the Black Panther?", on which the first six episodes were based.[11][10][12] Only subtle deviations from the comic exist, such as replacing Rhino with Juggernaut.

Djimon Hounsou was cast to voice T'Challa/Black Panther.[13] The series was directed by Mark Brooks and Jon Schnepp. Jon Schnepp co-directed and edited episodes 4 & 5 of the 6 episode animated motion comic series.[14] The theme song was composed by Stephen James Taylor in a dialect meant to be Wakandan (the fictional character's native language). In reality, the song employed a Bantu-based language of Taylor's creation.

Episodes

No.TitleAustralia air dateU.S. air date
1"Pilot"January 16, 2010 (2010-01-16)[15]November 15, 2011[16]
In a top-secret Washington meeting, Intelligence Agent Everett Ross briefs the government on the history of the Black Panther, the warrior king of the African nation, Wakanda. Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, Prince T'Challa wins an annual Wakanda tournament, and becomes the Black Panther. Meanwhile, a disastrous man/machine hybrid is built.
2"Black Panther"January 16, 2010 (2010-01-16)[17]November 15, 2011[16]
Having been crowned the new Black Panther, T'Challa must contend with jealousy in the royal court while searching for the man who murdered his father. Unknown to him, a deadly assassin named Klaw is assembling a team of super-villains to attack Wakanda.
3"Revenge of the Evil"January 23, 2010 (2010-01-23)[18]November 22, 2011[19]
A young T'Challa travels to Egypt and encounters Storm of the X-Men. While preparing to attack Wakanda, Klaw recalls how he assassinated T'Chaka.
4"Death of Father"January 23, 2010 (2010-01-23)[20]November 22, 2011[19]
Juggernaut and the Vatican Black Knight spearhead the attack on Wakanda, and the Black Panther learns the truth about his father's murder.
5"Black Panther vs. Juggernaut and Black Knight"January 30, 2010 (2010-01-30)[21]November 29, 2011[7]
With Wakanda under siege from Klaw's team of super-villains, the Black Panther confronts the Black Knight in aerial combat. Princess Shuri must defend herself against the deadly Radioactive Man.
6"To the End"January 30, 2010 (2010-01-30)[22]November 29, 2011[7]
Klaw has taken control of Wakanda and the Black Panther races against time to save his nation from destruction by an invading army of Deathloks.

Media releases

Australia

Magna Pacific released the series in region 4.[23] It was released on DVD and Blu-ray on December 1, 2010.

United States

On January 18, 2011, the series was released to Region 1 DVD by Shout! Factory. It was part of the Marvel Knights Animation line, the line reserved for Marvel's motion comics.

Streaming

On March 16, 2018, the entire series was released through Marvel's YouTube channel for free as Marvel Knights Animation - Black Panther.[24]

References

  1. ^ Avila, Michael (January 10, 2011). "Reginald Hudlin on the Trials of the Animated BLACK PANTHER". Newsarama.
  2. ^ Reeves, Ri (June 20, 2010). "Sneak Peak at Marvel's 'Black Panther' Animated Comic Starring Djimon Hounsou". Vibe.
  3. ^ Marshall, Rick (June 18, 2010). "First Look at the 'Black Panther' Motion Comic!". MTV.
  4. ^ McMillan, Graeme (July 19, 2010). "What Happened To Marvel's Black Panther Series?". Time.
  5. ^ Melrose, Kevin (July 19, 2010). "Marvel's Black Panther Motion Comic Removed from iTunes". cbr.com.
  6. ^ "Black Panther Debut Set in Australia!". Animated Superheroes. 2009-12-07. Archived from the original on 2011-07-07. Retrieved 2011-01-06.
  7. ^ a b c "BET Schedule". Black Entertainment Television. 2011-11-28. Archived from the original on 2011-12-04. Retrieved 2011-12-04.
  8. ^ "Marvel Animation Age". Marvel.toonzone.net. 2009-02-05. Retrieved 2011-01-06.
  9. ^ [1] Archived February 20, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  10. ^ a b "First Look at BET's Black Panther". IGN. 2008-08-01. Retrieved 2020-06-07.
  11. ^ Brothers, David (January 25, 2011). "'Black Panther' Finally Lands on DVD – Was It Worth the Wait?". ComicsAlliance.
  12. ^ Dempsey, John (2008-04-17). "BET cages 'Black Panther'". Variety. Retrieved 2020-06-07.
  13. ^ "Djimon Hounsou Roars as the Black Panther". Marvel.com. November 11, 2008. Retrieved 2011-01-06.
  14. ^ "Mark Brooks". IMDb.
  15. ^ "ABC3 Television Guide". Abc.net.au. 2010-01-16. Retrieved 2011-01-06.
  16. ^ a b "BET Schedule". Black Entertainment Television. 2011-11-14. Archived from the original on 2013-09-02. Retrieved 2011-12-04.
  17. ^ "ABC3 Television Guide". Abc.net.au. 2010-01-16. Retrieved 2011-01-06.
  18. ^ "ABC3 Television Guide". Abc.net.au. 2010-01-23. Retrieved 2011-01-06.
  19. ^ a b "BET Schedule". Black Entertainment Television. 2011-11-21. Archived from the original on 2011-11-23. Retrieved 2011-12-04.
  20. ^ "ABC3 Television Guide". Abc.net.au. 2010-01-23. Retrieved 2011-01-06.
  21. ^ "ABC3 Television Guide". Abc.net.au. 2010-01-30. Retrieved 2011-01-06.
  22. ^ "ABC3 Television Guide". Abc.net.au. 2010-01-30. Retrieved 2011-01-06.
  23. ^ "About Magna Home Entertainment". magnapacific.com.au. Archived from the original on 2010-11-19. Retrieved 2010-10-08.
  24. ^ Marvel Entertainment (March 16, 2018). "Marvel Knights Animation - Black Panther - Episode 1". YouTube. Retrieved March 18, 2018.

External links

Black Panther
Animated TV series based on Marvel Comics properties
BET original programming
Categories