Thanks to their status as part of the fantasy genre by extension, superhero movies are under no obligation to be tightly-plotted and impenetrably-structured masterclasses in narrative storytelling. Fans are more than happy to point out any storytelling deficiencies they see, though, with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever having been shined under the spotlight since coming to Disney Plus.
For unknown but entirely expected reasons, hating on the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s latest project has become par for the course, so nobody should have been particularly taken aback when Ryan Coogler’s blockbuster sequel was given a less than glowing reappraisal after being made available on streaming.
Whether it’s the substandard CGI drawing Thor: Love and Thunder comparisons or Namor being repainted as an underwhelming antagonist, it’s clear that the outpouring of indifference won’t be letting up anytime soon. That means we’re not surprised to find the story being mercilessly picked apart by a number of detractors, who bear serious umbrage with how things went down.
Wakanda Forever was forced into being rewritten from the ground up in the wake of Chadwick Boseman’s tragic passing, but even that isn’t enough to give it a free pass among its harshest critics. It’s far from the MCU’s finest installment, but it’s nowhere near being the cinematic disaster that many seem to determined to reappraise it as.
Then again, with She-Hulk: Attorney at Law over and Love and Thunder already a distant memory, maybe folks just needed any target, and Wakanda Forever happened to come along at exactly the right time.