Black Panther

Excluding the almost forgotten Ant-Man sequel due later this year, Black Panther is the last Marvel film before the hotly anticipated Infinity War that reunites the Avengers. Thor: Ragnarok ended right on the moment where characters started to meet for the first time but Black Panther takes place far and away from all that. There's not a infinity stone to be seen or heard of, which all helps in making Black Panther a great standalone film and one of Marvel's best.

Chadwick Boseman's T'Challa was first introduced in Civil War and the story begins as he returns home following his father's death before being made the new King of Wakanda. His home, hidden in the heart of Africa, remains peaceful and untouched from colonial powers but that peace is threatened by Andy Serkis' arms dealer and a vengeful Michael B. Jordan who wants to use Wakanda's powers to arm its people outside of the homeland. Trying to avoid spoilers, this is definitely one of Marvel's most engaging storylines and this is thanks to director Ryan Coogler who understands drama. Other Marvel films seem to enjoy breaking any tension with the odd comical joke, just as we saw in The Last Jedi, but thankfully that's not the case here.

Speaking of breaking trends, Black Panther is also a gorgeous film to look whereas the Captain America series was criticised for looking overly grey. The action is also fun and inventive but Coogler's characters that make the story what it is. Other Marvel films can be fun when you watch them but somehow don't seem all that a day or two later but Black Panther seems to only get better the more I think about it. Much of this is owed to Michael B. Jordan's great performance who easily tops the list as Marvel's best villain.

I can easily recommend this as one film well worth watching. It's fun and entertaining but it also has a heart and a brain that just about justifies the two hours and fifteen minute running-time. Black Panther 2 will have a hard time topping this.