In Black Panther #1, John Ridley and Juann Cabal waste no time throwing readers into the action, setting things up for a world-spanning thriller. Read Full Review

Juan Cabal delivers some beautiful work throughout this issue. The style is beautifully detailed and filled with great action and character moments. Read Full Review

Black Panther #1 is exactly what I was hoping for in a series written by Ridley. It delivers just enough to chew on and think about while setting up an action mystery that feels more thriller than spandex superhero action. After a galaxy spanning epic, the comic comes home in a more grounded, down-to-earth, focus of a man who may be split in too many directions and whose past decisions are coming back to haunt him. Read Full Review

"A king's business is getting things done," T'Challa says at one point. With a great espionage-tinted take, this issue takes that business very seriously. Read Full Review

Marvel's new era of Black Panther gets off to a captivating start. Whereas the previous volume by Ta-Nehisi Coates and Daniel Acuna primarily took place in the stars, John Ridley, Juann Cabal, and Federico Blue deliver the beginnings of an espionage tale. Read Full Review

It's a bold new day in Wakanda as the latest Black Panther series dives deep into political and social realms while diving deeply into the shadowy realms of spy stories. The oversized debut issue has a lot to say wrapped up in a truly gorgeous and cinematic-like presentation that is worth the price of admission alone. Read Full Review

Black Panther #1 by John Ridley does a fine job setting up a new adventure for T'Challa. It has a solid opening and establishes the new threat along with the emotional stakes for Black Panther going forward. However, some of the main plot elements were partly underwhelming, but the subject matter leaves room for a good storyline that can go well if handled properly in the series. Read Full Review

But, for all the promise the story has, the action sequences in Black Panther #1 leave a bit to be desired. With there being one right out the gate, that can easily disengage readers from the jump. The artwork is fine outside of the fights, but that's almost always significant in a superhero comics. The story seems promising enough that it can work around it, but that was a bit of a letdown. Read Full Review

Overall, this is an exciting first step in next chapter of T'Challa's story. While not quite a perfect start, John Ridley and Juann Cabal set a determined pace and center T'Challa as someone who relishes being a hero and king -- perhaps a bit too much. Read Full Review

Overall, this is a solid first issue. Frankly it is worth picking up for Alex Ross' stunning front cover alone, but you will also find a compelling plot setup on the inside along with the enduring, charming characters that we all know and love from the Marvel universe. I am looking forward to seeing where this run goes and will definitely be picking up future issues when they drop. Read Full Review

I can already see that Ridley's run on this book is going to involve a lot of consequences to the things T'Challa has done to protect his country. There is a lot of emotion in these pages, and it especially comes through in Juann Cabal's art. T'Challa might be testing the trust of his allies, friends, and even his country. He might even lose it as his old ways clash with the changing times. Black Panther #1 is teasing a lot, and I hope the rest of the series delivers as well as this issue does. Read Full Review

John Ridley and Juann Cabal are off to strong start in Black Panther #1, with a well-paced and intriguing opening chapter full of political intrigue and espionage. Read Full Review

Black Panther #1 focuses on T'challa's evolving roles as Emperor and King. The authoritative choices he makes may be a bridge too far for some readers but it is, at least, an evolution of the character. The comic sets up an interesting story with plenty of action and drama, but there is a major plot hole that may be difficult to ignore. In all, there's plenty of good and a little bad in this first issue with a different take on the character that may be more divisive than anticipated. Read Full Review

Black Panther #1 is a good set-up issue that creates a solid foundation for the rest of the series moving forward. The focus on using continuity established by previous creative team runs added a lot of intrigue into what John Ridley and Juann Cabal are looking to build with the decisions T'Challa makes throughout this issue. It certainly got me invested enough to go on whatever journey this new Black Panther series will go on in the future. Read Full Review

Ridley and Cabal successfully pull off a "you don't know the WHOLE story" moment successfully, but transition into a "hero leaves his responsibilities behind to clean up a mess he didn't know he made" isn't as successful. Read Full Review

A whole lot of strong themes fail to land an emotional punch in "Black Panther" #1 Read Full Review

Years removed from the most recent "American Way" saga, the opening pages show that Ridley still hasn't lost his chops to tell compelling superteam stories, even after so many successful solo he's recently been known to pen. Read Full Review

Excellent start; the cover & Ridley writing had my curiosity, the actual story has my attention.

Not a fan of Ridley at all but I really enjoyed this. Black Panther desperately needed a new writer, Coates was slowly killing the character. I like the way Wakanda is slowly changing, I like the way Panther was written and Cabal's art was excellent. Really hope that Ridley will refrain himself for the race-baiting he's doing in the fake Batman book and we get more of this because I really liked this.

I thought this was a nice start for this series. It was definitely intriguing, if nothing else. Cabal's art is pretty solid here, though I'm not sure how much it fits with this series, for me. Either way, I thought Ridley put together an interesting premise by showing the sleeper agents T'Challa has implemented and exploring that a bit. Plus, I also liked the way Ridley wrote about democracy and he changing political system of Wakanda. All things considered, I think Ridley did an effective job of telling a thought-provoking story that leaves the reader wanting more.

A very strong start that plants the seeds of what could be a very exciting story.
Also interesting criticisms of democracy in my MARVEL comic, the set up is so strong I worry they won't follow through with what they're saying ala Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

My best guess is it'll be ignored and forgotten as the series gets into the BLACK PANTHER vs the Marvel U aspects. But let's see, JOHN RIDLEY stuck to his guns mostly in I AM BATMAN and AMERICAN WAY.

It's good but I expected so much more from Ridley and Cabal is capable of so much better! I mean the art is great but the crazy compositions I grew to expect from him are absent. We'll see where we go from here.

I liked this. The story feels a little messy and slow at this point -- how does the Avengers biz fit in? But all the parts are intriguing (and well-scripted), and they can definitely jigsaw together in the future. It feels right for T'Challa to have reservations about democracy, given his history and heritage. I could wish for some more nuanced politics, but they might not fit into what is, at heart, a spy-movie-type story. On the art front, I was a little disappointed. This looks good, but Juann Cabal can do a lot better than good. (I'm also not a fan of the comics swiping sets from the MCU.)

Tangent: Dr. Strange is doing a lot of guest-starring this week for a dead dude, isn't he?

I like how Merlyn is cool with this version of Black Panther that is actively contemptuous of democracy and tries to supersede it, makes you think. I like this idea, but I expected more. I hope it turns into something great.

After a great shakeup to the status quo, T'Challa is struggling to find his place as the king in a new government and as a leading member of the Avengers. I hope to see further exploration of T'Challa's vulnerable side.