Black Panther #8

Mar 1978 · Marvel · 0.35 USD

📊 ~43,451 copies sold its debut month

☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join free

“Panthers or Pussycats?”

★ 1st appearance — Khanata

About this Issue

Black Panther #8 marks a decisive turning point in Jack Kirby's solo run on the series: after seven issues of globe-trotting, pulp-adventure storytelling, Kirby pivots the narrative back to Wakanda itself, introducing the Wakandan Royal Family en masse for the first time. The issue delivers the first appearances of Ishanta, Khanata, and Zuni — three members of what would soon coalesce into the Black Musketeers — and presents an in-issue retelling of T'Challa's trial-by-combat origin as he races home to confront his vibranium-mutated half-brother Jakarra. By populating Wakanda with a full cast of distinct royal relatives, each with their own personality and skill set, Kirby expanded the nation's mythology far beyond what any previous writer had attempted, laying groundwork for the dynastic storytelling that later creators would continue to mine for decades.

In "Panthers or Pussycats?", T'Challa returns to Wakanda to confront the legacy of his rise to power, recalling the trial by combat that made him Black Panther. As the royal family—Joshua Itobo, Ishanta, Khanata, and Zuni—answer N'Gassi's call, tensions flare ahead of a battle against the mutated Jakarra. Written and illustrated by Jack Kirby, with inks by Mike Royer and colors by Glynis Wein, this 1978 Marvel classic features Kirby's dynamic cover art, completed by Frank Giacoia inks.

writer, artist Jack Kirby · inker, letterer Mike Royer · colorist Glynis Wein · cover Jack Kirby, Frank Giacoia

ComicBooks.com Value

Our Model is In Beta

Raw (Fine) $8

CGC 9.8 · 71 in census $238

CGC 9.6 · 92 in census $69

CGC 9.4 · 52 in census $45*

CGC 9.2 · 14 in census $32

CGC 9.0 · 12 in census $29

CGC 8.5 · 9 in census $29*

Show all 16 grades ▾

CGC 8.0 · 7 in census $29*

CGC 7.5 · 4 in census $29

CGC 7.0 · 2 in census $20*

CGC 6.5 · 1 in census $20*

CGC 6.0 · 2 in census $20*

CGC 5.5 none in existence

CGC 5.0 · 1 in census $20*

CGC 4.5 none in existence

CGC 4.0 none in existence

CGC 3.5 · 1 in census $20*

* estimate — limited direct-sales data at this grade

Our model’s value — refined as new sales data arrives · CGC census counts shown where available

Find on ebay

Search eBay for Black Panther #8 ▸

No confirmed live listings for this exact issue right now — this opens an eBay search.

Read it digitally

Marvel Unlimited Marvel’s subscription reader ▸ Amazon Kindle Buy the digital edition ▸

Opens a search on each platform — digital availability varies by title.

Sell my copy

Have this issue — or a whole collection? Get a fair offer from us, skip the marketplace fees and the hassle.

We Buy Collections ▸

Fast, fair offers · we handle grading & shipping

History

Kirby returned to Marvel in the mid-1970s after his years at DC and assumed sole writer-penciler-editor duties on the Black Panther's first self-titled solo series, launched in January 1977. Archie Goodwin served as a second editor, with Mike Royer on inks and lettering and Glynis Wein on colors; the cover for issue #8 was inked by Frank Giacoia rather than Royer. The series arrived directly on the heels of the cancelled Jungle Action run where Don McGregor and Billy Graham had established a grittier, politically charged Wakanda, and Kirby's approach — more high-concept adventure with a lighter hand on continuity — drew some criticism from readers who followed the character across both volumes, though the shift to a Wakanda-set storyline beginning with issue #8 was broadly seen as a welcome re-grounding of the character in his homeland.

Trivia · 8 facts

Cover-dated March 1978 (on-sale March 10, 1978); part of the Black Panther Vol. 1 series (1977–1979), which was Marvel's first self-titled solo Black Panther ongoing.
Story title: 'Panthers or Pussycats?' — written, penciled, and co-edited by Jack Kirby; inked by Mike Royer; colored by Glynis Wein; cover pencils by Jack Kirby, cover inks by Frank Giacoia; Archie Goodwin served as series editor.
First appearances of Ishanta, Khanata, and Zuni — three members of T'Challa's extended royal family who would band together as the Black Musketeers beginning in Black Panther #9.
First appearance of Nick Scarpa, an American gangster whose confrontation with T'Challa mid-flight causes their plane to crash off the African coast, delaying T'Challa's return to Wakanda.
The issue includes a flashback retelling of T'Challa's trial by combat to claim the title of Black Panther and leadership of the Panther Cult — one of the earliest in-series restatements of his origin.
Jakarra — T'Challa's half-brother who mutated after exposing himself to raw vibranium — attacks the Wakandan royal family in the palace, driven off only by Wakandan military forces, setting up the multi-issue arc that runs through Black Panther #10.
The issue has been reprinted multiple times, including in Black Panther by Jack Kirby Vol. 2 (2006), Essential Black Panther Vol. 1 (2012, black and white), Marvel Masterworks: The Black Panther Vol. 2 (2016), and Black Panther Epic Collection Vol. 2: Revenge of the Black Panther (2019), as well as international editions in Australia (Yaffa/Page), Greece (Kabanas Hellas), Italy (Editoriale Corno), and France (Arédit-Artima).
Key Collector Comics identifies this issue as containing the origin of the Black Panther (via flashback) and the first appearance of Khanata among its primary key designations.