DC Comics has their own version of the Black Panther, named Red Lion, who is a mirror image of T’Challa, albeit one that is broken and distorted. Created by writer Christopher Priest, who worked on the Black Panther title for the Marvel Knights line in the late 1990s, and artist Carlo Pagulayan (Batman, Convergence), Red Lion first appeared in 2016’s Deathstroke: Rebirth one shot, and subsequently became both an adversary and an ally to Deathstroke throughout the Rebirth era, and even menaced the Justice League at one point!

The practice of one company pastiching another's character isn't new - Marvel's entire Squadron Supreme are intentional Justice League clones - but Red Lion provides a fascinating twist on this concept: he is Black Panther with none of T’Challa’s moral compass. He is Black Panther without the benefit of a technologically advanced nation. He is, in short, a more grounded version of T’Challa.

Related: What is Black Panther's Actual Name in Wakandan, Not English?

Who Is Red Lion In DC's Universe?

Much like T’Challa, Red Lion, alias Matthew Bland, is the leader of an African nation named Buredunia, located in the Eastern part of the continent. Unlike T’Challa’s home country of Wakanda, Buredunia is fractured and in the midst of civil war, one instigated when Bland seized power and declared himself President-for-life. In his first appearance, he is blackmailing a US senator into holding up a war authorization against Bland and his forces. He also asks Deathstroke to kill the Clock King, who has wronged Bland. During the fighting, Slade abandons his Promethium-based armor, which Bland finds and makes his own.

Red Lion Really Is DC's Black Panther

Red Lion comic pages

Though the armor Red Lion took from Deathstroke wasn't made by him, Bland did add some feline touches, meaning that like Black Panther, Red Lion is the leader of an African nation who wears an armored "big cat" suit composed of a fictional "metal." Both Black Panther and Red Lion possess a keen sense of diplomacy. In fact, in his Justice League appearances, Red Lion manipulates the League into fighting refugees. While the world focuses on the League fighting African refugees, and the bad optics that creates, Red Lion plots to invade a neighboring country.

Red Lion Is So Much Worse Than T'Challa

Why did Red Lion go to such lengths to plan his invasion? He needed somewhere to dock his aircraft carrier. And that is one of the key differences between T’Challa and Red Lion: T’Challa has morals and believes in cooperation, with fighting being a last resort. Red Lion has no qualms about invading countries and creating smokescreens to hide the fact. Red Lion is not above cold-blooded murder, and even genocide. When we first meet him, he and Slade are looking out over mass graves dug for the Islamic insurgency in Buredenia. He has little regard for the damage his actions cause, pushing his blackmailed senator into suicide and tarnishing worldwide perception of the Justice League.

Yet one of the most fascinating differences between the two might also explain why Red Lion chose a darker path. T’Challa’s home nation of Wakanda is technologically and societally advanced, with a sense of hope and optimism. Red Lion’s Buredenia has no technological advances and is being torn apart by civil war and sectarian violence. T’Challa has known peace, Red Lion knows war, and their perspectives are shaped by this. Red Lion is willing to do whatever it takes to restore and keep order, even if his methods are extreme.

As long as Marvel and DC continue to publish comics, these types of characters will continue, and some of them will go past the point of mere parody. Red Lion is poised to continue this tradition - he serves as the perfect foil for the public understanding of Black Panther, providing fans with a darker, more sinister take on what could have been.

Next: Black Panther is a King, Not a Marvel Superhero