Avengers: Infinity War was Marvel’s biggest crossover ever, and now Avengers 4 will be breaking that record as well because this time, almost every MCU character of little to major relevance will be brought in together! It is going to be a massive movie and no one could even imagine where and how all the characters could be coming in. There have been many theories which surround the upcoming finale, and the latest one ties the return of the Disintegrated heroes with Shuri becoming the Black Panther and the new ruler of Wakanda.
Every time an individual is crowned as the new Black Panther they go through the Astral Plane and seek advice from the previous Black Panthers. A new theory given by Redditor u/hockeytalkie, explains the how the Astral Plane and the new ruler of Wakanda will be important for the return of the dead population. Here’s what it reads:
“In Black Panther, the Ancestral Plane is depicted as an alternate dimension of sorts that the souls of the dead travel to after their life has ended. Through a process that involves the ingestion of the Heart-Shaped Herb, Black Panthers can briefly converse with their dead loved ones on the Ancestral Plane, and we see this happen three times–twice with T’Challa, and once with Erik Killmonger. One can reasonably assume that whoever is the next Black Panther, if there is one, he/she will undergo the same process, and subsequently take a trip to the Ancestral Plane.
We saw in Black Panther, that Wakanda does not wait for days to replace a king if they lose one. Rumors suggest that there will be a time jump, so you cannot imagine that Wakanda will be without a ruler for 2 years after T’Challa turned to dust. It has been teased that Shuri will also take on the mantle of Black Panther sometime in the future as Marvel is going to build towards it. So, why not give the fans a glimpse before doing it for real around 5-10 years later. The Redditor’s theory also talks about Shuri being the next ruler of Wakanda and getting a trip to the Astral Plane.
It continues:
“Many have predicted that, in the wake of T’Challa’s disintegration in Infinity War, his sister Shuri will take up the mantle of the Black Panther. It’s something that has happened in comic book continuity, and she already demonstrated her combat prowess by nearly taking out Killmonger single-handedly. The Heart-Shaped Herbs were seemingly destroyed on Killmonger’s orders, but if anyone can find a way to bring them back, it’s Shuri. At the very least, she seems like the best bet to become the Black Panther, so she might be in for a trip to the Ancestral Plane in the near future.”
So, his theory concludes by explaining the fact that when Shuri will go to the Astral Plane in order to seek advice from T’Challa and her father, she will not find T’Challa over there as he is not dead. He may be in the Soul World or something like that. Since Shuri is the smartest brain on the planet, she will then figure out a way to bring back all the dead characters. His theory continues:
“I’m sure that Shuri would be excited to see her father, T’Chaka, on the Ancestral Plane, but she’d probably be most interested in speaking to T’Challa. But what happens if T’Challa isn’t there?
Based on the comic book history of the Infinity Stones, it’s entirely likely that the victims of The Snap aren’t truly dead, and that it’s possible to “bring them back” without breaking the laws of the universe. Of course, in order for that to happen, the heroes of Earth will first have to discover that The Snapped aren’t deceased in the traditional sense.
If Shuri goes to the Ancestral Plane and finds that T’Challa is not there, she’s more than smart enough to realize the potential implications. Once she shares this information with Steve Rogers and the rest of the Avengers, it’s just a matter of time before the quest to find the missing 50% of the population begins, and that could be the first arc of Avengers 4.”
Shuri becoming the new Black Panther is a major possibility even if it was going to be for a short while. Rest we will only find out about it when the film comes out on May 3, 2019.
