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Why did they have Challa be sympathetic to Killmonger?

posted 4 years ago by Burk48917 (10977)
14 replies | jump to latest

The script doesn't give us any reason to care about Killmonger, yet Challa offers to heal him, and mourns his death as sorrowful. This is a villain that hasn't shown any motivation for his anger, accept against Wakandans for killing his dad...who evidently was a traitor. Killmonger was shown to kill and abuse innocent people without remorse, murdered his girlfriend, disrespected and ignored the Wakandan culture and expressed his intent to commit genocide. Why wouldn't we want to see him dead?

[–] Otter (24464) 4 years ago

They were cousins, and one was raised in Wakanda and was loved and taught science and ethics and given every advantage in life, and one was raised in a horrible Oakland ghetto and was taught nothing but resentment and rage. When T'Challa mourned for the cousin he'd killed, he mourned for the intelligent and determined man who might have been good, or awesome, if he'd received a better upbringing, and then he went to Oakland to see if he could help any of the kids there from growing up bitter and hateful like his cousin.

Anything else you need explained?

[–] Burk48917 (10977) 4 years ago

Why do you assume he was taught resentment and rage? Also, you're saying he mourned for this hypothetical person that he actually wasn't, so should we mourn Hitler, Stalin, Genghis Kahn, for the people they could have been versus the monsters that they were. What about Dahmer, or any other serial killer. Do they get a pass because they didn't like their upbringing. What about the kids that grew up in the ghetto that actually turned into decent human beings? Killmonger was pushing for GENOCIDE, he wasn't taught that in the ghetto. Your smug reply doesn't hold up under even the mildest scrutiny.

[–] Otter (24464) 4 years ago

Sometimes, people grieve for what might have been.

More than that I will not say, to someone so rude.

[–] Burk48917 (10977) 4 years ago

Translation: I can't back up my statement at all.

[–] Costumer (1786) 4 years ago

Just to be picky, his name is T'Challa, not Challa

[–] Burk48917 (10977) 4 years ago

Lol, I would do the same.

[–] TheAdlerian (2092) 4 years ago

The movie is about a battle between good black people and bad black people. These two characters represent both sides.

I have worked in the prison system for a longtime and have met many "black revolutionaries". These people say they want to ruin cities by selling drugs and creating chaos. They will have as many babies was possible to make up for the "black holocaust" and they don't care how the babies turn out. They will reject all schooling or having any kind of meaningful job.

They want to ruin America in revenge for slavery.

I am not kidding, I heard this stuff for ten years in a mostly all black prison near Philly. There were people from the cult Move there too, which you can google.

So, that is Killmonger.

Black Panther is the other side that wants to deal with people today, not hold grudges against long dead people. He wants to create a dignified and educated group of black people and help them to be noble.

I work with lots of people just like that.

The film is about a cultural struggle in the black culture.

[–] Burk48917 (10977) 4 years ago

That may be the case, although I could argue the movie does a very poor job of expressing that, and it doesn't fit the typical Marvel format. Still, why would T'challa not see it as a positive when eliminating a horrible creature like Killmonger?

[–] TheAdlerian (2092) 4 years ago

Yes, they didn't do a great job.

I work with criminals in psychology. My training is in Behaviorism which means that people don't have free will, but rather are a product of their environment. So, no one actually does anything wrong on purpose but rather they don't know better.

A simple way to say it is that people are "unenlightened" which means they don't understand very important things.

If you look at people like that, you can't just kill them unless they're trying to kill you and you must survive. Instead, you pity them because they're like badly programmed robots.

So, someone like Black Panther sees that this guy is wrong, but thinks he's right, and so he's like an angry victim. You don't want to kill a victim who is acting out.

[–] StannisTheMannis (132) 4 years ago

Because he's one of them, simple as that. And because he's one of them he deserves to be treated in a dignified and noble manner when he dies. Wakanda culture is based around family, community, unity and service to Wakanda, while white culture is based on individuality, immorality, debasement, ridicule of one another, and division.

[–] GreenGoblinsOck8 (7401) 4 years ago

I agree with TC. The moment that Killmonger murdered his defenseless girlfriend, I was rooting for him to die. I can see T'Chala feeling bad that his people didn't try to ever go get him at any point when he was a kid but to me he lost all sympathy when he murdered his girlfriend. Then again, I don't even think T'Chala even knew about that.

[–] NorrinRad (5018) 4 years ago

I agree with TC. The moment that Killmonger murdered his defenseless girlfriend, I was rooting for him to die. I can see T'Challa feeling bad that his people didn't try to ever go get him at any point when he was a kid but to me he lost all sympathy when he murdered his girlfriend. Then again, I don't even think T'Challa even knew about that.

T'challa at one point says that he will not be judge, jury and executioner. Being that N'Jadaka was also of royal blood and related it was against his morals and how T'challa wanted to rule. It was less about death as justice but mercy in governing. T'challa was also attempting to right a wrong and felt that Wakanda had created Killmonger and his father created Killmonger. Not only was Killmonger willing to create chaos to reset the world but he also wanted to prevent anyone else from undoing what he was attempting to do.

[–] GreenGoblinsOck8 (7401) 4 years ago

Well, you are right but I was more just saying that I didn't find him sympathetic after he kills his girlfriend. In fact, it's never even brought up again. It's almost like that scene was just for the audience to know he had turned really evil.

[–] tonganprince (565) 4 years ago

ohana means family, and nobod.. ah screw it. yea, agreed. no reason for him to be sympathetic