Black Panther: Wakanda Forever finally a new trailer and full of familiar faces and new heroes. But the footage, released in Marvel’s Dashboard in San Diego Comic-Con 2022just teases the movie’s obvious villain: Namor, the Sub-Mariner, played by Tenoch Huerta (Sin Nombre, Eternal Purge).
Although Namor is one of Marvel’s oldest characters, this is his first appearance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Of course, Black Panther 2The trailer doesn’t give us too many details about the underwater ruler. So, to get you through until Black Panther hits theaters on November 11, here’s everything you need to know about Namor.
What is Namor’s strength?
Namor, also known as the Sub-Mariner, is the King of Atlantis and ruler of the oceans. Namor was born with his powers, thanks to his only parents. His father is an explorer, sent by Woodrow Wilson to the South Pole to investigate the disappearance of Sir Ernest Shackleton (who was sent by Winston Churchill to find Vibranium), and his mother is an Atlantean princess named Fen.
As you might expect from a sea faerie hero, Namor can talk and control dozens of oceans, breathe underwater, and swim with ease. He is also able to heal himself while in the water and even remotely control the water in some repeats. Namor is also quite capable on land, using his superhuman strength and speed to turn him into a formidable fighter. He can also fly, for some reason. That’s why he has small wings on his ankles.
If you’re thinking to yourself that this all sounds a lot like Aquaman, you’re not entirely wrong. However, you might be surprised to learn that Namor actually originated about three years before Aquaman, all the way back to 1939.
Is Namor a villain?
Definitely not, and also…yes? On top of everything else, Namor was complex and as you might expect from a character created in 1939, long before most of the heroes currently ruling the MCU, Namor had his chance to become a character. into a lot of different things including a hero and a villain.
For the purposes of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, it looks like he’s being positioned as the villain of the movie. In one of his most villainous moments in the comics, Namor threatened revenge on the surface world for destroying part of Atlantis with a nuclear test. Quite interestingly for the future of the MCU, this effort was thwarted by the Fantastic Four… and then Namor teamed up with Magneto to fight the X-Men for a while.
More related, Namor and T’Challa have a particularly fierce feud in Marvel Comics – because Namor was the first person to conquer the (famous) nation of Wakanda in history (using the power of the Phoenix Force). to summon a tsunami that lifts its lands to the ground). Actually, that line from Black Panther where he said to Ulysses Klaue “Every breath you take is mercy from me?” That is straight from Marvel comics. Except for the first time, T’Challa said it to Namor.
So is Namor a mutant?
He is. In fact, he’s sometimes called Marvel’s first mutant, thanks to the fact that he derives his powers from a genetic combination of human and Atlantean DNA. As we’ve mentioned, Namor’s comic book history is long and complicated, and his mutant identity often plays a big part in both the X-Men storylines and the broader Marvel universe.
Given the recent reveal of Marvel’s mutant status, this certainly looks like some sort of interesting potential plot for the future of the MCU. But, since all we have now is a brief introduction to Namor’s role in Black Panther 2we’ll just have to wait and see what bigger role he can play.
