WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Marvel's Black Panther, in theaters now.
Black Panther is a fantastic film that, for the most part, avoids ties to the larger narrative of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The movie is mostly self-contained, which makes it all the more impressive in this day and age of shared universes. Even the mid-credits scene worked to further the film's story, providing an organic and fitting conclusion. There's actually only one scene that actively works to tie the events of the movie into the wider MCU, and that comes after the credits.
That sequence picks up on a thread from 2016's Captain America: Civil War, which introduced Chadwick Boseman's T'Challa, by revealing that James "Bucky" Barnes is no longer in cryogenic sleep. That might come as a surprise to some, to next see Sebastian Stan's Winter Soldier when he was needed most: in the battle against Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War. But in this post-credits scene, Bucky is already awake, and he seems to have a new peace of mind. So what has he been up to since the end of Civil War?
In the mid-credits of Captain America: Civil War, Bucky was given sanctuary by T'Challa, and placed into cryogenic sleep. He acknowledged that "I can't trust my own mind," and so the intention was for him to be placed on ice until Wakandan scientists could purge the Hydra programming that had transformed him into the assassin known as the Winter Soldier.
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Black Panther's post-credits scene was actually set up last month by Marvel Comics in Infinity War: Prelude #1, which depicts the work of T'Challa's sister Shuri (played in the film by Letitia Wright) to map Bucky's brain, in hopes of freeing him of Hydra's control and eliminating the trigger words. However, she warns her brother, it's no simple process; there's a risk of "rebooting" Bucky's mind, and erasing everything that once made Bucky who he is.
Now, in the film's closing moments, Bucky is already awake. Wakandan children approach his tent with a curiosity that comes with finding a stranger in a strange land. They call Bucky the "White Wolf," indicating familiarity -- that he's been conscious and among them for some time. What's more, they seem to trust him enough to be part of their tribe, and to interact with them and their children. He now wears the traditional clothing of Wakanda; he carries himself with a calm demeanor, and seems to possess a new clarity.
That's when we realize that Bucky is no longer the same character we last saw at the end of Civil War. With Shuri by his side, we get the idea he's learning, about Wakanda and its people, and about a different way of life. Bucky is no longer plagued by the machinations of Hydra, but he is not just returned to the man he was when we met him in 2011's Captain America: The First Avenger. Bucky is evolving; he's developing a connection with Wakanda and its people.
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Bucky is undergoing a rebirth. After the events of Civil War, and his involvement in so much death, he is on a path to redemption. With Shuri's guidance, Bucky can now get his life back, and discover who he really is. We've always known he was a hero, but perhaps he has never really known it himself. Now, Bucky is getting that chance.
This after-credits scene established the first steps in the Winter Soldier's attachment to Wakanda, something we know will next lead him to stand on the front lines when Thanos' army arrives in May in Avengers: Infinity War. This is the beginning of a new character arc for Bucky, who will fight beside Black Panther and Wakanda's armies, before joining the ranks of the Avengers. Who knows, when the dust settles, this might even lead to him wielding the Captain America mantle on a permanent basis, as previously depicted in Marvel comics.
In theaters now, director Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther stars Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa, Michael B. Jordan as Erik Killmonger, Lupita Nyong’o as Nakia, Daniel Kaluuya as W’Kabi, Letitia Wright as Shuri, Danai Gurira as Okoye, Angela Bassett as Ramonda, Martin Freeman as Everett K. Ross, Andy Serkis as Ulysses Klaue, Winston Duke as M’Baku and Forest Whitaker as Zuri.