By basic comic archetypes, where there’s a hero, there must be a villain. Therefore, within the context of Marvel’s Black Panther, T’Challa is the former, while Killmonger is the latter, making the new king of Wakanda easy to root for. Not only does he stand for justice and righteousness, he allows us to imagine what an uncolonized Africa — Wakanda — could have been.
On the contrary, it’s almost second nature for the audience to despise Killmonger. He’s brash, unapologetic, filled with anger and driven by revenge. However, as the plot unfolds we are forced to reconsider the stream of vitriol we have toward the antagonist, Killmonger.
Yes, Killmonger actively opposes T’Challa and the Wakadan way, but he has a backstory that gives him more than enough reason to act the way he does. His father was killed by his uncle, he grew up in poverty, he was left for dead and hiding in plain sight didn’t protect him from the plight black people face in America. So, yes, anger and revenge drove him to hate T’Challa, but breaking the bondage of racial oppression in America gave him reason to pursue the throne in Wakanda.
So, Killmonger’s and T’Challa’s paralleled perspectives weren’t grounded in good versus evil. They were, in fact, a representation of the contentious reality that native African and black people live today. They’re family, but one was raised in a culturally protected environment, while the other was raised in cultural isolation on the plot of those who ripped his ancestors from their homelands. Therefore, it is their experiences, not their morality — good versus evil — that are worlds apart. In fact, outside of the comic archetypes, their goals are undeniably similar — protect and provide for their people.
Absolutely, Killmonger is ruthless, but he is also loyal, noble and dedicated to liberating his people, which is confirmed by his final line, “Bury me in the ocean with my ancestors who jumped from ships, cause they knew death was better than bondage.” And, to me, those are the characteristics of a hero, more than that of a villain.
