Black Panther - Killmonger: By Any Means Review (Bryan Hill, Juan Ferreyra)

He mongs kills like a fishmonger mongs fish – it’s the vastly more interesting character than the title character from the Black Panther movie, Killmonger! Bryan Hill and Juan Ferreyra’s origin story shows how Erik Killmonger came to hate Black Panther, Wakanda, etc. and generally turn into a bad egg. And it’s a pretty decent read which shocked me as I’ve come to expect anything Black Panther-related to be near-unreadable!

We see Killmonger’s early life, kidnapped from Wakanda and forced to grow up quickly at the hands of Klaw, a thug who leaves young Erik with nothing but hate and revenge in his heart. His early life working with hitmen Misty Knight, King and Rook to get information on Klaw was interesting – the action is nicely spread out so it’s never overwhelming or becomes mundane. Erik certainly lives up to his surname! And the scene with Bullseye was really fun – he’s such a great villain.

There’s some good Misty Knight stuff here if you’re a fan of hers. Predictably, she and Erik hook up but seeing her early life when she was still a crook and then beginning her path to redemption was entertaining.

Ferreyra’s art is dependably superb. Whether he’s drawing the Dark Horse series Colder, DC’s Green Arrow or his latest work for Marvel, the visuals are always stunning to look at. His experience on Colder especially informs the more fantastical elements of the story like the visions of K’Liluna and Bast.

I don’t think Bryan Hill’s origin is convincing in why Killmonger became the hatemonger he did. His motivations are about vengeance against Klaw, which are flimsy at best as little time is spent on the horrors Erik endured, so his hatred towards Wakanda and Black Panther is just plain baffling. Something about feeling abandoned and/or left out? It’s tenuous stuff. And the obvious parallels between Bast (Black Panther) and K’Liluna (Killmonger) are very forced.

Still, it’s not a bad comic By Any Means (see what I did there?). The story is compelling in parts, if unmemorable and unimpressive overall, with fantastic art throughout. I think Bryan Hill needs to be writing Black Panther instead of the godawful Ta-Nehisi Coates!