MCU fans were saddened when actor Chadwick Boseman, start of “Black Panther”, died from cancer complications in 2020. It was a shock given that he kept his condition secret while starring in the film. And that doesn’t even include “Captain America: Civil War” plus “Avengers: Infinity War” and “Endgame”. The planned sequel, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”, needed significant retooling in the wake of Boseman’s passing. It’s due to premiere next month, and with it are the expected merchandise tie-ins including from LEGO. One notable piece of merch is a minifigure keychain portraying the Black Panther. Close observation reveals some changes in this minifig’s design compared to previous LEGO Marvel versions.
As Brick Fanatics tells it, the upcoming LEGO Marvel Black Panther Key Chain (854189) has a seeming design alteration. All minifigs of King T’Challa of Wakanda have a masked head topped off with cat-like ears, In the previous versions the ears were swept back. One might see this in Black Panther Mech Armor (76204) and Shuri’s Lab (76212). The keychain minifigure however has the cat ears pointing forward. In fact, the ears might be mistaken for horns, particularly those worn by LEGO Daredevil. He’s one of the minifigures in the Daily Bugle (76178) last 2021.
Black Panther Key Chain (8514189)
Age 6+ | $5.99 | Coming October 1
Was this an assembly mistake or a deliberate choice? The former feels like a possibility. After all, both Black Panther Key Chain (854189) and Shuri’s Lab (76212) are coming October 1. They’re tying into the November release of “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” after all. The discrepancy of the BP costume makes for a curious puzzle. It’s like the question regarding the identity of the new wearer of the suit in the film. Hopefully we’ll get some explanation for this mystery.