Black Panther, made eternal with Chadwick Boseman’s performance, showed the true extent of an African king’s power in the Black Panther (2018) film.
When British actress Michaela Coen was announced in the sequel, it immediately raised fans’ hopes of seeing one of Wakanda’s most beloved queens on the big screen – Storm, the powerful mutant from the X-Men.
Black Panther and Storm have a torturous history in the comics, full of romance and misunderstandings.
The couple’s story was told in different ways as it passed through the hands of new Marvel writers. But one thing is sure: Both T’Challa and Ororo Monroe are one of Marvel Comics’ most beloved superhero pairs.
Time to learn more about how their story unfolds.
How Did Black Panther Meet Storm?
The first meeting between Black Panther and Storm initially took place in 1980, in Marvel Team-Up #100. At that time, the editors felt it was natural to combine their two most fantastic African characters in a single issue. And this was the comic book that promoted the union of the publisher’s greatest heroes to the delight of their fans.
Ororo rescued T’Challa when they were both teenagers. She spent time alone in the Egyptian deserts after her parents were killed in Cairo. Ororo was forced to steal to survive, and soon she decided to seek a better future in Kenya, her mother’s country.
On her journey, she spotted a young man in what looked like a kidnapping. Without hesitating, she rescued him using her temporal powers.
The boy was none other than T’Challa, future King of Wakanda, who traveled outside his country as part of his training as a Black Panther. The pair soon developed a strong friendship, but they had to go their separate ways.
Years later, the writers who took on the character at the Civil War saga decided to retell their story so that Ororo was saved as a helpless maiden.
The good thing about this later version is that it better explains what happened after this encounter. In the Storm mini-series, we see T’Challa tending to Ororo’s injuries after saving her from an attack by some villains.
They develop feelings for each other and only end up drifting apart so that T’Challa could assume his responsibilities to his people, and Storm could follow her dream of saving Kenya from famine and drought, where she was worshipped as the goddess of the winds and rains.
After they parted, Ororo wandered the deserts once again. She was now bringing water to those in need and saving villages from trouble. Because she arrived from the heavens with salvation, her fame as a goddess grew.
Eventually, Ororo joined the X-Men as the heroine Storm. T’Challa became King of Wakanda and a member of the Avengers. But, despite always being in each other’s minds and hearts, they have never met since until Civil War.
Are Storm and Black Panther Married?
Civil War was Marvel’s most significant event in a long time. Hero versus hero. Two sides of a political war that began with a mutant incident.
Of course, spirits were running high among Marvel’s characters, and the story writers needed some event that would force both sides to stop and sit down together once again. That’s when the wedding of the century happened – the union of King of Wakanda and the X-Men’s Goddess.
It may seem a bit rash to talk about marriage when they didn’t even have a relationship… not to mention dating… but that’s how it happened…
In Black Panther #14, T’Challa and Ororo met again after a long time. They had a little chat, and in the following issue came the marriage proposal. Yes, in Black Panther #18, Black Panther and Storm got married.
Their wedding took place during the Civil War Cease-Fire Event, and most of the Avengers and X-Men attended, regardless of how they felt about the Superhuman Registration Act. T’Challa even had a bachelor party with Wolverine and other guests in Rio de Janeiro.
Ororo wore a stunning dress at the ceremony, complete with a cape with traditional African ornaments and rubies. Sue Storm, the Invisible Woman from Fantastic Four, was the bridesmaid for the wedding, and Kitty Pryde was the maid of honor.
To ascend the Wakandan throne, she needed the blessing of Bast, the Panther God, protector of the royal lineage, who agreed to the union. As a gift to his beloved, T’Challa reunited Ororo with her lost parents.
In the end, everything worked out, and the two were finally able to live their love story.
And despite everything, they worked very well together. Black Panther and Storm are very idealistic heroes who fought on the same side against the Superhuman Registration Act, so we can say that the couple agreed on a lot.
The Queen of Wakanda’s status was very beneficial to the mutants. As monarch, Ororo was able to do much more for their cause. Likewise, T’Challa gave his full support to his beloved’s fight, putting his nation at the service of the mutant cause.
The problem is that the writers had little idea how to keep them together, considering that their separate stories already worked very well as they were.
Ororo would defend the mutants to the end, while T’Challa would die for Wakanda. These were the events the writers needed to separate the two a few years later.
Are Black Panther and Storm Still Together?
The first blow to their relationship was in the Avengers vs. X-Men event. For obvious reasons, Ororo and T’Challa fought on opposite sides of that war. Their ideals were no longer so aligned, and when the X-Men called, the mighty Storm had to attend.
And it was on one of these missions to support the mutants that tragedy struck. The final straw that ended this relationship was an Atlantis attack on Wakanda (a story that may be adapted into Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2021) film).
The Phoenix Force returned to Earth and hosted itself in Namor‘s body, a rival of T’Challa, who led the Atlantean people. Typically, the highly technological Wakanda would have no problem defending itself, but its army was busy fighting far away, protecting Ororo’s interests.
Black Panther fought bravely to defend his people, but the attack did a lot of damage. His love for Ororo was a distraction. She was never there to fight for her own, but he always strove to protect her people.
When the conflict softened, Storm went to talk to the Black Panther. However, when she approached T’Challa to express her feelings, the Black Panther strongly rejected Storm’s offer to help restore Wakanda.
He informed Ororo Munroe that their marriage was over by order of the High Priest of the Panther religion…HIMSELF!
Namor’s actions – which sank more than a third of the African country – were considered a war statement by Atlantis and Utopia – the island-base of mutants – and the X-Men were no longer welcome in Wakanda.
The former Queen of Wakanda was now officially an enemy of the state and could be killed by any country citizen without being considered a crime. And in this cruel way, the romance between Black Panther and Storm came to an end.
The Queen Never Lost Her Majesty
After this event, they obviously drifted apart. But with time, they became friends again. So there is still a heartfelt feeling between the two.
Ororo was present in several crucial moments for Wakanda, such as in the Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda saga, and T’Challa also participated in the Phoenix Force tournament.
But the nature of their relationship never really became romantic again.
The people of Wakanda never stopped seeing Ororo as a Goddess and part of royalty. Respectfully, she was called Hadari Yao, the one who walks on clouds. However, Ororo’s status with T’Challa, at present, is uncertain since she stole the Wakanda Skybreaker sword in Marauders #13.
With Krakoa established as a mutant nation-state and the rise of Planet Arakko, Storm is intergalactically considered the ruler of the Solar System. Unfortunately, Wakanda is still one of the few nations that do not respect the mutant state.
Who knows, perhaps we may soon see a couple’s meeting to address diplomatic issues… The fact is, should a new relationship arise, Marvel’s team is far more prepared to turn it into something extraordinary. So anyway, long live the King of Wakanda and long live the Queen Regent of Mars!
Did Storm and T’Challa Have Kids?
Azari T’Challa T’Chacka Evan, also known as the Duke of Wakanda, is the Black Panther and Storm’s sun.
His first comic book appearance was in Avengers #1, by Brian Michael Bendis. Then, in 2010, during the relaunch of the Heroic Age, we were introduced to the printed version of the character.
However, in 2008, he had already debuted in The New Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow animated film.
In short, Azari inherited a mixture of his parents’ abilities. While possessing the physical enhancement of Black Panther, the boy can also master time, like Storm. So it comes as no surprise to find out that Azari is a formidable warrior.
In addition, he forms a new generation of Avengers, where teams up with James Rogers Jr., son of Captain America and Black Widow; Henry Pym Jr., son of Ant-Man and the Wasp; Torunn, son of Thor and Sif; and Francis Barton, son of Hawkeye and Harpy.
