One thing Marvel Comics writers do very well with is infusing humanity into their characters. Readers are often just as invested in the characters’ personal lives and romances as they are in the super heroics. Black Panther stands out as one of Marvel’s characters whose romances have had a significant influence on the books.
Throughout Black Panther comics, T’Challa hasn’t actually had too many romances. This is due to the fact that several of his relationships took up long stretches of his comic book history. As King of Wakanda, there is also a lot of pressure put on him and anyone he dates for the relationship to be more than just a fling. While T’Challa hasn’t had a huge number of different relationships, some of the ones he’s had have been very impactful.
6/6 Honorary Mention: Nakia Is Nothing Like Her MCU Counterpart
Black Panther fans who are mainly familiar with the MCU version of the character may be wondering why Nakia doesn’t appear on a list of T’Challa’s romances. While they have a great on-screen romance that eventually results in them having a son, Nakia’s role in the comics is very different.
Instead of a mutual attraction, Nakia has unrequited feelings for T’Challa in Black Panther comics. This has even manifested in some pretty unhealthy ways. Nakia once tried to kill one of T’Challa’s other love interests. The idea of their childhood romance in the MCU seems to be lifted from T’Challa’s early infatuation with Storm. As Disney had not yet purchased the rights to the X-Men, it makes sense that they would take inspiration from their romance and give it to another character like Nakia.
5/6 Nikki Adams And T’Challa Only Dated For A Few Pages
It’s hard to say what kind of romance Nikki Adams and Black Panther really had. Her relationship with T’Challa is limited to a flashback that takes up three pages of Black Panther #36 by Christopher Priest, Sal Velluto, Bob Almond, VLM, and Paul Tutrone & Sharpefont.
T’Challa and Nikki’s brief romance ends when some of their fellow students attack Black Panther because of a disagreement about his involvement with Nikki. After the fight, T’Challa leaves Nikki, realizing that his romance with someone from outside of Wakanda won’t be approved of. Nikki goes on to have a much longer relationship with Black Panther’s ally, Everett Ross.
4/6 Sue Storm And T’Challa Flirt But Nothing More
Black Panther has been a long-time ally of The Fantastic Four, and he has spent a decent amount of time with the team outside of costume as well. During a visit to Wakanda, Sue Storm and T’Challa did a bit of flirting and even went skinny-dipping together.
While there was a clear attraction between Sue and T’Challa, Sue ultimately shot down any notions of an actual romance between the two. T’Challa was respectful of Sue’s wishes and didn’t pursue any further romance with her. Even though there was no actual romance between them, seeing Black Panther’s respect for Sue and what she wanted was a good bit of characterization for him.
3/6 T’Challa Only Had A Few Short Flings With Malaika
Before T’Challa went to college in America, he and a young woman named Malaika were briefly involved. After T’Challa left Wakanda, their relationship effectively ended, and he wouldn’t see her again until some time later.
Years later, after T’Challa had broken up with another of his love interests, Monica Lynne, he and Malaika briefly reconnected. However, they only spent a single night together before Malaika had to return to her job as an ambassador in France. If anything, their romance felt more like T’Challa trying to deal with his recent breakup than a genuine connection between the two characters.
2/6 Monica Lynne Was Never Accepted By Black Panther’s People
One of Black Panther’s longer romances was with a woman named Monica Lynne. Although T’Challa and Monica clearly loved one another, there was a lot of tension in their relationship due to outside forces. The biggest issue was that the Wakandans didn’t approve of their king dating an American.
Even though T’Challa and Monica continued dating and were even engaged, this disapproval never really went away. Some Wakandans even went so far as to try and kill Monica or frame her for murder to get her executed. The pair eventually separated, briefly reconnected, then ended their relationship when Monica saw T’Challa kissing Storm of the X-Men.
1/6 Storm And Black Panther Were A Fan-Favorite Pairing
It’s very easy to see why readers love T’Challa and Storm’s relationship best of all Black Panther romances. The two are both great characters independent of one another, and when they got married, they became the ultimate Marvel power couple. Storm and T’Challa met when they were young and immediately hit it off. Even though their duties to the X-Men and Avengers kept them separated for a time, they reconnected and ended up becoming married.
Black Panther and Storm were both a great couple and great rulers of Wakanda. Unfortunately, their marriage wasn’t strong enough to survive the devastating events of Avengers Vs. X-Men and they eventually annulled their marriage. There have been some stories that seem to allude to Storm and T’Challa possibly rekindling their romance, but it has yet to happen in any official capacity.
