MC2 Wakandan Royal Family Tree (Update/Correction)

 

I always endeavour to provide accurate information with sources provided so others can themselves check my work. So when I find out I have made a mistake, I’m going to do my best to address it and make the appropriate corrections or updates. Today’s post will be one of those times with a Correction and Update to the MC2 Family Tree for my previous Wakandan Royal Family Tree.

 

Originally, I had declared the Black Panther aka T’Challa’s mother Ramonda to be his biological mother with this explanatory paragraph and statement:

 

“There aren't any new additions to the Wakandan Royal Family Tree until the publication of Black Panther (vol. 3) #1, cover dated November 1998. As the MC2 first appeared several months prior in What If #105 (cover dated February 1998) any stories and characters published after this point should be considered non-canon unless otherwise referenced within MC2 comics. For completeness’ sake I will give a brief account of later additions and changes to the Royal Family.



The aforementioned Black Panther (vol. 3) #1 retcons Ramonda as T'Challa's step-mother and states that his biological mother was a woman named N'Yami who died giving birth to T'Challa.”

 

Well, it turns out I was wrong as I recently discovered. Thanks to the recently published mini-series’ Wakanda #1 which contains a back-up story detailing the history of the nation followed by annotations courtesy of some of the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe writers, I again saw the mention that N’Yami was T’Challa’s biological mother. So, I went digging and as it turns out, while she had not made an on-panel appearance prior to the MC2, N’Yami had in fact been named and declared deceased in the Black Panther’s profile from the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Vol. 1 #2, and again in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Vol. 2 #2.

 

What this means is that when Christopher Priest wrote Black Panther (vol. 3) #1’s above mentioned explanation about N’Yami, he was attempting to provide a workable solution that did not contradict either the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe nor the phenomenal epic ‘Panther’s Quest’ from Marvel Comics Presents #13-#37 by Don McGregor. A veritable No-Prize effort. I apologize for dismissing this as an unfounded retcon out of hand, Mr Priest. Well done.

 

As a side-note to all this, in light of N’Yami being the first wife of T’Chaka and it being explicitly stated that T’Challa’s half-brother Jakarra’s mother was T’Chaka’s ‘second wife’, we can logically conclude that Ramonda was the T’Chaka’s third wife. So, had Jakarra not died, it would presumably be he and not the non-MC2-canon Shuri in the running for the title of the next Ruler of Wakanda and Black Panther. Just something to think about before I *finally* go see Black Panther: Wakanda Forever tomorrow.

 

Until I manage to catch up with the rest of the MCU releases and simultaneously gain flawless obscure comic lore, I remain

 

frogoat