Favorite Characters: Nakia (Black Panther)

Now that Infinity War is out, did you think I was done with Black Panther?  Hardly!  We still have some more Favorite Characters posts to do.  Today, we’re looking at Nakia (a few spoilers.)

In her first scene, we might initially think that T’Challa is swooping in to rescue Nakia, but she quickly sets us straight on that score.  It’s true that she’s in danger, but that’s entirely by her choice, playing the part of a kidnappee in order to take down a Boko Haram-style extremist group.  Far from needing T’Challa to bail her out, Nakia has the situation in hand, and when he drops in to extract her (because his father has been killed and he’s bringing her back home for his coronation,) she’s annoyed with him for interrupting her mission.

That’s a big part of who Nakia is.  She’s not “all work and no play,” but she does take what she does very seriously.  Serving as a spy for Wakanda has given her a new perspective on the world.  Having seen the suffering that goes on in other countries, she no longer content to cloister herself behind Wakanda’s force field and cloaking technology, coccooned from the world’s problems.  Nakia wants to help, and she wants Wakanda to be behind her.  She listens to the argument that Wakanda needs to stay isolated, that opening itself to the world will invite trouble, but she’s not having it.  Wakanda, she retorts, is strong enough to help others while still protecting itself.

But until she can get T’Challa to back that idea, Nakia helps on her own individual level, bringing her many talents and abilities to serving Wakanda and helping others in the world.  She brings her dedication, eschewing a more comfortable life in Wakanda – where, if she chooses, T’Challa would gladly have her as his queen – to venture into different countries and do good.  She brings her combat skills, her tactical smarts, and her talent for undercover work.  She brings her strong sense of justice, recognizing the difference between those who choose to do evil and those who are dragged into it by tragedy, those who could still be saved.

I really appreciate that Nakia can be T’Challa’s past-and-prospective love interest without feeling like she exists for him.  Even considering the fact that he’s her king, she has her own beliefs and goals that don’t always align with his.  She speaks up when she needs to, she goes after what she wants, and she’s always prepared to stand for herself.  After the challenge with Killmonger, when it looks as though T’Challa is killed, Nakia is heartbroken but steadfast.  She gets Ramonda and Shuri away from the city, steals the heart-shaped herb that bestows the Black Panther’s abilities, and makes a plan to partner with the Jabari and overthrow Killmonger.  T’Challa or no T’Challa, Nakia doesn’t give up.

Relationship Spotlight: Nakia & T’Challa (Black Panther)

I really enjoy the relationship between T’Challa and Nakia in Black Panther.  Comrades, confidantes, and (ex?) ex-lovers, these two are the whole package (some T’Challa-Nakia-related spoilers.)

We know from the jump how much Nakia means to T’Challa.  On a mission to extract Nakia from an undercover operation, Okoye warns T’Challa, “Don’t free when you see her,” but the second he lays eyes on her, that’s exactly what he does (there’s something sweet about a superhero/king getting so lovestruck.)  Althought we’re told early on that they’re exes and other characters comment on that apprehensively – such as Shuri asking T’Challa if it’s really a good idea to bring his ex on a mission – it’s clear that there’s no love lost between them.  As soon as Nakia is back in Wakanda, she and T’Challa start spending time together, and when he’s troubled, she’s usually the first person he turns to and she’s all too happy to provide support and comfort.

So if they still care so much about each other, why are they not together?  The force keeping them apart seems to be more logistical than anything else.  Despite knowing she’d make a great queen, that isn’t a life Nakia wants for herself.  Her work as a spy has taken her into other countries, and having seen how people suffer outside Wakanda, she can’t forget about them.  She wants to get out there and help, and if Wakanda’s isolationist policies keep T’Challa from doing that from the throne, Nakia can’t stay.  It’s obvious that she still loves T’Challa, but until he decides to open Wakanda’s resources up to the world (allowing Nakia to accomplish her goals from home,) she doesn’t seriously entertain the possibility of getting back together.

I like that.  I like that her ideals come before her desires and that, while T’Challa plainly wishes otherwise, he respects her decision and doesn’t resent her for it.  As exes, there’s no bitterness between them, no jealousy or sniping.  They challenge one another, debating what’s best for Wakanda, and even when they’re not “together,” they’re still on each other’s side.

That’s the really big takeaway with these two.  Together or apart, they trust one another absolutely, listen to each other’s ideas/strategies, and rely on the other to back them up in dangerous situations.  They work seamlessly as a team, and we never see them approaching each other as anything but equals.  Even considering the fact that T’Challa is Nakia’s king, he doesn’t order – they collaborate.  That’s something I feel you almost never see in fictional relationships, a truly equal partnership between a man and a woman, one where they come at issues from different perspectives but still work together as a cohesive unit.  It’s about what they bring out in each other, how each bolsters the other, and what they can build together, and that’s beautiful.