Black Panther: Panther's Quest

Marvel Comics Presents (1988) #13-37

by Don McGregor, Gene Colan (Illustrator)

Collects material from Marvel Comics Presents (1988) #13-37.

A Black Panther epic by one of his signature writers, Don McGregor, and true artistic legend Gene Colan! He is T'Challa, strong, sleek, resilient - prowling the night with panther-like grace! And this is his quest - a stealth mission in South Africa, following rumors that the mother he never knew may still be alive! The Panther will take on soldiers and social injustice in a harrowing tale filled with tragedy and hard-hitting action. He'll face bloody, brutal combat as he closes in on his prey as only the Black Panther can - with supreme strength of will. Discover a hidden gem in a Black Panther saga that unfolded across 25 chapters!

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, Superheroes, Politics, Fiction, Fantasy

241 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 27, 2017

About the author

Donald Francis McGregor is an American comic book writer best known for his work for Marvel Comics, and the author of one of their first graphic novels.

Reviews

[Callum Waterhouse · Rating 3 out of 5]

As I write this review, it has been less than a week since Jacob Zuma's resignation as President of South Africa. Sitting here, thousands of miles and over two decades away from the realities of Apartheid, it feel almost impossible to imagine a time when such monstrous injustices were committed. It feels even harder to imagine a time when such actions were condoned, in some cases even supported, by so-called civilized nations around the world.

To understand the 1988 Marvel Comics mini-series Black Panther: Panther's Quest, one must understand that it was published at a time when the statement "Apartheid is a bad thing!" was actually controversial, and to publish a comic with such an overt political message about racism was considered a risky business move. You have to remember, at the time Don McGregor started writing this, few Americans knew about what was happening in South Africa, and President Regan still supported the majority white government.

No matter what angry men on the internet tell you, Marvel had always been publishing cape books with overt political messages to them. But this was different. Most Marvel books preferred to deal with real issues like racism by hiding it behind some fantastical allegory. Storm didn't fight racists, she fought... anti-mutant-ists(?) Captain America doesn't fight Neo-Nazis. He fights a Nazi remnant death cult called Hydra. Black Panther... Black Panther was going to a real world nation, encountering, and calling out real world atrocities which are explicitly motivated by racism. Not individual hatred, but institutionalized racism. This was a comic that was going to piss people off, and editor Terry Kavanagh had serious balls to publish this as it is.

But while the bravery it took to make this comic story contributes to many of strengths, it also leads to many of the things that date the book. This was a very important issue that McGregor was drawing attention to and while he treats the subject with appropriate respect, there is a strong undercurrent of "Look at me, I am writing about something important and edgy!!!" at work here. Its not any one thing, but rather a dozen creeping nuisances that regularly remind you that this story about the plight of Black South Africans was VERY CLEARLY written by a white American. More uncomfortably, McGregor engages in some troubling "both-sidesism" that permeated a lot of the discussion, inviting readers to occasionally sympathize with the white soldiers and authority figures because they are sometimes targeted for retaliatory violence in response to the oppression they are ACTIVELY ENFORCING! To quote Ramonda, "Go to *#%@!"

Speaking of Ramonda, the plot of this graphic mini-series is about the Black Panther (real name T'Challa) traveling to South Africa when he learns that his long-thought-to-be-dead mother (yes, the one who was played by Angela Bassett in the movie) is alive and living there.

And... that's actually pretty much it as far as plot goes. The admittedly thin setup is really just an excuse for McGregor to take T'Challa (and by extension, the American public) on a walking tour of the worst brutalities of life under Apartheid. But, you know, with lots of punching and action and acrobatics thrown in.

To appreciate this comic, you have to recognize it for what it is, a social-polemic-as-pulp-action-serial. Judging it purely on those terms, how does it hold up today?

Not bad, all things considered.

Fans of the character Black Panther who know him primarily from the Movie (or the Ta-Nehisi Coates penned comics run that inspired said movie) might have trouble recognizing the the character they love in this Black Panther. Like a lot of comic book characters, Black Panther eventually became very different from who he was in his original form and it would take many writers and multiple changes for T'Challa to become the badass we all know and love.

For example: This version of Black Panther does not have a suit equipped with razor-sharp claws or sewn with bullet proof fibers. In fact, his costume offers little more protection than a black unitard. He has a high tech plane, but other than that uses no gadgets. He isn't a martial arts expert, like he is in latter comics. Oh, we see him doing plenty of fighting and acrobatics, but his skills seem more on par with characters like Daredevil.

As for the less tangible aspects of Black Panther's character: The respect for all living things and understated dignity that makes T'Challa so empathetic are very much present here. There are even a few standout moment where he displays some real emotional vulnerability. Strangely, one element of his character that is notably absent is his batman like expertise in strategy and preparation.

One gets the sense that Marvel writers still hadn't figured out T'Challa's character entirely, and they were still struggling to find things that differentiated Black Panther from other Marvel heroes besides nationality.

I do have a few gripes with this book that keep me from rating it higher. My main problem is the narration captions. This book really, really over-relies on narration captions. So much of what could be told to us in dialogue is spoon-fed to the audience as if they were reading a novel. It really killed the pacing at moments.

On top of that, the story feels padded at times and Elemer 'Sex and Violence' Gore (no, really) is as one note a villain as his name suggests.

Fortunately, even when the story slows to a halt on account of T'Challa's soapbox monologues, Tom Palmer's art makes the book enjoyable enough to get though. Lord, can that man draw an action scene!

Complaints asside, the book is still... pretty much okay. This isn't the Black Panther you love, but this is Marvel getting him there. A story that basically comes with the tagline "Black Panther vs Apartheid" would have been worth the price alone. But the story has more to offer besides just the political message. Zanti Chikane was a great one-off character who had a real rapport with T'Challa. The scene of Black Panther forcing a racist, Afrikaner soldier to choke on his own tear gas was positively B.A. And the final scene with Black Panther and Ramonda will stick in your memory after you finish reading. Seriously, this is why Ramonda has such a fanbase!

Overall, not Black Panther's finest outing, but definitely worth a look.

[C. Varn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume is harder to review than many: It is very much of its time and yet very ambitious for its time. Gene Collin's art is very 1980s period art. His figure work feels of the time period, but he is clearly a master of it. Indeed, he is one of the artists that set the tone for the times although, by 1988, the styles of Marvel were beginning to pivot strongly away from it. Furthermore, while not entirely as political in the early days of Kirby's run, Black Panther has always been the Marvel title that directly dealt with racism, colonialism, etc, instead of metaphorically like it is generally handled in things like X-men until the mid-2000s. So if a book was going to directly comment on South African apartheid, Black Panther was clearly the book to do it. Furthermore, while this seems extremely removed now, 30-years after the fact, supporting ANC was controversial in the 1980s given Ronald Reagan's official support for the apartheid government and the fears of communism in some the ANCs allies. Although I do think popular support was waning by the time this book was released so I don't want to make this seem like an overly brave move on the part of Marvel.

So what is the problem with the book? Well, McGregor loves exposition too much, but its chapters are too short to justify it. So there are tons of "talky" thought bubbles but most of the chapters are short even by single-issue standards: It doesn't just feel episodic, it feels clipped and bogged down at once. McGregor's veil of anti-communism as a cover from left-end of the ANC feels ahistorical (although it is more in his epigraphs and has no effect on the plot) and the fact two characters explore the ambiguity of non-governmental whites or the tribal tensions within the ANC. T'Challa's reason for being involved seems like an obvious plot contrivance. Instead of the exploring the ambiguity, McGregor does some force "balance"--briefly trying to create sympathy with the white soldiers and authority figures in the attacks. The latter being the most false feeling to modern readers. So it feels both Manichean and faux-balanced at the same time.

In short, it is VERY of its time period. If you liked contemporary Black Panther, this is going to feel very dated to you--it's not the Afro-futurism of Jack Kirby, the exposition-laden but somewhat nuanced T'Challa of Ta-Nehisi Coates exploring the implications of Wakanda as a concept, or the slick compromise of the MCU's movie version. It almost feels like a better Silver Age comic attempt to be relevant. McGregor isn't a terrible writer, in general, his penchant for wordy dialogue aside, but this feels under-explored, thin, and structurally unable to really do what it what it really wants to. It's politics seem liberal in both the good and bad sense of the word, and its attempt at nuance come off as "both-sidism" instead of human honesty.

[Diz · Rating 2 out of 5]

This comic is laudable in that it addresses the current, at the time of its publication, issues of apartheid South Africa. Unfortunately, the issues are buried in dense text. This is typical of comics published at that time, but this seemed more difficult to get through than most other comics from that period that I have read. This is further complicated by an overabundance of exposition. The writer goes out of his way to tell you exactly what each character is thinking at every moment, which really slows down the pace of the book.

Another factor that I didn't enjoy about this book is that Black Panther gets badly beat up--repeatedly. What makes it worse is that he is getting beat up by regular South African soldiers. That takes some of the 'super' out of superheroes. Plus its just not any fun to read page after page of a hero dragging themselves through the woods wondering if they will survive.

[Brandon · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Black Panther searches for his lost mother, and ends up fighting the Apartheid as things get more and more complicated! This isn't a follow-up to McGregor's earlier work with Panther's Rage, but the characterization and style of writing follows through. This is less of an action-adventure and more of a grueling political commentary about racism and hateful government. The biggest weakness is probably the actual plot of T'Challa searching for his mother, which shows up time and time again but is less interesting than the overarching theme of the series- the story of Zanti, the random man T'Challa meets and befriends, becoming empowered and acting out against the regime. It's about the good man who, upon meeting the "superhero" Black Panther, starts following his conscience and fighting back against oppression. He's funny, he's relatable, and he's kind- in comparison to how superhuman the Black Panther is you instead see Zanti struggling and weighing his average self and the lives of his family against this random stranger agent of a god with strength and speed to match. It's a beautiful book, with some fantastic action sequences, and some hard-hitting messages. The real shame is how slow it is to get started, how weak it ends (when it decides to finally wrap-up the big plot about finding his mother), and how dated parts of the series can feel. But the core of the story, about the morals of man and the need to speak out against hate, is great.

[Fraser Sherman · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a fan of McGregor's "Panther's Rage" run, I couldn't pass up this collection, drawn from a late-eighties anthology book. For years, T'Challa assumed his mother was dead; now he gets word she's alive and imprisoned in South Africa. Despite the risk of an international incident, he goes in to find her. But does she really want him too?
While I enjoy McGregor's down-to-Earth Black Panther, at times he's a little too ordinary here for my taste. But then, he's not going against supervillains but against South Africa's then-oppressive white supremacist government, navigating local tensions — it's not a typical Black Panther adventure.
I don't think it's entirely successful either, and rereading years after apartheid is gone takes some of the punch out. Still, I don't regret buying it. And I suspect I'll like it better on second reading someday.

[Luiz Santiago · Rating 5 out of 5]

Crítica | Pantera Negra: A Busca do Pantera
http://www.planocritico.com/critica-p...

[Nicholas Ahlhelm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don McGregor is always a little TOO verbose, but this collection of his Marvel Comics Presents tale with superstar artist Gene Colan is worth the price of admission. While this is far from the later day Panther we get from Marvel post-Christopher Priest, the tale of the Panther loose in apartheid South Africa in search of his mother is a powerful one.

Even if the history lesson isn't enough for you, Colan's art shines on every page, meaning this is one of the most visually stunning Panther tales you can find.

[B · Rating 3 out of 5]

McGregor does a great job with mood and tension, but I think this story is really harmed by the fact that it was told in small chapters. The other thing that makes this story hard to buy is the Christopher Priest run.

Here, the Black Panther is just a man who is very determined. And his big adversary is a tall, athletic white dude who likes Looney Tunes. That's it. Post-Priest Panther would have sliced open his achilles' tendons from 20 yards.

Also, I didn't know there was a time when Ramonda was not a central character.

[Adam Graham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Panther's Quest is a 1980s mini-series written by Don Macgregor who wrote the epic Panther's Rage back in the 1970s. The series was serialized in the weekly marvel premiere magazine which generally featured 8-page installments. The thesis of the story is that T-Challa goes to South Africa in search of his mother, and meets with an informant who has information only to run into militias and deal firsthand with the oppression in South Africa during Apartheid.

There are many legitimate criticisms of the book. It is massively overwritten with lengthy flowery prose serving to tell us about the situation in South Africa and what characters are thinking rather than to show it. It's a decade or more out of date here and it can be very excessive. In addition, much of the story is a diversion. The Panther's Quest is introduced in the first issue and essentially pushed off to the side until the last quarter of the book.

Nevertheless, it's still worth reading. It's a good historical document and has the Marvel Universe dealing with Apartheid head-on. The story is filled with some very real poignant moments. The art by Gene Colan is good, even though he's not at the height of his powers.

The reader should be warned that this is a very difficult book. It deals with a very ugly situation and it portrays the situation and the way people suffer in great detail. The action is often bone-crushing and extreme. There are some dark events in this story involving children, dogs, and a bit of sex slavery. While Marvel gave this book a Teen rating, it really does border on being Mature Readers book.

Overall, if this is the type of story that interests you, it's worth checking out.

[Terry Mulcahy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was surprisingly well-written. The story was is an important one, and a serious attempt was made to show things as they were in South Africa, not glossed over, not oversimplified, not easy to fix. The South African military could have been made out to be the only bad guys, but that would not have been in the spirit of reconciliation, nor accurate. There were atrocities committed by many, but the story used paid mercenaries as the agents of that, more than the common soldier who bought into the lie that they had to defend their land or those that fought back, sometimes fighting each other as well. The whole Black-Panther-in-South-Africa storyline could have been done - wrongly - with the Panther as a penultimate hero, liberating all of S. Africa, but it was not that. It was/is a complicated place, and there was plenty of violence to go around. The real reasons were greed and what turned out, ultimately, to be short-lived apartheid in the service of greed.
Instead, the Great Cat had other reasons for being in S. Africa, and his very presence caused death among innocents. He does manage to connect with a few people - in a good way. Although violence follows him everywhere he goes, he does finish his quest wiser and stronger in purpose. There is a lot to read and absorb in the storyline, as the point of the story is to entertain in a way that attracts readers, and opens their eyes to the history of that troubled region. Very well done.

[Maddy Hayes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I’m not South African, so I’m reading this from an outsider’s perspective.

I loved it. This is definitely way more than a 3.5 star book, anyway, which was what the rating was when I started the collection. First, the art is stunning. Can’t really say more about that.

Second, I read way more novels than comics, so the narration I’ve seen people complain about didn’t bother me. In fact, I think it added to it, especially describing the more violent sequences. I won’t spoil anything, but what made me suck in a gasp was the narration, not the illustration beside it.

This made me laugh, it drew tears, and I couldn’t put it down. It’s much more gory than the 70s Panther comics, but it didn’t really bother me.

Reading Don’s introduction, it seems that he wanted a little more time, and you can feel that at the end of the collection for sure. He also goes on to explain that he was writing about an event that was currently evolving, and history was changing, dating the comics by the time they were published.

[Devero · Rating 2 out of 5]

Apparso su Marvel Comics Presents come serial di 8 pagine alla volta, questa storia di Pantera Nera è profondamente integrata nella situazione politica del Sudafrica di fine anni '80, con l'apartheid e la rivoluzione pacifica (o quasi) di Mandela che stava per arrivare.
La storia è un pretesto per parlare di politica e razzismo, supremazia bianca, odio (non sempre giustificato) tra popoli. Si tratta di una storia estremamente verbosa e difficile da leggere anche all'epoca, a tratti decisamente noiosa per il lettore, ma non per questo priva di valore. Anche i disegni di Colan sono sotto tono, ma questo magari è solo il frutto della colorazione che spesso peggiora i disegni di questo bravo disegnatore.
Nel complesso, riletta oggi, non va oltre le 2 stelle.

[Chris W · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just doesn't feel like Black Panther. He gets beat up constantly by normal people, has no gadgets, suit isn't made from vibrainium and you never see him embrace his tactical mindset. It's also extremely verbose despite the art being good and vivid enough to capture the thoughts and emotions described.
The main good thing about this issue is the dark but powerful commentary on the Apartied and 1980s South Africa. Other than that it isn't a good Black Panther story.
He could easily be replaced with someone else and it would have been better.

[ISMOTU · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don McGregor teams with the incomparable Gene Colan for a topical, powerful, and significant tale of the Black Panther. McGregor wrote T'Challa's first solo series in the pages of Jungle Action back in the 70's and in the late 80's was given another chance to weave into the tapestry of Black Panther's history and I enjoyed it. It's very heavy but not depressing, of course I'm not sure how it would've felt during the days of apartheid. Certainly worth a read.

[Andy Zell · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's a lot to like in this tale of T'Challa searching to find his mother Ramonda in apartheid South Africa. It highlights the brutal and oppressive regime in 1980s South Africa. I'm enjoying digging more into Black Panther's history after seeing the movie, and I was fortunate that my library has been expanding their comics collection.

[Matt Sautman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Much like McGregor’s earlier run, Panther’s Quest is ambitious yet rendered problematic by an Orientalist take on African culture. The book is super interesting as an artifact of anti-apartheid comics but from a critical race perspective, yet Panther’s Quest suffers from McGregor’s oversimplified portrayal of South Africa and Africans.

[Seth · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not enjoy this book. Black panther repeatedly gets beat up by thugs, and we just have to sit through "intense" scenes of him trying to not die. Then he abruptly ends up at the conclusion, and it's a totally random conclusion. There really isn't any story here, and the art didn't redeem it for me.

[Will Plunkett · Rating 5 out of 5]

I stopped collecting MCP back with issue #11 in the late-80s, and boy did I miss out on this story arc! The amount of dialogue and action and imagery was balanced well, along with the introductory quotes from myriad sources. Not too sappy, not too violent, not too sanitized, not too wordy.

[Tory · Rating 2 out of 5]

I reviewed this book for my high school's library committee. While I appreciate the history of the story as well as the art, I could not get into the actual writing of it. It's too cliche comic. I don't think a lot of teenagers will find it interesting, but I could be wrong.

[Matheus Gonçalves · Rating 3 out of 5]

Queria ter gostado mais. Premissa incrível, narrativa datada e muitos elementos repetitivos durante a história.

[Adrián · Rating 5 out of 5]

No entiendo la poca repercusión de este cómic. Me ha parecido una maravilla.

[Rachel Lowrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Comic books are just not my thing.