Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Well, whatever it is, it’s better than being a Republican.

He wakes up lying, and he lies all day.

There is no right way to do the wrong thing.

This isn’t Democrats spending madly. This is government catching up.

… gradually, and then suddenly.

The fight for our country is always worth it. ~Kamala Harris

Let’s delete this post and never speak of this again.

Today’s gop: why go just far enough when too far is right there?

Fight for a just cause, love your fellow man, live a good life.

🎶 Those boots were made for mockin’ 🎵

Museums are not America’s attic for its racist shit.

Anyone who bans teaching American history has no right to shape America’s future.

You passed on an opportunity to be offended? What are you even doing here?

Motto for the House: Flip 5 and lose none.

This fight is for everything.

SCOTUS: It’s not “bribery” unless it comes from the Bribery region of France. Otherwise, it’s merely “sparkling malfeasance”.

The poor and middle-class pay taxes, the rich pay accountants, the wealthy pay politicians.

Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege.

There is no compromise when it comes to body autonomy. You either have it or you do not.

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires Republicans to act in good faith.

This really is a full service blog.

The republican caucus is covering themselves with something, and it is not glory.

How stupid are these people?

Some judge needs to shut this circus down soon.

You are here: Home / TV & Movies / Movies / Open Thread: Black Panther Update

Open Thread: Black Panther Update

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From the Mother Jones article:

Unlike many of his peers at Marvel, Black Panther screenwriter Joe Robert Cole didn’t grow up a comic-book superfan, but he did have a soft spot for superheroes and a passion for storytelling. Fresh out of college at the University of California-Berkeley, Cole got his first gig writing for ATL, a 2006 film starring rapper TI and based loosely on the romance between producer Dallas Austin and singer T’Boz of the R&B group TLC. He went on to write and direct 2011’s Amber Lake, an eerie indie film about three half-sisters who turn on one another when questioned by the police about their father’s mysterious death. Most recently, he wrote an episode of FX’s acclaimed series American Crime Story: The People v. OJ Simpson.

Now, Cole, a product of Marvel’s two-year in-house writing program, is hard at work on the studio’s latest megaflick-to-be. The movie’s comic-book counterpart ran several volumes from the late ’70s to 2010, replacing the unfortunately titled 1960s comic Jungle Action, which featured the Black Panther, the genre’s first black superhero. The story revolves around warrior king T’Challa (Black Panther), who hails from the technologically advanced, fictional African kingdom of Wakanda—which has never been colonized, unlike the other countries on the continent…

MJ: What does it mean to you to be writing a black superhero?

JC: Black Panther is a historic opportunity to be a part of something important and special, particularly at a time when African Americans are affirming their identities while dealing with vilification and dehumanization. The image of a black hero on this scale is just really exciting. When I was a kid, I would change superheroes’ names: Instead of James Bond, I was James Black. Instead of Batman, I was Blackman. And I have a three-year-old son. My son will be five when Black Panther comes out. That puts it all into perspective for me…

MJ: In the comic books, Black Panther fought off a colonizer in Wakanda. He fought the Klan. He fought against apartheid in South Africa. Bringing the Panther into the present day, I’m curious how the recent activism around the treatment of black people by police might inform your story or your development of T’Challa as a character.

JC: Personally—and Ryan [Coogler] and Nate Moore, the executive producer—we all are cognizant of what’s going on in the world, in black communities, and in our country. We are aware of the importance of that, and the platform this movie provides us with. But I can’t give you the specifics.

MJ: Is Ta-Nehisi involved in the thought process for the movie?

JC: No. I’m a huge fan. It’s great that he’s writing the comic. But they’re separate entities…

***********
Apart from planning our summer entertainment, what’s on the agenda for the evening?

Reader Interactions

90Comments

  1. 1.

    Villago Delenda Est

    The Black Panther was first introduced in the pages of Fantastic Four, the most ill-served by film of all of Marvel’s superheros. I’m hoping that eventually T’Challa will join the Avengers (as he did in the comics back in the late 60’s/70’s) and bring his badassery to the main franchise.

    VDE, PMM.

  2. 2.

    Roger Moore

    @Villago Delenda Est:

    I’m hoping that eventually T’Challa will join the Avengers (as he did in the comics back in the late 60’s/70’s) and bring his badassery to the main franchise.

    He did show up in Captain America: Civil War fighting alongside the loyal (to the government) Avengers, so he’s well positioned to remain part of the group.

  3. 3.

    SiubhanDuinne

    Between Republican WV gubernatorial nominee Bill Cole, blogger Juan Cole, Black Panther screenwriter Joe Robert Cole, the late Natalie Cole and her father Nat “King” Cole, and our own esteemed bloghost John Cole — I am confuse.

  7. 7.

    Schlemazel Khan

    @TaMara (HFG):
    I have been traveling a lot recently & be selected for precheck a few times. If I traveled all the time I would gladly spend the $85 to get it. You don’t have to take off your shoes or empty your pockets, you don’r have to take electronics out of their bag, they don’t limit you to 3 oz packets of fluids. Add to that is the fact that the line is usually much shorter.

  8. 8.

    PsiFighter37

    @TaMara (HFG): Absolutely worth it. It comes with Global Entry, which will make any international arrival back into the U.S. virtually painless, as you will never have to stand in those long lines to get your passport stamped again. The downside? You don’t get any stamps coming back into the U.S…so your passport will look less worn than it might otherwise.

    The ‘interview’ that I had to go in for was 5 minutes at most and hardly any skin off my back. However, you do have to get your prints taken.

  11. 11.

    Schlemazel Khan

    Over at LAwyers guns and money our little buddy Freddie is called out for being Freddie. He did the standard, tweeted something silly and wrong and then when called on it he pretended he meant something else & that was equally stupid. How did that doofus manage to get a sucker to pay him to write stupid shit?

  12. 12.

    PsiFighter37

    Separate to my previous posts, I see NFLTG Obama just laid the smackdown and said transgender students can use whatever restaurant they want in public schools. Cannot wait to hear the wailing coming from the GOP as they try to say that laws are needed to prevent the nonexistent creeps from getting into the ladies’ bathroom.

  17. 17.

    PsiFighter37

    @Baud: @Punchy: Clearly my mind was elsewhere when I meant to say restroom. Perhaps a sign that I need to eat more than a turkey burger with no bun for dinner…

  18. 18.

    Prescott Cactus

    @TaMara (HFG): @Baud: For a 5 year deal it’s worth it to me. You are not guaranteed TSA Pre-Check with the Global Entry card, but it’s only a spin of some cosmic wheel that will throw you out of it (randomness theory of making sure every is as is should be).

    @Schlemazel Khan:

    Add to that is the fact that the line is usually much shorter.

    Very true.
    ETA: The more frequently you travel the more often you will get kicked “up” into TSA Pre-Check.

  19. 19.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @Ramping Up: You’re aware that you are a idiot, right? As is David Harsanyi, who, like most reactionary twits, is defending the past from the speeding freight train of the future. Enjoy the remainder of your existence as a squashed bug, asshole.

  20. 20.

    WaterGirl

    @Baud: CSI:Cyber cancelled? There is a god. That show was an embarrassment to all the other tv shows in existence. I can’t believe it got 2 seasons.

    Now I have to go and see what else was cancelled, and I’m sure I’ll be upset about some of them.

  21. 21.

    PsiFighter37

    @Prescott Cactus: Unless they changed the program, TSA PreCheck is a free add-on when you apply for Global Entry. That’s how I got it – when I applied for Global Entry. I’ve had it at every airport that has TSA PreCheck.

  22. 22.

    JCJ

    @TaMara (HFG):

    I am a some level of flyer with Delta so I am TSA Precheck with them. It is nice. I don’t know how much it costs otherwise, but if you fly often enough it could be a good thing to get.

  25. 25.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @Ramping Up: Someone who is a member of the Cargo Cult of the shitty grade Z movie star is in no position to throw stones.

  27. 27.

    dmsilev

    @Villago Delenda Est: I think this is the latest incarnation of that semi-feral troll that lives in the woods behind the blog and that people feed for some unknown reason (and yes, I’ve been guilty of that as well).

    Edit: Perhaps trap/neuter/release is in order?

  30. 30.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @Ramping Up: Actually, the Soviet Union disintegrated because they refused to recognize their own internal contradictions. They were far more interested in sustaining their ideology instead of being pragmatic about reality.

    Pretty much the way the GOP is tearing itself to shreds right now.

    It’s always projection with these assholes. Always.

  32. 32.

    AdamK

    I’d say the jury’s still out on whether it’s a good thing Ta-Nahisi’s writing Black Panther. The first issue pretty much sucked. Haven’t read the second yet. Comics writing isn’t something any smart person can necessarily do well.

  34. 34.

    Prescott Cactus

    @PsiFighter37: I’m not a big traveler but went with Global Entry and the interview at the local airport. TSA Pre-Check is included. But they do occasionally designate your boarding pass as plain old schmuck and I whip out my GE card and they say, you are not guaranteed TSA Pre-Check.

    I think it’s just a way of keeping everybody honest, Global Entry card or not.

  35. 35.

    I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet

    @SiubhanDuinne: That would be my guess as well – especially when 5+ posts with a new ‘nym show up in quick succession in a thread.

    Cheers,
    Scott.
    (cleek is a saint!)

  39. 39.

    Wag

    @TaMara (HFG):

    My wife and I paid out $75+ and it paid for itself on the first trip with no headaches at check in at the airport. You won’t regret it. And flying out of DIA which is insane, its doubly worth it.

  46. 46.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @amk: Come on. It is someone who has been been banned before for racist comments getting hammered again. I sincerely doubt it is a change in policy.

  48. 48.

    Miss Bianca

    @Baud: I certainly am rejoicing, if ’tis so. The creature was becoming nauseous.

    @TaMara (HFG): Do it, Tamara. I don’t fly very much anymore, but I arranged this deal for a former boss and I saw its advantages, altho’ paying for it and having there be an air travel class system does make me grind my teeth, the indignity of the whole “shoe thing” would make it worth it for me if I had the money. And even if I didn’t.

  51. 51.

    Brinks Truck Driver

    Long time lurker, very occasional commenter here. I’m glad that the troll has been banned (the ‘Trump’s going to win the election by catering to the MRAs’ was just really embarrassing to read) but I can keep the name, right?

    Fair warning, I may post a couple comments of ‘Brinks trucks backing up!’ on election night, for old time’s sake.

  54. 54.

    Miss Bianca

    I have to admit, when I saw this post’s title, I was wondering, “Have the Black Panthers resurfaced? Well, *that* will make things interesting this election cycle.” Only slightly disappointed to see that it’s the comic book Black Panther we’re talking about here.

  57. 57.

    Elmo

    @TaMara (HFG): Oh holy crap it’s indispensable. I travel 2-3x a month. I’ve gone from needing 90 mins from park to gate, to needing less than 30.
    BEST. EIGHTY. BUCKS. EVER.

  60. 60.

    Jeffro

    For most of Black Panther’s comic-book history, he’s been pretty awesome. Marvel has taken him up a notch in the past decade or two, and now with the key “Captain America: Civil War” role and his upcoming solo movie, it looks like we’re almost at Peak BP. Couldn’t have happened to a better character!

    (Guess who Jeffro Jr wants to be this Halloween? That’s the earliest he’s EVER made that call)

  61. 61.

    Mnemosyne

    @TaMara (HFG):

    As others have said, it’s worth it if you fly a lot. Nowadays I fly about once a year in an ordinary year, so it’s not worth it to me, but the managers at my office who fly a lot did it.

  62. 62.

    Mnemosyne

    I was trying to figure out why I’ve been feeling all weird and moody and weepy the past couple of weeks, and then it finally dawned on me: it was this time last year that I had to start making last-minute trips to Florida while my brother was dying. So at least I know why I’ve probably been feeling emotionally crappy.

  65. 65.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Brinks Truck Driver:

    Fair warning, I may post a couple comments of ‘Brinks trucks backing up!’ on election night, for old time’s sake.

    Do it! Whichever way the election turns out, we’ll want and need the lulz. Joyous, delighted lulz or bitter, mean-spirited lulz, that will be up to our GOTV successes.

  66. 66.

    Mike in NC

    As noted earlier, the resident troll claimed last night to have had issues with Ritalin, meaning he was basically a fucking meth head. Moron will be back soon enough. Sad loser!

  67. 67.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Mnemosyne:

    I hate those anniversaries. I think there’s good reason why there’s a Jewish tradition of Jahrzeit. The first anniversary of anything, or holiday, or birthday, or whatever — it’s very hard.

  69. 69.

    Anne Laurie

    @Mike in NC: Not to deny your right to sling insults, but a certain chunk of the commentariat, and this particular front pager, also use or have used ritalin.

    Just a reminder, okay?

  70. 70.

    Miss Bianca

    @Mnemosyne: Aww. Sorry to hear it.

    @Mike in NC: Hey now. This first-generation Ritalin baby takes exception to the notion that I, for example, was “basically a fucking meth head“. We might argue the point, of course, if you wish, altho’ I would really rather not.

    ETA: I see that others have been there before me.

  71. 71.

    Mike in NC

    @TaMara (HFG): We have gone online and printed airline boarding passes several times. TSA Precheck seems to be a random thing they offer, but we do appreciate the shorter security lines and fewer hassles. Wife is diabetic and always gets stopped for extra screening with her bag of insulin and other meds.

  72. 72.

    Anne Laurie

    @Anne Laurie: Ritalin is methylphenidate. Those of us who rely, or have relied, on ADHD medications to function make that joke amongst ourselves, but it’s one of those in-group jokes that doesn’t… travel well.

  74. 74.

    Mnemosyne

    @SiubhanDuinne:
    @Miss Bianca:

    Honestly, we were never close and we were never going to be close, but it’s still weird. It’s partly a reminder of the insane stress of having to travel and book hotels and be the grownup. Gah. I’m the youngest, I have no training in how to be a grownup!

  75. 75.

    Prescott Cactus

    @Mnemosyne: It’s the phone call you can’t make, the smile you’ll never see. Emptiness. Thankfully time sands the rough edges of our minds to make the hollow feeling fade and the good times remain.

    Being a grown up sux.

  77. 77.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @Miss Bianca: True story: The Black Panther party did not yet exist when Stan Lee and Jack Kirby created the Black Panther. It just turned out that way.

  79. 79.

    smith

    My congressman Bobby Rush is, or I guess was, an actual Black Panther. I was really happy in 2010 when I got redistricted into his CD and out of that of the Odious Dan Lipinski.

  81. 81.

    Miss Bianca

    @smith: Yeah, I knew Bobby Rush. Or, rather, I didn’t *know* him, of course, even when I still lived in Chicago, but I certainly knew of him and knew his history.

  82. 82.

    NotMax

    @NotMax

    Ought to add that the name not being all that far from the rights either being renewed or else passing into public domain by the mid-60s may have been an impetus for smilin’ Stan to drag it out of mothballs.

  83. 83.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @NotMax: Not at all implausible, and furthermore, the time was right, in Stan’s eyes, to introduce a black superhero.

  84. 84.

    slag

    Black Panther and Black Widow are the only two Marvel movies I want to see right now. In Civil War, those two were the only ones capable of rational decision-making and learning from their mistakes, which seemed totally appropriate.

  85. 85.

    Steeplejack

    @TaMara (HFG):

    TSA Precheck: I didn’t sign up for it, but I have randomly been flagged to receive it, and it was definitely worth it at the usually clusterfucked IAD (Dulles) security venue. I don’t know if it’s worth paying for—I don’t fly enough to even know if that’s how it usually works—but it was basically a much shorter line and “No need to open and turn on your laptop, move along.”

    My belief—but I’ll deny this in court later—is that it’s a safety valve to take pressure off the regular lines when things are particularly jammed up. “Christ, none of these people are a threat, triple the number going to Precheck and get these lines moving!”

    ETA: “Except for those brown people, of course!”

  86. 86.

    Steeplejack

    @Baud:

    Another milestone in his long résumé of service to the country.

    I guess CBS has decided to go all in with Gary Sinise and Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders. That’s a genius play right there.

  87. 87.

    Brachiator

    @Schlemazel Khan:

    . Over at LAwyers guns and money our little buddy Freddie is called out for being Freddie. He did the standard, tweeted something silly and wrong and then when called on it he pretended he meant something else & that was equally stupid.

    Coming late to the thread but just had to respond to this. I think that Little Freddie is working hard to inherit the David Brooks Idiot Pundits slot. He’s a natural.

    Otherwise, I really enjoyed the new Captain America movie and thought that both Black Panther and Spiderman were deftly introduced into the movie franchise.

  88. 88.

    Brachiator

    Also,too. I may have to do a burst of air travel later this year. The discussion of TSA Pre check has been very helpful. I will have to seriously consider signing up for it.

  89. 89.

    Jerry

    There are 88 comments in a post about Black Panther. I must fix this by posting something.

    Last weekend, the wife and kid and I were just tooling around town whence we came upon a sign that read, “FREE COMIC BOOK DAY!” We checked it out to see if there were any free comics for the kid and we walked out with a stack of comics that cost us nearly $50. My six year girl is obsessed with The Lumberjanes series so we picked up more for her, Paper Girls for the wife and issue #1 of the new Black Panther for me. Issue #2 came out a few days ago so I gotta run back to the comic book shop and pick it up. I really enjoyed issue #1 so I am very much looking forward to the new issue.

  90. 90.

    gwangung

    @Jerry:

    Last weekend, the wife and kid and I were just tooling around town whence we came upon a sign that read, “FREE COMIC BOOK DAY!” We checked it out to see if there were any free comics for the kid and we walked out with a stack of comics that cost us nearly $50.

    SUCCESS!!

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