The Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and it already solved a big Wakanda problem that the MCU had. The first three phases of the MCU, collectively known as the Infinity Saga, are now over, and the MCU is moving forward with new characters, events, and concepts in both TV shows and movies. The MCU’s Phase 4 is also continuing the stories of already established characters, and through them, this universe can solve past problems and make way for new stories that can focus on the future.
Phase 4 is seeing the return of characters like Spider-Man, Wanda Maximoff, Loki, Thor, and Black Panther, though the latter with a big question mark over it due to Chadwick Boseman’s death in 2020. Still, viewers will travel back to Wakanda in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, where they will reunite with characters like Shuri (Letitia Wright), Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o), M’baku (Winston Duke), and more. Wakanda is one of the most important settings in the MCU, and it has been so throughout its whole history even if the country was heavily guarded and hidden in plain sight for years, as it’s the only place where vibranium can be found, which allowed Wakandans to make major technological advances.
In the MCU, millions of years ago, a meteorite made of vibranium crashed in Africa, affecting the surrounding flora. Centuries later, the land was colonized by five tribes that went to war over this highly-resistant metal. During Wakanda’s development, its people used vibranium to develop highly-advanced technology, and to protect themselves from the chaos and ambition of the rest of the world, they created a cloaking field that hid the country in plain sight, though that didn’t stop explorers from wanting to find Wakanda’s vibranium deposits. Researchers eventually got their hands on Wakanda’s vibranium and the metal was famously used by Howard Stark to built Captain America’s shield, and years later, it was used to built Ultron’s synthetic body, which went on to become Vision (Paul Bettany) – but with these two characters and two others now gone, the MCU has solved Wakanda’s vibranium problem.
Before Wakanda opened its borders to the rest of the world at WandaVision, has disappeared, so Wakanda has a monopoly on the highly-wanted metal again.
Plot details about Black Panther: Wakanda Forever are still unknown, but with the story beginning at a time when Wakanda is no longer hiding under a holographic cloak, it will have to address how this exposure has affected the country and how the demand for vibranium has changed. Wakanda has full control of its most precious asset again now that Howard and Tony Stark and Ulysses Klaue are gone and White Vision is missing, and as seen before, it can do great things with this material.
