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Black Panther

Last night, Twitter went crazy. It could only mean one thing. The release of the first trailer for Marvel’s Black Panther.

Managing My Hype

I have been eagerly awaiting some clips from this movie for a while now. Ever since announcements for the director and various actors began rolling out, the hype grew to enormous levels. It scared me, actually. My thinking was, How could anything live up to this amount of hype? I’ve seen this before with videogames. People get hyped about a new entry in a game series that was highly popular long ago, but when it finally comes, it’s less than perfect and people are let down (just look at Doom). It even happens with brand new IPs that seem promising. That’s the lens through which I saw the excitement for this movie. And it was hard to jump on the bandwagon. After last night, however, it looks as though it may just be what everyone is looking for.

What Does Black Panther Represent?

In only two minutes I could see that the visuals were great, it had exciting scenes, and most importantly, a primarily Black cast. This is what I believe so many people find most exciting about this movie. It’s a chance to see themselves as heroes and compelling villains with the magic and money of Hollywood behind it. It’s part of what made people so excited to see Wonder Woman. It’s sad to say, but it’s 2017, and works like this with the quality, care, and attention to characters who are not white males is rare. But they are also welcome. If you are a white male reading this, please don’t misunderstand; we watch and enjoy movies and books centering characters like you all the time. But the fact that Black people and women get to be the central focus for a change gives us hope. Movies like this represent a hope that we’re turning the page on old ways and actually making progress towards accurate, inclusive stories with the appropriate writers and directors behind the scenes. There are no delusions that this will change overnight, but it’s definitely a start.

Tags : Black PantherMarvelMoviesRepresentation
Jarrod King

The author Jarrod King

Jarrod is an author of fantasy, sci-fi, and more. He currently has a job as a web optimizer. Besides writing, he enjoys singing, songwriting, and enjoying the company of great friends. He currently resides in Philadelphia, PA.

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