00:00You can't navigate the vast expanse of the Marvel Cinematic Universe or the comics that
00:04inspired it without coming across Vibranium in one form or another. From Captain America's
00:09iconic shield to the arm of the Winter Soldier, Vibranium has been popping up on screen since
00:14the very early stages of the MCU. Fans of the MCU will now be more than aware of Vibranium's
00:19incredible capabilities after seeing that demonstrated in glorious detail in many of
00:24the franchise's more dramatic showdowns. Whether it be Falcon soaring through the sky
00:28in his new suit or bullets literally bouncing off Black Panther, the incredible uses and
00:33properties of Vibranium have been on display in Marvel films and comics for years. However,
00:38considering that it debuted in the comics in 1966, it's hardly surprising that even the
00:43most die-hard fans may have forgotten some of the more obscure facts about the world's
00:48toughest metal. This is a meal from WhatCulture and here's 10 things you didn't know about
00:52Vibranium. 10. Vibranium arrived on Earth in a meteor.
00:57Appearing with a bang, Vibranium first arrived on the planet 2.5 million years ago within
01:03a meteorite that landed in a small region in Africa. This meteor had a peculiar and welcome
01:08effect on the ecosystem it landed in. In a mysterious turn of events, the soil and the
01:13plant life in the region suddenly exploded with fertility. And as time passed and man eventually
01:18evolved on the continent, five tribes made their way to the area, making it their home.
01:23Now Marvel fans will know instantly this sequence describes the birth of the country of Wakanda,
01:28which would become home to the Avenger Black Panther. While on Earth, Vibranium is most closely
01:33associated with Wakanda for obvious reasons. The Wakandans possess and guard the planet's
01:38Vibranium supply. Despite this, the fact that Vibranium arrived from outer space means that
01:43it is originally an extraterrestrial material, a theory that has already been confirmed in an
01:48edition of the comics featuring Captain Marvel.
01:519. Another version of Vibranium exists in Antarctica. In the Marvel comics, the first instance of
01:56Vibranium being discovered by humans took place in Antarctica. However, this version of Vibranium
02:02bore a key difference to that of the Vibranium Marvel fans have become familiar with. Showing
02:07up for the first time in a 1966 edition of Daredevil, it doesn't manipulate kinetic energy. Instead,
02:12this version of Vibranium dissolves other metals, earning it the appropriate name of anti-metal,
02:17as it possesses the ability to cut through any metal. Anti-metal is discovered in a region
02:22of Antarctica dubbed the Savage Land. Now this bizarre region was created 200 million years ago
02:27by the Nawali, an ancient group of aliens that progressed to advanced levels of technology
02:32millions of years before most species were learning to rub twigs together to make fire.
02:37The Savage Land is a separate contained ecosystem within Antarctica, a tropical landscape circled
02:43by volcanoes and inhabited by dinosaurs and humanoid creatures dubbed Man-Apes. This mind-blowing
02:48location is discovered by explorer Robert Plunder. His sons Kevin and Parnival go on to become the
02:53superhero Khazar and the cunning Daredevil 4 the Plunderer respectively in the comics.
02:588. Captain America Met Black Panther Defending Wakanda's Vibranium from the Nazis.
03:03While Captain America and Black Panther meet for the first time under the MCU banner in 2016's Civil
03:08War, events play out a little differently in the comics. These two iconic characters actually meet
03:14during World War 2 as depicted in the 2010 comic, Flags of Our Fathers. Rogers is dispatched to Wakanda
03:21to prevent Nazis led by the Red Skull from stealing Vibranium from Wakanda. On his arrival, he soon finds
03:26himself face to face with the Black Panther of that time period. Much like the events depicted by the Civil
03:32War film, the two heroes actually go toe to toe upon meeting for the first time, eventually teaming up
03:37to decimate the incoming Nazi attack with the help of Nick Fury. During this conflict, Cap's triangular
03:43original shield made of ordinary metal is destroyed. He is subsequently gifted with a round vibranium
03:48shield by Black Panther which inspires the iconic circular shield he wields in his later adventures.
03:54This is quite a shift from the MCU canon where Rogers' original shield is forged by Howard Stark,
04:00who confides that making that shield used virtually all of the vibranium stores he had access to.
04:05Safe to say it was worth it in the long run. 7. The vibranium in Black Panther's suit robs
04:10incoming objects of momentum. Anyone who has seen Black Panther will be awestruck at the seemingly
04:16endless capabilities of the suit donned by T'Challa played by the late great Chadwick Boseman. The heart
04:22shaped herb that he ingests in the Wakandan tradition, granting him near superhuman strength,
04:26speed and agility, draws its powers from the vibranium enriched soil where the meteor landed.
04:32Coupled with his vibranium weave suit, it is easy to see why Black Panther is such a formidable hero.
04:38The science behind the suit is incredibly interesting. The vibranium weave material robs
04:42incoming items of kinetic energy and stores it for use at a later time. Bullets fired back at Black
04:48Panther quite literally do nothing but make him stronger, as the suit can disperse the stored kinetic
04:53energy at his discretion. Look no further than T'Challa's chase of arms dealer Ulysses Klaus in
04:582018's outing. Black Panther uses the stored energy to blast away a carload of goons after absorbing a
05:03haul of gunfire during a chase through the streets of South Korea. Some might argue the suit gives T'Challa
05:09an almost unassailable advantage over most of his foes. The playing field would be considerably more level
05:14were it not for the involvement of vibranium. I mean, give the rest of us a chance please Black Panther.
05:196. A scientist experimenting with vibranium discovered adamantium. While fans of the MCU
05:25may be familiar with Captain America's shield or Falcon's suit, newer fans who may not have read the
05:29comics might be unaware that another unforgettable superhero owes his powers in part to vibranium.
05:35That's the X-Men's poster boy Wolverine. In the comics, scientist Myron McLean stumbles upon a small
05:40amount of vibranium. He attempts to bond it with other metals in order to create a new super strong alloy,
05:45but fails time and time again. However, following yet another failed experiment,
05:50McLean accidentally created a new metal, virtually immune to destruction, adamantium.
05:55As all die-hard Marvel fans are aware, adamantium is the substance that eventually bonds with Logan's
06:00skeleton, resulting in his transformation into the essentially indestructible razor-clawed Wolverine.
06:06He remains one of the most recognizable and well-known superheroes in comic history to this day,
06:11following Hugh Jackman's unforgettable 13-year tenure in the X-Men films. It's hard to process
06:17that according to the comics, had a meteor not crashed in Africa millions of years ago,
06:22the world might never have seen one of the most archetypal superheroes of the last 50 years
06:26bear his famous claws on screen. 5. Vibranium concussion huge falls.
06:32Due to vibranium's ability to absorb kinetic energy, the logic-defying substance can also be used to
06:38great effect when jumping from great heights. Conveniently enough, this comes in handy extremely
06:43often when you're a superhero and plunging from great heights is all in a day's work.
06:47Black Panther's suit exemplifies vibranium's impact dampening effect perfectly. T'Challa is able to
06:53consistently plummet from great heights and hit objects at great speed, emerging unscathed in the
06:57process. The vibranium that comprises the suit absorbs the impact from forces that would turn your
07:02average citizen into a meat pancake. Captain America can also be seen using his shield to disperse the
07:08impact of falls to great effect throughout his appearances in the MCU. You know, it's not just a
07:13glorified frisbee, right? But there are limits to the amount of energy vibranium can store, so I
07:19wouldn't go skydiving without the parachute relying on vibranium to save you. However, considering the
07:25limits of how much energy vibranium can absorb are yet to be established in the comics, a standard MCU
07:3050-foot drop, it should be a piece of cake, or you'll turn into one.
07:354. A company has created a real-life form of vibranium. While vibranium as depicted in the
07:41MCU is obviously a fictional metal, the ultra-adaptable qualities of the material has inspired a real-life
07:47version of the notoriously useful Marvel staple. Hyperloop transportation systems have developed their
07:52own smart material that they have christened vibranium, which they're planning to use in their
07:57Hyperloop systems in the near future. A prototype system that'll connect the regions of the United
08:02Arab Emirates is currently in development, which will lead to US variants if testing is successful.
08:08Dirk Allborn, the founder of the company, has boasted of the extraordinary capabilities
08:12of their version of vibranium. He posits that their material is intelligent and can actually sense
08:18integrity and react adaptively to impact, offering greater protection to passengers on board
08:23in the unlikely event of an accident. This version of vibranium is allegedly eight times lighter than
08:28aluminium, while boasting strength ten times that of steel versions, and the plan is to use the
08:33material in the outer layers of the Hyperloop's transportation pods. Who knows, you could be
08:37barrelling to work one day soon in a pod made of vibranium-inspired material.
08:423. Vibranium can be sentient. Vibranium's incredible adaptability is no surprise when one
08:48considers that a living version of the substance actually exists in Wakanda. Sentient vibranium
08:53is discovered in a Wakandan cave by the Dora Milaje, an elite personal guard to the King of
08:58Wakanda. The vibranium discovered within the cave has the uncanny ability to cause earthquakes and
09:04disrupt local ecosystems in addition to other natural phenomena. The Dora Milaje actually take this
09:09sentient vibranium into their bodies. Members who spent years fine-tuning their abilities within the
09:14cave eventually absorb the substance through their skin. They also use this vibranium in their spears,
09:20allowing them to better bond with the substance and connect with the environment around them.
09:25Just like Ultron and with all intelligence, sentient vibranium can be extremely dangerous in certain
09:31circumstances. This version of vibranium mimics the nature of the person absorbing it down to their
09:36very core, while forming a distinct personality of its own at the same time. A member of the Dora Milaje
09:41with a flawed personality who goes on to absorb the sentient iteration runs the risk of the darker
09:46aspects of their personality being multiplied and taking control of them, with potentially devastating
09:51consequences. Two, a member of the new X-Men uses vibranium tattoos to stay alive. A lesser known fact
09:58surrounding vibranium is tied up in the backstory of member of the new X-Men, the disarmingly named
10:03Gentle. Born to a Wakandan mother, Gentle's mutation derives from his Russian father. He has the ability to
10:10dramatically increase or decrease muscle mass at his discretion. While this imbues him with super
10:15strength and durability, he is abused and treated as an outsider by his own mother due to his X-Gene.
10:21T'Challa eventually takes pity on him and sends him to Xavier's school for mutants.
10:26But what does this have to do with vibranium? Well, Gentle's body is covered from head to toe
10:30in vibranium tattoos. As a result of the psychological trauma from his upbringing,
10:35he is prone to fits and seizures which the vibranium tattoos alleviate. Over time they've bonded with
10:41his muscle tissue and glow blue whenever he uses his powers. After watching Captain America bash bad
10:46guys to pieces with the help of his trusty vibranium shield for years, it is hardly surprising that the
10:50medical properties of vibranium may have gone unnoticed by the wider Marvel fandom.
10:54One, Vibranium still has weaknesses. It might be an absurdly resilient metal, but vibranium has shown
11:01throughout the Marvel canon. While nearly unbreakable, the extra terrestrial metal still
11:05has weaknesses that can be exploited. While a key benefit of vibranium is that it manipulates
11:09kinetic energy, it also has the unfortunate side effect of being a superb conductor of electricity.
11:15This could spell disaster for any hero rocking a vibranium weapon or suit. Eagle Eye fans will
11:20remember Natasha Romanoff allowing Cap to escape in Civil War when she managed to slow Black Panther down
11:25to great effect using an electroshock weapon. While astonishingly resistant to damage,
11:29vibranium has been shown throughout the MCU films as a material that is ultimately breakable.
11:34It is the iconic scene in Endgame where Thanos shatters Captain America's shield with titanic
11:39blows, showing that the metal is not immune to damage of the highest degree. It has also been
11:44shown to not provide protection against telekinetic powers. Ultron's vibranium enriched final form does
11:49not do a great deal to prevent Wanda Maximoff from quite literally ripping his heart out of his chest.
11:55While astoundingly adaptable and durable, vibranium falls just short of
11:59indestructible. I don't care how strong or weak it is though, you can't stop me using it to slide
12:04down hills on a snowy day, that's for sure. Please, make it a real thing.
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