View source for T'Chaka

{{short description|Marvel Comics character}}
{{Infobox comics character
<!--Wikipedia:WikiProject Comics-->
| character_name = T'Chaka
| image          = <!-- filename format only -->
| imagesize      = <!-- default 250 -->
| publisher      = [[Marvel Comics]]
| debut          = ''[[Fantastic Four (comic book)|Fantastic Four]]'' #53 (July 1966)
| creators       = [[Stan Lee]] <br>(writer)<br>[[Jack Kirby]] <br>(artist)
| species        = [[Human]]
| homeworld      = [[Earth]]
| aliases        = [[Black Panther (character)|Black Panther]]
| powers         = Superhuman strength, speed, agility, stamina, durability, reflexes, and senses<br>Expert martial artist
| hero           = y
| villain        =n 
}}
'''T'Chaka''' is a fictional character appearing in [[American comic book]]s published by [[Marvel Comics]]. He is the father of [[Black Panther (character)|T'Challa]] and [[Shuri (character)|Shuri]]. He was the king of [[Wakanda]] and '''Black Panther''' before T'Challa; he inherited both titles following the death of his father, [[Azzuri (comics)|T'Chanda]] aka Azzuri the Wise.<ref name=":2">{{cite comic|story=|issue=5|title=Wakanda|Date=January 2023|Publisher=Marvel Comics}}</ref>

[[John Kani]] portrayed the character in the [[Marvel Cinematic Universe]] films ''[[Captain America: Civil War]]'' (2016) and ''[[Black Panther (film)|Black Panther]]'' (2018) while Kani's son [[Atandwa Kani|Atandwa]] portrayed a younger version of the character. Kani returned to voice alternate versions of the character in the animated [[Disney+]] series ''[[What If...? (TV series)|What If...?]]'' (2021).

==Publication history==
{{expand section|date=April 2016}}
T'Chaka first appeared in ''[[Fantastic Four (comic book)|Fantastic Four]]'' #53 (1966) and was created by [[Stan Lee]] and [[Jack Kirby]].

==Fictional character biography==
T'Chaka is the Chieftain of [[Wakanda]] who ascended to the throne after the death of his father King [[Azzuri (comics)|T'Chanda]], also known as Azzuri.<ref name=":2" /> During 1941 at the time of [[World War II]], [[Captain America]] traveled to Wakanda where he met T'Chaka. Together, they assisted [[Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos]] against [[Red Skull]] and [[Baron Strucker]].<ref>''Black Panther/Captain America: Flags of Our Fathers'' #2. Marvel Comics.</ref> T'Chaka and Captain America also faced threats from [[Master Man (Marvel Comics)|Master Man]], [[Warrior Woman (Marvel Comics)|Warrior Woman]], and [[Armless Tiger Man]] when they partook in an all-out attack on Wakanda. Armless Tiger Man even threatened to kill T'Chaka if he did not surrender.<ref>''Black Panther/Captain America: Flags of Our Fathers'' #3. Marvel Comics.</ref> Outmanned and outgunned, T'Chaka and Captain America held their own against Master Man, Warrior Woman, Armless Tiger Man, White Gorilla, and Red Skull.<ref>''Black Panther/Captain America: Flags of Our Fathers'' #4. Marvel Comics.</ref>

Sometime later, Captain America visited Wakanda and gave T'Chaka his triangle shield in exchange for some Vibranium. When he got engaged to his first wife N'Yami, T'Chaka adopted [[White Wolf (comics)|Hunter]] who T'Chaka groomed as the heir to the throne until the day N'Yami gave birth to [[Black Panther (character)|T'Challa]] and then died from childbirth. Shortly after T'Challa's birth, his brother Jakarra was born. T'Chaka later married Ramonda who gave birth to [[Shuri (character)|Shuri]].<ref>''Black Panther'' vol. 3 #30. Marvel Comics.</ref>

In the fall of 1959, T'Chaka was kidnapped by Geoffrey Sydenham of the organization ICON and brought to Latveria as part of their plan to weaken Wakanda and steal its technology.<ref>''Avengers 1959'' #4. Marvel Comics.</ref><ref>''Avengers 1959'' #1. Marvel Comics.</ref> However, [[Dum Dum Dugan]] and [[Eric Koenig]] rescue him and safely return him to Wakanda.<ref>''Avengers 1959'' #5. Marvel Comics.</ref>

Many years later, Wakanda had their technology coveted as they had no ties to any other countries.<ref name="Black Panther #10">''Black Panther'' vol. 3 #10. Marvel Comics.</ref> [[Klaw (Marvel Comics)|Ulysses Klaw]] and his mercenaries invaded Wakanda and demanded that T'Chaka give them their vibranium. When T'Chaka refused to give them vibranium, Klaw had his mercenaries kill T'Chaka. This angered T'Challa who used one of the mercenaries' weapons to destroy their camp and rendered Ulysses Klaw's right hand useless.<ref>''Fantastic Four'' #53. Marvel Comics.</ref> Afterwards, T'Challa's uncle [[S'Yan]] ruled Wakanda until he came of age to become Chieftain Wakanda.<ref name="Black Panther #10" />

==Powers and abilities==
Upon eating a special heart-shaped herb, his natural powers are enhanced. T'Chaka possesses superhuman strength, speed, agility, stamina, durability, reflexes, and senses. He is also an expert martial artist, a known weapons expert, a skilled marksman, an expert tracker and hunter, and a master tactician outside of his mutant powers.

===Weaknesses===
T'Chaka's heightened senses cause bright lights, loud noises, and strong smells to potentially overwhelm him.

==Other versions==
===Ultimate Marvel===
In the ''[[Ultimate Marvel]]'' universe, T'Chaka's full name was '''T'Chaka Udaku'''. In addition to T'Challa, he was also the father of [[Man-Ape#Ultimate Marvel|M'Baku]].<ref>''Ultimate Captain America Annual'' #1. Marvel Comics.</ref>

===Ultimate Universe===
An alternate universe variant of T'Chaka from Earth-6160 appears in "[[Ultimate Invasion]]". This version was killed by a suicide bomber working for [[Ra (Marvel Comics)|Ra]] and [[Khonshu (Marvel Comics)#Ultimate Universe|Khonshu]].<ref>''Ultimate Black Panther'' #1. Marvel Comics.</ref>

==In other media==
===Animation===
T'Chaka, based on the [[Ultimate Marvel]] incarnation, appears in ''[[Marvel Animated Features#Ultimate Avengers 2: Rise of the Panther|Ultimate Avengers II]]'', voiced by [[Dave Fennoy]].<ref name="btva">{{cite web |title=Black Panther / T'Chaka Voices (Black Panther) |url=https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/characters/Black-Panther/Black-Panther-TChaka/ |access-date=August 16, 2024 |publisher=Behind The Voice Actors}} A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.</ref> This version possessed the ability to transform into a humanoid black panther and was killed by a [[Chitauri]] disguised as Nazi general Herr Kleiser.

===Film===
====Marvel Cinematic Universe====
{{See also|T'Chaka (Marvel Cinematic Universe)}}
T'Chaka appears in media set in the [[Marvel Cinematic Universe]] (MCU), portrayed by [[John Kani]] as an adult and [[Atandwa Kani]] as a young adult.
* T'Chaka first appears in the live-action film ''[[Captain America: Civil War]]'',<ref name="CastListFansided">{{cite web|url=https://fansided.com/2016/04/14/captain-america-civil-war-cast-list/|title=Captain America: Civil War cast list|last=Tylwalk|first=Nick|publisher=Fansided|date=April 14, 2016|access-date=May 6, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160414233325/http://fansided.com/2016/04/14/captain-america-civil-war-cast-list/|archive-date=April 14, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> in which he and his son [[T'Challa (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|T'Challa]] attend a United Nations conference to ratify the [[Sokovia Accords]] before [[Helmut Zemo (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|Helmut Zemo]] detonates a bomb near the building, which kills T'Chaka.
* T'Chaka appears in the live-action film ''[[Black Panther (film)|Black Panther]]'' (2018).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.co.za/2017/01/16/atandwa-and-john-kani-are-in-atlanta-and-all-the-signs-point-to/|title=Atandwa and John Kani Are In Atlanta And All The Signs Point To Them Joining The 'Black Panther' Cast|last=Koopman|first=Sarah|work=The Huffington Post|date=Jan 16, 2017|access-date=Jan 23, 2017|archive-date=January 19, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170119054356/http://www.huffingtonpost.co.za/2017/01/16/atandwa-and-john-kani-are-in-atlanta-and-all-the-signs-point-to/|url-status=dead}}</ref> In flashbacks, he confronted his [[War Dogs (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|War Dog]] brother [[N'Jobu]] for helping [[Ulysses Klaue (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|Ulysses Klaue]] steal Vibranium from them and attempting to force Wakanda to take on a more aggressive foreign policy to fight social injustice, which led to T'Chaka killing N'Jobu in self-defense. Concerned with maintaining Wakanda's security, he subsequently abandoned his nephew [[Erik Killmonger (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|Erik Stevens]]. Upon learning of what happened and amidst Erik's effort to take over Wakanda in the present, T'Challa confronts T'Chaka and their ancestors in the ancestral plane before vowing to correct their mistakes.
* Alternate timeline variants of T'Chaka appear in the [[Disney+]] animated series ''[[What If...? (TV series)|What If...?]].''<ref name="FullCast">{{Cite web |last=Campbell |first=Scott |date=August 1, 2021 |title=Here Are All the Marvel Actors Doing Voices in 'What If...?' |url=https://collider.com/marvel-what-if-voice-cast-explained/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210802020126/https://collider.com/marvel-what-if-voice-cast-explained/ |archive-date=August 2, 2021 |access-date=August 1, 2021 |website=[[Collider (website)|Collider]]}}</ref><ref name="btva" />
** In "[[What If... T'Challa Became a Star-Lord?]]", T'Chaka was first seen in a flashback advising his son T'Challa against exploring the outskirts of Wakanda which led to him getting abducted by the Ravagers by mistake and becoming [[Star-Lord T'Challa|Star Lord]]. He would later be reunited with his son when he and the Ravagers come to Wakanda and hears about his exploits throughout the galaxy.
** In "[[What If... Killmonger Rescued Tony Stark?]]", T'Chaka meets his estranged nephew [[Killmonger (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|Killmonger]] after he brings Ulysses Klaue's dead body to him sometime after T'Challa's death.
** In "[[What If... Peter Quill Attacked Earth's Mightiest Heroes?]]", a younger T'Chaka is among the heroes recruited by [[Howard Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|Howard]] Stark and [[Peggy Carter (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|Peggy Carter]] to fight a young [[Peter Quill (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|Peter Quill]] and [[Ego (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|Ego]].

===Television===
* T'Chaka as the Black Panther makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in the ''[[X-Men: The Animated Series]]'' episode "Sanctuary".<!-- As confirmed in X-Men '97 S1E10, the Black Panther currently active in this continuity is T'Chaka, not T'Challa.-->
* T'Chaka appears in the ''[[Fantastic Four (1994 TV series)|Fantastic Four]]'' episode "Panther's Prey", voiced by [[Beau Weaver]].
* T'Chaka appears in a flashback in the ''[[Black Panther (TV series)|Black Panther]]'' (2011) episode "Revenge of the Evil", voiced by [[Jonathan Adams (American actor)|Jonathan Adams]].<ref name="btva" />
* T'Chaka appears in ''[[The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes]]'' episode "The Man in the Ant Hill", voiced by [[Hakeem Kae-Kazim]].<ref name="btva" /> This version was killed by [[Man-Ape]] and Klaw.
* T'Chaka appears in ''[[Avengers Assemble (TV series)|Avengers Assemble]]'', voiced by [[Keith David]] as an adult and [[James C. Mathis III]] as a child.<ref name="btva" /> This version provided Howard Stark with the Vibranium used in the creation of Captain America's shield after he helped him fend off a [[Hydra (comics)|HYDRA]] invasion during [[World War II]], before later dying under unspecified circumstances.
* T'Chaka as the Black Panther appears in the ''[[X-Men '97]]'' episode "Tolerance is Extinction - Part 3", voiced by Isaac Robinson-Smith.<ref>{{Cite web |title=X-Men '97: Every Marvel Cameo in the Season Finale |url=https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/x-men-97-episode-10-finale-marvel-cameos-explained-spider-man-daredevil-mutants/ |access-date=2024-05-19 |website=TV Shows |date=15 May 2024 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="btva" />

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://marvel.fandom.com/wiki/T'Chaka_%28Earth-616%29 T'Chaka] at Marvel Wiki
* [http://comicvine.gamespot.com/tchaka/4005-62659/ T'Chaka] at Comic Vine

{{Black Panther}}
{{Stan Lee}}
{{Jack Kirby}}

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[[Category:African superheroes]]
[[Category:Characters created by Jack Kirby]]
[[Category:Characters created by Stan Lee]]
[[Category:Comics characters introduced in 1966]]
[[Category:Fictional World War II veterans]]
[[Category:Male characters in film]]
[[Category:Marvel Comics characters who can move at superhuman speeds]]
[[Category:Marvel Comics martial artists]]
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[[Category:Marvel Comics characters with superhuman senses]]
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[[Category:Jungle superheroes]]
[[Category:Wakandans]]