Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Death and 5 Stages Of Grief
by TinTin Monsanto
Freelance writer and artist
December 14, 2022
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is the much awaited sequel released this year of 2022. Everyone is curious on how they are going to recreate the story since the death of the late lead actor Chadwick Boseman. This highly anticipated film has a 96% rating in rotten tomatoes (www.rottentomatoes.com). It was released here in Singapore last November 10, 2022 and until now it is still showing in all cinemas.
I must say that the movie was not bad after all, although some of the scenes are quite boring. The cinematography was good and the story was simple. The movie was on going for such a long time and you will not be able to see the Black Panther. Rather, there were lots of stories that were being merged piece by piece in order to come up with the reason for the rebirth of the Black Panther. Disappointingly, the rebirth scene of Black Panther was predictable and just came out in the last part of the movie which happened to be the climax as well. Imagine watching the movie for 2 hrs and 15 mins and yet you will be able to see the Black Panther and a few fight scenes in less than 30 minutes. It seems that the fighting scenes were created in such a hurry that there were not many actions at all. However, I did like how they did the tribute for the late Chadwick Boseman.
Overall, the movie was not bad after all. It is way better compared to Black Adam (just saying). Is it a movie that I will watch over and over again? I may yet I may not.
Yet, watching this movie did give out life lessons I did not expect.
Death:
“How Does It Make Sense - That The Ancestor Would Give Me Gifts and Skills To Save My Brother, But I Couldn’t.” - Shuri
I can relate so much to Shuri’s statement. As a nurse I have a duty and obligation to serve and save lives. I’m taking care of other people and yet I could not take care of my own family. When my grandmother was hospitalized and was in a critical situation, the doctor had informed my family that she must be intubated. Everyone was crying, all of her children were in one corner trying to figure out whether to intubate my grandmother or not. Until they all turned to me because I am a nurse and I should know what to do. I could not decide, I want my grandmother to be alive but I know that she does not want to be intubated. I know that she must be intubated yet I knew by then that if she did, there was a higher chance that she would not survive. I was not confused, I was so “helpless”. I realized that if you are in such a dire situation, no matter how genius you are, no matter how good you are as a nurse or as a doctor, you will end up feeling helpless. No matter what the outcome, you will regret your choice and blame yourself in the process.
You can serve and save others’ lives, but your hands are tied when it comes to your own blood.
Five Stages Of Grief:
D-enial
A-nger
B-argaining
D-epression
Acceptance
Denial
Shuri could not take her brother’s death and refused to mourn his death. She was in DENIAL. She was in denial that she could not save her brother with her skills and technology. She could not believe that illness was way more powerful than her technology; hence, she felt that her skills and immense knowledge were just a facade.
Anger
Since Shuri felt it was just a facade, her anger was boiling from her deepest wound that formed a hole in her heart. Until such time that she saw her mother’s death right in front of her eyes. This made her angrier and she was like a volcano going to erupt soon. This made her mind clouded that affected her decision making. Moreover, she was not ready to be a queen as she deemed herself not worthy of the throne. This ANGER had consumed Shuri.
Bargaining
Due to what happened to her family and her nation Wakanda that was destroyed under the wrath of Namor, Shuri was consumed by anger that she finally decided to recreate the heart-shaped herd in order to be the Black Panther. In her mind and heart she was BARGAINING with her ancestors to let her be able to find the solution to recreate the heart herb in order to protect Wakanda. As she drank the purple herb, instead of seeing his mother or brother, she saw her cousin N’Jadaka. Her heart desires only showed how consumed it was with anger when she saw her cousin. Shuri had a heated argument with N’Jadaka and her cousin asked her, “ Are you going to be noble like your brother, or take care of business like me?”
Depression
Refusing to give up the fight, Shuri answered, “I am not my brother.” This made her more aggressive as she fell into deep DEPRESSION. Her unwillingness to mourn her brother and mother made her more susceptible to defeat. As she woke up after drinking the herb, she felt betrayed and depressed that she thought she was not given the power of the Black Panther. When she learned that she was the new Black Panther, she used her grief to act vengeance against their enemy. Shuri’s depression consumed her as she fought for revenge that she thought was the right thing to do; but it wasn’t. This only created war that lost the lives of Wakandans.
Acceptance
During her fight with Namor in the desert, she was about to lose as she regained strength through her will power. She was about to kill Namor when her mother made her realize that this was not who she was. In the end she gave Namor a chance and the war between two nations had been finally over (well to say the least). Finally, she made peace with herself and mourned his brother. She had ACCEPTED the loss of her brother that made her move forward and see what the future may lie ahead when she saw her brother’s son T’Challa. The moment that she accepted her loss paved the way for her to see happiness and be able to meet the future of Wakanda.
Everyone can relate with Shuri. When we lose a loved one we can't help to ask God why. In which, we sometimes pray that we are the one who died instead. It is nor easy to mourn. It takes guts in order for us to face the sad reality that our loved one had lost the battle. It takes months or years before we could finally let go and move forward. It takes courage to speak our mind that we are being consumed and we are at the peak of depression.
It is hard to lose someone you've loved your entire life. It takes time so let time do its part. But, you have to take one step at a time. Do not make your world come crumbling down where you can choose to live. The world will not stop at your loss. You have to live in order to continue the legacy.
“My brother is dead, but it doesn’t mean the Black Panther is gone.” - Shuri