While there are many different romantic pairings from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, one of the best, and sometimes most underrated, is between T’Challa and Nakia. While they were only shown together in one movie, and with Chadwick Boseman’s tragic passing there likely won’t be much more of them going forward, they were great together.
While couples like Pepper Potts and Tony Stark might get talked about more, Nakia and T’Challa were very likable and believable as a pairing. They were more relatable in a lot of ways than your average MCU coupe, too, despite being exceptionally talented royalty from Wakanda. But, the way they seemed to have a mature and believable history and relationship was what made them so great.
They Have A History Together
While many of the main couples from the MCU meet for the first time in the films, T’Challa and Nakia are shown to have a history. This was a great way to establish their bond without having to spend a lot of time on the relationship, and it worked very well.
And, since many romantic relationships in the real world are between two people who have known each other for years as friends and then lovers, it made them seem very real.
They Are Equals In Many Ways
While T’Challa might be the prince and then the King of Wakanda, Nakia is his equal in many ways. She also had a claim to the throne, but she gave it up; still, when it comes to things like fighting ability and independence, they are on equal footing.
This is important because, oftentimes, too many of the female characters in the MCU are just love interests who don’t feel like they have their own story, but Nakia, while a supporting character, does get her own motivations outside of her romantic life.
Nakia Isn’t Necessarily Interested In Being Queen
While it would have been easy to have Nakia just be used as a love interest who was just around to be T’Challa’s potential queen, Black Panther didn’t take this route. Nakia didn’t actually want to be the queen at first or be tied to a certain way of life.
While the pair did come to a bit of a compromise at the end of the movie, it was refreshing to see her have her own motivations. Just like with Shuri and Okoye, Nakia is one of the more well-rounded female characters in the MCU.
They Support One Another But Don’t Always Agree
As mentioned above, Nakia wasn’t just going to get in line with T’Challa’s life, and they had some very different ideas about their relationship and about general approaches to the world. T’Challa seemed to be more interested in settling down while Nakia seemed like she wanted to feel more independent, at least at first.
This seems to be largely why they weren’t actively dating at the time of Black Panther. The fact that they still cared about each other even when they weren’t together was very relatable for fans.
They Broke Up Because They Had Other Things Going On In Their Lives
One of the issues with romance on the big screen is often that characters don’t feel very multidimensional. This is especially true for female characters who are often mainly used to propel the male hero's story forward without having much of a life of their own.
While T’Challa still gets more scenes and story because he’s the main character, Nakia has a very active life outside of him and is highly committed to her role as one of the War Dogs.
They Have Compatible Personalities With Interesting Differences
For some couples in the MCU, personalities really seem to clash in a lot of ways. One example of this is Star-Lord and Gamora who seem so vastly different in their traits and characteristics that sometimes it’s difficult to see how they would make it work.
T’Challa and Nakia are an example of a realistic balance. They are both loyal, brave, and driven, but they do have some key differences where Nakia is more realistic and T’Challa is a bit more idealistic.
Nakia Looks Out For T’Challa’s Family
Another issue that’s common with the MCU’s romantic relationships is that the characters don’t seem to have much going on outside of the relationship or the role as heroes. Black Panther did a good job of making many characters feel multifaceted in just a short amount of time.
T’Challa’s family was very important to him, and it made sense that Nakia, as T’Chala’s former partner, would be very close to his family, too. She was there to help protect Shuri and Queen Ramonda after T’Challa seemed to have been killed by Killmonger, and it’s clear that Shuri also knew Nakia rather well.
They Have A Natural Chemistry
Another reason why these two felt relatable is that they had a rather easy chemistry with one another. While the movie didn’t focus all that much on their relationship, the scenes they did have together felt natural and not forced at all.
They clearly were attracted to one another, but they weren’t hyperfocused on that with all of the other issues happening around them that were more pressing. This meant that the times they did touch romantically or kiss felt more special.
Their Relationship Isn’t The Only Priority In Their Lives
One of the most realistic things about T’Challa and Nakia is that it feels like they aren’t just destined to be together. Many romances in the MCU tend to fall flat because the viewers have to buy into the idea that they are perfect together, without ever showing way. T'Challa and Nakia are an exception to this.
While they do work well as a couple and have a lot going for them, they also have to try to find a middle ground and compromise to make things work. It’s clear that T'Challa's main priority is being a good kind, and Nakia’s main priority is to help others as a War Dog.
They Help Each Other See New Ways Of Thinking
As the new king, T’Challa is trying to figure out the type of ruler he will be and how involved he wants Wakanda to be in helping the rest of the world. And, it’s really Nakia who helps him see a new way of thinking that was different from King T'Chaka.
Nakia has spent more time out in the world and seen the ways that people, especially other Black people, have suffered. She is able to challenge T’Challa a little and help him see a new perspective.