A new, mysterious character is claiming the mantle of Killmonger on Doctor Doom’s Avengers. Erik Killmonger gained prominence after Michael B. Jordan’s performance as the villain in 2018’s Black Panther. Fans loved Jordan’s take on the complicated villain, who became a somewhat sympathetic figure by the time Black Panther ended. However, this is not the Killmonger we get in Superior Avengers. Killmonger has a big role in the first issue, but there are already questions about her allegiances and identity that will need to be answered. WARNING: Spoilers for Superior Avengers #1 below.
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Superior Avengers #1 comes from the creative team of Steve Foxe, Luca Maresca, Kyle Hotz, Mattia Iacono, and VC’s Cory Petit. Doctor Doom stole the mantle of Sorcerer Supreme and subsequently named himself Emperor Doom, somehow convincing the world’s leaders to bow down to him. Heroes like the Avengers and Fantastic Four have risen up to stop Doom, but his focus remains on guiding and leading the planet Earth, aka a United Latveria. In order to do that, Doctor Doom needs his own team of Avengers.
Killmonger and the Superior Avengers come from the future
Enter the Superior Avengers. We meet the team in the middle of a battle as Annihilus and his bug army attack the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Killmonger is the first Avenger we’re introduced to after she saves a woman from Annihilus. Even though we don’t know who is under the Black Panther mask, it’s apparent early on that Killmonger is a skilled, no-nonsense warrior who comes across as the Avengers’ leader. Killmonger’s communication with her teammates is short and direct. She’s all about completing their mission, even telling Ghost to proceed to a secondary objective that their benefactor — Doctor Doom’s adopted son, Kristoff Vernard — doesn’t know about.
The next day, Kristoff introduces the Superior Avengers to the press, revealing that they come from over a century in the future as proof of the peace and stability experienced under Doctor Doom’s rule. Back at Doomstadt, Killmonger flirts with Kristoff, revealing her face for the first time. Killmonger and Doctor Octopus are part of a flashback/flashforward scene where something bad happens in their future, which Killmonger references as “the Final Incursion.”
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Together, the Avengers take the artifact that Ghost stole at the Capitol to Prison 42, aka the Negative Zone. The Avengers have been using the Negative Zone to hide items away, and it’s the perfect location since no one has been monitoring the prison. They’re obviously hiding something from Doctor Doom, but as Killmonger says as the issue ends, if Doom were to find out what they are doing, they’d just kill him, just like they did in their timeline.
While the Superior Avengers come from a future where Doctor Doom’s rule continued without an apparent hitch, it doesn’t mean they’re completely loyal followers. Killmonger, in particular, shows no qualms about killing Doom, since they’ve already done it before. What Killmonger and the Superior Avengers are after is unknown at this time. But at some point, they will come into conflict with Kristoff and Doom, and there will be a reckoning.
It’s interesting that Killmonger goes by that name, yet wears the helmet of the Black Panther. Perhaps she comes from Wakanda, which would explain her prowess at fighting and leading. She does display superhuman strength since she can tear an alien bug in half and make giant leaps into the air. Wakanda’s heart-shaped herb may be at play. We should learn more about Killmonger in future issues of Superior Avengers. The most recent Killmonger that Marvel introduced is a freedom fighter alongside Storm in Ultimate Black Panther.
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