Speaking of historical fiction, last month I saw the play Guards at the Taj at Stage West Theatre. It's about lowly guards standing outside the gates of the Taj Mahal, and this is the last weekend it's playing, so catch it if you can, or if it ever comes to your area. The play starts out with a comical argument between the two guards about whether they are allowed to see the recently completed monument, but then it goes into darker themes. (It's based on the macabre legend that the Shah decreed that every builder, artisan, and architect have his hands cut off so they could not make something as beautiful as the Taj Mahal again.) So then the play becomes about the nature of beauty, power, and friendship. It's very dramatic and thought provoking, though I'm confused about the final scene, which is supposed to take place in the future. I'm glad that the legend does not appear to be true, but the fictional story is makes for a good character study for the actors.
Meanwhile, I saw Wakanda Forever and enjoyed its story about grief, colonialism, and war. Rather than Namor being king of Atlantis, his backstory is changed to Mesoamerica at the time of the European conquest. This recontextualizes the underwater kingdom and their fight to hide their own vibranium supply. He tries to negotiate an alliance with Wakanda but insists on killing the scientist who invented the vibranium detector, which Shuri can't condone. I didn't really like the subplot with the CIA. Like why do I care that Ross was married to that lady? Anyway, the crisis in Wakanda really takes a toll on Ramonda, Okoye, and Nakia; even M'baku tries to help Shuri deal with everything. I liked it overall, and they created a really rich character in Namor, whom Marvel will presumably feature in future stories. I'm just a little confused because people said online that M'baku became king because Shuri didn't show up to the ceremony at the waterfalls?
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