Written by: John Ridley
Art by: Germán Peralta
Colors by: Jesus Aburtov
Letters by: VC’s Joe Sabino
Cover art by: Alex Roo
Cover price: $3.99
Release date: March 8, 2023

Black Panther #15 ends the arc, the series, and John Ridley’s run on the titular character with the conclusion to Jhai’s master plan and a very long goodbye.

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Is It Good?

Well, this is the end, my friend. Black Panther #15 marks the end of John Ridley’s turn on T’Challa, and the series ends as well as it could under the circumstances. Whether or not that’s good enough for you is up for debate.

When last we left T’Challa, aka Black Panther, Namor brokered an alliance with Wakanda and assumed the leadership role in the charge against Jhai’s terrorist group. The price for such a deal? T’Challa’s permanent banishment from Wakanda.

Now, the fight concludes with a whimper as T’Challa confronts Jhai alone in the camp.

When I say it ends as well as could be expected, I mean the story simply ends with Jhai surrendering to his fate because he, much like Ridley’s story, has nowhere to go. Rather than Jhai unleashing a weapon of last resort or some other unstoppable ploy tobuild tension, he gives up. The conflict ends on the weakest note possible.

Oddly, the resolution to Jhai’s grand designs completes at the halfway mark. The second half of the issue is taken up with a montage of scenes that show the status quo of every character significantly involved in the story. In effect, you get a 12-page goodbye to the characters through Ridley’s lens, so if you found yourself invested in Omolola and Tosin, you’ll enjoy the second half. If you can barely remember any of these characters’ names, the second half of the issue will come across as a lot of wasted fluff that could have been better spent on a more climactic finale to resolve Jhai’s conflict.

In terms of general technical writing, this issue is fine. The pacing, dialog, and scene transitions are smooth. Every character gets a respectable moment to say their goodbyes, and the ending feels complete. If Ridley had a better story and a genuine love for the character, things may have turned out very differently, but again, this is as good of an ending as you could expect.

About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.

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Final Thoughts:

Black Panther #15 ends the series the only way it can, with an anti-climactic end to Jhai’s attack and a 12-page epilogue for everyone to say goodbye. If you’ve loved Ridley’s run, this ending is more of the same. For everyone else, this issue is a waste of time.

6/10