Watch Black Panther 2

[Akeem Luperon]

Itfeels late on opening night when I finally sat down to watch Black Panther at a theater outside Washington, D.C. Late because the landmark superhero, who hails from the fictional African nation of Wakanda, was introduced in Marvel comics more than 50 years ago. Late in cinematic history for a Hollywood blockbuster, poised to break box-office records, to feature a black director and nearly all-black cast centered in the black gaze telling stories from the African diaspora.

At a minimum, opening night of Black Panther feels like an extension of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, where the polarities of race are reversed and in the grip of black magnetism. I walk into my local nondiverse neighborhood theater ready with an implicit corrective to would-be white fans: Do not misunderstand what type of party this is.

Walking out of the theater, two local sisters (yes, black, but also actual sisters), Courtney Bell, a day care teacher, and Shannon Bell, a server at a nearby restaurant, had a similar mix of feelings.

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