The Avengers really did Africa dirty. Let me explain.
Last week in part one I touched on how the exploitation of Africa's resources is a reoccurring practice in the wider MCU. Well, Avengers: Age of Ultron is the movie that confirmed this theory for me. However, exploitation aside, the Avengers are also responsible for most of the damage caused in Age of Ultron, which came back to haunt them in later movies.
But we already know what happened, so let's move on to the part where Africa and her people get involved.
Wakanda, Vibranium and Klaue
The fact that Ulysses Klaue was introduced in Age of Ultron three years prior to his reappearance in 2018's Black Panther is really mind-blowing in retrospect. That kind of interconnected worldbuilding and storytelling is what most of us love about the MCU. Everything is connected. And speaking of connections, it comes as no surprise that Tony Stark knows Ulysses Klaue. He even mentions how they met at a black market arms convention several years before he became Iron Man. Just another reminder that Tony hasn't always been the hero we now know him to be.
Anyway, Klaue's introduction into the MCU is a significant landmark for African representation in the MCU because of his connection to Vibranium and the fictional East African country of Wakanda. Through Klaue we learn that Wakanda's most coveted resource is Vibranium. He manages to steal several tons of it which Ultron later uses to destroy much of the fictional European country known as Sokovia.
What's funny is that prior to this, the Avengers and the American government believed that the last of Wakanda's Vibranium was used in the creation of Captain America's shield. Of course we later find out in Black Panther that Wakanda has lots more to spare, but let's break down what this would imply.
If the last of Wakanda's Vibranium was supposedly used to make Captain America's shield, wouldn't that clearly be exploitation of African resources? Think about it. If the last of Wakanda's most valuable natural resource was used to make a shield for a hero who doesn't fight on their behalf, then isn't that just exploitation?
I find it hilarious how Age of Ultron just breezes over this tiny detail. None of the Avengers care that Wakandan Vibranium was extracted (probably illegally) to make a shield that, quite frankly, hasn't been of much use to the Wakandan people. And the real cherry on top is that even more Vibranium was stolen and eventually used to destroy an entire country in Europe. Wow. The Avengers surely are chaotic.
And you know what else is chaotic? The fight between Iron Man and the Hulk which took place in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The Duel of Johannesburg... and the Scarlett Witch
This scene is one of my favorite fight scenes in the entire MCU. Moments before this scene takes place, we see Elizabeth Olsen's Scarlett Witch manipulate the Avengers' minds to make them see their worst fears. I've always found it peculiar how we're never shown Banner's darkest fear, but then we see how he reacts to it. His fear is probably the raging monster within himself that ultimately destroys everything he touches. It's a sad existence, to live under the pressure of such a fear. So I do not blame him for the damage caused.
I blame the Scarlett Witch.
Wanda Maximoff (aka Scarlett Witch) is arguably the one most responsible for the damage caused in Age of Ultron. I get that she's a product of her circumstances and I understand that she couldn't have possibly known what would happen, but she is the one who unleashed the Hulk on Johannesburg. If it were not for her, hundreds of South Africans wouldn't have been injured.
That being said, I believe she's only a young adult in this movie, having just recently come out of her teenage years. This doesn't excuse her or make her any less accountable, but her upbringing is something that she had no control over and it led her to become this way.
So rather than demand reparations from Wanda alone, I think the entire Avengers team needed to pay for what went down in Johannesburg. I know for a fact that Stark had the money to pull off such reparations. Unfortunately, he decides to build a whole new Avengers facility at the end of the movie. Money that should've gone to rehabilitate survivors of the incidents in Johannesburg and Sokovia. But hey, that's life for you.
Anyway, be sure to come back next Friday. I will be discussing Captain America: Civil War and the introduction of Chadwick Boseman's (may he rest in power) Black Panther.
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