Wakandan Technology in the MC2: Wakandan Airship

 

While I am late to the party (as I often am) I still wanted to offer a short post tangentially related to the recent Eyes of Wakanda mini-series. Here is that post, a kind of cousin to the Spider-Symmetry and Patriotic Parallels posts, but without a set name just yet (any suggestions welcome!).

 

The world is first introduced to T’Challa aka The Black Panther in Fantastic Four #52 when a snazzy Wakandan Airship (identified as a Magnetic Wave Rider) greets the Fantastic Four and whisks them away to the nation of Wakanda.

 

Reed would test a new model of the Magnetic Wave Rider sent by the Black Panther in Giant-Size Super-Stars #1. As an aside, it’s obvious the Magnetic Wave Rider influenced the Black Panther movie’s Maglev Trains concept.

 

In the MC2, the next generation of Avengers are introduced to the son of The Black Panther, Prince T’Chaka aka The Coal Tiger in A-Next #4. As confirmed by Ron Frenz on Adam Chapman’s podcast Comic Shenanigans Episode 744, a version of the Magnetic Wave Rider returns for this Wakandan related story:

 

‘It’s one of the Wakandan Ships. It was originally Kirby’s design for a Wakandan Airship that the Fantastic Four then had a model that they hung on to. Since we were dealing with Wakanda I thought it would be kind of cool to throw it in there.’

 

Now, I think it’s worth mentioning that the text and dialogue in the comic does explicitly refer to this aircraft as a ‘Quinjet’. However, given Ron’s statement and the obvious visual similarity to the Magnetic Wave Rider and the discontinuity with the design of the Quinjet’s seen in other issues of A-Next, we need to develop a No-Prize explanation.

 

I submit the following: Given the vehicle is adorned with the Avengers livery, and the Black Panther is credited with earlier Quinjet designs, and considering the outward resemblance to the Wakandan Magnetic Wave Rider gifted to the Fantastic Four, the aircraft seen in A-Next #4 is a new version of the  Magnetic Wave Rider equipped with quinjets (meaning five jets) developed by T’Challa, perhaps as a gift to his former team. The Avengers colloquially refer to their various air vessels as Quinjets, and technically this would also count, which explains their referring to it as such.

 

Either way, it’s a great little reference to the past from Mr Ron Frenz and helps further the connection between Wakanda’s Royal Family and the Avengers. Let’s hope J2 has learnt how to fly by now!

 

Until I learn how to Flintstone a vehicle like J2, I remain

 

frogoat