Blade vs Black Panther: Who Would Win?
Marvel Comics is full of a variety of characters compatible for a good comparison. Some of them are heroes, others are villains, and there are even antiheroes in that whole batch. It is our tradition here at Fiction Horizon to write articles comparing these characters and that is what we are going to do today, in today’s article. You are going to find out how Marvel’s most famous vampire (hunter), Blade, would do in a fight against the Black Panther. Enjoy!
Blade would win in a Fight against Black Panther.The clash between Blade and Black Panther would be an interesting one. Namely, both of them have a similar array of powers and it would be difficult for one to defeat the other. Blade would run out of bullets against Black Panther’s suit, but Black Panther doesn’t really have a way of killing Blade with his powers.
Our comparison is going to be divided into three sections. The first is going to bring an overview of the two characters, after which we are going to compare their powers, including their signature weapons. Finally, we’re going to bring you a detailed analysis of the two characters to determine which one would win in a direct clash.
Who is Marvel’s Blade?
Blade, real name Eric Brooks, is a superhero created in 1973 for Marvel Comics by writer Marv Wolfman and artist Gene Colan. Blade was initially a supporting character in Tomb of Dracula in the 1970s, and played a starring role in several comics thereafter.
The man named Blade was born in a brothel in Soho, Britain. Blade revealed that the exact date of his birth was October 24, 1929 – a date also known as “Black Thursday” when the stock market crash that led to the Great Depression occurred. Blade said he was 72 years old but his vampire powers make him look much younger.
Blade’s mother, Tara Brooks, was a prostitute at Madame Vanity’s Brothel, who suffered several severe complications and experiences during childbirth, so much so that a doctor was called. The “doctor” was named Deacon Frost and was actually a wild vampire. Frost feasted on Blade’s mother during Blade’s birth, killing her, and accidentally passing enzymes into the baby’s own blood.
This resulted in providing Blade with superhuman abilities, such as immunity to vampire metamorphosis, the ability to “smell” supernatural creatures, and a greatly extended lifespan. On the other hand, it also engendered a certain sensitivity in Blade to the light of the city.
While in the Marvel Comics version the character of Blade was featured as a British and London-born subject, the film and television versions of Blade produced by New Line Cinema show him as a Chicago-born American.
Other than the point of the two versions of the story of his mother’s bite being bitten by vampires while she was giving birth to him, there is little agreement between the films and the comic book versions of Blade. However, due to the success of the film, efforts were made by Marvel Comics to make a version more in line with the character of the film.
This was achieved by confessing that Blade was bitten on the arm by Morbius. The injury resulted in Blade becoming a half-vampire, giving him all of the advantages of a vampire but none of his weaknesses. He has increased strength and great agility comparable to that of a vampire but, due to his human side, is not sensitive to sunlight.
Before being bitten by Morbius, Blade’s only unusual attributes were immunity to vampire bites and his aging slower than humans – both due to his unique physiology. As Morbius was not a true vampire, but some type of variant, Blade was not immune to his bite like other vampires, and his physiology changed becoming similar to that of Morbius.
However, in the current Blade series, Blade now states that Morbius’s bite did not affect his body in any way and that he was a half-vampire from birth. Frost was chased away by Blade’s mother’s coworkers before he also killed the baby. They raised him until he was nine years old. Although he has superhuman physical abilities, he has trained to become an Olympic-level athlete and a seasoned melee fighter.
He has notably become an expert in the handling of bladed weapons, mainly knives, and daggers.
Why is Black Panther so popular?
Black Panther is a fictional superhero appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. He was created by Marvel legends Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, debuting in 1966’s Fantastic Four #52.
Despite being a regular with Marvel, Black Panther has only recently become as popular as some other big superhero names like Captain America, Iron Man, or Thor.
Black Panther is actually the alter ego of T’Challa, the king and protector of the fictional African country of Wakanda.
Black Panther is actually a hereditary title that is passed on to Wakandan rulers, but they have to prove themselves beforehand.
Interestingly enough, although the character debuted under the name Black Panther before the Black Panther Party was actually founded (October, 1966), Marvel’s editors tried to change his name to Black Leopard during the ’70s in order to avoid a connection with the BPP, but the new name was never accepted so they quickly “revived” Black Panther.
As a child, T’Challa’s father, T’Chaka, was killed by villain Ulysses Klaw, leaving the underage prince as the successor of the throne.
His uncle was regent until he became of age. T’Challa was obsessed with avenging his father and killing Klaw, which has driven a lot of his initial plots.
But he was also a very successful ruler, uniting the majority of Wakandan tribes under his rule. A lot of his initial stories focused on him wanting to kill Klaw.
As part of his training, he even summoned the Fantastic Four in Wakanda and fought them one by one to prepare for Klaw; he would later explain his motives and befriended the group. This all happened in his debut appearance.
Later on, Black Panther became part of the Avengers and the authors further developed his story.
An important moment was his fight against the usurper Killmonger, whom he defeated initially, before losing later on but Killmonger never actually usurped the throne because he fell into a coma after consuming a herb that was toxic for anyone outside the royal bloodline. T’Challa spared his life afterward, opting not to kill him.
The Black Panther is known for his characteristic vibranium suit and his superhuman abilities granted to him through a combination of Wakandan science and sorcery. He appeared in several derivative materials, the most famous among which are the MCU movies (including a solo movie) where he was portrayed by the late Chadwick Boseman.
Comparing the powers of Blade and Black Panther
Our second section will contain a comparison of the two characters’ powers. It won’t be a direct comparison as much as a listing of their powers and abilities, which is going to serve as a basis for our analysis in section three of our article. Now, let us begin.
Due to an enzyme in his bloodstream that results from his mother being bitten by a vampire giving birth to him, Blade is immune to typical and supernatural vampire bites. In certain cases, he also seemed to be immune to vampire hypnosis. However, he lacked superhuman physical attributes and relied solely on his considerable skill and determination until Morbius, an atypical and scientifically created vampire, bit him and Blade became something of a dhampir.
Blade possesses superhuman strength, stamina, speed, agility, heightened senses, and a rapid healing factor that attacks any foreign substances (chemicals/viruses) in his body and eliminates any chance that he will be left defenseless or maimed from the inside and unaffected. by daylight and most other traditional vampire weaknesses.
He also ages very slowly (although he is not immortal) and can supernaturally sense supernatural activity. Blade is a master of martial arts mastering styles such as boxing, capoeira, Escrima, Jeet Kune do, Hapkido, Jujutsu, Shotokan Karate, Kung Fu, and Ninjutsu. He is also a skilled swordsman, marksman, and street fighter. He is adept at using throwing knives.
He is very knowledgeable about vampiric lore and the supernatural. In “Dracula’s Gauntlet”, Blade and Deadpool are surrounded by monsters and Blade threatens to turn into a bat and leave Deadpool there to die. He may have all of the vampire powers, but has conflicts overusing those that make him appear less human.
Black Panther is a genius with a very high IQ, so much so that he is considered one of the eight most intelligent people on Earth. With a degree in physics from Oxford University, as well as a scientist T’Challa has profound knowledge in the field of alchemy and is one of the world’s leading experts on vibranium.
As the ruler of Wakanda, he is among the most respected and influential figures on the global political scene, as well as a skilled head of state he has managed to lift his country from more than one crisis. Thanks to the training carried out since childhood, T’Challa also has exceptional acrobatic abilities, can move without emitting the slightest noise, and is a great expert in African martial disciplines and in capoeira.
As a holder of the title of Black Panther, obtained both by dynastic law and by passing a series of tests, T’Challa has ingested the Heart-Shaped Herb which, in addition to a mystical bond with the Goddess Panther Bast, gives to the one who feeds on it (as long as he belongs to the royal family) physical abilities such as strength, agility, speed, reflexes and supernatural resistance, a healing power much faster than that of a common human being and very acute sensory perception typical of a predatory animal, thanks to which it can see in conditions of total darkness, recognize a person by its natural smell by tracing it wherever it is and hear frequencies that, to an ordinary ear, would be imperceptible.
After losing the title and powers of Black Panther in favor of his half-sister, T’Challa initially obtains others through black magic but, later, he loses them in turn and re-establishes his connection with the Goddess Panther by being named “King. of the Dead “(King of the Dead), a title that gives him powers, knowledge, and memories of all the individuals who have worn the mantle of Black Panther over the centuries, as well as the ability to control the undead.
The Black Panther costume, made of vibranium fiber, is completely immune to bullets, edged weapons and explosions, has claws capable of cutting any surface, and is equipped with a supercomputer known as the “Kimoyo Card” (Kimoyo Card).
The king of Wakanda is also one of the richest people on the planet, enjoys diplomatic immunity, and has access to a wide range of technological devices, war materials, mystical artifacts, scientists, and sorcerers in the service of the nation as well as its army, considered among the more powerful than Earth.
This is an overview of their powers, from which we can deduce that neither of the two has a clear advantage. Now, let us see how the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z (2010) compares the two characters:
| Blade | Black Panther | |
| Intelligence | 2/7 | 5/7 |
| Strength | 4/7 | 3/7 |
| Speed | 2/7 | 2/7 |
| Durability | 4/7 | 3/7 |
| Energy Projection | 1/7 | 3/7 |
| Fighting Skills | 5/7 | 5/7 |
Blade vs Black Panther: Who would win?
And now for the most important and interesting section of our article – the analysis. Here, we are going to use what we have found out about these two characters and analyze how all these facts would (or would not) help them in a fight against each other. Blade and Black Panther couldn’t be more different in terms of their biographies, but in terms of comparison, there are a lot of similarities, which made this text so interesting and fun to write. Let us continue.
Marvel’s official power grid proved that the two were mostly the same. In terms of pure fighting skills, the two heroes are identical, but Blade is stronger and more durable than Black Panther. This, ultimately, does make sense as Blade is a superhuman (or non-human, whichever you prefer) character, while T’Challa remains a costumed human. Surely, he has powers and the costume makes him even stronger, but Blade still has a lot of “normal” powers that put him in a better position than Black Panther. In terms of strength and fighting skills, we think that Blade would win if the two were to face each other in a boxing match, for example.
But, that’s rarely how it goes. Black Panther is far more intelligent than Blade and is a better tactician. Blade is like a beast; he is a hunter that relies on his instinct. On the other hand, Black Panther has a more calculated, tactical approach which makes him an extremely dangerous foe and someone Blade could not really oppose if it came down to a battle of wits.
Black Panther also has a big advantage in the fact that he is able to use magic to a certain degree, a skill granted to him through his Black Panther role. Blade relies on hand-to-hand combat and (classical) weapons, while Black Panther also has additional skills. This is where he could also get the upper hand on Blade in a direct fight. So, what does this all mean? Let us see.
It is interesting to note that, despite all of these differences, we couldn’t really find a proper winner in this scenario. Why is that? Well, just imagine this. Blade and Black Panther are fighting. Blade uses his combat skills and his weapons. Blade could overpower Black Panther, but his vibranium suit is bullet-resistant, which means that Blade, despite overpowering his opponent, couldn’t really do much after that. Plus, he’d probably run out of bullets at some point and since he cannot use a cheat code, he’d be without his weapons. Black Panther wins, right? Not really, no.
Black Panther decides to counter. He uses his magical skills and his tactical knowledge to come up with a plan to overpower Blade. He succeeds and Blade is down. What now? Vibranium can’t really kill Blade and Black Panther is not that well-equipped to have something at his disposal to finish Blade. What would happen then? We have no clue.
This is ultimately a question best left to the writers to figure out. From what we managed to deduce, there is absolutely no clear winner in this scenario. Both characters have an edge in some aspects, but while both could be able to overpower the other with relative ease – with the right approach, of course – they wouldn’t really have any way of ending the fight in a proper way. But Blade is a tiny bit stronger than Black Panther.
And that’s it for today. We hope you had fun reading this and that we have given you all the information you were looking for. See you next time and don’t forget to follow us!
