Black Panther: Wakanda Forever didn’t give context to Namor’s “Imperius Rex” battle cry, but this iconic line made “Wakanda Forever” more impressive.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever saw the Wakandan army battling that of Namor (Tenoch Huerta) and his Talokanil warriors, and Namor’s “Imperius Rex” battle cry made “Wakanda Forever” more impressive. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever took the audience back to Wakanda to follow the Royal family and the residents of this country as they mourned the loss of King T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman), the search for a new Black Panther began, and they faced a new threat: Namor, king of the underwater kingdom of Talokan.
Talokan was under threat due to a vibranium detector developed by Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne) and used by the CIA, so Namor gave Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett) and Shuri (Letitia Wright) an ultimatum: deliver Riri Williams or he would attack Wakanda. After making another offer to Shuri and Nakia’s surprise rescue of Riri and Shuri from Talokan, Namor and his army attacked Wakanda. During the battle between both armies, Namor says “Imperius Rex”, an iconic battle cry from the comics, with the Wakandans responding with the now famous “Wakanda Forever”, and Namor’s battle cry makes that of Wakanda more impressive.
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Namor’s Imperius Rex Has No Meaning – But Shows How Good “Wakanda Forever” Is
“Imperius Rex” is loosely translated from Latin as “Empire King”, and it’s a line taken from Marvel Comics, though in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, it isn’t given any context. However, the comics haven’t given it an exact meaning either, only explaining that Namor says it to sound more intimidating, and it definitely serves that purpose, though it’s also linked to how his name was conceived, as creator Bill Everett reversed the spelling of “Roman”. The MCU changed Namor’s origins and the location of Talokan, making it a Mesoamerican-inspired civilization instead, so the “Imperius Rex” battle cry makes less sense, but it made the Wakandans’ “Wakanda Forever” a lot more meaningful.
Contrary to “Imperius Rex”, the Wakandan battle cry “Wakanda Forever” does have a clearer meaning as it’s linked to the country itself and its people, and it’s also used as a symbol of respect among Wakandans. “Wakanda Forever” has also become a symbol outside of the MCU, specifically for Black pride, adding to the social and cultural significance of both Black Panther movies. The lack of context around “Imperius Rex” ended up highlighting the importance of “Wakanda Forever” in the MCU and the real world, while also serving as a fun nod to Namor’s comic book history.
The MCU Can Still Fix Namor’s Imperius Rex
Namor escaped the infamous “MCU villain problem” as he not only had an actual purpose and motivation but also a complex backstory, and he survived his first MCU movie. Namor, then, can return in future MCU movies, meaning that Marvel can expand on his backstory, that of Talokan, and his “Imperius Rex” line, giving it an actual meaning through which the audience will be able to learn more about the character. It’s unknown when Namor could return to the MCU, but hopefully, Marvel will seize his return to solve and fix some of the mysteries and plot holes left by Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
