BLACK PANTHER: Head Back To Warrior Falls With This Gorgeous T'Challa And M'Baku Concept Art

BLACK PANTHER: Head Back To Warrior Falls With This Gorgeous T'Challa And M'Baku Concept Art

T'Challa's battle with M'Baku at Warrior Falls was one of the best sequences in Black Panther and this amazing concept art offers some alternate takes on their tribal masks and their impressive costumes.

Feature Opinion
By JoshWilding - Mar 08, 2018 08:03 AM EST
Filed Under: Black Panther
Black Panther is now in theaters and it's breaking countless box office records. The movie feels like more than just Marvel's latest effort to expand its Cinematic Universe too because the cultural importance of the Ryan Coogler helmed release is massive and given the success it's found, it's clear that T'Challa is going to have a huge impact on the genre and could become the face of this world.

To celebrate the movie's release last month, we're taking a look at some amazing Black Panther concept art and this latest batch focuses on Warrior Falls, T'Challa, Zuri, and M'Baku. 

From alternate mask designs for both warriors to costume alterations and surprising takes on Zuri and the leader of the Jabari, these pieces of artwork are all very cool and definitely give us plenty to talk about. Would Marvel have been better off going for a somewhat more traditional look for the King of Wakanda in his traditional Wakandan garb? We'll let you guys decide the answer to that question!

So, to check out the entire list of concept art, all you need to do is click on the buttons down below.

T'Challa's Ready For A Fight



This awesome piece of artwork shows how T'Challa's Warrior Falls look was brought to life on the big screen and it's fair to say that it's a cool look for the hero in the moments before he's crowned King.
 

M'Baku Lays Down The Gauntlet



M'Baku's Warrior Falls arrival comes as a surprise and he makes one hell of an entrance! While he's ultimately unsuccessful in his bid for the throne, it's clear that he has a big role to play in the MCU.
 

Zuri's Masks


 


Zuri has a very cool look in the movie but it could have been even more unique going by these designs. Just how practical those masks would have been is hard to say but they'd have looked cool! 
 

An Alternate Take On M'Baku



It's fair to say that Marvel came up with the perfect look for M'Baku in Black Panther but here we see a slightly different take on the villain turned hero which also has a fair few good points. 
 

More Alternate Zuri Designs


 


Zuri takes on the role of a Shaman of sorts in the Marvel movie and these takes on T'Challa's old friend stick a little closer to what we've come to expect from those types of characters on the big screen.
 

M'Baku, Leader Of The Jabari



M'Baku definitely stole the show in Black Panther and it helped that he made such a great first impression. Much of that had to do with his costume and here we see how that was dreamed up.
 

T'Challa's Mask


 

 

 

 


These masks are very similar to what ended up in the movie but are also different in some key ways. The version covering the top half of his mouth works really well but not as much as the final design.
 

M'Baku's Mask


 


M'Baku's mask makes for a frightening visual and while he has a costume in the comic books, it didn't really inspire what we ended up seeing on screen. These versions, meanwhile, are also very unique. 
 

 


By contrast, these two are possibly inspired by the source material as they're quite clearly based on various types of apes which is appropriate considering M'Baku was actually once known as Man-Ape.
 

Alternate Masks For Black Panther


 


Well, these are different! Marvel clearly considered various real-life African sources to come up with T'Challa's mask in Black Panther but these are a little plain and don't really get his Pather side across.
 

 

 


These, on the other hand, are much more animalistic and definitely provide an idea about where exactly the inspiration for the character's present-day look could have stemmed from. 

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knocturnalzen10
knocturnalzen10 - 3/8/2018, 8:06 AM
diggin this concept work
greyjedi
greyjedi - 3/8/2018, 8:07 AM

Kumkani
Kumkani - 3/8/2018, 8:19 AM
@greyjedi - HOLY SHIT LOOK AT THANOS
knocturnalzen10
knocturnalzen10 - 3/8/2018, 8:19 AM
@greyjedi - that moon shot tho .....
HeavyMetal4Life
HeavyMetal4Life - 3/8/2018, 8:16 AM
I like what we got
KingNomarch
KingNomarch - 3/8/2018, 8:19 AM
GhostDog
GhostDog - 3/8/2018, 8:21 AM
I really loved both battles, but the Killmonger battle was so electric and brutal.
knocturnalzen10
knocturnalzen10 - 3/8/2018, 8:27 AM
@BlackBeltJones - especially when he's proving a point while socking t'challa in the face
Kumkani
Kumkani - 3/8/2018, 8:34 AM
@BlackBeltJones - I liked how different T'Challa's fighting styles were, like how vs M'Baku he was on the defensive, evasive and slower, but vs Killmonger he was quicker and going blow for blow.

I wish I didn't watch The Winter Soldier immediately before I saw the movie the first time. It ruined my expectations because I was expecting fights way too similar to the fight from TWS. It's in my second viewing I really appreciated how well shot, choreographed and acted those two fights especially were. The second vs Killmonger is almost operatic in a way, especially when it starts going wrong for T'Challa.
GhostDog
GhostDog - 3/8/2018, 8:41 AM
@BlindWedjat - The Warrior Falls scenes are well choreographed and shot. Very creed like in execution and style.

The staging and blocking in the Killmonger fight is masterful.
Kumkani
Kumkani - 3/8/2018, 8:48 AM
@BlackBeltJones - Yes indeed. Some very powerful shots from each fight, and I like the parallels between them too. Like how the first one is when the sun has risen to signify T'Challa's rise to the throne, and also how it ends with a life being spared. While the second one it's a sunset signifying T'Challa losing the throne and also how it ends in a "death".

Even little things like the looks Okoye gives at the end of both fight and the looks on W'Kabi's face in both. And the music too was just perfect.

I think maybe Coogler's weak points in this movie wearing shooting fight scenes in the dark like the forest one, and using heavy CGI. I don't blame him for either because he's never done both. The forest fight scene I think was just too dark and the flashing lights didn't help. Didn't look as good as in the trailer, though I still liked it.
GhostDog
GhostDog - 3/8/2018, 9:00 AM
@BlindWedjat - The first fight scene reminds me of the Batman Begins docks fight scene only better. I could at least make out where No was. It was from the POV of the soldiers. A bit shaky but ok.

Also, I've come to appreciate the casino scene. The one shot is very well done. Coogler is great at letting you know where everyone is in the commotion. Only weak point was some of the choreography for T'Challa

Coogler is great at shooting the fights. Some of the shots he compiles are great. Great style. Russos are just good at executing the fights themselves. Giving them a certain brutality. Those guys are action heads so they're above and beyond.
Kumkani
Kumkani - 3/8/2018, 9:19 AM
@BlackBeltJones - Hmm. that comparison does make some sense. I could make out the choreography for that fight however and I really liked it. Took a lot of inspiration from capoeira and other African martial artist, and also a good showing of T'Challa's strength.

The casino brawl was really well done but I thought Nakia was the really weak link. She does the same move twice and except for the final battle her fighting style isn't all that interesting.

True about the Russos. Almost every CBM director can learn something from them. Their fight scene ideas always blow my mind.
aflynn
aflynn - 3/8/2018, 8:24 AM
Forthas
Forthas - 3/8/2018, 8:50 AM
Interesting....So if M'Baku won the fight would he have adopted the Black Panther persona or is he free to make it different?
Kumkani
Kumkani - 3/8/2018, 8:58 AM
@Forthas - I don't think so. He seemingly already has his own mantle from things inferred in the movie and also if we're flowing comic book lore. Every tribe seemed to have their own champion, and Nakia was the champion for the River Tribe as shown. Now it isn't certain if the other tribes have their own gods or not. It's possible that they do, but have allowed the Black Panther, who is the champion of Bast as well to lead Wakanda as warrior and king.

So my guess is, if M'Baku one, he would have been king of Wakanda and kept whatever mantle he had as the champion of the Jabari.
Forthas
Forthas - 3/8/2018, 9:07 AM
@BlindWedjat - That seems right. I presume that when Killmonger won, he took on another persona - Golden Jaguar. Assuming that M'Baku won, I could just see him just creating his own theme. I also assume that Shuri designs the weaponry for T'Challa because she is in his tribe. So M'Baku would probably appoint someone from his tribe to make his weapons and outfit.
Kumkani
Kumkani - 3/8/2018, 9:14 AM
@Forthas - Killmonger took on the persona of Black Panther as well. He even said that was also what he was challenging for and it was his blood right to do so as a descendant of the royal family. The suit he took was one of the ones Shuri had made for T'Challa, but rejected because he thought it was too showy. I think Killonger might have redesigned it a little considering the suit also shares the body scarification motif, or it's just a design choice and a coincidence.
Polaris
Polaris - 3/8/2018, 9:19 AM
Polaris
Polaris - 3/8/2018, 9:20 AM
Odinborn
Odinborn - 3/8/2018, 9:26 AM
The concept art for this movie has just been amazing.
QuietStorm
QuietStorm - 3/8/2018, 12:38 PM
Is that first face reveal of M'Baku in the concept art a young Bo Jackson???

QuietStorm
QuietStorm - 3/8/2018, 12:39 PM
@QuietStorm -
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