Warning: SPOILERS for Captain America and the Winter Soldier Special #1
Fans of Marvel Comics know that Black Panther's nation of Wakanda is the most technologically advanced country on the planet, but their advancements go far beyond what readers could possibly imagine. The African nation is famous for a long-lasting monarchy and a strong desire to maintain the secrets of their technology and their precious vibranium. But in Captain America and the Winter Soldier Special #1, the nation debuts a stunning new technology in the aftermath of World War I - proving they could have changed history whenever they wanted.
The nation of Wakanda owes their stunning technological developments to a meteorite of pure vibranium that impacted their land millennia ago. Knows as the Great Mound, the unique properties of Vibranium allowed Wakanda to surpass all other nations of the world, and they remain the only African nation never invaded or conquered by Western or European powers in the Marvel Universe. But Wakandans face their fair share of criticism for standing by while the world faced atrocities during periods of war, famine and disease; while the Black Panther often decides to open up his country to a select few temporarily in both the comics and the MCU, it largely remains closed off from outsiders.
In Captain America and the Winter Soldier Special #1, written by Jackson Lanzing & Collin Kelly with art by Kev Walker, the members of what will later become known as the Outer Circle meet four years after the conclusion of World War I. The group decides a grand plan between them is needed in order to control the world and prevent it from sinking into chaos and uses Captain America's legendary shield as a symbol. One of those members, Ika Agboje, hails from Wakanda as the former head of the Wakanda Engineering Vanguard, and she arrives using a contraption attached to her limbs that appears to defy gravity.
Wakanda Is The Most Dangerous Nation On The Planet
This meeting takes place in 1922, at a time when airplanes were relatively new technology and the computer was still decades away. While troops were still developing tanks, Wakanda mastered anti-gravity technology and even an apparent form of human-machine interconnectivity. Advanced technology was seen in the comics before: in 2006's Black Panther relaunch, American settlers in the 1800s come across advanced Wakandan electrical weapons that surround the border - but this is the first sign that Black Panther's nation defied gravity itself; their Wakandan ships would soon use this technology as well.
This development, unfortunately, means Wakanda could have done far more than simply give weapons to one side or another during wars over the centuries. If they truly wanted to, the Wakandans could have reigned from the skies in a way that would terrify all combatants on the battlefield. Wakanda is currently an ally of the United States and Captain America in Marvel Comics, and perhaps that is for the best - if the Black Panther ever decided to lead his country to conquer the others, Wakanda would win a war against the world.