Black Panther Fans May Have Decoded The T'Challa Tribute Mural
The first teaser trailer for the upcoming "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" isn't exactly lacking in striking images, including its final shot. But one of the most striking visuals presented in the epic, two-minute preview is a brief glimpse of a mural that seems to memorialize the fallen T'Challa, portrayed in previous Marvel Cinematic Universe installments by the late, great Chadwick Boseman. Rather than try to recast the iconic role, Marvel Studios has decided to let the fictional T'Challa rest in peace (along with the actor who portrayed him). As such, the mural we see seems to confirm the Wakandan superhero's death within the MCU.
The message and general tone of the mural are clear just from looking at it, without truly digging into what is written on the wall, that this is a painting meant to pay tribute to the lasting legacy of the late King T'Challa. But, as it turns out, Marvel fans are a pretty detail-oriented bunch, so it's no surprise that they've managed to decode the Wakandan markings and translate the message on the mural. And it's also no surprise that the message contained therein is an emotional one, particularly in view of Boseman's untimely death.
Fans provided a translation of the message on Twitter
A small number of MCU fans have taken to decoding the writing, which appears to be Wakandan, on the mural from the "Black Panther Wakanda Forever" teaser. One of those fans is MTV presenter Tyrell Charles, who retweeted a screenshot of the mural posted by entertainment writer Shanelle Genai on Twitter. Charles captioned the tweet, writing, "The text here reads 'The Panther King Forever Lives In Us.'"
Fans were able to check the markings on the mural with the official Wakandan alphabet, and the message they found is even more emotional than the mural itself. According to Twitter user DougTheDadd's translation (which seems to match up with the Wakandan alphabet key floating around online), the message of the mural is this: "The Panther King Forever Lives In Us And Rests." And Phil Lewis of the Huffington Post provided both a similar translation and an attached alphabet key on Twitter.
The translations indicate that even though T'Challa has joined his ancestors, his heroism is remembered by the public in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in a similar way to how Boseman's work and life are so fondly remembered by so many fans. And, for proof of that, all you have to do is take a look at some of the fan reactions to the mural sighting itself online.
Emotions are high after seeing the mural
That seems to be the general fan response to the new "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" trailer, which leaves an impression for reasons far beyond that of the shot of the T'Challa mural. The trailer is packed with small details that depict a kingdom in mourning for its fallen king, as well as the promise of hotly anticipated Marvel characters entering the Marvel Cinematic Universe for the first time — Namor the Sub-Mariner chief among them.
"Seeing the T'Challa mural hitting me in the gut. Love you, Chadwick," responded @big_business on Twitter. And @JustInNotOut put it like this: "They didn't have to show this mural of T'Challa in the preview. But they did, and now I'm [messed] up." Elsewhere, Twitter user @kanyeasada89 wrote, "A 'Black Panther' trailer with a mural honoring T'Challa, and Tems singing the transition from 'No Woman, No Cry' to 'Alright,'" a paired the tweet with a picture of a young boy solemnly crying. And finally, @ChinaksOfLagos tweeted the following poignant reaction: "My Sunday is made already seeing a mural of Chadwick Boseman's T'Challa in 'BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER' is soothing. Like he said, 'In my culture, death is not the end.'"
For MCU fans who still mourn the passing of Boseman, it was the memorial mural for T'Challa in his native language that seems to have the greatest emotional impact.