Black Panther: Wakanda Forever explores a grieving nation following the death of Black Panther star Chadwick Boseman. In addition to introducing a new Black Panther and Namor the Sub-Mariner, a mutant who rules over the underwater kingdom of Talocan (Atlantis in the comics), the movie will also focus on the royal family and the late king's personal bodyguards, the Dora Milaje.
Marvel Cinematic Universe audiences met the Dora Milaje in 2018's Black Panther, and now we may get to meet a stealth subgroup of warriors called the Midnight Angels.
So who are the Midnight Angels, and how are they different from the Dora Milaje? We'll explain how the team was formed, what it does, its comic book history, and how it might factor into the MCU.
Who are the Midnight Angels?
The Midnight Angels are a group of specially trained warriors who form their own subgroup among the Black Panther's bodyguards, the Dora Milaje. Like the Dora Milaje, the Midnight Angels are all women, and they act as a strike force that takes out any and all threats to King T'Challa and Wakanda.
The Midnight Angels were created by Jonathan Maberry and Scott Eaton, and they first appeared in 2010's Doomwar #5. They travel in a stealth Quinjet called the Dagger and wear winged stealth suits equipped with electric weapons. Like the rest of the Dora Milaje, the Midnight Angels use Kimoyo Beads for communication and carry Vibranium weapons.
The Midnight Angels in the Marvel Universe
The Midnight Angels were formed after Dr. Doom stole all of Wakanda's Vibranium in the 2010 'Doomwar' storyline. To prevent Doom from taking total control of Wakanda, T'Challa gathered the Midnight Angels to kill Dr. Doom, with the support of Wade Wilson AKA Deadpool.
Later, after the Avengers vs. X-Men event in which the Phoenix Force was divided among five individuals including Namor the Sub-Mariner, T'Challa and Namor worked together as part of the Illuminati to keep Earth from being destroyed by outside incursions. This alliance - while temporary - caused Midnight Angels Ayo and Aneka to begin to lose faith in the royal family, to whom they had been loyal for years.
In an effort to both remove corruption from the royal family itself and better protect Wakanda, Ayo and Aneka defected from the Dora Milaje and used their Midnight Angels training, armor, and weaponry to liberate the Wakandans who had been neglected by the monarchy.
They began by killing leaders and bandits who had captured, defiled, or otherwise endangered Wakandan women, and soon after, the rest of the Dora Milaje joined them and claimed the Jabari lands in the North for their own. Collectively, the group reclaimed the Dora Milaje title and severed ties with the royal family.
This, in turn, motivated King T'Challa to form a democratic government for Wakanda, making him more of a figurehead than a definitive ruler. With this change, the Dora Milaje and the Midnight Angels continue to serve Wakanda itself rather than the crown.
The Midnight Angels in the MCU
The Dora Milaje made their MCU debut in 2018's Black Panther, with General Okoye (played by Danai Gurira) playing the largest role out of the group. The Dora Milaje again appeared in Avengers: Infinity War, when Thanos attacked Wakanda, and in Avengers: Endgame.
Some blink-and-you-miss-it images from the Wakanda Forever trailers and promos and this official poster of Okoye show members of the Dora Milaje in more fortified blue and gold armor, rather than their traditional scarlet red garb.
Okoye's blue armor also appears similar to the Midnight Angels' armor as seen in 2016's Black Panther: World of Wakanda comic book series, (see above).
Given Wakanda is going to war with the superpowered Namor and Talocans who would also logically have superior strength compared to humans, it seems like members of Dora Milaje might be suiting up in enhanced armor in Wakanda Forever, which would almost certainly be an MCU adaptation of the Midnight Angels.
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