Azzuri the WiseBlack Panther

Aptly named Azzuri the Wise, this Black Panther possesses the confidence and wisdom to keep Wakanda’s borders safe from outsiders, and doesn’t take any chances that would harm his people.

Inheriting a Legacy

Hailing from a line of Black Panther-mantle wearers, Azzuri the Wise takes his duty to his people and his nation of Wakanda seriously. He leads with experience and wisdom alongside his wife, Queen Nanali, and their two sons, T’Chaka and S’Yan.

Enhanced Senses

To become Wakanda’s Black Panther, Azzuri ingests the heart-shaped herb which endows him with low-level superhuman abilities. Such powers include enhanced strength, hearing, sight, and senses. He’s a highly effective armed and unarmed combatant, wielding a shield and two scythes.

Fascist Foes

When Nazis come calling on Wakanda’s borders hoping to pillage the nation’s precious resource, Vibranium, Azzuri stops them in their tracks. He also faces Nazi leaders Johann Shmidt, AKA Red Skull, and Baron Wolfgang von Strucker, AKA Baron Strucker, but leaves them running away back to Germany empty handed.

World War II Allies

When Steve Rogers, AKA Captain America, Nick Fury, and his Howling Commandos visit the border of Wakanda to warn them of a nearby Nazi force, Azzuri prevents them from crossing the border, maintaining that outsiders, no matter their intention, are welcome in Wakanda. Despite Azzuri’s reluctance at first to let them in, he eventually agrees to an alliance with them against Nazi forces.

Azzuri cares deeply for his family. During the attempted invasion by the Nazis, Azzuri takes time to address his sons’ sibling rivalry as they fight over a kingdom that hangs in the balance.

Wakanda’s Warrior King

During World War II, the Nazis attempted to cross into Wakanda to steal Vibranium, but Azzuri and his warriors slay them for their intentions. They place their heads on spikes to warn others to stay away. When Captain America and his allies the Howling Commandos arrived on Wakanda’s border to warn them about the Nazi troops, they find their enemies already defeated. Azzuri and his forces suddenly surround Cap, assuming that Cap was there for the Vibranium as well to help defeat his enemies. Cap doesn’t deny it and in fact encourages Azzuri to pick a side during these dangerous times. When Cap crossed a line and asserted his authority over Azzuri, Azzuri kicked him away. He told his men to stand down and while he recognized that Cap has the potential to become like him for his people, he also took a moment to teach Cap a lesson. They fought in hand-to-hand combat and while Cap lost, Azzuri remained opened to discuss cooperation against their common enemy.

Ultimately Azzuri and his warriors the Dora Milaje fought alongside Cap and his allies when the Nazi leaders Red Skull and Baron Strucker posed an even greater threat to Wakanda with their super-powered Nazi platoon. Outmanned and outgunned, Azzuri and Cap battled Master Man, Warrior Woman, White Gorilla, and the Red Skull. During the fighting, Azzuri’s children were threatened, but ally and Howling Commando Gabriel Jones saved them, and later as a thank you, Azzuri offered him Wakandan citizenship. Gabe appreciated the offer but declined so he could go back to his country and fight the good fight. Despite the odds they were all up against, Azzuri and his American allies defeated their enemies and Azzuri let Strucker go back to tell his Führer that his attempted invasion failed.

When the German officer Colonel Fritz Klaue had hopes to impress Adolf Hitler with a mission to Africa, he instead crash landed near Wakanda and remained the sole survivor. Azzuri helped him heal, which turned out to be a mistake. After Klaue learned about the Wakandans and their Vibranium, he attempted to kill Azzuri for access to it, but instead killed his queen Nanali. Azzuri made out with his life and eventually defeated Klaue, taking his hand off.