If you’ve checked out the newest trailer for the upcoming Eternals movie, you probably spotted the Dane Whitman, aka the Black Knight. The character will be played by Jon Snow himself, Kit Harrington, which is kind of fitting. Let’s just hope he knows a little more at this character. Oh yeah, you Game of Thrones fans get that reference. But his appearance in the new Eternals trailer was very brief and we only saw him in his civilian identity. What does that mean? Well, that tells me The Eternals will have Dane Whitman make his live-action debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but he might not become the Black Knight in the movie. If that’s the case, then why even have him be in the movie? If it’s just to introduce him to the MCU, then it sounds like a missed opportunity.
But let’s just assume that Dane Whitman will have a more significant supporting role in The Eternals. Given that he’s a hero, he’ll more than likely be a good help for them. That is, however, if he manages to obtain his famous weapon, the Ebony blade and probably wear his armor. And of course, they can’t leave out his artificially created flying horse, the noble white steed Aragorn. You get those things, and we have ourselves the true Black Knight of the MCU. The thing is, I’m not sure if Marvel will upgrade him to that status just yet, especially when he’s just a supporting character in The Eternals.
I really want to see Dane Whitman actually become the Black Knight in the MCU, but somehow I doubt that will happen in The Eternals. The fact that he’s finally making his debut, however, makes me very excited, as I believe he’s widely underused in the comics. In fact, let’s breakdown Dane Whitman and how he found himself becoming the Black Knight of Marvel Comics.
When you hear about the Black Knight, it’s easy what to picture in your heads. You’ll probably think of the tall, intimidating, armor-wearing knight, completely covered from head to toe in black medieval armor. Just watch Monty Python and the Holy Grail and you’ll get a the perfect visual example. You know, aside from him losing his limbs and still being alive. In short, we all imagine the Black Knight being the ultimate badass medieval warrior who doesn’t show his face. He’s an incredible character in your average fairly tale stories, because he’s just tearing through everyone who challenges him. That’s a really cool character to take note of, which is why Marvel brought him over to their comics.
But the Black Knight of Marvel Comics didn’t begin with Dane Whitman. Oh, it goes back much, much further than that. First of all, how did Dane Whitman even become this character? Well, it goes back to the early days of Marvel Comics, back when the Avengers fought a rather forgotten villain named Nathan Garrett. Nathan Garrett was a college professor who was secretly selling government secrets to foreign governments. He was eventually discovered and taken into custody by Giant-Man, or Hank Pym. Garrett eventually escaped and fled to Europe, where he discovered the tomb of Sir Percy, the original Black Knight. By discovering the tomb, he also found the Black Knight’s signature weapon, the Ebony Blade. Garrett, however, was denied the blade, due to his villainous nature.
This prompted him to devise an arsenal of medieval weapons with a more scientific edge to them. For example, he created a long lance that could fire bolts of energy, heat beams, and electrical charges. Given his background as a gifted scientist with vast knowledge in the fields of genetics, biology, and engineering, recreating his own Black Knight persona was easy for him. In fact, he was able to genetically engineer the winged horse called Aragorn. He then returned to America to enact revenge on Giant-Man, but was defeated. After that, he became a founding member of Baron Heinrich Zemo’s Masters of Evil, taking part in several battles with them against The Avengers.
Nathan Garrett eventually met his demise while battling Iron Man in the sky. Garrett fell from his winged horse and in his mortally wounded state, summoned his only living relative: his nephew, Dane Whitman. As a way to repent for his crimes, Garrett asked his nephew to take up the Black Knight mantle and build a more honorable legacy than the one he left behind. After his death, Dane Whitman decided to become the Black Knight of the Marvel Universe. This didn’t sit well with some other Marvel heroes, as he was directly related to one of their original enemies. However, Dane Whitman proved to be a far more heroic version of the Black Knight than his uncle, even taking Aragorn as his trusted steed.
That’s how Dane Whitman became the Black Knight, but the story of the Black Knight of Marvel itself goes even further. It turns out that Sir Percy of Scandia is an ancestor of both Nathan Garrett and Dane Whitman. He was one of King Arthur’s Knights of the Round Table, who was recruited by the wizard Merlin. His signature weapon: the Ebony Blade, which Merlin forged from a meteorite. With King Arthur and Merlin, Sir Percy often battled the villains Mordred the Evil and Morgan le Fay. During the fall of Castle Scandia, Sir Percy was stabbed in the back by Mordred, but Merlin casted a spell that will keep Sir Percy’s spirit alive if Mordred ever returned.
This all came full-circle when Dane Whitman became the Black Knight and took up the Ebony Blade as his weapon. While the blade itself was immensely powerful, it came with a blood curse. Due to all the blood that was spilled by the blade, the person wielding it will eventually fall under its curse. In other words, the wielder will enter a state of berserker rage. This makes for an intriguing character flaw and Dane Whitman even once abandoned the sword because of it.
These are the things we need to see from Dane Whitman in the MCU. I highly doubt The Eternals will cover all of this, but I think we need to see Dane Whitman learn about his lineage. This could be a good way to dip the toe in the water for a new character who can expand the boundaries of the MCU. What are your thoughts, Marvel fans?Kit Harrington
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