'Black Panther: Wakanda Forever' Trailer Breakdown

Ahead of its release in a little over a month, earlier today Marvel Studios released the final trailer of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

If you haven’t seen it yet, do yourself a favor and check it out below because in this article I’m going to talk about some of those “blink-and-you’ll-miss-it” moments and what they could tell us about the film.

(NOTE: This article features a lot of speculation)

Now, early on in the trailer we see most of our main characters at a big ceremony that will most likely be T’Challa’s funeral. All of the citizens of Wakanda are wearing white. And we get a great close-up of Shuri’s mourning face. Remember this face – and especially what she has on it – because I think it’s a big clue for something else that we see in the trailer.

A little while later, we get our first full look at Namor! But he’s not referred to as Namor, and he’s not even in his native aquatic habitat. Instead, we hear M’Baku refer to him as “K’uk’ulkan, the feather serpent God,” and we see him soaring in the sky using the comic-book accurate feathers on his feet.

And while K’uk’ulkan looks majestic floating in the sky, it appears that he may be about to do something sinister. In a separate shot shown later in the trailer, we see Ramonda inside Wakanda’s thrown room with Riri Williams. As the two look out the window, the reflection reveals that they are about to be attacked. The perpetrator, wields a similar staff and bears a striking resemblance to Namor from the shot before.

This doesn’t seem to be the only interaction Ramonda has with him though, as another shot reveals that the two have spoken. I’m curious to see what they have to say to each other, especially if it turns out that Namor turns out to be the reason for T’Challa’s death.

While it’s still unclear why Namor has beef with Wakanda, the trailer makes it very clear how he intends squash it: by sinking the entire country. In several quick scenes, we see water overtake the kingdom. At one point, Okoye attempts to save a little boy from the tides.

And we eventually see the thrown room overtaken by water as well.

One of the most exciting things about the trailer is the formal introduction of Riri Williams as Ironheart. Sadly, the suit is still only shown in bits and pieces.

As the trailer winds down, it’s revealed that M’Baku gets much more action in this one. We see two separate shots of him submerging himself in the water (as it presumably rises in Wakanda), as well as one of him shaking off as he surfaces from a fight.

Sadly the trailer doesn’t do much justice for Lupita Nyong’o’s Nakia. After rewatching the trailer 3 times, I only spotted her once. Now, does this mean she has a much smaller role this time around OR is Marvel hiding her because she’s the new Black Panther? I think that the latter is highly unlikely thanks to the trailer’s final shot.

The last thing we’re shown in the trailer is the full first look at the new Black Panther.

If you recall what I said earlier, those markings on Shuri’s face at the beginning of the trailer look similar to the ones on this Black Panther’s face. Not identical, but similar. It’s important to note that the markings on the suit line up more with the markings Shuri wore on her face when she entered combat mode during the climax of the first film.

Could they just be a red herring? Marvel has toyed with fans before. Regardless of who is behind the mask and underneath the suit though, one thing is certain: the new Black Panther is 100% one of the Wakanda’s powerful and wonderful female characters.

READ: Tenoch Huerta Confirms Namor Is A Mutant In The MCU

In Marvel Studios’ Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett), Shuri (Letitia Wright), M’Baku (Winston Duke), Okoye (Danai Gurira) and the Dora Milaje (including Florence Kasumba), fight to protect their nation from intervening world powers in the wake of King T’Challa’s death. As the Wakandans strive to embrace their next chapter, the heroes must band together with the help of War Dog Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o) and Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) and forge a new path for the kingdom of Wakanda. Introducing Tenoch Huerta as Namor, king of a hidden undersea nation, the film also stars Dominique Thorne, Michaela Coel, Mabel Cadena and Alex Livanalli.

The film is set to hit theaters on November 11, 2022. Tickets are available now.