Trust is arguably the most important aspect of any team dynamic, especially when those team members have superpowers and secret identities. Over the years since the Avengers formed there have been times when the ability to trust certain members has come into question. But now Black Panther has found himself on the receiving end of distrust putting him in a similar position that Batman once found himself in.
In Black Panther #12 (by John Ridley, German Peralta, Ceci de la Cruz, and VC’s Joe Sabino), T’Challa comes clean to the Avengers that in an effort to secure world peace, he installed sleeper agents throughout the globe and has been spying on his teammates. Furthermore, the data he gathered includes their powers, abilities, and fighting styles and is now in the hands of a terrorist. This precarious situation that Black Panther now finds himself in very closely mirrors one that Batman found himself in during the time he was using his Brother Eye satellite to spy on his fellow Justice League members.
Black Panther and Batman’s Reasoning are Very Different
When Batman used Brother Eye to spy on the Justice League it was because he felt he couldn’t trust his teammates. He’d had his mind wiped by Zatana by the order of the League as part of the events of Identity Crisis (by Brad Meltzer and Rags Morales) and therefore used Brother Eye as a safeguard. However, the data he gathered fell into the hands of Ra’s al Ghul, and the entire DC Universe nearly suffered at the terrorist’s hands because of it during the JLA: The Tower of Babel storyline (by Mark Waid and Howard Porter). Thus, it was a very long time before Batman’s fellow heroes could trust the caped crusader again.
Similarly, the information gathered by Black Panther on the Avengers is now in the hands of his former friend, Jhai – the leader of a terrorist organization set on global domination. But the differences between Black Panther’s situation compared to Batman’s is twofold. T’Challa’s intentions were not out of fear or distrust. He installed the sleeper agents as a means to work toward world peace, even though he realized this was the wrong way to do that. Furthermore, the data he collected on his fellow Avengers was because Doctor Strange was gone, and they needed a way to replicate his powers to beat the Colonialists. However, T’Challa wasn’t counting on this information falling into the hands of Jhai and being used against him.
Black Panther Has a Long Road to Redemption
Despite Black Panther’s intent of wanting the best for the entire world, the results were what really mattered in the end. T’Challa’s plan of peace and democracy instead came across as a paranoid authoritarian plot. Even though he now sees the hubris in his ways, he’s lost the trust and support of his Avengers teammates when he needs them the most.
But even if the Avengers wanted to help rectify the situation, they’re compromised because of T’Challa’s actions. Now that Jhai knows the strengths of the Avengers, he also knows their weaknesses. This makes him possibly the greatest threat Black Panther has ever faced. And without the Avengers to rely on, T’Challa is going to be hard-pressed to find heroes that not only he can rely on, but that trust him as well.
