Vibranium is the most sought-after metal in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Unique in its properties to absorb, store and release kinetic energy – sometimes to devastating effects – made it some sort of new gold. It also meant that when we were introduced to Wakanda, the only nation with vibranium deposits in 2018’sBlack Panther, it made the kingdom the most powerful nation of the surface world. However, in the sequelBlack Panther: Wakanda Forever, we find out that Wakanda is not the only nation that possesses vibranium. The underwater kingdom of Talokan ruled by the K’uk’ulkan aka Namor (Tenoch Huerta Mejía) also had such deposits in stock. The underwater kingdom was shown in all its oceanic beauty, and to bring that to life, Marvel put in a very detailed level of work.
Talokan is the ruling city of the underwater kingdom. From here, Namor rules, and in the sequel, we get a trip to the city when the Sub Mariner decides to take Princess Shuri (Letitia Wright) on an excursion of sorts. What awaited both Shuri and audiences was a deep-sea metropolis that was a stunning sight to behold. The beauty enjoyed by Shuri and others was brought to life by a 200-page production bible with detailed information about Talokan, according toSlashFilm. Despite the city getting only limited screen time during the sequel, the manual encompassed many parts of Talokan life.
Per Weta VFX supervisorChris White, every detail including those slightly negligible were covered in bringing the city to life. Here is the full quote:
“Talokan is a massive, massive city, and it has multiple cities that are around it as well. [T]his was my first Marvel project, but as we first got on, there was a production bible of just Talokan, and it was 200 pages full of their history, their tools they built, their architecture, the influence, how they traveled through Central America.
It’s amazing how extensive that story was that they had created. It may go by in like four minutes or so, but they’ve thought through so much, even as we first joined in. Just like everything, the culture — very extensive.”
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While Namor and Shuri’s underwater excursion was a brief one, it did set off questions about the potential of aromantic connectionbetween the two. That seems at the moment at least, to be a closed avenue given their faceoff towards the end. However, given that Namor is still alive and now an ally of Wakanda, we hope that in future Marvel films we might get to enjoy another glimpse of his underwater stronghold.
Black Panther: Wakanda Foreveris in theaters now. You can check out the trailer below:
